THE OX AND THE BISON 



155 



were one of the wonders of the West, and the Indians 

 followed them with reckless daring, but to-day they are a 

 mere memory. 



There is a European bison that bears a close resem- 

 blance to the ordinary American form. It has been 

 saved from extinction by the various emperors of Russia, 



who have succeeded 

 in collecting a herd 

 of about eight hun- 

 dred in the forest of 

 Bialowicza, Lithu- 

 ania, and have pre- 

 vented the destruction 



of those running wild 



Fig. 134. — The Indian Buffalo. . .1 ^ 



^ in the Caucasus. 



Allied to the bison is the Indian buffalo, with its enor- 

 mous horns and slight hump. It is a most savage animal to 

 hunt (Fig. 134), yet it has been domesticated, 

 and in the Philippines is one of the most 

 valuable of animals, in fact 

 the only one that 

 can be used in the 

 flooded rice fields 

 This buffalo is 

 a water-loving 

 form, more . 

 at home in 

 some swamp 

 than on dry land 



Fig. 135. — The Yak. 



In Central Asia the yak (Fig. 135) is one of the valu- 

 able animals. It is found wild in the semi-mountainous 



