THE BISON. 381 



he becomes nearly immersed ; and tlie water and mud about Mm 

 mixed into a complete mortar, wbicli changes his colour, and drips 

 in streams from every part of him as he rises up upon his feet, a 

 hideous monster of mud and ugliness, too frightful and too 

 eccentric to be described ! 



" It is generally the leader of the herd that takes upon him to 

 make this excavation ; and if not (but another one opens the 

 ground) the leader (who is conqueror) marches forward, and 

 driving the other from it, plunges himself into it; and having 

 cooled his sides, and changed his colour to a walking mass of mud 

 and mortar, he stands in the pool until inclination induces him to 

 step out and give place to the next in command, who stands 

 ready ; and another, and another, who advance forward in their 

 turns, to enjoy the luxury of the wallow; and the whole band 

 (sometimes a hundred or more) will pass through it in turn ; each 

 one throwing his body around in a similar manner ; and each one 

 adding a little to the dimensions of the pool, while he carries 

 away in his hair an equal share of the clay, which dries to a grey 

 or whitish colour, and gradually falls off. By this operation, 

 which is done perhaps in the space of half an hour, a circular 

 excavation of fifteen or twenty feet in diameter, and two feet in 

 depth, is completed, and left for the water to run into, which soon 

 fills it to the level of the ground. 



" To these sinks, the waters lying on the surface of the prairies 

 are continually draining, and in them lodging their vegetable 

 deposits ; which, after a lapse of years, fill them up to the surface 

 with a rich soil, which throws up an unusual growth of grass and 

 herbage, forming conspicuous circles which arrest the eye of the 

 traveller, and are calculated to excite surprise for ages to come." 



The gait of a buffalo is rather heavy and clumsy, and he seems to 

 be guided to a considerable extent by the sense of smell rather 

 than of sight, for he carries his head well down, and rushes straight 

 before him in the opposite direction to the one from which danger 

 is apprehended. The speed on such occasions is very great, and 

 the animal has a wonderful endurance. 



Whole herds plunge readily into rivers, for buffaloes swim 

 easily, though large numbers get drowned in their migrations 



