The Lordly Biijfalo. 2 55 



world no rifles more accurate or powerful ; with the larger- 

 calibred ones (45 or 50) a man could easily kill an ele- 

 phant. These weapons are excellent for very long range 

 work, being good for half a mile and over ; and sometimes 

 the hunters were able to kill very many buffalo at a time, 

 owing to their curious liability to fits of stupid, panic 

 terror. Sometimes when these panics seize them they 

 stampede and run off in headlong, heedless flight, going 

 over any thing in their way. Once, in mid-winter, one of 

 my men was lying out in the open, under a heavy roll of 

 furs, the wagon sheet over all. During the night a small 

 herd of stampeded buffalo passed by, and one of them 

 jumped on the bed, almost trampling on the sleeper, and 

 then bounded off, as the latter rose with a yell. The 

 others of the herd passed almost within arm's length on 

 each side. 



Occasionally these panic fits have the opposite effect 

 and make them run together and stand still in a stupid, 

 frightened manner. This is now and then the result when 

 a hunter fires at a herd while keeping himself concealed ; 

 and on rare occasions (for buffalo act very differently at 

 different times, according to their moods) it occurs even 

 when he is in full sight. When they are made to act 

 thus it is called in hunters' parlance getting a " stand " on 

 them ; and often thirty or forty have been killed in one 

 such stand, the hunter hardly shifting his position the 

 whole time. Often, with their long-range heavy rifles, 

 the hunters would fire a number of shots into a herd half a 

 mile off, and on approaching would find that they had 

 bagged several for the Sharps rifle has a very long 



