﻿566 
  EEPOKT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  In 
  forming 
  a 
  general 
  estimate 
  of 
  the 
  annual 
  destruction 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  

   in 
  recent 
  years, 
  it 
  is 
  necessary 
  to 
  add 
  to 
  the 
  large 
  sums 
  already 
  given 
  the 
  

   large 
  number 
  killed 
  by 
  the 
  different 
  Indian 
  tribes 
  still 
  residing 
  in 
  or 
  near 
  

   the 
  ranges 
  of 
  the 
  two 
  herds, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  thousands 
  killed 
  for 
  frontier 
  

   consumption, 
  and 
  the 
  many 
  thousands 
  more 
  of 
  which 
  no 
  use 
  is 
  made. 
  

   Even 
  approximate 
  data 
  for 
  the 
  last-named 
  elements 
  of 
  the 
  problem 
  of 
  

   course 
  do 
  not 
  exist, 
  but 
  the 
  total 
  killed 
  between 
  1870 
  and 
  1875 
  cannot 
  

   have 
  been 
  less 
  than 
  about 
  two 
  and 
  a 
  half 
  millions 
  annually. 
  The 
  effect 
  

   of 
  this 
  destruction 
  upon 
  the 
  already 
  terribly 
  thinned 
  herds 
  has 
  been 
  most 
  

   marked, 
  and 
  if 
  continued 
  at 
  a 
  proportional 
  rate 
  will 
  unquestionabl}^ 
  in 
  a 
  

   few 
  years 
  exterminate 
  the 
  race. 
  

  

  2.— 
  PEODUCTS 
  OF 
  THE 
  BUFFALO. 
  

  

  The 
  flesh 
  of 
  th& 
  buffalo 
  is, 
  of 
  course, 
  its 
  most 
  important 
  product, 
  

   either 
  to 
  the 
  white 
  man 
  or 
  the 
  Indian. 
  It 
  has 
  not 
  only 
  always 
  formed 
  

   a 
  large 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  Indian 
  tribes 
  living 
  within 
  its 
  range, 
  but 
  

   has 
  also 
  proved 
  hardly 
  less 
  important 
  to 
  the 
  whites 
  during 
  their 
  first 
  

   exploration 
  of 
  the 
  country 
  it 
  inhabited. 
  The 
  various 
  military 
  and 
  other 
  

   surveys 
  of 
  the 
  great 
  central 
  plateau 
  of 
  the 
  continent, 
  as 
  well 
  as 
  the 
  

   numerous 
  private 
  expeditions 
  to 
  the 
  same 
  region, 
  could 
  have 
  been 
  ac- 
  

   complished 
  only 
  at 
  greatly 
  increased 
  expense 
  and 
  privation 
  had 
  not 
  the 
  

   buffalo 
  supplied 
  to 
  the 
  persons 
  engaged 
  in 
  these 
  enterprises 
  a 
  never- 
  

   failing 
  and 
  ready 
  means 
  of 
  subsistence. 
  

  

  I'he 
  buffaloes, 
  in 
  common 
  with 
  deer 
  and 
  elks, 
  have 
  also 
  often 
  been 
  

   invaluable 
  to 
  the 
  pioneer 
  settler, 
  insuring 
  him 
  food 
  during 
  the 
  first 
  few 
  

   years 
  at 
  least 
  of 
  his 
  frontier 
  life. 
  As 
  already 
  noticed, 
  Boone 
  and 
  his 
  

   party 
  subsisted 
  almost 
  wholly 
  during 
  their 
  first 
  winter 
  in 
  Kentucky 
  on 
  

   the 
  flesh 
  of 
  this 
  animal, 
  and 
  throughout 
  the 
  prairie 
  portions 
  of 
  the 
  

   country, 
  from 
  Illinois 
  westward 
  to 
  the 
  Eocky 
  Mountains, 
  the 
  buffalo 
  

   has 
  subserved 
  a 
  most 
  important 
  purpose 
  in 
  the 
  westward 
  progress 
  of 
  

   civilization. 
  The 
  vast 
  influx 
  of 
  settlers 
  that 
  follows 
  the 
  opening 
  of 
  new 
  

   railroads 
  across 
  the 
  Plains, 
  such 
  as 
  that 
  which 
  still 
  sets 
  into 
  the 
  valley 
  

   of 
  the 
  Arkansas 
  along 
  the 
  line 
  of 
  the 
  Atchison, 
  Topeka, 
  and 
  Santa 
  Fe 
  

   Eailroad, 
  thus 
  find 
  a 
  sure 
  subsistence 
  until 
  they 
  can 
  open 
  up 
  and 
  im- 
  

   prove 
  their 
  farms 
  ; 
  and, 
  as 
  one 
  writer 
  has 
  remarked, 
  " 
  by 
  the 
  time 
  the 
  

   last 
  buffalo 
  has 
  disappeared 
  from 
  Kansas, 
  the 
  frontier 
  will 
  be 
  subdued 
  

   to 
  civilization 
  and 
  be 
  self-supporting." 
  

  

  From 
  lack 
  of 
  speedy 
  and 
  cheap 
  means 
  of 
  transportation 
  the 
  consump- 
  

   tion 
  of 
  buffalo 
  meat 
  was, 
  until 
  recently, 
  necessarily 
  limited 
  to 
  the 
  peo- 
  

   ple 
  living 
  near 
  or 
  within 
  its 
  actual 
  range, 
  and 
  to 
  parties 
  traversing 
  the 
  

   country 
  it 
  inhabited. 
  Upon 
  the 
  opening 
  of 
  the 
  Kansas 
  railways, 
  how- 
  

   ever, 
  many 
  car-loads, 
  as 
  already 
  shown 
  by 
  the 
  above-given 
  statistics, 
  

   were 
  shipped 
  during 
  winter 
  to 
  the 
  Eastern 
  cities. 
  While 
  Chicago, 
  St. 
  

   Louis, 
  Cincinnati, 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  larger 
  cities 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  Valley 
  

   formed 
  the 
  principal 
  markets 
  for 
  its 
  sale, 
  it 
  was 
  also 
  sent 
  in 
  large 
  quan- 
  

   tities 
  to 
  Boston, 
  New 
  York, 
  Philadelphia, 
  Baltimore, 
  and 
  the 
  other 
  

   chief 
  cities 
  of 
  the 
  East.* 
  When 
  arriving 
  in 
  good 
  condition, 
  as 
  was 
  

  

  *A8 
  already 
  noticed, 
  upward 
  of 
  one 
  million 
  pounds 
  were 
  shipped, 
  as 
  saddles, 
  over 
  

   the 
  Kansas 
  Pacific 
  Eailway 
  during 
  the 
  winter 
  of 
  1871-72, 
  besides 
  hundreds 
  of 
  barrels 
  

   of 
  tongues 
  and 
  cured 
  "hams" 
  during 
  the 
  same 
  period. 
  Since 
  that 
  time 
  the 
  shipments 
  

   over 
  this 
  road 
  have 
  greatly 
  diminished, 
  but 
  the 
  reduction 
  was 
  for 
  a 
  year 
  or 
  two 
  more 
  

   than 
  balanced 
  by 
  the 
  additional 
  shipments 
  over 
  the 
  Atchison, 
  Topeka, 
  and 
  Santa 
  F6 
  

   road, 
  ■which 
  in 
  1873 
  were 
  over 
  one 
  and 
  a 
  half 
  million 
  (1,617,600 
  J 
  pounds. 
  In 
  1874, 
  

   however, 
  the 
  shipment 
  was 
  less 
  than 
  half 
  this 
  amount, 
  there 
  having 
  been 
  already 
  a 
  

   marked 
  decline 
  in 
  the 
  amount 
  of 
  buffalo 
  products 
  transported 
  over 
  this 
  road 
  also. 
  

  

  