﻿ALLEN. 
  J 
  AGE 
  OF 
  THE 
  BISON 
  IN 
  THE 
  OHIO 
  VALLEY. 
  459 
  

  

  the 
  water 
  will 
  rise 
  ten 
  feet 
  or 
  more 
  above 
  the 
  surface 
  of 
  the 
  soil 
  if 
  

   enclosed 
  in 
  a 
  pipe. 
  The 
  fact 
  that 
  the 
  reservoir 
  of 
  these 
  waters 
  is 
  below 
  

   the 
  general 
  surface 
  causes 
  them 
  to 
  appear 
  in 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  valleys, 
  

   and 
  the 
  considerable 
  abstraction 
  of 
  matter 
  from 
  the 
  underlying 
  beds 
  

   probably 
  amounts 
  to 
  some 
  hundred 
  cubic 
  feet 
  per 
  annum 
  in 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  

   Big 
  Bone 
  Lick, 
  causes 
  a 
  depression 
  at 
  tbe 
  point 
  of 
  escape, 
  and 
  brings 
  

   about 
  pretty 
  generally 
  the 
  formation 
  ofa 
  swamp 
  in 
  a 
  depressed 
  and 
  con- 
  

   stantly 
  lowering 
  basin, 
  through 
  which 
  the 
  spring 
  water 
  seeps 
  away, 
  and 
  

   where 
  a 
  large 
  part 
  of 
  it 
  is 
  usually 
  evaporated. 
  This 
  swamp 
  forms 
  a 
  

   natural 
  trap 
  for 
  all 
  the 
  higher 
  mammalia 
  in 
  it. 
  When 
  excavations 
  are 
  

   made 
  near 
  the 
  existing 
  outlets 
  of 
  the 
  springs, 
  we 
  iind 
  the 
  remains 
  of 
  the 
  

   large 
  mammals 
  brought 
  by 
  man, 
  the 
  horse, 
  cow, 
  pig, 
  and 
  sheep. 
  

  

  " 
  In 
  the 
  frequent 
  change 
  of 
  outlet 
  of 
  these 
  springs, 
  it 
  comes 
  to 
  pass 
  

   that 
  at 
  many 
  points 
  near 
  the 
  surface 
  of 
  the 
  thirty 
  or 
  forty 
  acres 
  that 
  lie 
  

   in 
  the 
  little 
  basin 
  where 
  Big 
  Bone 
  Lick 
  is 
  found, 
  there 
  are 
  old 
  spring 
  

   vents, 
  about 
  which 
  bones 
  are 
  found, 
  that 
  no 
  longer 
  give 
  forth 
  saline 
  

   waters. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  fact 
  bearing 
  on 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo, 
  that 
  their 
  

   remains 
  about 
  Big 
  Bone 
  Lick 
  are, 
  when 
  found, 
  away 
  from 
  the 
  purest 
  

   springs 
  and 
  never 
  at 
  any 
  depth 
  beneath 
  the 
  surface. 
  In 
  the 
  recent 
  

   springs 
  they 
  are 
  very 
  abundant, 
  but 
  not 
  much 
  more 
  ancient 
  in 
  their 
  

   appearance 
  than 
  the 
  domesticated 
  animals. 
  The 
  evidence 
  obtained 
  at 
  

   this 
  point 
  leads 
  to 
  the 
  conclusion 
  that 
  the 
  first 
  appearance 
  of 
  this 
  spe- 
  

   cies 
  into 
  the 
  country 
  was 
  singularly 
  recent, 
  and 
  also 
  shows 
  tliat 
  their 
  

   coming 
  was 
  like 
  an 
  irruption 
  in 
  its 
  suddenness. 
  These 
  buffalo 
  bones 
  

   are 
  wonderfully 
  abundant 
  in 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  shallow 
  swampy 
  places 
  of 
  this 
  

   neighborhood. 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  them 
  massed 
  to 
  the 
  depth 
  of 
  two 
  feet 
  or 
  

   more, 
  as 
  close 
  as 
  the 
  stones 
  of 
  a 
  pavement, 
  and 
  so 
  beaten 
  down 
  by 
  the 
  

   succeeding 
  herds 
  as 
  to 
  make 
  it 
  difficult 
  to 
  lift 
  them 
  from 
  tbeir 
  bed. 
  

  

  'As 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  from 
  the 
  accompanying 
  diagram, 
  [here 
  omitted,] 
  

   there 
  seems 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  some 
  degradation 
  of 
  the 
  surface 
  of 
  this 
  

   swamp 
  after 
  the 
  deposition 
  of 
  many 
  of 
  tbe 
  mastodon 
  remains, 
  and 
  

   before 
  the 
  coming 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo. 
  This 
  lowering 
  of 
  level 
  was 
  appar- 
  

   ently 
  consequent 
  on 
  the 
  down 
  cutting 
  of 
  the 
  bed 
  of 
  the 
  small 
  creek 
  

   that 
  drains 
  the 
  valley. 
  The 
  old 
  elevated 
  beds 
  had 
  probably 
  washed 
  a 
  

   good 
  deal 
  w^ben 
  the 
  buffalo 
  came, 
  but 
  it 
  was 
  principally 
  by 
  its 
  wallow- 
  

   ing 
  and 
  stamping 
  that 
  the 
  bones 
  of 
  tbe 
  mastodon, 
  elephants, 
  &c., 
  were 
  

   exposed 
  to 
  the 
  air. 
  At 
  no 
  point 
  in 
  this 
  old 
  ground 
  did 
  I 
  find 
  a 
  trace 
  

   of 
  the 
  boflalo, 
  though 
  in 
  some 
  of 
  it 
  the 
  bones 
  identified 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Allen 
  as 
  

   belonging 
  to 
  Ovibos 
  were 
  found. 
  There, 
  too, 
  were 
  found 
  the 
  bones 
  of 
  

   the 
  moose 
  and 
  caribou. 
  I 
  am 
  inclined 
  to 
  believe 
  from 
  these 
  investiga- 
  

   tions 
  that 
  the 
  Bison 
  americanus 
  did 
  not 
  appear 
  at 
  Big 
  Bone 
  Lick 
  until 
  

   a 
  very 
  recent 
  time. 
  

  

  ''All 
  the 
  observations 
  made 
  by 
  the 
  Kentucky 
  Survey 
  in 
  the 
  caverns 
  of 
  

   the 
  State, 
  and 
  the 
  neighboring 
  district 
  of 
  Tennessee, 
  have 
  led 
  to 
  tbe 
  

   discovery 
  of 
  no 
  bison 
  remains 
  in 
  these 
  subterranean 
  receptacles, 
  where 
  

   the 
  bones 
  of 
  tbe 
  beaver, 
  deer, 
  wolf, 
  bear, 
  and 
  many 
  other 
  mammals 
  

   have 
  been 
  discovered. 
  The 
  observations 
  of 
  the 
  officers 
  of 
  the 
  survey, 
  

   to 
  be 
  published 
  hereafter, 
  will 
  show 
  that 
  our 
  caves 
  have 
  been 
  used 
  as 
  

   the 
  homes 
  of 
  tbe 
  living 
  and 
  the 
  receptacles 
  of 
  tbe 
  dead 
  by 
  more 
  than 
  

   one 
  of 
  tbe 
  earlier 
  tribes 
  of 
  this 
  region, 
  but 
  they 
  seem 
  never 
  to 
  have 
  

   brought 
  tbe 
  bones 
  of 
  this 
  animal 
  to 
  the 
  caves. 
  

  

  " 
  Some 
  years 
  ago 
  I 
  ventured 
  to 
  call 
  attention 
  to 
  the 
  general 
  absence 
  of 
  

   the 
  remains 
  of 
  this 
  animal 
  in 
  all 
  the 
  mounds 
  of 
  the 
  historic 
  and 
  pre- 
  

   historic 
  races, 
  and 
  to 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  on 
  their 
  pi^jes 
  and 
  pottery, 
  though 
  

   they 
  figure 
  every 
  other 
  indigenous 
  mammal 
  and 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  birds 
  of 
  

   this 
  region, 
  seeking 
  their 
  models 
  even 
  in 
  the 
  mauitee 
  of 
  Florida, 
  I 
  have 
  

  

  