540 REPORT OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1887. 



to the Buffalo Buttes, found four fine old buffalo cows, and, after a hard 

 chase, killed them all. 



Under the circumstances, this was the most brilliant piece of work of 

 the entire hunt. As the four cows dashed past the hunters at the Buf- 

 falo Buttes, heading for the High Divide, fully 20 miles distant, Mc- 

 Naney killed one cow, and two others went off wounded. Of course 

 the cowboys gave chase. About 12 miles from the starting-point one 

 of the wounded cows left her companions, was headed off by Boyd, and 

 killed. About 6 miles beyond that one, McNaney overhauled the third 

 cow and killed her, but the fourth one got away for a short time. While 

 McNaney skinned the third cow and dressed the carcass to preserve 

 the meat, Boyd took their now thoroughly exhausted horses to camp 

 and procured fresh mounts. On returning to McNaney they set out in 

 pursuit of the fourth cow, chased her across the High Divide, within a 

 mile or so of our camp, and into the ravines on the northern slope, 

 where she was killed. She met her death nearly if not quite 25 miles 

 from the spot where the first one fell. 



The death of these four cows brought our number of buffaloes up to 

 eighteen, and' made us think about the possibilities of getting thirty. 

 As we were proceeding to the Buffalo Buttes on the clay after the "kill" 

 to gather in the spoil, Mr. Brown and I taking charge of the wagon, 

 Messrs. McNaney and Boyd went ahead in order to hunt. When within 

 about 5 miles of the Buttes we came unexpectedly upon our companions, 

 down in a hollow, busily engaged in skinning another old cow, which 

 they had discovered traveling across the bad grounds, waylaid, and 

 killed. 



We camped that night on our old ground at the Buffalo Buttes, and 

 although we all desired to remain a day or two and hunt for more buf- 

 falo, the peculiar appearance of the sky in the northwest, and the con- 

 dition of the atmosphere, warned us that a change of weather was im- 

 minent. Accordingly, the following morning we decided without hesi- 

 tation that it was best to get back to cainp that day, and it soon proved 

 very fortunate for us that we so decided. 



Feeling that by reason of my work on the specimens I had been de- 

 prived of a fair share of the chase, I arranged for Mr. Boyd to accom- 

 pany the wagon on the return trip, that I might hunt through the bad 

 lands west of the Buffalo Buttes, which I felt must contain some buffalo. 

 Mr. Russell went northeast and Mr. McNaney accompanied me. About 

 4 miles from our late camp we came suddenly upon a fine old solitary 

 bull, feeding in a hollow between two high and precipitous ridges. 

 After a short but sharp chase I succeeded in getting a fair shot at him, 

 and killed him with a ball which broke his left humerus and passed 

 into his lungs. He was the only large bull killed on the entire trip by 

 a single shot. He proved to be a very fine specimen, measuring 5 feet 

 G inches in height at the shoulders. The wagon was overtaken and 



