THE BISON OR AMERICAN BUFFALO. 15 



with two successive bullets. This was of 

 course mainly a piece of mere luck ; but it 

 meant good shooting, too. The Ballard was 

 a very accurate, handy little weapon ; it be- 

 longed to me, and was the first rifle I ever 

 owned or used. With it I had once killed 

 a deer, the only specimen of large game I 

 had then shot ; and I presented the rifle to 

 my brother when he went to Texas. In our 

 happy ignorance we deemed it quite good 

 enough for Buffalo or anything else ; but out 

 on the plains my brother soon found himself 

 forced to procure a heavier and more deadly 

 weapon. 



When camp was pitched the horses were 

 turned loose to graze and refresh them- 

 selves after their trying journey, during which 

 they had lost flesh wofully. They were 

 watched and tended by the two men who were 

 always left in camp, and, save on rare occa- 

 sions, were only used to haul in the buffalo 

 hides. The camp-guards for the time being 

 acted as cooks ; and, though coffee and flour 

 both ran short and finally gave out, fresh meat 

 of every kind was abundant. The camp was 

 never without buffalo-beef, deer and antelope 

 venison, wild turkeys, prairie-chickens, quails, 

 ducks, and rabbits. The birds were simply 

 "potted," as occasion required; when the 

 quarry was deer or antelope, the hunters took 

 the dogs with them to run down the wounded 

 animals. But almost the entire attention of 

 the hunters was given to the buffalo. After 

 an evening spent in lounging round the camp- 



