FURTHER INFORMATION FOR THE SPORTSMAN.
HUNTING THE BUFFALO.

The first matter to be determined, in planning any sporting trip, is the best point at which to seek for game. If the object of pursuit be buffalo, I should say, Deposit yourself as soon as possible on the plains of Western Kansas.[5] Take the Kansas Pacific Railway at the State line, and you can readily find out from the conductors at what point the buffalo chance then to be most numerous. There are a dozen stations after passing Ellsworth equally good. One month, the bison may be numerous along the eastern portion of the plains; a month later, the herds will be found perhaps sixty or eighty miles further west. As one has at least a day's ride, after entering Kansas, before penetrating into the solitude of Buffalo Land, there is ample time to decide upon a stopping place. Russell as an eastern, and Buffalo Station as a western point, will be found good basis for operations. In the former, some hotel accommodations exist; in the latter, there are several dug-outs, and hunters who can be obtained for guides.

Those who can spend a week or more on the grounds, and wish to enjoy the sport in its only legitimate way, namely, horseback hunting, should stop at the point where they may best procure mounts, even if it necessitate a journey in the saddle of twenty miles. Ellsworth, Russell, and Hays City are the places where such outfits may generally be obtained.

For shooting bison, the hunter should come prepared with some other weapon than a squirrel rifle or double barreled shot gun. I have known several instances in which persons appeared on the ground armed with ancient smooth-bores or fowling-pieces; and in one of these cases the object of attack, after receiving a bombardment of several minutes' duration, tossed the squirrel hunter and injured him severely. A breech-loading rifle, with a magazine holding several cartridges, is by far the best weapon. In my own experience I became very fond of a carbine combining the Henry and King patents. It weighed but seven and one-half pounds, and could be fired rapidly twelve times without replenishing the magazine. Hung by a strap to the shoulder, this weapon can be dropped across the saddle in front, and held there very firmly by a slight pressure of the body. The rider may then draw his holster revolvers in succession, and after using them, have left a carbine reserve for any emergency. Twenty-four shots can thus be exhausted before reloading, and, with a little practice, the magazine of the gun may be refilled without checking the horse. So light is this Henry and King weapon that I have often held it out with one hand like a pistol, and fired.

When a herd of buffalo is discovered, the direction of the wind should be carefully ascertained. The taint of the hunter is detected at a long distance, and the bison accepts the evidence of his nose more readily than even that of his eyes. This delicacy of smell, however, is becoming either more blunted or less heeded than formerly, owing probably to the passage over the plains of the crowded passenger cars, which keep the air constantly impregnated for long distances.

Having satisfied himself in regard to the wind, the sportsman should take advantage of the ravines and slight depressions, which every-where abound on the plains, and approach as near the herd as possible. If mounted, let him gain every obtainable inch before making the charge. It is an egregious blunder to go dashing over the prairie for half a mile or so, in full view of the game, and thus give it the advantage of a long start. When this is done, unless your animal is a superior one, he will be winded and left behind.

In most cases, careful planning will place one within a couple of hundred yards of the bison. Be sure that every weapon is ready for the hand, and then charge. Put your horse to full speed as soon as practicable. Place him beside the buffalo, and he can easily keep there; whereas, if you nurse his pace at the first, and make it a stern chase, both your animal and yourself, should you have the rare luck of catching up at all, will be jaded completely before doing so. In shooting from the saddle, be very careful between shots, and keep the muzzle of the weapon in some other direction than your horse or your feet. A sudden jolt, or a nervous finger, often causes a premature discharge. In taking aim, draw your bead well forward on the buffalo—if possible, a little behind the fore-shoulder. The vital organs being situated there, a ranging shot will hit some of them, on one side or the other. Back of the ribs, the buffalo will receive a dozen balls without being checked. A discharge of bullets into the hind-quarters, is worse than useless.

While trying in the most enjoyable and practical manner to kill the game, it is very necessary to escape, if possible, any injury to yourself or horse. The Frenchman's remark on tiger hunting is very apropos. "Ven ze Frenchman hunt ze tiger, it fine sport; but ven ze tiger hunt ze Frenchman, it is not so." Care should be taken to have the horse perfectly under control, when the bison stands at bay. Unless experienced in bull fighting, he does not appreciate the danger, and a sudden charge has often resulted in disembowelment.

Never dismount to approach the buffalo, unless certain that he is crippled so as to prevent rising. One that is apparently wounded unto death will often get upon his feet nimbly, and prove an ugly customer. I knew a soldier killed at Hays City in this manner—thrown several feet into the air, and fearfully torn. Recently near Cayote Station, on the Kansas Pacific Railway, a buffalo was shot from the train, and the cars were stopped to secure the meat, and gratify the passengers. One of the latter, a stout Englishman, ran ahead of his fellows, and shook his fist in the face of the prostrate bison. The American bull did not brook such an insult from the English one, and Johnny received a terrible blow while attempting to escape. He was badly injured, and, when I saw him some time afterward, could only move on crutches.

Should the hunter on foot ever have to stand a charge, let him fire at what is visible of the back, above the lowered head, or, should he be able to catch a glimpse of the fore-shoulder, let him direct his bullet there. The bone seems to be broken readily by a ball. Against the frontal bone of the bison's skull, the lead falls harmless. To test this fully, with California Bill as a companion, I once approached a buffalo which stood wounded in a ravine. We took position upon the hill-side, knowing that he could not readily charge up it, at a distance of only fifteen yards. I fired three shots from the Henry weapon full against the forehead, causing no other result than some angry head-shaking. I then took Bill's Spencer carbine, and fired twice with it. At each shot the bull sank partly to his knees, but immediately recovered again. I afterward examined the skull, and could detect no fracture.

A person dismounted by accident or imprudence, and charged upon, can avoid the blow by waiting until the horns are within a few feet of him, and then jumping quickly on one side. After the buffalo has passed, let the brief period of time before he has checked his rush, be employed in traversing as much prairie, on the back track, as possible, and the chances are that no pursuit will be made. Should a foot trip, or a fall from the horse give no time for such tactics, then let the hunter hug Mother Earth as tight as may be. The probabilities are that the bull can not pick the body up with his horns. I have known a hunter to escape by throwing himself in the slight hollow of a trail, and thus baffling all attempts to hook him.

Accidents are rare in bison hunting, however, and the reader should not be deterred from noble sport by the mere possibility of mishaps. I have given the above advice, feeling that I shall be well repaid if it saves the life or limbs of one man out of the thousands who may be exposed. A glimpse of surgeon's instruments should not make the soldier a coward. Comparatively few people are killed by electricity, and yet lightning-rods are very popular.

The hunter who has no love for the saddle, and prefers stalking, should provide himself with some breech-loading rifle or carbine, carrying a heavy ball—the heavier the better. The most effective weapon is the needle-gun used in the army, having a bore the size of the old Springfield musket, and a ball to correspond. A bullet from this weapon usually proves fatal. But there is little genuine sport in such practice. Stalking holds the same relation to horseback hunting that "hand line" fishing does to that with the rod and reel, the fly and the spoon, or that killing birds on the ground does to wing-shooting.

In selecting from the herd a single individual for attack, the hunter should do so with some reference to the intended use of the game. For furnishing trophies of the chase, such as horns and robe, the bull will do well; but if the meat is for use, it will be advisable to sacrifice some sport, and obtain a cow or calf. I have known many an ancient bison, with scarcely enough meat on his bones to hold the bullets, killed by amateurs, and the leather-like quarters shipped to eastern friends as rare delicacies!

ANTELOPE HUNTING.

Antelope hunting is a sport requiring more strategy and caution than the one we have described. The creature is timid and swift, and inclined to feed on ridges or level lands, where stalking is difficult. Its eyes and ears are wonderfully quick in detecting danger, and the animal at once seeks points which command the surroundings. If unable to keep in view the object of alarm, immediate flight results.

The modes of hunting this game are two. If no possibility of stalking exists, a red flag may be attached to a small stick, and planted in front of the ravine or other place of concealment. The antelope at once becomes curious, and begins circling toward it, each moment approaching a little nearer, until finally within shooting distance. The other method is by careful stalking. If the animal is on a high ridge, the sides of which round upward a little, the hunter may crawl on his hands and knees until he sees, just visible above the grass, the tips of the horns or ears. Then let him rise on one knee, with gun to shoulder, and take quick aim well forward, as the body comes into view. The approach can not be too cautious, as the antelope stops feeding every minute or so, to lift its head high, and gaze around. Thus the incautious hunter may be brought, on the instant, into full relief, and the quick bound which follows discovery, rob him of the fruit of long crawling.

Rare enjoyment might be obtained by any one who would take with him, to the plains, a good greyhound. Mounted on a reliable horse, the sportsman could follow the dog in its pursuit of antelope, and be in at the death.

ELK HUNTING.

Elk must be hunted by stalking, as he speedily distances any horse. The animal is found in abundance along the upper waters of the Republican, Solomon, and Saline. I prefer its meat to that of either the buffalo or antelope. The horns of a fine male form a pleasing trophy to look at, when the hunter's joints have been stiffened by rheumatism or age.

TURKEY HUNTING.

Wild turkeys exist in great numbers along the creeks, over the whole western half of Kansas, and, where they have never been hunted, are so tame as to afford but little sport. Cunning is their natural instinct, however, and at once comes to the rescue, when needed. After a few have been shot, the remainder will leave the narrow skirt of creek timber instantly, and escape among the ravines by fast running, defying any pursuit except in the saddle. Even then if they can get out of sight for a moment, they will often escape. While the rider is pressing forward in the direction a tired turkey was last seen, the bird will hide and let him pass; or, turning the instant it is hidden by the brow of the ravine, it will take a backward course, passing, if necessary, close to the horse. As another illustration of the wily habits of the turkey, let the hunter select a creek along which there has been no previous shooting done, and kill turkeys at early morning on roosts, and the next night the gangs will remain out among the "breaks."

For this shooting, a shot-gun is, of course, the best, although I have had fine sport among the birds with the rifle. When using shot at one on the wing, the hunter must not conclude his aim was bad, if no immediate effect is observed. The flying turkey will not shrink, as the prairie-chicken does, when receiving and carrying off lead. I have frequently heard shot rattle upon a gobbler's stout feathers without any apparent effect, and found him afterward, fluttering helpless, a mile away.

GENERAL REMARKS.

The western field open to sportsmen is a grand one. Kansas, Colorado, Nebraska, Dakota, and Wyoming, are all overflowing with game. The climate of each is very healthy, and especially favorable for those affected with pulmonary complaints. A year or two passed in their pure air, with the excitement of exploration or adventure superadded, would put more fresh blood into feeble bodies than all the watering-places in existence. Let the dyspeptic seek his hunting camp at evening, and, my word for it, he will find the sweet savor of his boyhood's appetite resting over all the dishes. After the meal, with his feet to the fire, he can have diversion in the way of either comedy or tragedy, or both, by listening to frontier tales. When bed-time comes, he will barely have time to roll under the blankets, before sweet sleep closes his eyes, and the twinkling stars look down upon a being over whom the angel of health is again hovering.

No extensive preparation for a western sporting trip is needed, as an outfit can be obtained at any of the larger towns, in either Kansas, Nebraska, or Colorado.

Of the three districts just named, I decidedly prefer the former for the pursuit of such game as I have endeavored to describe in Buffalo Land. The eastern half of Kansas furnishes chicken and quail shooting. The birds have increased rapidly during late years, and at any point fifty miles west of the eastern line, the sportsman will find plenty of work for a dog and gun. The ground lies well for good shooting, being a gently rolling prairie, with plenty of watering-places. The cover is excellent, and with a good dog there is little trouble, between August and November, in flushing the chickens singly, and getting an excellent record out of any covey.

Wild fowl shooting is poor, there being no lakes or feeding-grounds. The best sport of that kind I ever had was in Wisconsin and Minnesota.

WHAT TO DO, IF LOST ON THE PLAINS.

There have been several instances in which gentlemen, led away from their party in the excitement of the chase, when wishing to return, suddenly found themselves lost. Judge Corwin, of Urbana, Ohio, separated in this manner from his party, wandered for two days on the plains south of Hays City, subsisting on a little corn which had been dropped by some passing wagon. He was found, utterly exhausted, by California Bill, just as a severe snow-storm had set in. Persons thus lost should remember that buffalo trails run north and south, and the Pacific Railroads east and west. It will be easy to call to mind on which side it was that the party left the road in starting out, and it then becomes a simple matter to regain the rails, and follow them to the first station.

THE NEW FIELD FOR SPORTSMEN.

South of Kansas is the Indian Territory, which probably has within it a larger amount of game than any spot of similar size on our continent. It fairly swarms with wild beasts and birds. At sunset one may see hundreds of turkeys gathering to their roosts. Buffalo, elk, antelope, and deer of several varieties, may be found and hunted to the heart's content. Within the next two years this territory will be the paradise of all sportsmen. It can now be reached by wagoning fifty miles or so beyond the terminus of the A. T. & Santa Fe Railroad. But the savage, hostile and treacherous, stands at the entrance of this fair land and forbids further advance. While there is good hunting, there is also a disagreeable probability of being hunted. Many of the tribes which formerly roamed all over the plains are now gathered in the Indian Territory. Jealous of their rights, they are apt to repay intrusion upon them with death.

The white kills for sport alone the game which is the entire support of the savage. I have often stood among the rotting carcasses of hundreds of buffaloes, and seen the beautiful skins decaying, and tons of richest meat feeding flies and maggots; and, standing there, I have felt but little surprise that the savage should consider such wanton destruction worthy of death. In the States, game is protected at least during the breeding season; but no period of the year is sacred from the spirit of slaughter which holds high revel in Buffalo Land.

It is manifest, however, that over the Indian Territory history will soon repeat itself. Railroads are pushing steadily forward; 1872 is already seeing the beginning of the end. The savage must flee still further westward, and the valleys and prairies which he is now jealously protecting will be invaded first by the sportsman, and then by the farmer. Perhaps, before that time, Congress may have taken the matter in hand, and passed laws which will have saved the noblest of our game from at least immediate extinction.