EVEN SHOOTING OF THE RIFLES. 283 



Ere we departed, an inspection of the carcase of the 

 bull gave good evidence of the exactitude with which we 

 had shot the four balls had gone in very near each other, 

 and close behind the shoulder, the only fault being that 

 they were still a little too high. I account for this not 

 only in our not having sufficiently allowed for any little 

 rise in the projection of the balls, but also from the im 

 mense depth of the animal, made still more deceiving by 

 the height of the shoulder and hump. This buffalo had 

 no tail; there was a little stump where the tail should 

 have been, not an Inch long. Perhaps, when he was a 

 calf, a wolf, in an attempt to catch him, had bitten it off. 

 Leaving our men occupied in skinning the bison, we then 

 went onwards, and at a long distance from us beheld a large 

 herd of buffaloes slowly going down to cross the creek on 

 which we were encamped. Their intention was evident, 

 and we communed with ourselves if it were possible for 

 us to reach the creek first, and, under cover, attain the 

 spot at which they would pass ; but on computing the 

 distance we should have to go to get out of their sight 

 and under the banks before them, we found the thing to 

 be impossible, so we contented ourselves with watching 

 them. They crossed the creek, and then went feeding 

 over the plains very leisurely on the other side. Letting 

 them get so far beyond us that we also could be over 

 the creek before they took any alarm, we then sur 

 mounted the difficulty, and saw that two or three buf 

 faloes were in a position to be stalked, and we dismount 

 ed to try to reach them ; but they saw us, and rejoined 

 the herd, which had fed on to very rideable prairies, where 

 there was no chance of getting near enough to reach them 

 save by a run on horseback, and on that we mutually re 

 solved. " Now ! my dear old horse," I whispered to Tay- 



