THE EXTERMINATION OF THE AMERICAN BISON. 407 



milk of two domestic cows to satisfy one buffalo calf, but this, I think, 

 is an error. Our calf began in May to consume 6 quarts of domestic 

 milk daily, which by June 10 had increased to 8, aud up to July 10, 9 

 quarts was the utmost it could drink. By that time it began to eat 

 grass, but the quantity of milk disposed of remained about the same. 



Bison americanus. (Adult cow, eight years old. Taken November 18, 1836. Mon- 

 tana.) 



(No. 15767, National Museum colUotion.) 



Feet. Inches. 



Height at shoulders 4 10 



Leugth, head aud body to insertion of tail 8 6 



Depth of chest 3 7 



Depthof flank 1 7 



Girth behind fore leg 6 10 



From base of horns around end of nose 3 3 



Length of tail vertebrae 1 



10. The "Wood," or "Mountain" Buffalo. — Having myself never seen 

 a specimen of the so called "mountain buffalo" or "wood buffalo," 

 which some writers accord the rank of a distinct variety, I can only 

 quote the descriptions of others. While most Rocky Mountain hunt- 

 ers consider the bison of the mountains quite distinct from that of 

 the plains, it must be remarked that no two authorities quite agree in 

 regard to the distinguishing characters of the variety they recognize. 

 Colonel Dodge states that " His body is lighter, whilst his legs are 

 shorter, but much thicker and stronger, than the plains animal, thus 

 enabling him to perform feats of climbing aud tumbling almost iucred 

 ible in such a huge and unwieldy beast."* 



The belief in the existence of a distinct mountain variety is quite 

 commou amongst hunters and frontiersmen all along the eastern slope 

 the Rocky Mountains as far north as the Peace River. In this con- 

 nection the following from Professor Henry Youle Hindt is of general 

 interest: 



"The existence of two kinds of buffalo is firmly believed by many 

 hunters at Red River; they are stated to be the prairie buffalo and the 

 buffalo of the woods. Many old hunters with whom I have conversed 

 on this subject aver that the so-called wood buffalo is a distinct species, 

 and although they are not able to offer scientific proofs, yet the differ- 

 ence in size, color, hair, and horns, are enumerated as the evidence 

 upon which they base their statement. Men from their youth familiar 

 with these animals in the great plains, and the varieties which are fre- 

 quently met with in large herds, still cling to this opinion. The buffalo 

 of the plains are not always of the dark and rich bright brown which 

 forms their characteristic color. They are sometimes seen from white 

 to almost black, and a gray buffalo is not at all uncommon. Buffalo 



* Plains of the Great West, p. 144. 



tStcl River, A«sin*iboin« and Saskat«k«vram lrp««liti«i, II, p. 194-105. 



