190 



THE AMEEICAN" BISONS. 



involve considerable expense. There lias, however, been a great falling off 

 in the annual amounts shipped since that date, in consequence of the great 

 decrease of the buffalo throughout the region through which this road passes. 

 Respecting the quantity of the products of the buffalo shipped over the 

 Atchison, Topeka, and Santa Fe Railroad during the years 1872, 1873, and 

 1874, 1 have been favored with the following statement by the General Su- 

 perintendent, Mr, C; F. Morse : — 



N 



Statement of Buffalo Products sJn2:>ped over the Atcldson, TopeJca, and Santa Fe Railroad during 



three years, from 1872 to 1875. 



r 



Hides, in 1872, 1G5,721 



*' in 1873, • 251,443 



" in 1874, . . . . 42,289 



r 

 J 



L 



-• 



Robes, in 1872, Ko account. 



« in 1873, . . ■ (t a 



in 1874, 18,489 



Meat, in 1872, No account. 



" in 1873, . . 1,617,600 lbs. 



, " in 1874, ■ . . ■ . ' 632,800 « 



-Bones, in 1872, 1,135,300 lbs. 



" in 1873, 2,743,100 '' 



" in 1874, ■. . . " 6,914,900 " 



period of 



/ 



y 



From the above statement it appears that the number of hides shipped 



a period of three years was nearly half a million, 



over this road during 



while the robes, of which the number shipped in a single year only is given, 

 would make the number exceed this sum. In addition to this number we 

 have to add, for the number of buffaloes utilized or sold as meat, only the 

 small number of from three to eight thousand a year more ! 



In answer to inquiries respecting the shipment of buffalo products over 

 the Union Pacific Railroad, I have been kindly informed by Mr. E. P. Vining, 

 General Freight Agent, that no large amount of buffalo products has been 

 received by this road, and that consequently no statistics of the business 

 have been kept, as is the case with all the important branches of their 

 business. These statistics respecting the shipments over the railroads relate 

 only to the Kansas range of the buffalo, and hence refer merely to a limited 

 district, and to the slaughter by white hunters alone. 





