Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 3.djvu/424

414 made of willows, but the way in which we generally procured our fuel, was to pick up the pieces of driftwood during- the day, and at night we would have plenty. It requires very little fuel. It is necessary to dig a narrow ditch, about eight inches wide, one foot deep, and two or three feet long. This confines the heat, and prevents the wind from scattering the fire.

On the twenty-second day of June, we saw the first band of buffaloes, which contained about fifty, of all ages and sizes. Out of this band two were killed. They were found in the plain close to the river, and were pursued on horseback. Perhaps no sport in the world is so exciting as a buffalo hunt. The fox chase sinks into insignificance when compared to it. The mode of hunting this noble animal is very simple. They are generally found upon the wide plain beyond the sand hills, as I before stated, and you will almost always find them grazing near the head of some hollow leading up near them. When you approach him you must get the wind to blow from him to you; because if you scent him, you will hardly run off, but if he scents you, he is certain, to scamper. The sight of the buffalo is very dull, but their sense of smell is very acute. I one day saw a band of about one hundred buffaloes on the opposite side of the river from us, and about two miles off, running parallel with the line of wagons, up the river. When they came directly opposite us, so as to strike the stream of wind, which blew from us directly across the river, they turned suddenly off at right angles, and increased their speed greatly. They had evidently scented us. If you have the wind of them you can approach within a very short distance, near enough to kill them readily with the rifle. When you fire, if you remain still, and do not show yourself, the buffalo will perhaps bring a bound, and then stop, and remain until you have fired several times. If he is wounded he will lie down. If several guns are fired in quick succession it alarms the band, and they all move off in a brisk trot; but if you load and fire slowly you may often kill several before the balance leave. I have seen three or four lying within ten yards of each other. When you have fired as often as you can, and the buffalo have retired beyond the reach of the balls, you return down the hollow to your horses, and having mounted, you approach as near as possible before you show yourself to the animal; and when he sees you, your horse ought to be at the very top of his speed, so as to get near him before he gets under full speed. You may dash at a band of buffaloes not more than one hundred yards off, and they will stand and gaze at you before they start; but when one puts himself in motion, all the rest move instantly, and those lying down will not be far very behind the others, as they rise running. Although they seem to run awkwardly, yet they step away rapidly, and if you lose much time you will have a hard run to overtake them. The better plan is to put your horse at the top of his speed at once. This enables you