256 BUFFALO LAND. 



your finger presses the trigger, the muzzle may be 

 directed toward the zenith or the earth. An expe- 

 rienced hunter steadies his arm, not allowing it to 

 take part in the motion of his body, no matter how 

 rough the latter may be. But we were not expe- 

 rienced hunters, and so, although such exclamations 

 as, " That told ! " " Mine went through ! " and " Per- 

 fectly riddled! " were almost as numerous as the bul- 

 lets, it was easy to see that the flying monster re- 

 mained unharmed. 



From the first, Mr, Colon had fired without taking 

 any aim whatever, and so it happened that his gun, 

 in describing its half circle consequent upon the 

 rising and falling motion of the horse, at length went 

 off at the proper moment, and we heard the thud of 

 the ball as it struck. Dropping his head into posi- 

 tion as if for a charge, the buffalo whirled sharply to 

 the right, and passing right between our horses, made 

 off toward the main herd. But he soon slowed down 

 to a walk, and as we again came up with him, we 

 could see the blood trickling from his nose, which he 

 held low like a sick ox. 



In the excitement of the chase, and perhaps from 

 being well blown before coming near the buffalo, our 

 horses had hitherto shown no fear, but now, as the old 

 bull stood there in all his savage hugeness, and the 

 smell of blood tainted the air, they pushed, jostled, 

 snorted, and pranced, so that it required all our ef- 

 forts to keep them from downright flight. Even Do- 

 been's donkey kept his rider uncertain whether his 

 destiny was to seek the ground or abide in the sad- 

 dle. 



