242 The Lordly Buffalo. 



the buffalo, for these animals had never penetrated in any 

 number to the Appalachian chain of mountains. Indeed, 

 it was after the beginning of the century before the inroads 

 of the whites upon them grew at all serious. Then, though 

 constantly driven westward, the diminution in their terri- 

 tory, if sure, was at least slow, although growing progres- 

 sively more rapid. Less than a score of years ago the 

 great herds, containing many millions of individuals, 

 ranged over a vast expanse of country that stretched in 

 an unbroken line from near Mexico to far into British 

 America ; in fact, over almost all the plains that are now 

 known as the cattle region. But since that time their 

 destruction has gone on with appalling rapidity and 

 thoroughness ; and the main factors in bringing it about 

 have been the railroads, which carried hordes of hunters 

 into the land and gave them means to transport their 

 spoils to market. Not quite twenty years since, the range 

 was broken in two, and the buffalo herds in the middle 

 slaughtered or thrust aside ; and thus there resulted two 

 ranges, the northern and the southern. The latter was 

 the larger, but being more open to the hunters, was the 

 sooner to be depopulated ; and the last of the great 

 southern herds was destroyed in 1878, though scattered 

 bands escaped and wandered into the desolate wastes to 

 the southwest. Meanwhile equally savage war was waged 

 on the northern herds, and five years later the last of 

 these was also destroyed or broken up. The bulk of this 

 slaughter was done in the dozen years from 1872 to 1883 I 

 never before in all history were so many large wild animals 

 of one species slain in so short a space of time. 



