﻿ALLEN.] 
  DOMESTICATION 
  OF 
  THE 
  BUFFALO. 
  587 
  

  

  est, 
  and 
  is 
  well 
  worthy 
  of 
  the 
  attention 
  of 
  intelligent 
  stock-growers, 
  

   some 
  of 
  whom 
  should 
  be 
  willing 
  to 
  take 
  a 
  little 
  tronble 
  to 
  perpetuate 
  

   the 
  pure 
  race 
  in 
  a 
  domestic 
  fc^tate. 
  The 
  attempt 
  can 
  be 
  hardly 
  regarded 
  

   otherwise 
  than 
  as 
  an 
  enterprise 
  that 
  would 
  eventually 
  yield 
  a 
  satisfac- 
  

   tory 
  and 
  probably 
  a 
  profitable 
  result, 
  with 
  the 
  possibility 
  of 
  adding 
  

   another 
  valuable 
  domestic 
  animal 
  to 
  those 
  we 
  already 
  possess. 
  It 
  

   seems 
  probable, 
  also, 
  that 
  a 
  mixed 
  race 
  might 
  be 
  reared 
  to 
  good 
  

   advantage.[*] 
  

  

  [* 
  Since 
  the 
  origiual 
  publication 
  of 
  this 
  paper, 
  some 
  months 
  since, 
  I 
  have 
  met 
  with 
  

   the 
  following 
  interesting 
  account 
  of 
  the 
  successful 
  attempt 
  to 
  domesticate 
  the 
  buffalo 
  

   in 
  Howard 
  County, 
  Nebraska, 
  published 
  in 
  the 
  Tarf, 
  Field, 
  and 
  Farm 
  newspaper 
  of 
  

   New 
  York 
  City, 
  in 
  the 
  issue 
  of 
  November 
  10, 
  1876. 
  An 
  attempt 
  to 
  communicate 
  with 
  

   Mr. 
  Cunningham, 
  the 
  authority 
  for 
  the 
  statements 
  given 
  below, 
  having 
  proved 
  unsuc- 
  

   cessful, 
  I 
  can 
  only 
  give 
  the 
  matter 
  at 
  second-hand. 
  The 
  account 
  in 
  full 
  is 
  as 
  follows 
  : 
  

  

  "It 
  has 
  been 
  fully 
  demonstrated, 
  and 
  may 
  be 
  now 
  set 
  down 
  as 
  an 
  established 
  fact, 
  

   that 
  the 
  cross 
  of 
  the 
  buifalo 
  with 
  milch 
  cows 
  are 
  of 
  a 
  gentle 
  disposition, 
  and 
  yield 
  a 
  

   fair 
  amount 
  of 
  very 
  rich 
  milk. 
  The 
  male 
  produce 
  of 
  this 
  cross 
  make 
  excellent 
  bulls, 
  

   and 
  when 
  crossed 
  with 
  good 
  milkers 
  of 
  any 
  of 
  the 
  milch 
  families, 
  yield 
  largely 
  of 
  a 
  

   rich 
  quality 
  of 
  milk, 
  from 
  which 
  the 
  finest 
  butter 
  can 
  be 
  made. 
  In 
  certain 
  sections 
  of 
  

   Nebraska, 
  especially 
  iu 
  Howard 
  County, 
  half 
  and 
  quarter 
  bred 
  buffalo 
  stock 
  is 
  quite 
  

   common. 
  Notwithstanding 
  the 
  dairy 
  stock 
  in 
  that 
  State, 
  crossed 
  originally 
  with 
  the 
  

   buffalo, 
  were 
  of 
  an 
  ordinary 
  character, 
  the 
  half-breds 
  yield 
  an 
  average 
  of 
  f'ourteen 
  to 
  

   sixteen 
  quarts 
  per 
  day, 
  the 
  milk 
  being 
  of 
  a 
  rich 
  and 
  fine 
  flavor, 
  making 
  the 
  best 
  of 
  

   butter, 
  and 
  very 
  nearly 
  equalling 
  the 
  Jerseys 
  in 
  the 
  quantity 
  obtained 
  from 
  a 
  given 
  

   proportion. 
  These 
  facts 
  are 
  obtained 
  from 
  J. 
  W. 
  Cunningham, 
  esq., 
  now 
  of 
  Erie, 
  Pa., 
  

   formerly 
  of 
  Howard 
  County, 
  Nebraska, 
  who 
  vouches 
  for 
  their 
  correctness, 
  having 
  

   largely 
  experimented 
  with 
  these 
  half 
  and 
  quarter 
  bred 
  buffalo 
  cows. 
  This 
  will 
  prove 
  

   of 
  great 
  value 
  to 
  thousands 
  of 
  breeders 
  and 
  farmers 
  in 
  the 
  far 
  West, 
  and 
  notably 
  so 
  

   in 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  besides 
  the 
  dairy 
  quality 
  which 
  these 
  half-breds 
  possess 
  in 
  a 
  

   remarkable 
  degree, 
  they 
  take 
  on 
  flesh 
  and 
  fat 
  rapidly, 
  and 
  make 
  excellent 
  beef." 
  

  

  In 
  another 
  column 
  of 
  the 
  same 
  issue 
  occurs 
  the 
  following 
  : 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  long-mooted 
  question 
  whether 
  the 
  buffalo 
  cannot 
  be 
  successfully 
  utilized 
  for 
  

   dairy 
  purposes 
  is 
  now 
  in 
  a 
  fair 
  way 
  of 
  being 
  satisfactorily 
  settled. 
  The 
  apprehen- 
  

   sions 
  hitherto 
  entertained 
  regarding 
  the 
  untamable 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo, 
  and 
  that 
  the 
  

   characteristics 
  of 
  this 
  branch 
  of 
  the 
  bovine 
  family 
  would 
  be 
  certain 
  to 
  crop 
  out 
  through 
  

   indefinite 
  crossings, 
  appear 
  to 
  be 
  totally 
  groundless. 
  As 
  will 
  be 
  seen 
  under 
  the 
  head 
  

   of 
  stock 
  items, 
  in 
  this 
  day's 
  issue, 
  the 
  buffalo, 
  or 
  more 
  properly 
  American 
  bison 
  

   {Bos 
  americanus), 
  is 
  being 
  used 
  extensively 
  in 
  portions 
  of 
  the 
  State 
  of 
  Nebraska 
  bor- 
  

   dering 
  on 
  the 
  wild 
  prairies 
  of 
  the 
  far 
  West 
  for 
  stock 
  purposes, 
  and 
  that 
  half 
  and 
  quar- 
  

   ter 
  bred 
  females 
  of 
  the 
  bison 
  family 
  yield 
  an 
  abundant 
  supply 
  of 
  rich 
  milk. 
  A 
  remark- 
  

   able 
  feature 
  connected 
  with 
  this 
  cross 
  of 
  the 
  bison 
  with 
  domestic 
  cattle 
  is 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  

   the 
  color 
  of 
  the 
  bison 
  and 
  the 
  majority 
  of 
  its 
  distingnishing 
  characters 
  disappear 
  after 
  

   successive 
  crossings. 
  Its 
  outward 
  conformation 
  is 
  also 
  in 
  process 
  of 
  time 
  in 
  a 
  great 
  

   degree 
  lost 
  sight 
  of. 
  The 
  hunch, 
  or 
  lump 
  of 
  flesh 
  covering 
  the 
  long 
  spinous 
  processes 
  

   of 
  the 
  dorsal 
  vertebrae, 
  becomes 
  diminished 
  with 
  each 
  successive 
  cross, 
  and 
  will 
  

   doubtless 
  also 
  disappear 
  entirely 
  as 
  the 
  original 
  type 
  becomes 
  merged 
  in 
  the 
  domestic 
  

   animal. 
  

  

  "Mr. 
  J. 
  W. 
  Cunningham, 
  now 
  living 
  at 
  Erie, 
  Pa., 
  formerly 
  of 
  Howard 
  County, 
  Ne- 
  

   braska, 
  in 
  a 
  reoent 
  letter 
  presents 
  many 
  interesting 
  facts 
  iu 
  connection 
  with 
  this 
  sub- 
  

   ject, 
  based 
  upon 
  his 
  own 
  experience, 
  which 
  renders 
  them 
  of 
  great 
  importance 
  to 
  the 
  

   farmers 
  and 
  breeders 
  of 
  the 
  western 
  country. 
  He 
  writes 
  : 
  ' 
  The 
  buffaloes 
  on 
  my 
  ranch 
  

   consisted 
  of 
  two 
  young 
  cows 
  and 
  one 
  bull. 
  I 
  fed 
  them 
  carefully 
  with 
  the 
  cows, 
  but 
  

   kept 
  them 
  confined 
  at 
  night. 
  In 
  the 
  spring 
  it 
  was 
  discovered 
  that 
  two 
  of 
  my 
  cows 
  

   were 
  with 
  calf 
  by 
  the 
  buffalo 
  bull. 
  The 
  calves 
  proved 
  to 
  be 
  both 
  heifers. 
  When 
  

   three 
  years 
  old 
  they 
  became 
  mothers, 
  the 
  sire 
  being 
  of 
  short-horn 
  stock. 
  The 
  calves 
  

   ■were 
  weaned, 
  and 
  the 
  mothers, 
  although 
  showing 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  buffalo 
  characteristics, 
  

   proved 
  to 
  be 
  very 
  good 
  milkers, 
  quite 
  gentle, 
  giving 
  an 
  average 
  of 
  fourteen 
  quarts 
  of 
  

   milk 
  per 
  day 
  format 
  least 
  five 
  months, 
  and 
  such 
  rich 
  milk 
  I 
  never 
  saw. 
  This 
  strain 
  of 
  

   buffalo 
  stock 
  extends 
  through 
  a 
  considerable 
  section 
  of 
  Howard 
  County. 
  I 
  have 
  a 
  

   half-bred 
  bull 
  of 
  this 
  stock 
  which 
  proves 
  to 
  be 
  both 
  useful 
  and 
  attractive. 
  There 
  are 
  

   others, 
  I 
  learn, 
  in 
  other 
  sections 
  of 
  Nebraska 
  who 
  own 
  half 
  aud 
  quarter 
  breeds 
  that 
  

   prove 
  to 
  be 
  very 
  hardy.' 
  From 
  other 
  sources 
  in 
  the 
  West 
  we 
  learn 
  that 
  the 
  cross 
  of 
  

   the 
  American 
  bison 
  with 
  native 
  and 
  grade 
  short-horn 
  cattle 
  has 
  proved 
  completely 
  

   successful, 
  experiments 
  having 
  been 
  tried 
  on 
  a 
  sufficiently 
  large 
  scale 
  to 
  satisfy 
  the 
  

   most 
  skeptical 
  people. 
  Utilizing 
  the 
  buflalo 
  for 
  dairy 
  purposes 
  is 
  an 
  old 
  custom 
  in 
  the 
  

   hot 
  countries 
  of 
  the 
  eastern 
  continent, 
  where 
  almost 
  all 
  the 
  cheese 
  is 
  made 
  of 
  buffalo 
  

   milk. 
  The 
  business 
  in 
  this 
  country 
  is 
  comparatively 
  new 
  aud 
  not 
  yet 
  fully 
  developed, 
  

   but 
  we 
  may 
  reasonably 
  hope 
  to 
  see 
  it 
  spread 
  like 
  wildfire 
  in 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  a 
  few 
  yeara 
  

   throughout 
  the 
  entire 
  western 
  country." 
  — 
  J. 
  A. 
  A. 
  ] 
  

  

  