﻿556 
  KEPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  the 
  mass 
  of 
  southern 
  buffalo 
  cow 
  living 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  far 
  away 
  from 
  

   the 
  dreaded 
  hunter, 
  on 
  a 
  belt 
  of 
  country 
  extending 
  southwest 
  across 
  the 
  

   upper 
  tributaries 
  of 
  the 
  Canadian, 
  across 
  the 
  northern 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  Staked 
  

   Plain 
  to 
  the 
  Pecos 
  Eiver. 
  The 
  difficulty 
  of 
  getting 
  the 
  hides 
  to 
  market 
  

   from 
  these 
  remote 
  and 
  Indian-infested 
  regions 
  is 
  some 
  guaranty 
  that 
  

   the 
  buffalo 
  will 
  not 
  be 
  extinct 
  for 
  a 
  few 
  years."* 
  

  

  These 
  facts 
  are 
  sufficient 
  to 
  show 
  that 
  the 
  present 
  decrease 
  of 
  the 
  

   buffalo 
  is 
  extremely 
  rapid, 
  and 
  indicate 
  most 
  clearly 
  that 
  the 
  i^eriod 
  of 
  

   his 
  extinction 
  will 
  soon 
  be 
  reached, 
  unless 
  some 
  strong 
  arm 
  is 
  interposed 
  

   in 
  his 
  behalf. 
  As 
  yet 
  no 
  adequate 
  game-laws 
  for 
  the 
  protection 
  of 
  the 
  

   buffalo, 
  either 
  by 
  the 
  different 
  States 
  and 
  Territories 
  included 
  within 
  its 
  

   range, 
  or 
  by 
  the 
  General 
  Government, 
  have 
  been 
  enacted. 
  In 
  a 
  country 
  

   so 
  sparsely 
  populated 
  as 
  is 
  that 
  ranged 
  over 
  by 
  the 
  buffalo, 
  it 
  might 
  be 
  

   difficult 
  to 
  enforce 
  a 
  proper 
  law, 
  yet 
  the 
  parties 
  who 
  prosecute 
  the 
  busi- 
  

   ness 
  of 
  buffalo-hunting 
  j)rofessionally 
  are 
  so 
  well 
  known 
  that 
  it 
  would 
  

   not 
  be 
  difficult 
  to 
  intercept 
  them 
  and 
  bring 
  them 
  to 
  justice, 
  if 
  found 
  

   unlawfully 
  destroying 
  the 
  buffalo. 
  It 
  is 
  evident 
  that 
  restrictions 
  should 
  

   be 
  made, 
  not 
  only 
  in 
  respect 
  to 
  season, 
  but 
  the 
  youug 
  and 
  the 
  bearing 
  

   females 
  should 
  bo 
  protected 
  at 
  all 
  seasons. 
  The 
  Government 
  might 
  

   even 
  set 
  apart 
  certain 
  districts 
  within 
  which 
  the 
  buffalo 
  should 
  be 
  con- 
  

   stantly^ 
  exempt 
  from 
  persecution.! 
  

  

  Since 
  this 
  memoir 
  was 
  originally 
  published, 
  the 
  following 
  has 
  appeared 
  

   from 
  the 
  pen 
  of 
  Mr. 
  William 
  Blackmore, 
  of 
  London, 
  England, 
  commu- 
  

   nicated 
  to 
  the 
  London 
  Field, 
  Farm, 
  and 
  Gardea, 
  under 
  date 
  of 
  October 
  

   23, 
  1876. 
  Mr. 
  Blackmore 
  writes 
  from 
  ample 
  experience 
  in 
  the 
  " 
  Buffalo 
  

   country," 
  and 
  puts 
  the 
  case 
  none 
  too 
  strongly. 
  I 
  give 
  his 
  communication 
  

   almost 
  entire, 
  suppressing 
  merely 
  matter 
  based 
  on 
  the 
  statements 
  of 
  

   Colonel 
  Dodge, 
  already 
  published 
  in 
  the 
  present 
  memoir: 
  

  

  EXTEHMINATION 
  OF 
  THE 
  BUFFALO 
  OR 
  AMERICAN 
  BISON. 
  

  

  Sir 
  : 
  The 
  interesting 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  threatened 
  extermination 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  on 
  the 
  

   North 
  American 
  continent 
  contained 
  in 
  your 
  last 
  number 
  induces 
  me 
  to 
  give 
  some 
  

   further 
  details, 
  and 
  to 
  add 
  my 
  testimony 
  to 
  that 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Allen 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  wanton 
  destruc- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  these 
  animals 
  for 
  their 
  hides 
  during 
  the 
  last 
  few 
  years. 
  

  

  In 
  a 
  book 
  by 
  Col. 
  E. 
  J. 
  Dodge, 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  Army, 
  called 
  " 
  The 
  Hunting 
  

   Grounds 
  of 
  the 
  Great 
  West," 
  now 
  in 
  the 
  press, 
  and 
  about 
  to 
  be 
  published 
  by 
  Messrs. 
  

   Ohatto 
  and 
  Windus, 
  a 
  long 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  buffaloes 
  by 
  professional 
  

   ^* 
  buffalo 
  skinners" 
  is 
  given, 
  together 
  with 
  k 
  map 
  showing 
  the 
  buffalo 
  rauge 
  as 
  it 
  ex- 
  

   isted 
  in 
  18o0, 
  and 
  as 
  it 
  now 
  exists. 
  Colonel 
  Dodge 
  also 
  gives 
  a 
  series 
  of 
  carefully 
  pre^ 
  

   pared 
  statistics, 
  procured 
  by 
  him 
  from 
  the 
  railroad 
  returns, 
  and 
  other 
  authentic 
  sources, 
  

   from 
  which 
  it 
  appears 
  that 
  the 
  total 
  destruction 
  of 
  the 
  "Black 
  Cattle 
  of 
  Illinois," 
  

   during 
  the 
  three 
  years 
  1872, 
  1873, 
  and 
  1874, 
  amounted 
  to 
  upward 
  of 
  four 
  millions 
  

   and 
  a 
  half 
  (not 
  between 
  three 
  and 
  four 
  millions 
  annually, 
  as 
  stated 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Alleul;), 
  

   out 
  of 
  which 
  number 
  upward 
  of 
  three 
  millions 
  were 
  killed 
  for 
  the 
  mere 
  sake 
  of 
  their 
  

   hides. 
  When 
  in 
  the 
  West 
  in 
  1872, 
  I 
  satisfied 
  myself 
  by 
  personal 
  inquiries 
  that 
  the 
  

   number 
  of 
  buffaloes 
  then 
  being 
  slaughtered 
  for 
  their 
  pelts 
  was 
  at 
  least 
  one 
  million 
  per 
  

   annum. 
  This 
  estimate 
  was 
  considered 
  excessive, 
  but 
  the 
  recent 
  statistics 
  furnished 
  

   by 
  Colonel 
  Dodge 
  verify 
  its 
  accuracy. 
  

  

  * 
  Colonel 
  Richard 
  I. 
  Dodge. 
  — 
  See 
  Chicago 
  Inter-Ocean 
  of 
  August 
  5, 
  1875. 
  

  

  t 
  Respecting 
  this 
  matter 
  the 
  following 
  suggestions 
  were 
  made 
  iu 
  Professor 
  Eaird's 
  

   "Annual 
  Record 
  of 
  Science 
  and 
  Industry" 
  for 
  1874, 
  p. 
  304: 
  "As 
  these 
  animals 
  range 
  

   .almost 
  entirely 
  within 
  the 
  Territories 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States, 
  it 
  is 
  within 
  the 
  province 
  

   of 
  Congress 
  to 
  enact 
  laws 
  prohibiting 
  their 
  destruction, 
  but 
  the 
  difficulties 
  lie 
  iu 
  the 
  

   matter 
  of 
  enforcing 
  them. 
  Possibly 
  some 
  provision 
  for 
  seizing 
  and 
  confiscating 
  the 
  

   green 
  hides, 
  along 
  certain 
  lines 
  of 
  railway 
  or 
  during 
  certain 
  seasons 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  as 
  a. 
  

   part 
  of 
  the 
  penalty 
  to 
  be 
  attached 
  to 
  the 
  violation 
  of 
  the 
  law 
  on 
  the 
  subject, 
  might 
  

   accomplish 
  the 
  result; 
  but, 
  at 
  auy 
  rate, 
  the 
  subject 
  is 
  one 
  that 
  deaumds 
  the 
  prompt 
  

   attention 
  of 
  legislators, 
  in 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  relationship 
  of 
  these 
  animals 
  to 
  the 
  welfare 
  of 
  

   the 
  Indians, 
  and 
  the 
  reaction 
  which 
  their 
  destruction 
  will 
  produce 
  upon 
  the 
  scattered 
  

   white 
  settlements 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  both 
  buffaloes 
  and 
  Indians." 
  

  

  t 
  This 
  estimate 
  refers 
  to 
  the 
  destruction 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  througliout 
  its 
  entire 
  range, 
  

   not 
  simply 
  to 
  its 
  destruction 
  in 
  Kansas, 
  as 
  here, 
  represented.— 
  J. 
  A. 
  A. 
  

  

  