﻿526 
  EEPOKT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  north 
  in 
  summer 
  to 
  hunt 
  the 
  buffalo 
  on 
  the 
  plains 
  of 
  the 
  Arkansas, 
  only 
  

   a 
  few 
  buffaloes 
  crossing 
  at 
  tbis 
  time 
  to 
  the 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  Canadian. 
  

  

  In 
  1852, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  ''Topographical 
  Sketches 
  of 
  the 
  Military 
  

   Posts" 
  in 
  Texas, 
  buffaloes 
  had 
  entirely 
  disappeared 
  from 
  the 
  region 
  

   about 
  Fort 
  Worth* 
  (on 
  west 
  fork 
  of 
  the 
  Trinity, 
  just 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  97th 
  

   meridian); 
  tbey 
  are 
  not 
  mentioned 
  among 
  the 
  animals 
  found 
  at 
  this 
  

   date 
  about 
  Fort 
  Belknap 
  t 
  (on 
  the 
  Brazos, 
  longitude 
  about 
  98° 
  30'), 
  

   neither 
  were 
  they 
  then 
  found 
  about 
  Fort 
  Terretf 
  (on 
  the 
  100th 
  merid- 
  

   ian). 
  Yery 
  few 
  are 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  found 
  as 
  far 
  south 
  as 
  Fort 
  

   Phantom 
  Hill 
  since 
  1837. 
  § 
  At 
  Camp 
  Johnston, 
  || 
  on 
  the 
  Concho 
  

   Kiver 
  (near 
  the 
  present 
  Fort 
  Concho), 
  one 
  only 
  is 
  reported 
  as 
  having 
  

   been 
  seen, 
  and 
  the 
  region 
  is 
  said 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  then 
  not 
  within 
  their 
  

   favorite 
  range 
  ; 
  but 
  they 
  are 
  at 
  the 
  same 
  time 
  enumerated 
  among 
  the 
  

   animals 
  met 
  with 
  about 
  Fort 
  McKavett,^ 
  situated 
  soaie 
  fifty 
  miles 
  to 
  

   the 
  southward 
  of 
  Fort 
  Concho. 
  

  

  Lieutenant 
  Whipple, 
  in 
  his 
  report 
  of 
  the 
  survey 
  of 
  the 
  thirty-fifth 
  

   parallel, 
  made 
  in 
  1853, 
  found 
  buffalo 
  bones 
  bleaching 
  near 
  a 
  brackish 
  

   spring, 
  just 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  Cross 
  Timbers, 
  and 
  nearly 
  on 
  the 
  99th 
  meridian. 
  

   A 
  few 
  days 
  later 
  they 
  saw 
  the 
  first 
  living 
  buifalo, 
  and 
  met 
  with 
  a 
  few 
  

   stragglers 
  on 
  succeeding 
  days 
  on 
  the 
  sources 
  of 
  the 
  Washita 
  branch 
  of 
  

   the 
  Eed 
  Eiver. 
  He 
  speaks 
  of 
  seeing 
  buifalo 
  signs 
  as 
  far 
  west 
  as 
  Camp 
  

   41, 
  a 
  little 
  east 
  of 
  the 
  102d 
  meridian. 
  The 
  main 
  herds, 
  however, 
  were 
  

   north 
  of 
  the 
  Canadian, 
  from 
  which 
  these 
  were 
  merely 
  stragglers.** 
  Pro- 
  

   fessor 
  Jules 
  Marcou, 
  who 
  accompanied 
  Lieutenant 
  Whipple's 
  expedition 
  

   as 
  geologist, 
  has 
  kindly 
  furnished 
  me 
  with 
  a 
  few 
  additional 
  particulars 
  

   from 
  his 
  note-books. 
  He 
  informs 
  me 
  that 
  the 
  first 
  bones 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  

   were 
  met 
  with 
  as 
  far 
  east 
  as 
  the 
  Cross 
  Timbers, 
  or 
  near 
  the 
  98th 
  merid- 
  

   ian 
  ; 
  but 
  the 
  region 
  appeared 
  not 
  to 
  have 
  been 
  visited 
  by 
  these 
  animals 
  

   for 
  ten 
  or 
  twelve 
  years. 
  The 
  first 
  living 
  buffalo 
  was 
  seen 
  between 
  

   Camps 
  33 
  and 
  34, 
  or 
  about 
  99° 
  40', 
  just 
  south 
  of 
  the 
  Canadian. 
  The 
  

   next 
  day 
  many 
  carcasses 
  were 
  observed, 
  and 
  two 
  days 
  later 
  five 
  old 
  

   bulls 
  were 
  seen. 
  An 
  old 
  bull 
  was 
  killed 
  between 
  Camps 
  36 
  and 
  37, 
  near 
  

   the 
  meridian 
  of 
  100° 
  25', 
  but 
  no 
  living 
  buffaloes 
  were 
  seen 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  

   101st 
  meridian, 
  and 
  no 
  fresh 
  signs 
  were 
  seen 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  102d. 
  All 
  the 
  

   recent 
  indications 
  of 
  buffaloes 
  were 
  thus 
  met 
  with 
  between 
  the 
  meridians 
  

   of 
  98° 
  30' 
  and 
  102°. 
  The 
  journey 
  being 
  made 
  in 
  September, 
  the 
  herds 
  

   had 
  not 
  returned 
  from 
  the 
  north, 
  the 
  individuals 
  met 
  with 
  being 
  only 
  

   stragglers 
  which 
  had 
  wandered 
  somewhat 
  to 
  the 
  southward 
  of 
  the 
  usual 
  

   southern 
  limit 
  of 
  the 
  summer 
  range. 
  

  

  Captain 
  (now 
  Major- 
  General) 
  Pope 
  in 
  1854 
  surveyed 
  the 
  32d 
  parallel, 
  

   from 
  El 
  Paso 
  and 
  Doiia 
  Ana, 
  on 
  the 
  Eio 
  Grande, 
  to 
  Preston, 
  on 
  the 
  Red 
  

   Kiver, 
  passing 
  northerly, 
  and 
  crossing 
  the 
  Pecos 
  and 
  the 
  head-waters 
  

   of 
  the 
  Colorado, 
  Trinity, 
  and 
  Brazos 
  Rivers. 
  Mr. 
  J. 
  H. 
  Byrne, 
  in 
  his 
  

   diary 
  of 
  the 
  expedition, 
  reports 
  meeting 
  bois 
  de 
  vaclie 
  " 
  for 
  the 
  first 
  time 
  " 
  

   at 
  Camp 
  1:^0. 
  10, 
  near 
  the 
  Ojo 
  del 
  Cuerbo, 
  or 
  Salt 
  Lakes, 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  

   Guadeloupe 
  Mountains, 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  Valley 
  of 
  the 
  Rio 
  Grande. 
  This 
  is 
  

   the 
  only 
  allusion 
  to 
  buffalo 
  or 
  buffalo 
  " 
  sign 
  " 
  contained 
  in 
  the 
  narrative, 
  

   although 
  the 
  kinds 
  and 
  quantity 
  of 
  game 
  met 
  with 
  each 
  day 
  appear 
  to 
  

  

  *Med. 
  statistics 
  U. 
  S. 
  Army, 
  1839-1854, 
  p. 
  373. 
  

   tibid., 
  11. 
  372. 
  

   X 
  Ibid., 
  p. 
  395. 
  

   § 
  Ibid., 
  p. 
  376. 
  

   • 
  li 
  Ibid., 
  p. 
  380. 
  

  

  U 
  Med. 
  Statistics, 
  U. 
  S. 
  Army, 
  1839-1854, 
  p. 
  391 
  

  

  ** 
  Pacific 
  R. 
  R. 
  Explorations 
  and 
  Surveys, 
  Vol. 
  Ill, 
  Lieutenant 
  Whipple's 
  Report 
  on 
  

   the 
  35tb 
  Parallel, 
  Part 
  I, 
  pp. 
  26, 
  28, 
  29, 
  35. 
  

  

  