THE EXTERMINATION OF THE AMERICAN BISON. 461 



ten years," but without giving any particular attention to it. At pres- 

 ent his herd consists of thirteen head, of which two are three-year old 

 bulls and four are calves. There are seven cows of all ages, one of which 

 is a half-breed. 



Herd at the Zoological Society's Gardens, Philadelphia, Arthur E. 

 Brown, superintendent. — This institution is the fortunate possessor of a 

 small herd of ten buffaloes, of which four are males and six females. 

 Two are calves of 1877. In 1886 the Gardens sold an adult bull and cow 

 to Hon. W. F. Cody for $300. 



Herd at Bismarck Grove, Kansas, owned by the Atchison, Topeka and 

 Santa Fe Railroad Company. — A small herd of buffaloes has for several 

 years past been kept at Bismarck Grove as an attraction to visitors. At 

 present it contains ten head, one of which is a very large bull, another 

 in a four-year-old bull, six are cows of various ages, and two are two- 

 year olds. In 1885 a large bull belonging to this herd grew so vicious 

 and dangerous that it was necessary to kill him. 



The following interesting account of this herd was published in the 

 Kansas City Times of December 8, 1888: 



"Thirteen years ago Colonel Stanton purchased a buffalo bull calf 

 for $8 and. two heifers for $25. The descendants of these three buffa- 

 loes now found at Bismarck Grove, where all were born, number in all 

 ten. There were seventeen, but the rest have died, with the exception 

 of one, which was given away. They are kept in an inclosure containing 

 about 30 acres immediately adjoining the park, and there may be seen 

 at any time. The sight is one well worth a trip and the slight expense 

 that may attach to it, especially to one who has never seen the Ameri- 

 can bison in his native state. 



" The present herd includes two fine bull calves dropped last spring, 

 two heifers, five cows, and a bull six years old and as handsome as a 

 picture. The latter has been named Cleveland, after the colonel's favor- 

 ite Presidential candidate. The entire herd is in as fine condition as 

 any beef cattle, though they were never fed anything but hay and are 

 never ffiven any shelter. In fact they don't take kindly to shelter, aud 

 whether a blizzard is blowing, with the mercury 20 degrees below zero, 

 or the sun pouring down his scorching rays, with the thermometer 110 

 degrees above, they set their heads resolutely toward storm or sun and 

 take their medicine as if they liked it. Hon. W. F. Cody, " Buffalo Bill," 

 tried to buy the whole herd two years ago to take to Europe with his 

 Wild West Show, but they were not for sale at his own figures, and, in- 

 deed, there is no anxiety to dispose of them at any figures. The rail- 

 load company has been glad to furnish them pasturage for the sake of 

 adding to the attractions of the park, in which there are also forty-three 

 head of deer, iucluding two as fine bucks as ever trotted over the national 

 deer trail toward the salt-licks in northern Utah. 



" While the bison at Bismark Grove are splendid specimens of their 

 class, u Cleveland" is decidedly the pride of the herd, and as grand a. 



