268 
During one of our trips over the range we came 
upon the body of a two-year-old steer that had 
lately been killed by wolves. Scarcely more than 
the skin and skeleton remained. ‘That wolves will 
kill game animals, even buffalo calves several 
months old, there is no question. ‘The wolf in the 
Oklahoma buffalo range, unless he is exterminated, 
will take the place of the cougar in the Yellowstone 
Park. As it now stands, the Wichita Forest 
Reserve is a breeding ground for wolves and 
coyotes; consequently, it is a breeding ground for 
discontent among the ranchmen and cattlemen 
who suffer by their depredations. 
Inquiries among the old settlers of the region 
established the fact that, with the exception of 
last winter, the winters nowadays are milder than 
they were during the days when buffalo roamed 
over the range. Last winter was the severest 
winter the country has experienced in twenty 
years. It. was particularly hard on cattle. A 
thick sleet over a fall of snow prevented stock from 
srazing, and many animals died in consequence. 
In anticipation of a winter of this kind it seems 
advisable to lay in a stock of wild hay, which can 
be cut inside the range or just beyond its bounds. 
Grass cut in July will spring up again, and by 
September is, good winter grazing. For the first 
winter, at least, the buffalo should be fed on 
harvested hay in addition to the food they can 
secure by grazing. 
The snowfall in a season is light, and it usually 
melts as fast as it falls. Two or three inches is 
about the limit, and that which falls seldom 
remains more than two or three days. It seldom 
snows before January, and the severest storms come 
from the Northwest. New grass appears about the 
Ist of April, and by the Ist of May grazing is good, 
and continues so until August, when it becomes 
dry. 
With July comes the first hot weather, and it 
continues for eight weeks. The mercury at times 
reaches 118°, with a very slight degree of humidity. 
During this period the cattle feed on the slopes 
and tops of the mountains, where there is usually 
a. breeze. 
Upon Mr. Loring’s report the Department of 
Agriculture took action, and as a result the 
agricultural appropriation bill passed at the 
last session of Congress contained an item of 
$15,009 to.be expended in fencing the game 
preserve in the Wichita Forest Reserve. 
As soon as the fence is completed, the New 
York Zoological Society will ship the herd of 
fifteen or more buffalo to the preserve, the 
society having last fall offered to donate the 
buffalo if the Government would fence the 
Tanger, “2, 
Hon. John F. Lacey, assemblyman from 
Iowa, recently inspected the Wichita Game 
Preserve, and will report at the next session of 
Congress the result of his finding of the condi- 
tion of buffalo in Oklahoma, and what, in his 
opinion, is needed to insure a bright future for 
the herd which will be established on the 
Wichita Preserve. 
RECREATION 
Join the Bison Society 
The first appeal for the preservation of the 
buffalo which the American Bison Society has 
issued, to be sent to individual people in printed 
form, is now being circulated. We quote it in 
full: 
The American bison or buffalo, our grandest 
native animal, is in grave danger of becoming 
extinct; and it is the duty of the people of to-day 
to preserve, for future generations, this picturesque 
wild creature which has played so conspicuous a 
part in the history of America. We owe it to our 
descendants that all possible effort shall now be 
made looking to the perpetual increase and pres- 
ervation of this noble animal, whose passing 
must otherwise soon be a matter of universal and 
lasting regret. 
It is conceded, practically by all authorities, 
that, owing to the uncertainties of human life and 
the changes in fortune and in policy among private 
individuals and private corporations, the buffalo 
cannot be perpetuated for centuries and preserved 
from ultimate extinction save under Government 
auspices. At present nearly all the buffaloes in 
the United States are in private hands, and with 
few exceptions are for sale to any one offering a 
reasonable price. Many are sold every year, some 
for propagating purposes and others to the 
butcher and the taxidermist. Moreover, most of 
them are in a few comparatively large herds, and 
should contagious disease at any time strike one ~ 
of these, so great a percentage of the now remain- 
ing buffaloes might be wiped out at one blow as 
to make the perpetuation of the remainder prac- 
tically an impossibility. 
In the belief that Americans generally will be 
found in sympathy with a carefully planned 
movement to save what might well be »termed 
their national animal, and in order that all who 
desire may take part in the work of preservation, 
there was recently organized, in New York City, 
The American Bison Society, which, in accordance 
with its constitution, has for its object “the perma- 
nent preservation and increase of the American 
bison.” : 
This society will seek to have established in 
widely separated localities, under Government 
auspices, several herds of buffalo, on suitable 
ranges (preferably Government land), such ranges 
to be chosen from a large number that have been 
recommended by competent persons. These 
herds, under proper management, should increase 
until the race is no longer in danger of extinction. 
With this end in view, The American Bison 
Society is now beginning an active campaign. 
A bill calling for national aid in the establishing 
of several buffalo herds is already under considera- 
tion. In the meantime, the society purposes to 
make a determined effort to organize the interest 
of the public in the fate of the American buffalo, 
and presently bring it to bear in such a manner that 
it will result in the Governments of both the United 
States and Canada taking active measures to 
insure that animal’s preservation and increase. 
The officers of the society are prepared to do the 
work incidental to this campaign, but in order that 
_ this work may be carried on promptly and vigor- 
