Mr-rabbit/trialsusius · Datasets at Hugging Face

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	I have seen them three times, and eaten of their meat.	I think they are about the size of those in Spain.
	I think they are about the size of those in Spain.	They have small horns like those of Morocco, and the hair long and flocky, like that of the merino.
	They have small horns like those of Morocco, and the hair long and flocky, like that of the merino.	Some are light brown (_pardillas_) and others black.
	Some are light brown (_pardillas_) and others black.	To my judgment the flesh is finer and sweeter than that of this country
	To my judgment the flesh is finer and sweeter than that of this country	[Spain].
	[Spain].	The Indians make blankets of those that are not full grown, and of the larger they make shoes and bucklers.
	The Indians make blankets of those that are not full grown, and of the larger they make shoes and bucklers.	They come as far as the sea-coast of Florida
	They come as far as the sea-coast of Florida	[now Texas], and in a direction from the north, and range over a district of more than 400 leagues.
	[now Texas], and in a direction from the north, and range over a district of more than 400 leagues.	In the whole extent of plain over which they roam, the people who live bordering upon it descend and kill them for food, and thus a great many skins are scattered throughout the country.
	In the whole extent of plain over which they roam, the people who live bordering upon it descend and kill them for food, and thus a great many skins are scattered throughout the country.	" Coronado was the next explorer who penetrated the country of the buffalo, which he accomplished from the west, by way of Arizona and New Mexico.
	" Coronado was the next explorer who penetrated the country of the buffalo, which he accomplished from the west, by way of Arizona and New Mexico.	He crossed the southern part of the "Pan-handle" of Texas, to the edge of what is now the Indian Territory, and returned through the same region.
	He crossed the southern part of the "Pan-handle" of Texas, to the edge of what is now the Indian Territory, and returned through the same region.	It was in the year 1542 that he reached the buffalo country, and traversed the plains that were "full of crooke-backed oxen, as the mountaine Serena in Spaine is of sheepe."
	It was in the year 1542 that he reached the buffalo country, and traversed the plains that were "full of crooke-backed oxen, as the mountaine Serena in Spaine is of sheepe."	This is the description of the animal as recorded by one of his followers, Castañeda, and translated by W. W. Davis:[2]
	This is the description of the animal as recorded by one of his followers, Castañeda, and translated by W. W. Davis:[2]	[Note 2: The Spanish Conquest of New Mexico.
	[Note 2: The Spanish Conquest of New Mexico.	Davis.
	Davis.	1869.
	1869.	Pp. 206-7.] "The first time we encountered the buffalo, all the horses took to flight on seeing them, for they are horrible to the sight.
	Pp. 206-7.] "The first time we encountered the buffalo, all the horses took to flight on seeing them, for they are horrible to the sight.	"They have a broad and short face, eyes two palms from each other, and projecting in such a manner sideways that they can see a pursuer.
	"They have a broad and short face, eyes two palms from each other, and projecting in such a manner sideways that they can see a pursuer.	Their beard is like that of goats, and so long that it drags the ground when they lower the head.
	Their beard is like that of goats, and so long that it drags the ground when they lower the head.	They have, on the anterior portion of the body, a frizzled hair like sheep's wool; it is very fine upon the croup, and sleek like a lion's mane.
	They have, on the anterior portion of the body, a frizzled hair like sheep's wool; it is very fine upon the croup, and sleek like a lion's mane.	Their horns are very short and thick, and can scarcely be seen through the hair.
	Their horns are very short and thick, and can scarcely be seen through the hair.	They always change their hair in May, and at this season they really resemble lions.
	They always change their hair in May, and at this season they really resemble lions.	To make it drop more quickly, for they change it as adders do their skins, they roll among the brush-wood which they find in the ravines.
	To make it drop more quickly, for they change it as adders do their skins, they roll among the brush-wood which they find in the ravines.	"Their tail is very short, and terminates in a great tuft.
	"Their tail is very short, and terminates in a great tuft.	When they run they carry it in the air like scorpions.
	When they run they carry it in the air like scorpions.	When quite young they are tawny, and resemble our calves; but as age increases they change color and form.
	When quite young they are tawny, and resemble our calves; but as age increases they change color and form.	"Another thing which struck us was that all the old buffaloes that we killed had the left ear cloven, while it was entire in the young; we could never discover the reason of this.
	"Another thing which struck us was that all the old buffaloes that we killed had the left ear cloven, while it was entire in the young; we could never discover the reason of this.	"Their wool is so fine that handsome clothes would certainly be made of it, but it can not be dyed for it is tawny red.
	"Their wool is so fine that handsome clothes would certainly be made of it, but it can not be dyed for it is tawny red.	We were much surprised at sometimes meeting innumerable herds of bulls without a single cow, and other herds of cows without bulls.
	We were much surprised at sometimes meeting innumerable herds of bulls without a single cow, and other herds of cows without bulls.	" Neither De Soto, Ponce de Leon, Vasquez de Ayllon, nor Pamphilo de Narvaez ever saw a buffalo, for the reason that all their explorations were made south of what was then the habitat of that animal.
	" Neither De Soto, Ponce de Leon, Vasquez de Ayllon, nor Pamphilo de Narvaez ever saw a buffalo, for the reason that all their explorations were made south of what was then the habitat of that animal.	At the time De Soto made his great exploration from Florida northwestward to the Mississippi and into Arkansas (1539-'41) he did indeed pass through country in northern Mississippi and Louisiana that was afterward inhabited by the buffalo, but at that time not one was to be found there.
	At the time De Soto made his great exploration from Florida northwestward to the Mississippi and into Arkansas (1539-'41) he did indeed pass through country in northern Mississippi and Louisiana that was afterward inhabited by the buffalo, but at that time not one was to be found there.	Some of his soldiers, however, who were sent into the northern part of Arkansas, reported having seen buffalo skins in the possession of the Indians, and were told that live buffaloes were to be found 5 or 6 leagues north of their farthest point.
	Some of his soldiers, however, who were sent into the northern part of Arkansas, reported having seen buffalo skins in the possession of the Indians, and were told that live buffaloes were to be found 5 or 6 leagues north of their farthest point.	The earliest discovery of the bison in Eastern North America, or indeed anywhere north of Coronado's route, was made somewhere near Washington, District of Columbia, in 1612, by an English navigator named Samuel Argoll,[3] and narrated as follows:
	The earliest discovery of the bison in Eastern North America, or indeed anywhere north of Coronado's route, was made somewhere near Washington, District of Columbia, in 1612, by an English navigator named Samuel Argoll,[3] and narrated as follows:	"As soon as I had unladen this corne, I set my men to the felling of Timber, for the building of a Frigat, which I had left half finished at Point Comfort, the 19. of March: and returned myself with the ship into Pembrook [Potomac] River, and so discovered to the head of it, which is about 65 leagues into the Land, and navigable for any ship.
	"As soon as I had unladen this corne, I set my men to the felling of Timber, for the building of a Frigat, which I had left half finished at Point Comfort, the 19. of March: and returned myself with the ship into Pembrook [Potomac] River, and so discovered to the head of it, which is about 65 leagues into the Land, and navigable for any ship.	And then marching into the Countrie, I found great store of Cattle as big as Kine, of which the Indians that were my guides killed a couple, which we found to be very good and wholesome meate, and are very easie to be killed, in regard they are heavy, slow, and not so wild as other beasts of the wildernesse.
	And then marching into the Countrie, I found great store of Cattle as big as Kine, of which the Indians that were my guides killed a couple, which we found to be very good and wholesome meate, and are very easie to be killed, in regard they are heavy, slow, and not so wild as other beasts of the wildernesse.	" [Note 3: Purchas: His Pilgrimes.
	" [Note 3: Purchas: His Pilgrimes.	(1625.)
	(1625.)	Vol. IV, p. 1765.
	Vol. IV, p. 1765.	"A letter of Sir Samuel Argoll touching his Voyage to Virginia, and actions there. Written to Master Nicholas Hawes, June, 1613.
	"A letter of Sir Samuel Argoll touching his Voyage to Virginia, and actions there. Written to Master Nicholas Hawes, June, 1613.	"] It is to be regretted that the narrative of the explorer affords no clew to the precise locality of this interesting discovery, but since it is doubtful that the mariner journeyed very far on foot from the head of navigation of the Potomac, it seems highly probable that the first American bison seen by Europeans, other than the Spaniards, was found within 15 miles, or even less, of the capital of the United States, and possibly within the District of Columbia itself.
	"] It is to be regretted that the narrative of the explorer affords no clew to the precise locality of this interesting discovery, but since it is doubtful that the mariner journeyed very far on foot from the head of navigation of the Potomac, it seems highly probable that the first American bison seen by Europeans, other than the Spaniards, was found within 15 miles, or even less, of the capital of the United States, and possibly within the District of Columbia itself.	The first meeting of the white man with the buffalo on the northern boundary of that animal's habitat occurred in 1679, when Father Hennepin ascended the St. Lawrence to the great lakes, and finally penetrated the great wilderness as far as western Illinois.
	The first meeting of the white man with the buffalo on the northern boundary of that animal's habitat occurred in 1679, when Father Hennepin ascended the St. Lawrence to the great lakes, and finally penetrated the great wilderness as far as western Illinois.	The next meeting with the buffalo on the Atlantic slope was in October, 1729, by a party of surveyors under Col. William Byrd, who were engaged in surveying the boundary between North Carolina and Virginia.
	The next meeting with the buffalo on the Atlantic slope was in October, 1729, by a party of surveyors under Col. William Byrd, who were engaged in surveying the boundary between North Carolina and Virginia.	As the party journeyed up from the coast, marking the line which now constitutes the interstate boundary, three buffaloes were seen on Sugar-Tree Creek, but none of them were killed.
	As the party journeyed up from the coast, marking the line which now constitutes the interstate boundary, three buffaloes were seen on Sugar-Tree Creek, but none of them were killed.	On the return journey, in November, a bull buffalo was killed on Sugar-Tree Creek, which is in Halifax County, Virginia, within 5 miles of Big Buffalo Creek; longitude 78° 40' W., and 155 miles from the coast.[4]
	On the return journey, in November, a bull buffalo was killed on Sugar-Tree Creek, which is in Halifax County, Virginia, within 5 miles of Big Buffalo Creek; longitude 78° 40' W., and 155 miles from the coast.[4]	"It was found all alone, tho' Buffaloes Seldom are."
	"It was found all alone, tho' Buffaloes Seldom are."	The meat is spoken of as "a Rarity," not met at all on the expedition up.
	The meat is spoken of as "a Rarity," not met at all on the expedition up.	The animal was found in thick woods, which were thus feelingly described: "The woods were thick great Part of this Day's Journey, so that we were forced to scuffle hard to advance 7 miles, being equal in fatigue to double that distance of Clear and Open Ground."
	The animal was found in thick woods, which were thus feelingly described: "The woods were thick great Part of this Day's Journey, so that we were forced to scuffle hard to advance 7 miles, being equal in fatigue to double that distance of Clear and Open Ground."	One of the creeks which the party crossed was christened Buffalo Creek, and "so named from the frequent tokens we discovered of that American Behemoth.
	One of the creeks which the party crossed was christened Buffalo Creek, and "so named from the frequent tokens we discovered of that American Behemoth.	"
	"	[Note 4: Westover Manuscript.
	[Note 4: Westover Manuscript.	Col. William Byrd.
	Col. William Byrd.	Vol.
	Vol.	I, p. 178.]
	I, p. 178.]	In October, 1733, on another surveying expedition, Colonel Byrd's party had the good fortune to kill another buffalo near Sugar-Tree Creek, which incident is thus described:[5]
	In October, 1733, on another surveying expedition, Colonel Byrd's party had the good fortune to kill another buffalo near Sugar-Tree Creek, which incident is thus described:[5]	[Note 5: Vol. II, pp.
	[Note 5: Vol. II, pp.	24, 25.] "We pursued our journey thro' uneven and perplext woods, and in the thickest of them had the Fortune to knock down a Young Buffalo 2 years old.
	24, 25.] "We pursued our journey thro' uneven and perplext woods, and in the thickest of them had the Fortune to knock down a Young Buffalo 2 years old.	Providence threw this vast animal in our way very Seasonably, just as our provisions began to fail us.
	Providence threw this vast animal in our way very Seasonably, just as our provisions began to fail us.	And it was the more welcome, too, because it was change of dyet, which of all Varietys, next to that of Bed-fellows, is the most agreeable.
	And it was the more welcome, too, because it was change of dyet, which of all Varietys, next to that of Bed-fellows, is the most agreeable.	We had lived upon Venison and Bear till our stomachs loath'd them almost as much as the Hebrews of old did their Quails.
	We had lived upon Venison and Bear till our stomachs loath'd them almost as much as the Hebrews of old did their Quails.	Our Butchers were so unhandy at their Business that we grew very lank before we cou'd get our Dinner.
	Our Butchers were so unhandy at their Business that we grew very lank before we cou'd get our Dinner.	But when it came, we found it equal in goodness to the best Beef.
	But when it came, we found it equal in goodness to the best Beef.	They made it the longer because they kept Sucking the Water out of the Guts in imitation of the Catauba Indians, upon the belief that it is a great Cordial, and will even make them drunk, or at least very Gay."
	They made it the longer because they kept Sucking the Water out of the Guts in imitation of the Catauba Indians, upon the belief that it is a great Cordial, and will even make them drunk, or at least very Gay."	A little later a solitary bull buffalo was found, _but spared_,[6] the earliest instance of the kind on record, and which had few successors to keep it company.
	A little later a solitary bull buffalo was found, _but spared_,[6] the earliest instance of the kind on record, and which had few successors to keep it company.	[Note 6: _
	[Note 6: _	Ib._, p. 28.] II.
	Ib._, p. 28.] II.	GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.
	GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.	The range of the American bison extended over about one-third of the entire continent of North America.
	The range of the American bison extended over about one-third of the entire continent of North America.	Starting almost at tide-water on the Atlantic coast, it extended westward through a vast tract of dense forest, across the Alleghany Mountain system to the prairies along the Mississippi, and southward to the Delta of that great stream.
	Starting almost at tide-water on the Atlantic coast, it extended westward through a vast tract of dense forest, across the Alleghany Mountain system to the prairies along the Mississippi, and southward to the Delta of that great stream.	Although the great plains country of the West was the natural home of the species, where it flourished most abundantly, it also wandered south across Texas to the burning plains of northeastern Mexico, westward across the Rocky Mountains into New Mexico, Utah, and Idaho, and northward across a vast treeless waste to the bleak and inhospitable shores of the Great Slave Lake itself.
	Although the great plains country of the West was the natural home of the species, where it flourished most abundantly, it also wandered south across Texas to the burning plains of northeastern Mexico, westward across the Rocky Mountains into New Mexico, Utah, and Idaho, and northward across a vast treeless waste to the bleak and inhospitable shores of the Great Slave Lake itself.	It is more than probable that had the bison remained unmolested by man and uninfluenced by him, he would eventually have crossed the Sierra Nevadas and the Coast Range and taken up his abode in the fertile valleys of the Pacific slope.
	It is more than probable that had the bison remained unmolested by man and uninfluenced by him, he would eventually have crossed the Sierra Nevadas and the Coast Range and taken up his abode in the fertile valleys of the Pacific slope.	Had the bison remained for a few more centuries in undisturbed possession of his range, and with liberty to roam at will over the North American continent, it is almost certain that several distinctly recognizable varieties would have been produced.
	Had the bison remained for a few more centuries in undisturbed possession of his range, and with liberty to roam at will over the North American continent, it is almost certain that several distinctly recognizable varieties would have been produced.	The buffalo of the hot regions in the extreme south would have become a short-haired animal like the gaur of India and the African buffalo.
	The buffalo of the hot regions in the extreme south would have become a short-haired animal like the gaur of India and the African buffalo.	The individuals inhabiting the extreme north, in the vicinity of Great Slave Lake, for example, would have developed still longer hair, and taken on more of the dense hairyness of the musk ox.
	The individuals inhabiting the extreme north, in the vicinity of Great Slave Lake, for example, would have developed still longer hair, and taken on more of the dense hairyness of the musk ox.	In the "wood" or "mountain buffalo" we already have a distinct foreshadowing of the changes which would have taken place in the individuals which made their permanent residence upon rugged mountains.
	In the "wood" or "mountain buffalo" we already have a distinct foreshadowing of the changes which would have taken place in the individuals which made their permanent residence upon rugged mountains.	It would be an easy matter to fill a volume with facts relating to the geographical distribution of _
	It would be an easy matter to fill a volume with facts relating to the geographical distribution of _	Bison americanus_ and the dates of its occurrence and disappearance in the multitude of different localities embraced within the immense area it once inhabited.
	Bison americanus_ and the dates of its occurrence and disappearance in the multitude of different localities embraced within the immense area it once inhabited.	The capricious shiftings of certain sections of the great herds, whereby large areas which for many years had been utterly unvisited by buffaloes suddenly became overrun by them, could be followed up indefinitely, but to little purpose.
	The capricious shiftings of certain sections of the great herds, whereby large areas which for many years had been utterly unvisited by buffaloes suddenly became overrun by them, could be followed up indefinitely, but to little purpose.	In order to avoid wearying the reader with a mass of dates and references, the map accompanying this paper has been prepared to show at a glance the approximate dates at which the bison finally disappeared from the various sections of its habitat.
	In order to avoid wearying the reader with a mass of dates and references, the map accompanying this paper has been prepared to show at a glance the approximate dates at which the bison finally disappeared from the various sections of its habitat.	In some cases the date given is coincident with the death of the last buffalo known to have been killed in a given State or Territory; in others, where records are meager, the date given is the nearest approximation, based on existing records.
	In some cases the date given is coincident with the death of the last buffalo known to have been killed in a given State or Territory; in others, where records are meager, the date given is the nearest approximation, based on existing records.	In the preparation of this map I have drawn liberally from Mr. J. A. Allen's admirable monograph of "The American Bison," in which the author has brought together, with great labor and invariable accuracy, a vast amount of historical data bearing upon this subject.
	In the preparation of this map I have drawn liberally from Mr. J. A. Allen's admirable monograph of "The American Bison," in which the author has brought together, with great labor and invariable accuracy, a vast amount of historical data bearing upon this subject.	In this connection I take great pleasure in acknowledging my indebtedness to Professor Allen's work.
	In this connection I take great pleasure in acknowledging my indebtedness to Professor Allen's work.	While it is inexpedient to include here all the facts that might be recorded with reference to the discovery, existence, and ultimate extinction of the bison in the various portions of its former habitat, it is yet worth while to sketch briefly the extreme limits of its range.
	While it is inexpedient to include here all the facts that might be recorded with reference to the discovery, existence, and ultimate extinction of the bison in the various portions of its former habitat, it is yet worth while to sketch briefly the extreme limits of its range.	In doing this, our starting point will be the Atlantic slope east of the Alleghanies, and the reader will do well to refer to the large map.
	In doing this, our starting point will be the Atlantic slope east of the Alleghanies, and the reader will do well to refer to the large map.	DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.--There is no indisputable evidence that the bison ever inhabited this precise locality, but it is probable that it did.
	DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.--There is no indisputable evidence that the bison ever inhabited this precise locality, but it is probable that it did.	In 1612 Captain Argoll sailed up the "Pembrook River" to the head of navigation (Mr. Allen believes this was the James River, and not the Potomac) and marched inland a few miles, where he discovered buffaloes, some of which were killed by his Indian guides.
	In 1612 Captain Argoll sailed up the "Pembrook River" to the head of navigation (Mr. Allen believes this was the James River, and not the Potomac) and marched inland a few miles, where he discovered buffaloes, some of which were killed by his Indian guides.	If this river was the Potomac, and most authorities believe that it was, the buffaloes seen by Captain Argoll might easily have been in what is now the District of Columbia.
	If this river was the Potomac, and most authorities believe that it was, the buffaloes seen by Captain Argoll might easily have been in what is now the District of Columbia.	Admitting the existence of a reasonable doubt as to the identity of the Pembrook River of Captain Argoll, there is yet another bit of history which fairly establishes the fact that in the early part of the seventeenth century buffaloes inhabited the banks of the Potomac between this city and the lower falls.
	Admitting the existence of a reasonable doubt as to the identity of the Pembrook River of Captain Argoll, there is yet another bit of history which fairly establishes the fact that in the early part of the seventeenth century buffaloes inhabited the banks of the Potomac between this city and the lower falls.	In 1624 an English fur trader named Henry Fleet came hither to trade with the Anacostian Indians, who then inhabited the present site of the city of Washington, and with the tribes of the Upper Potomac.
	In 1624 an English fur trader named Henry Fleet came hither to trade with the Anacostian Indians, who then inhabited the present site of the city of Washington, and with the tribes of the Upper Potomac.	In his journal (discovered a few years since in the Lambeth Library, London) Fleet gave a quaint description of the city's site as it then appeared.
	In his journal (discovered a few years since in the Lambeth Library, London) Fleet gave a quaint description of the city's site as it then appeared.	The following is from the explorer's journal: "Monday, the 25th June, we set sail for the town of Tohoga, where we came to an anchor 2 leagues short of the falls.
	The following is from the explorer's journal: "Monday, the 25th June, we set sail for the town of Tohoga, where we came to an anchor 2 leagues short of the falls.	*
	*	* *
	* *	This place, without question, is the most pleasant and healthful place in all this country, and most convenient for habitation, the air temperate in summer and not violent in winter.
	This place, without question, is the most pleasant and healthful place in all this country, and most convenient for habitation, the air temperate in summer and not violent in winter.	It aboundeth with all manner of fish.
	It aboundeth with all manner of fish.	The Indians in one night commonly will catch thirty sturgeons in a place where the river is not above 12 fathoms broad, and as for deer, buffaloes, bears, turkeys, the woods do swarm with them.
	The Indians in one night commonly will catch thirty sturgeons in a place where the river is not above 12 fathoms broad, and as for deer, buffaloes, bears, turkeys, the woods do swarm with them.	*
	*	* *
	* *	The 27th of June I manned my shallop and went up with the flood, the tide rising about 4 feet at this place.
	The 27th of June I manned my shallop and went up with the flood, the tide rising about 4 feet at this place.	We had not rowed above 3 miles, but we might hear the falls to roar about 6 miles distant.
	We had not rowed above 3 miles, but we might hear the falls to roar about 6 miles distant.	"[7]

I have seen them three times, and eaten of their meat.

I think they are about the size of those in Spain.

They have small horns like those of Morocco, and the hair long and flocky, like that of the merino.

Some are light brown (_pardillas_) and others black.

To my judgment the flesh is finer and sweeter than that of this country

[Spain].

The Indians make blankets of those that are not full grown, and of the larger they make shoes and bucklers.

They come as far as the sea-coast of Florida

[now Texas], and in a direction from the north, and range over a district of more than 400 leagues.

In the whole extent of plain over which they roam, the people who live bordering upon it descend and kill them for food, and thus a great many skins are scattered throughout the country.

" Coronado was the next explorer who penetrated the country of the buffalo, which he accomplished from the west, by way of Arizona and New Mexico.

He crossed the southern part of the "Pan-handle" of Texas, to the edge of what is now the Indian Territory, and returned through the same region.

It was in the year 1542 that he reached the buffalo country, and traversed the plains that were "full of crooke-backed oxen, as the mountaine Serena in Spaine is of sheepe."

This is the description of the animal as recorded by one of his followers, Castañeda, and translated by W. W. Davis:[2]

[Note 2: The Spanish Conquest of New Mexico.

Davis.

1869.

Pp. 206-7.] "The first time we encountered the buffalo, all the horses took to flight on seeing them, for they are horrible to the sight.

"They have a broad and short face, eyes two palms from each other, and projecting in such a manner sideways that they can see a pursuer.

Their beard is like that of goats, and so long that it drags the ground when they lower the head.

They have, on the anterior portion of the body, a frizzled hair like sheep's wool; it is very fine upon the croup, and sleek like a lion's mane.

Their horns are very short and thick, and can scarcely be seen through the hair.

They always change their hair in May, and at this season they really resemble lions.

To make it drop more quickly, for they change it as adders do their skins, they roll among the brush-wood which they find in the ravines.

"Their tail is very short, and terminates in a great tuft.

When they run they carry it in the air like scorpions.

When quite young they are tawny, and resemble our calves; but as age increases they change color and form.

"Another thing which struck us was that all the old buffaloes that we killed had the left ear cloven, while it was entire in the young; we could never discover the reason of this.

"Their wool is so fine that handsome clothes would certainly be made of it, but it can not be dyed for it is tawny red.

We were much surprised at sometimes meeting innumerable herds of bulls without a single cow, and other herds of cows without bulls.

" Neither De Soto, Ponce de Leon, Vasquez de Ayllon, nor Pamphilo de Narvaez ever saw a buffalo, for the reason that all their explorations were made south of what was then the habitat of that animal.

At the time De Soto made his great exploration from Florida northwestward to the Mississippi and into Arkansas (1539-'41) he did indeed pass through country in northern Mississippi and Louisiana that was afterward inhabited by the buffalo, but at that time not one was to be found there.

Some of his soldiers, however, who were sent into the northern part of Arkansas, reported having seen buffalo skins in the possession of the Indians, and were told that live buffaloes were to be found 5 or 6 leagues north of their farthest point.

The earliest discovery of the bison in Eastern North America, or indeed anywhere north of Coronado's route, was made somewhere near Washington, District of Columbia, in 1612, by an English navigator named Samuel Argoll,[3] and narrated as follows:

"As soon as I had unladen this corne, I set my men to the felling of Timber, for the building of a Frigat, which I had left half finished at Point Comfort, the 19. of March: and returned myself with the ship into Pembrook [Potomac] River, and so discovered to the head of it, which is about 65 leagues into the Land, and navigable for any ship.

And then marching into the Countrie, I found great store of Cattle as big as Kine, of which the Indians that were my guides killed a couple, which we found to be very good and wholesome meate, and are very easie to be killed, in regard they are heavy, slow, and not so wild as other beasts of the wildernesse.

" [Note 3: Purchas: His Pilgrimes.

(1625.)

Vol. IV, p. 1765.

"A letter of Sir Samuel Argoll touching his Voyage to Virginia, and actions there. Written to Master Nicholas Hawes, June, 1613.

"] It is to be regretted that the narrative of the explorer affords no clew to the precise locality of this interesting discovery, but since it is doubtful that the mariner journeyed very far on foot from the head of navigation of the Potomac, it seems highly probable that the first American bison seen by Europeans, other than the Spaniards, was found within 15 miles, or even less, of the capital of the United States, and possibly within the District of Columbia itself.

The first meeting of the white man with the buffalo on the northern boundary of that animal's habitat occurred in 1679, when Father Hennepin ascended the St. Lawrence to the great lakes, and finally penetrated the great wilderness as far as western Illinois.

The next meeting with the buffalo on the Atlantic slope was in October, 1729, by a party of surveyors under Col. William Byrd, who were engaged in surveying the boundary between North Carolina and Virginia.

As the party journeyed up from the coast, marking the line which now constitutes the interstate boundary, three buffaloes were seen on Sugar-Tree Creek, but none of them were killed.

On the return journey, in November, a bull buffalo was killed on Sugar-Tree Creek, which is in Halifax County, Virginia, within 5 miles of Big Buffalo Creek; longitude 78° 40' W., and 155 miles from the coast.[4]

"It was found all alone, tho' Buffaloes Seldom are."

The meat is spoken of as "a Rarity," not met at all on the expedition up.

The animal was found in thick woods, which were thus feelingly described: "The woods were thick great Part of this Day's Journey, so that we were forced to scuffle hard to advance 7 miles, being equal in fatigue to double that distance of Clear and Open Ground."

One of the creeks which the party crossed was christened Buffalo Creek, and "so named from the frequent tokens we discovered of that American Behemoth.

"

[Note 4: Westover Manuscript.

Col. William Byrd.

Vol.

I, p. 178.]

In October, 1733, on another surveying expedition, Colonel Byrd's party had the good fortune to kill another buffalo near Sugar-Tree Creek, which incident is thus described:[5]

[Note 5: Vol. II, pp.

24, 25.] "We pursued our journey thro' uneven and perplext woods, and in the thickest of them had the Fortune to knock down a Young Buffalo 2 years old.

Providence threw this vast animal in our way very Seasonably, just as our provisions began to fail us.

And it was the more welcome, too, because it was change of dyet, which of all Varietys, next to that of Bed-fellows, is the most agreeable.

We had lived upon Venison and Bear till our stomachs loath'd them almost as much as the Hebrews of old did their Quails.

Our Butchers were so unhandy at their Business that we grew very lank before we cou'd get our Dinner.

But when it came, we found it equal in goodness to the best Beef.

They made it the longer because they kept Sucking the Water out of the Guts in imitation of the Catauba Indians, upon the belief that it is a great Cordial, and will even make them drunk, or at least very Gay."

A little later a solitary bull buffalo was found, _but spared_,[6] the earliest instance of the kind on record, and which had few successors to keep it company.

[Note 6: _

Ib._, p. 28.] II.

GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION.

The range of the American bison extended over about one-third of the entire continent of North America.

Starting almost at tide-water on the Atlantic coast, it extended westward through a vast tract of dense forest, across the Alleghany Mountain system to the prairies along the Mississippi, and southward to the Delta of that great stream.

Although the great plains country of the West was the natural home of the species, where it flourished most abundantly, it also wandered south across Texas to the burning plains of northeastern Mexico, westward across the Rocky Mountains into New Mexico, Utah, and Idaho, and northward across a vast treeless waste to the bleak and inhospitable shores of the Great Slave Lake itself.

It is more than probable that had the bison remained unmolested by man and uninfluenced by him, he would eventually have crossed the Sierra Nevadas and the Coast Range and taken up his abode in the fertile valleys of the Pacific slope.

Had the bison remained for a few more centuries in undisturbed possession of his range, and with liberty to roam at will over the North American continent, it is almost certain that several distinctly recognizable varieties would have been produced.

The buffalo of the hot regions in the extreme south would have become a short-haired animal like the gaur of India and the African buffalo.

The individuals inhabiting the extreme north, in the vicinity of Great Slave Lake, for example, would have developed still longer hair, and taken on more of the dense hairyness of the musk ox.

In the "wood" or "mountain buffalo" we already have a distinct foreshadowing of the changes which would have taken place in the individuals which made their permanent residence upon rugged mountains.

It would be an easy matter to fill a volume with facts relating to the geographical distribution of _

Bison americanus_ and the dates of its occurrence and disappearance in the multitude of different localities embraced within the immense area it once inhabited.

The capricious shiftings of certain sections of the great herds, whereby large areas which for many years had been utterly unvisited by buffaloes suddenly became overrun by them, could be followed up indefinitely, but to little purpose.

In order to avoid wearying the reader with a mass of dates and references, the map accompanying this paper has been prepared to show at a glance the approximate dates at which the bison finally disappeared from the various sections of its habitat.

In some cases the date given is coincident with the death of the last buffalo known to have been killed in a given State or Territory; in others, where records are meager, the date given is the nearest approximation, based on existing records.

In the preparation of this map I have drawn liberally from Mr. J. A. Allen's admirable monograph of "The American Bison," in which the author has brought together, with great labor and invariable accuracy, a vast amount of historical data bearing upon this subject.

In this connection I take great pleasure in acknowledging my indebtedness to Professor Allen's work.

While it is inexpedient to include here all the facts that might be recorded with reference to the discovery, existence, and ultimate extinction of the bison in the various portions of its former habitat, it is yet worth while to sketch briefly the extreme limits of its range.

In doing this, our starting point will be the Atlantic slope east of the Alleghanies, and the reader will do well to refer to the large map.

DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA.--There is no indisputable evidence that the bison ever inhabited this precise locality, but it is probable that it did.

In 1612 Captain Argoll sailed up the "Pembrook River" to the head of navigation (Mr. Allen believes this was the James River, and not the Potomac) and marched inland a few miles, where he discovered buffaloes, some of which were killed by his Indian guides.

If this river was the Potomac, and most authorities believe that it was, the buffaloes seen by Captain Argoll might easily have been in what is now the District of Columbia.

Admitting the existence of a reasonable doubt as to the identity of the Pembrook River of Captain Argoll, there is yet another bit of history which fairly establishes the fact that in the early part of the seventeenth century buffaloes inhabited the banks of the Potomac between this city and the lower falls.

In 1624 an English fur trader named Henry Fleet came hither to trade with the Anacostian Indians, who then inhabited the present site of the city of Washington, and with the tribes of the Upper Potomac.

In his journal (discovered a few years since in the Lambeth Library, London) Fleet gave a quaint description of the city's site as it then appeared.

The following is from the explorer's journal: "Monday, the 25th June, we set sail for the town of Tohoga, where we came to an anchor 2 leagues short of the falls.

*

* *

This place, without question, is the most pleasant and healthful place in all this country, and most convenient for habitation, the air temperate in summer and not violent in winter.

It aboundeth with all manner of fish.

The Indians in one night commonly will catch thirty sturgeons in a place where the river is not above 12 fathoms broad, and as for deer, buffaloes, bears, turkeys, the woods do swarm with them.

*

* *

The 27th of June I manned my shallop and went up with the flood, the tide rising about 4 feet at this place.

We had not rowed above 3 miles, but we might hear the falls to roar about 6 miles distant.

"[7]