BUFFALO-GRASS. 389 



wolf, who, on arriving at a convenient proximity, suddenly springs 

 to his feet, and utters an unearthly yell. They fall into a frenzy of 

 terror which enables him to select several victims. 



The Indians also capture great numbers by setting fire to the 

 grass of the prairies ; the flames compel them to retire to the centre, 

 where they are easily slain. Or they endeavour to throw them into 

 a panic of alarm, in which case they seem possessed with a sudden 

 madness, and, if driven towards a precipice, will dash themselves head- 

 long over it, falling crushed and bleeding into the chasm beneath. 



The American bison is similar to the European, but his tail and 

 limbs are shorter ; the horns are shorter and more blunt ; the tail has 

 fewer vertebrse; and the mane is fuller and shaggier. His flesh is 

 excellent eating, having a flavour like that of venison. The tallow 

 forms an important article of trade, one bull sometimes yielding 

 150 pounds. The skins are much used by the Indians for blankets, 

 and when tanned they employ them as coverings for their beds and 

 wigwams. Spread upon frames of wicker-work, they make admirable 

 canoes. The long hair or fleece, of which a male bison yields six to 

 eight pounds, is spun and woven into cloth. 



The favourite nourishment of the bison, says Humboldt, is the 

 Tripsacum dactyloides, called " Buffalo-Grass " in North Carolina, 

 and a species of trefoil, resembling Trifolium repens, which Bui-ton 

 has named Trifolium bisonicum. It is remarkable, he continues, 

 that the Buffalo, or Bison of the North, has exercised an influence 

 upon geographical discovery in the mountainous regions where no 

 road is laid down. Assembled in herds of several thousands, and 

 seeking a milder climate, they migrate at the approach of winter into 

 the countries situated south of Arkansas. Their massive form and 

 size render it difficult for them to cross the mountains ; and, conse- 

 quently, wherever the traveller finds a track beaten out by numerous 

 hoofs a " buffalo-path," in fact he may confidently adopt it as the 

 most convenient route for himself and his steed. In this manner 

 have been discovered the best passes in the Cumberland Mountains, 

 the "Rocky Mountains, from the sources of the Yellow-Stone to the 



