﻿562 
  REPOET 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  Jes 
  I 
  

  

  dressing 
  the 
  robes 
  being 
  very 
  great 
  ; 
  and 
  it 
  is 
  seldom 
  that 
  a 
  lodge 
  trades 
  

   more 
  than 
  twenty 
  skins 
  in 
  a 
  year. 
  It 
  is 
  during 
  the 
  summer 
  months, 
  and 
  

   in 
  the 
  early 
  part 
  of 
  autumn, 
  that 
  the 
  greatest 
  number 
  of 
  buffalo 
  are 
  

   killed, 
  and 
  yet 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  a 
  skin 
  is 
  never 
  taken 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  

   trade."* 
  

  

  Besides 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  robes 
  traded 
  by 
  the 
  Indians, 
  as 
  many 
  or 
  a 
  greater 
  

   number 
  were 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  annually 
  used 
  by 
  the 
  Indians 
  themselves. 
  

   This 
  would 
  make, 
  at 
  a 
  moderate 
  estimate, 
  the 
  annual 
  number 
  of 
  about 
  

   two 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  robes, 
  which 
  represent, 
  according 
  to 
  the 
  compe- 
  

   tent 
  authority 
  above 
  cited, 
  only 
  one-third 
  of 
  the 
  buffaloes 
  killed 
  during 
  

   about 
  one-third 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  and 
  during 
  that 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  too, 
  when 
  

   the 
  smallest 
  number 
  are 
  destroyed. 
  Taking 
  the 
  above 
  data 
  as 
  a 
  basis 
  

   for 
  an 
  estimate, 
  the 
  whole 
  number 
  killed 
  annually 
  bj^ 
  the 
  Indians 
  must 
  

   have 
  equalled 
  eighteen 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  (1,800,000). 
  Allowing 
  a 
  slight 
  

   addition 
  for 
  the 
  relatively 
  greater 
  number 
  killed 
  during 
  tbe 
  warmer 
  

   l^arts 
  of 
  the 
  year, 
  we 
  have, 
  in 
  round 
  numbers, 
  the 
  startling 
  total 
  of 
  

   about 
  two 
  millions 
  as 
  the 
  average 
  annual 
  number 
  destroyed 
  by 
  only 
  

   those 
  tribes 
  of 
  Indians 
  who 
  were 
  accustomed 
  to 
  collect 
  robes 
  for 
  the 
  

   market. 
  These 
  embraced 
  only 
  a 
  small 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  tribes 
  living 
  within 
  

   or 
  on 
  the 
  borders 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  buffalo 
  range 
  ; 
  so 
  that 
  probably 
  two 
  mil- 
  

   lions 
  a 
  year 
  is 
  much 
  less 
  than 
  half 
  the 
  number 
  killed 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  by 
  the 
  

   Indians 
  alone. 
  Besides 
  this, 
  travellers 
  and 
  white 
  hunters 
  killed 
  an- 
  

   nually 
  hundreds 
  of 
  thousands 
  more. 
  When 
  we 
  consider 
  that 
  this 
  enor- 
  

   mous 
  destruction 
  continued 
  for 
  several 
  decades, 
  we 
  need 
  no 
  longer 
  be 
  

   surprised 
  at 
  the 
  rapid 
  numerical 
  decrease 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  that 
  has 
  marked 
  

   the 
  last 
  forty 
  or 
  fifty 
  years 
  of 
  his 
  history. 
  

  

  In 
  1852 
  Professor 
  Baird 
  wrote 
  : 
  " 
  Mr. 
  Picotte, 
  an 
  experienced 
  partner 
  

   of 
  the 
  American 
  Fur 
  Company, 
  estimated 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  buffalo-robes 
  

   sent 
  to 
  Saint 
  Louis 
  in 
  1850 
  at 
  one 
  hundred 
  thousand. 
  Supposing 
  each 
  

   of 
  the 
  sixty 
  thousand 
  Indians 
  on 
  the 
  Missouri 
  to 
  use 
  ten 
  robes 
  for 
  his 
  

   wearing 
  apparel 
  every 
  year, 
  beside 
  those 
  for 
  new 
  lodges 
  and 
  other 
  pur- 
  

   poses, 
  by 
  the 
  calculation 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Picotte, 
  we 
  shall 
  have 
  an 
  aggregate 
  of 
  

   four 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  [sic] 
  robes 
  [seven 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  ?J. 
  We 
  may 
  

   suppose 
  one 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  as 
  the 
  number 
  killed 
  wantonly 
  or 
  de- 
  

   stroyed 
  by 
  fire 
  or 
  other 
  casualties, 
  and 
  we 
  will 
  have 
  the 
  grand 
  total 
  of 
  

   half 
  a 
  million 
  [eight 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  ^ 
  of 
  buffalo 
  destroyed 
  every 
  

   year. 
  This, 
  too, 
  does 
  not 
  include 
  the 
  numbers 
  slaughtered 
  on 
  Eed 
  

   Eiver 
  and 
  other 
  gathering 
  points." 
  t 
  In 
  this 
  estimate 
  the 
  important 
  

   fact 
  is 
  overlooked 
  that 
  the 
  robes 
  are 
  all 
  taken 
  during 
  three 
  months 
  of 
  

   the 
  year, 
  at 
  a 
  season, 
  too, 
  when 
  the 
  smallest 
  number 
  are 
  killed, 
  and 
  that 
  

   only 
  about 
  one-third 
  of 
  those 
  killed 
  during 
  these 
  three 
  months 
  are 
  util- 
  

   ized 
  for 
  robes. 
  If 
  this 
  number 
  should 
  be 
  multiplied 
  by 
  nine, 
  as 
  it 
  evi- 
  

   dently 
  must 
  be 
  from 
  the 
  above-quoted 
  statements 
  of 
  Mr. 
  Sanford, 
  and 
  

   which 
  from 
  general 
  considerations 
  also- 
  seems 
  probable, 
  we 
  should 
  have 
  

   the 
  immense 
  total 
  of 
  from 
  five 
  to 
  seven 
  millions 
  as 
  the 
  number 
  killed 
  

   yearly 
  by 
  the 
  Indians 
  who 
  furnished 
  the 
  one 
  hundred 
  thousand 
  robes 
  

   for 
  the 
  Saint 
  Louis 
  market 
  ! 
  Ten 
  robes, 
  however, 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  large 
  

   number 
  to 
  be 
  used 
  annually 
  by 
  each 
  person. 
  If 
  we 
  reduce 
  the 
  number 
  

   to 
  three, 
  we 
  shall 
  still 
  have 
  an 
  annual 
  aggregate 
  of 
  nearly 
  three 
  and 
  a 
  

   half 
  millions 
  as 
  the 
  number 
  destroyed 
  by 
  the 
  Upper 
  Missouri 
  tribes 
  

   alone. 
  South 
  of 
  this 
  region 
  there 
  were 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  upward 
  of 
  forty 
  

   thousand 
  Indians 
  belonging 
  to 
  other 
  tribes 
  living 
  within 
  the 
  range 
  of 
  

   the 
  buffalo, 
  beside 
  the 
  numerous 
  populous 
  tribes 
  inhabiting 
  the 
  buffalo 
  

   range 
  north 
  of. 
  the 
  United 
  States. 
  The 
  number 
  that 
  must 
  have 
  been 
  

  

  * 
  Frdmont's 
  First 
  and 
  Second 
  Expeditions, 
  p. 
  145. 
  

   t 
  Pat. 
  Off. 
  Rep., 
  Agricult., 
  1851-52, 
  Part 
  II, 
  p. 
  125. 
  

  

  