﻿580 
  REPORT 
  UNITED 
  STATES 
  GEOLOGICAL 
  SURVEY. 
  

  

  mucb 
  less 
  tact 
  and 
  skill 
  than 
  tlie 
  hunting 
  of 
  most 
  other 
  large 
  game, 
  es- 
  

   pecially 
  deer 
  and 
  proughorus. 
  The 
  chief 
  precaution 
  necessary 
  is 
  to 
  

   keep 
  to 
  the 
  leeward 
  of 
  the 
  herd, 
  in 
  order 
  not 
  to 
  give 
  them 
  the 
  "scent," 
  

   as 
  this 
  alarms 
  them 
  even 
  when 
  no 
  enemy 
  is 
  in 
  sight, 
  being 
  sufficient 
  to 
  

   ''stampede" 
  a 
  herd 
  at 
  a 
  long 
  distance. 
  The 
  buffaloes 
  can 
  ordinarily 
  be 
  

   approached 
  to 
  within 
  a 
  thousand 
  yards 
  in 
  a 
  perfectly 
  level 
  and 
  open 
  

   country, 
  and 
  with 
  a 
  slight 
  growth 
  of 
  herbage 
  for 
  shelter 
  it 
  is 
  easy 
  to 
  

   creep 
  up 
  to 
  within 
  a 
  hundred 
  yards, 
  and 
  by 
  aid 
  of 
  ravines 
  to 
  within 
  

   twenty 
  or 
  thirty 
  paces. 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  hunters 
  approach 
  within 
  thirty 
  

   yards 
  of 
  a 
  herd 
  when 
  their 
  only 
  cover 
  was 
  grass 
  and 
  weeds 
  a 
  foot 
  or 
  

   so 
  in 
  height. 
  The 
  old 
  bulls 
  are 
  always 
  less 
  wary 
  than 
  the 
  cows 
  and 
  

   younger 
  bulls; 
  they 
  also, 
  to 
  a 
  great 
  extent, 
  keep 
  in 
  the 
  rear 
  and 
  on 
  the 
  

   outskirts 
  of 
  the 
  herd. 
  As 
  generally 
  only 
  the 
  younger 
  animals 
  are 
  de- 
  

   sired, 
  and 
  especially 
  the 
  young 
  cows, 
  the 
  hunters 
  often 
  have 
  to 
  creep 
  

   past 
  the 
  old 
  bulls 
  in 
  order 
  to 
  get 
  W'ithin 
  range 
  of 
  the 
  cows. 
  Where 
  

   slight 
  inequalities 
  of 
  the 
  ground 
  have 
  favored 
  the 
  hunters, 
  I 
  have 
  seen 
  

   them 
  pass 
  within 
  a 
  few 
  paces 
  of 
  the 
  quietly 
  reclining, 
  ruminating 
  old 
  

   bulls, 
  in 
  trying 
  to 
  get 
  within 
  range 
  of 
  the 
  more 
  desirable 
  game 
  beyond 
  

   without 
  the 
  patriarchs 
  of 
  the 
  herd 
  being 
  alarmed 
  by 
  the 
  hunter's 
  ap- 
  

   proach. 
  The 
  half-wild 
  Texan 
  steers 
  are 
  often 
  far 
  more 
  wary 
  than 
  the 
  

   unsuspecting 
  herds 
  of 
  bufi'aloes. 
  

  

  The 
  professional 
  hunter, 
  when 
  desiring 
  to 
  load 
  his 
  teams 
  with 
  meat, 
  

   Tvill 
  rarely 
  make 
  his 
  first 
  shot 
  at 
  a 
  greater 
  distance 
  than 
  fifty 
  to 
  seventy- 
  

   five 
  yards. 
  If 
  the 
  shot 
  result 
  fatally, 
  the 
  herd 
  rarely 
  moves 
  more 
  than 
  

   fifty 
  jards 
  before 
  stopping 
  to 
  look 
  for 
  the 
  cause 
  of 
  the 
  mishap 
  to 
  their 
  

   fallen 
  companion, 
  and 
  turning 
  half 
  round 
  to 
  get 
  a 
  good 
  view 
  rearward, 
  

   they 
  thus 
  present 
  themselves 
  in 
  the 
  best 
  possible 
  position 
  to 
  the 
  hunter 
  

   at 
  still 
  short 
  range. 
  Here 
  others 
  fall 
  before 
  the 
  hunter's 
  shots; 
  the 
  herd, 
  

   again 
  slightly 
  startled, 
  moves 
  on 
  a 
  few 
  paces, 
  and 
  again 
  stops 
  to 
  gaze. 
  

   The 
  hunter, 
  still 
  keeping 
  prostrate, 
  approaches, 
  if 
  necessary, 
  undercover 
  

   of 
  those 
  already 
  killed, 
  and 
  continues 
  the 
  work 
  of 
  destruction. 
  The 
  

   shots 
  are 
  thus 
  often 
  repeated 
  till 
  filteen, 
  twenty, 
  or 
  even 
  thirty 
  buffaloes 
  

   are 
  killed 
  before 
  the 
  herd 
  becomes 
  thoroughly 
  alarmed 
  and, 
  in 
  hunter's 
  

   parlance, 
  "stampedes." 
  By 
  keeping 
  prostrate 
  the 
  hunter 
  is 
  able 
  to 
  

   creep 
  up 
  to 
  the 
  herd 
  again 
  as 
  it 
  recedes, 
  till 
  he 
  has 
  killed 
  enough 
  to 
  fur- 
  

   nish 
  loads 
  for 
  his 
  teams; 
  and 
  even 
  sometimes 
  he 
  has 
  to 
  rise 
  and 
  drive 
  

   away 
  the 
  stupid 
  creatures 
  to 
  prevent 
  the 
  living 
  from 
  playfully 
  goring 
  

   the 
  clead! 
  When 
  the 
  hunter 
  is 
  thus 
  successful, 
  it 
  is 
  termed 
  "getting 
  a 
  

   stand 
  on 
  the 
  herd." 
  A 
  "stand" 
  is 
  most 
  surely 
  made 
  in 
  nearly 
  level 
  

   ground. 
  In 
  shooting 
  from 
  ravines, 
  the 
  herd 
  usually 
  runs 
  away 
  after 
  

   three 
  to 
  five 
  or 
  six 
  of 
  their 
  number 
  have 
  fallen. 
  During 
  the 
  rutting 
  

   season, 
  if 
  a 
  cow 
  falls 
  at 
  the 
  first 
  shot, 
  the 
  hunter 
  is 
  pretty 
  sure 
  of 
  a 
  

   "stand," 
  and 
  of 
  getting 
  a 
  dozen 
  or 
  more 
  shots, 
  if 
  he 
  keeps 
  prostrate 
  and 
  

   uses 
  due 
  caution. 
  As 
  soon 
  as 
  he 
  rises 
  the 
  buffaloes 
  seem 
  at 
  once 
  to 
  

   recognize 
  the 
  cause 
  of 
  their 
  trouble, 
  and 
  generally 
  immediately 
  stam- 
  

   pede; 
  but 
  so 
  long 
  as 
  he 
  remains 
  prone 
  they 
  seem 
  to 
  have 
  no 
  perception 
  

   of 
  the 
  character 
  of 
  their 
  enemy, 
  and 
  often 
  do 
  not 
  notice 
  him 
  at 
  all. 
  A 
  

   "stand" 
  can 
  usually 
  be 
  obtained, 
  by 
  due 
  care, 
  at 
  any 
  time 
  from 
  May 
  to 
  

   December, 
  but 
  during 
  the 
  rest 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  the 
  buffaloes 
  are 
  more 
  wary, 
  

   and 
  often 
  very 
  lean, 
  and 
  the 
  hunters 
  say 
  that 
  the 
  poorer 
  they 
  get, 
  the 
  

   wilder 
  they 
  become. 
  

  

  The 
  Kansas 
  hunter 
  for 
  several 
  years 
  was 
  generally 
  able 
  to 
  reach 
  the 
  

   herds 
  by 
  an 
  easy 
  drive 
  from 
  either 
  of 
  the 
  railroads 
  that 
  now 
  intersect 
  

   the 
  State. 
  Generally 
  equipped 
  with 
  oue 
  to 
  three 
  four-mule 
  teams, 
  he 
  

   was 
  able, 
  for 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  season 
  at 
  least, 
  to 
  make 
  daily 
  trips 
  from 
  the 
  

   herds 
  to 
  the 
  points 
  of 
  shipment, 
  although 
  not 
  unfrequently 
  two 
  days 
  

  

  