38 BUFFALO LAND. 



A worthy man, as before remarked, was the pro- 

 fessor, full of knowledge, genial in camp, and, having 

 rubbed his eye-tooth on a section stone, geological 

 authority of the highest order. When the professor 

 said a particular rock belonged to the cretaceous for- 

 mation, one might safely conclude that no modern 

 influences had been at work either on that rock or 

 in that vicinity. That question was settled. 



Next came Tammany Sachem, our heavy weight 

 and our mystery. Before joining our party, he had 

 been a New York alderman, noted for prowess in 

 annual aldermanic clam-bakes at Coney Island. He 

 was wont to exhibit a medal, the prize of such a 

 tournament, on which several immense clams were 

 racing to the griddle, for the honor of being devoured 

 by the city fathers. 



A green-ribbed hunting coat traversed his rotund- 

 ity, which had the generous swell of a puncheon. 

 His face was reddish, and his nose like a beacon- 

 light against a sunset sky. When you thought him 

 awake, he was half asleep ; when you thought him 

 asleep, he was wide awake. A look of extreme 

 happiness always beamed on his face when mis- 

 fortunes impended. Per contra, successes made him 

 suspicious and morose. New York aldermen have 

 always been a puzzle to the nation at large. Per- 

 haps our friend's facial contradictions, put on origin- 

 ally as one of the tricks of the trade, had become 

 chronic from long usage. We have since learned 

 that the sachems of Tammany laugh the loudest 

 and joke the most freely when under affliction. 



When I was appointed editor, the Sachem volun- 



