﻿558 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  Executive, 
  while 
  they 
  enforce 
  a 
  heavy 
  tax 
  upon 
  each 
  seal 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  killed 
  in 
  

   Alaska, 
  has 
  neglected 
  to 
  avail 
  themselves 
  of 
  snch 
  a 
  fruitful 
  source 
  of 
  revenue 
  as 
  that 
  

   which 
  might 
  be 
  derived 
  froui 
  buffalo 
  pelts. 
  A 
  tax 
  of 
  $5 
  on 
  each 
  skin,* 
  which 
  could 
  

   have 
  been 
  easily 
  imposed 
  and 
  collected— 
  under 
  heavy 
  penalties 
  and 
  forfeiture 
  of 
  all 
  

   skins 
  not 
  having 
  the 
  Government 
  dutys-tamp 
  thereon 
  — 
  would 
  realize 
  not 
  less 
  than 
  

   $1,000,000 
  per 
  annum, 
  even 
  supposing 
  that 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  buffaloes 
  annually 
  killed 
  for 
  

   their 
  skins 
  were 
  only 
  260,000 
  in 
  lieu 
  of 
  upward 
  of 
  a 
  million. 
  The 
  number 
  slaughtered 
  

   for 
  their 
  skins, 
  with 
  a 
  tax 
  on 
  each 
  skin 
  of 
  $5, 
  would, 
  during 
  the 
  three 
  years 
  in 
  ques- 
  

   tion, 
  have 
  produced 
  a 
  gross 
  revenue 
  of 
  $15,000,000, 
  or 
  nearly 
  £.3,000,000 
  sterling. 
  

  

  I 
  suggested 
  this 
  remedy 
  at 
  the 
  time, 
  but, 
  although 
  referred 
  to 
  by 
  the 
  press, 
  it 
  was 
  

   not 
  attended 
  to, 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  now 
  almost 
  too 
  late. 
  It 
  is 
  of 
  little 
  use 
  to 
  " 
  lock 
  the 
  stable- 
  

   ■door 
  after 
  the 
  steed 
  has 
  been 
  stolen." 
  

  

  Th« 
  evils 
  to 
  the 
  citizens 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  arising 
  from 
  this 
  wholesale 
  and 
  wanton 
  

   destruction 
  of 
  buffalo 
  during 
  the 
  three 
  years 
  referred 
  to 
  may 
  be 
  summarized 
  as 
  fol- 
  

   lows: 
  

  

  1. 
  Loss 
  of 
  the 
  good 
  and 
  nutritious 
  meat 
  of 
  upward 
  of 
  3,000,000 
  of 
  buffalo. 
  

  

  2. 
  Loss 
  of 
  revenue 
  to 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  of 
  $15,000,000, 
  assuming 
  that 
  a 
  reasonable 
  

   tax 
  of 
  $5 
  had 
  been 
  imposed 
  on 
  each 
  pelt. 
  

  

  3. 
  Principal 
  Indian 
  tribes 
  on 
  the 
  plains 
  Ijeing 
  deprived 
  of 
  their 
  annual 
  supply 
  of 
  

   food 
  for 
  the 
  winter, 
  and 
  only 
  receiving 
  short 
  rations 
  on 
  their 
  reservations, 
  driven 
  on 
  

   the 
  war-path. 
  

  

  4. 
  Cost 
  of 
  Indian 
  wars 
  in 
  the 
  lives 
  of 
  the 
  citizens 
  of 
  the 
  United 
  States 
  and 
  money. 
  

  

  5. 
  Pioneer 
  settlers 
  deprived 
  of 
  their 
  supply 
  of 
  winter 
  food. 
  Prior 
  to 
  1870 
  the 
  west- 
  

   ern 
  settlers, 
  from 
  Eastern 
  Kansas 
  to 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  Rocky 
  Mountains, 
  looked 
  to 
  the 
  

   buffalo 
  as 
  their 
  winter 
  store-house. 
  

  

  HIS'TORICAL 
  AND 
  STATISTICAL 
  REMARKS 
  RESPECTING 
  THE 
  DESTRUC- 
  

   TION 
  AND 
  RECKLESS 
  WASTE 
  OF 
  THE 
  BUFFALO. 
  

  

  In 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  statistics 
  already 
  given 
  relating 
  to 
  the 
  recent 
  de- 
  

   struction 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  in 
  Kansas, 
  it 
  seems 
  fitting 
  in 
  this 
  connection 
  to 
  

   here 
  append 
  such 
  additional 
  statistical 
  data 
  as 
  can 
  be 
  conveniently 
  

   gathered 
  concerning 
  its 
  destruction 
  at 
  large, 
  together 
  with 
  a 
  few 
  remarks 
  

   in 
  respect 
  to 
  the 
  causes 
  and 
  motives 
  that 
  have 
  led 
  to 
  such 
  a 
  waste 
  of 
  

   life, 
  and 
  the 
  agencies 
  that 
  have 
  effected 
  it. 
  

  

  The 
  excitement 
  of 
  the 
  chase, 
  as 
  is 
  well 
  known, 
  seems 
  almost 
  universally 
  

   to 
  beget 
  a 
  spirit 
  of 
  wanton 
  destructiveness 
  of 
  animal 
  life. 
  Wherever 
  civ- 
  

   ilized 
  man 
  has 
  met 
  with 
  the 
  larger 
  mammalia 
  in 
  abundance, 
  as 
  has 
  often 
  

   happened 
  in 
  the 
  experience 
  of 
  explorers 
  and 
  pioneer 
  settlers 
  of 
  newly 
  

   discovered 
  countries, 
  the 
  temptation 
  to 
  slaughter 
  for 
  the 
  mere 
  sake 
  of 
  

   killing 
  seems 
  rarely 
  to 
  be 
  resisted. 
  In 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  carnivorous 
  

   species 
  an 
  exterminating 
  persecution 
  is 
  often 
  pardonable, 
  and 
  to 
  some 
  

   extent 
  necessary. 
  The 
  fur-bearing 
  species, 
  even 
  when 
  hunted 
  to 
  excess, 
  

   are 
  seldom 
  destroyed 
  wantonly, 
  though 
  often 
  imprudently, 
  the 
  trapper 
  

   blindly 
  considering 
  only 
  his 
  immediate 
  profits. 
  In 
  the 
  case 
  of 
  the 
  harm- 
  

   less 
  herbivorous 
  species, 
  the 
  ungulates 
  especially, 
  self-interest, 
  it 
  would 
  

   seem, 
  would 
  prompt 
  an 
  economical 
  treatment 
  of 
  the 
  game 
  in 
  newly 
  set- 
  

   tled 
  districts. 
  But 
  the 
  history 
  of 
  America 
  shows 
  that 
  no 
  such 
  principle 
  

   has 
  here 
  been 
  regarded, 
  where 
  other 
  animals 
  than 
  the 
  buffalo 
  — 
  as 
  the 
  

   elk, 
  moose, 
  deer, 
  prong-horn, 
  and 
  mountain 
  sheep 
  — 
  have 
  been 
  slaugh- 
  

   tered 
  with 
  the 
  utmost 
  recklessness. 
  When 
  stress 
  of 
  weather, 
  for 
  in- 
  

   stance, 
  or 
  other 
  circumstances, 
  have 
  brought 
  these 
  animals 
  within 
  the 
  

   hunter's 
  power, 
  scores 
  and 
  even 
  hundreds 
  have 
  often 
  been 
  killed 
  by 
  single 
  

   parties 
  already 
  so 
  well 
  supplied 
  with 
  the 
  products 
  of 
  the 
  chase 
  that 
  they 
  

   had 
  no 
  need 
  for 
  and 
  could 
  make 
  no 
  use 
  of 
  the 
  animals 
  thus 
  destroyed. 
  

  

  * 
  This 
  would, 
  perhaps, 
  be 
  an 
  advisable 
  expedient, 
  but 
  would 
  not 
  result 
  in 
  an 
  exten- 
  

   sive 
  revenue 
  to 
  the 
  Government, 
  as, 
  if 
  rigidly 
  enforced, 
  it 
  would 
  amount 
  to 
  practical 
  

   prohibition, 
  as 
  the 
  hides 
  taken 
  by 
  the 
  " 
  skinners" 
  rarely 
  bring 
  more 
  than 
  $3 
  each, 
  and 
  

   net 
  them 
  very 
  much 
  less. 
  It 
  would 
  none 
  the 
  less 
  afford 
  thorough 
  protection 
  to 
  the 
  

   buffalo 
  were 
  the 
  euforcement 
  of 
  such 
  a 
  provision 
  practicable. 
  — 
  J. 
  A. 
  A. 
  

  

  