THE BUFFALO. 419 



sometliing of that kind, will make it lose its footing ; but it does 

 require some time for the physical man to get accustomed to its 

 saddle, to its broad back, and to its deliberate motion when its 

 rider is upon it and not in a position to be charged at." 



Sir J. D. Hooker, in his " Himalayan Journals," describes the 

 veal of a yak caK as being very fine eating, and states that when 

 it was served up a foot had always to be left, for in the autumn, 

 when the calf is killed, the mother will not yield any milk unless 

 the herdsman gives her the calf's foot to lick, or lays a stufied 

 skin before her to fondle, which she does with eagerness, and 

 expresses her satisfaction by short grunts. 



Besides being good eating, the yak yields the best of milk, for 

 it is as rich as cream, and the butter made from it is superior to 

 all others. Its hair is valuable, for when woven it makes a kind 

 of waterproof material, from which tents or covers can be made ; 

 the finer qualities are used for shawls or soft carpets. 



The yaks being so valuable for use and employment by man, 

 their acclimatization and permanent settlement in Europe were the 

 dreams of M. de Montingy, the energetic French consul at Shanghai 

 thirty years ago, and his attempts in this direction were eminently 

 successful. He had a herd of them brought from Thibet, which 

 he kept at Shanghai for nearly four years, and when he found 

 they bore the change of climate well, and bred abundantly, he 

 brought them with him to France in 1853. They were ship- 

 wrecked on the Azores, and detained there for some months, but 

 the French Minister of Marine sent a vessel to convey them to 

 their destination. 



This herd was divided into three portions ; some were sent to the 

 Jardin des Plantes, where, with their Chinese keeper, they aroused 

 public interest in the experiment being made ; several were given 

 to the SocietS d'Acclimatation ; and a few became the property 

 of the Count de Morny, and were kept on his estate in the Allier. 

 They did not appear to suffer from the change in temperature, 

 but throve, bred, and developed good fleecy coats, just as they 

 would if they had not been removed from their mountainous 

 home. Some of the descendants of these animals are still hving 

 in France. 



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