tage, "we have hardly heard any thing yet about buffaloes and grizzly bears, and other animals

es, quickened their pace as he desired them, so that no long period had passed, before the hu

northerly in summer, and such as delight in a warmer clime move southerly in winter. It is, however, principally to obtain food that they remove from one place to another. I must here ex

are bisons, why are

ve arisen, certain it is, that the name of buffalo has become common; and, that being the

ifference between a

w; and very long horns. But the bison stands very high in front, has a hump on the back part of the neck cover

n must look much fi

om hunger, but they are very reckless when buffaloes are plentiful. On one occasion, when among the Minatarees, I witnessed a grand capture of buffaloes. It was effected by different parties taking different directions, and then gradually approaching each other. The herd was thus hemmed in on all sides, and the slaughter was terrible. The unerring rifle, the sharp spear and the winged arrow, had full e

kill all the buffaloes, i

oods, also, abound with them; and often, in the heat of summer, an incalculable number of

because the

himself round and round in it, till he has half covered his body with mud. The puddle hole which he thus makes is called a bison or buffalo wa

ust cut, with his shaggy hair and h

ostly vegetables, and will do his best to get out of your way, the latter eats nothing but flesh, and is almost sure to attack you. Hunters and Indians make it a rule never

pe from a grizzly bear,

must reserve your shot till the animal is near you, that you may take a steady aim. You must then fight it out in the best way you can. Grizzly bears are sometimes of a v

as it? Tell u

The crack of my piece reverberated from the green-topped bluffs that rose from the prairie; and I suppose it was this that brought Sir Bruin upon me. He came on with huge strides, and I ha

ng-knife agains

es, and in the same instant my tremendous foe fell, with two bullets in his head. This timely assistance wa

was any one in

woods, to bring home the old cow. At the distance of somewhat more than half a mile, he found her, attended by some young cattle. He

full speed, and the bear after her. The young cattle, lifting their tails in the air, brought up the rear. Thus

cow cantered along, and finally brought the boy to his mother's house in safety. The bear, thinking he should not be welcome there, after approaching the house, turned about and scampered back

pital old cow, for sh

helped her, for they pushe

to tell us abo

ought to Mexico by Europeans. They are extremely shy, keen in their sight and swift of foot, so that to come up with them, except by s

f horses are they;

ed and coarse in appearance, they are of various colours-bay, chestnut, cream,

do they c

among them. He aims at the top of the neck, and if he succeeds in striking the high gristle there, it stuns the animal for the moment, when he falls t

of catching wild horses? for t

bad way. They ough

of the flying steed they wish to secure. Rarely do they miss their aim. When a horse is thus caught, the hunter leaps from his steed, and lets out the lasso gradually, choking h

s nostrils! Why, what

manageable. It is said, that if an Indian breathes freely into the nostrils of a wild young buff

that does a

tioned. It is the cougar, or panther, or American lion; for it goes by all these names. Now and then it is to be

not much like

litary places he prefers to do so, but, when hunger-pressed, he attacks the fold; after which, Mr. Grizzly-skin loses no time in getting t

Mr. Grizzly-bac

g the deer into it. In shooting antelopes, the hunter has only to stick up his ramrod in the ground in their neighbourhood, and throw over it his handkerchief; while he, with his rifle ready loaded, lies on the grass near at hand. The antelopes will soon approach the handkerchief to see what it is, when the hunter may make them an easy prey. The largest deer is the moose deer, which is often seven feet high. He is an awkward, overgro

ing can stan

ength is perfect weakness! In a moment, in a twinkling of

r kinds of deer

apiti

lk, come the Virginia, or common deer, the wapiti deer, the black-tailed deer, and the cariboo. All these are the prey of the hunter. Their savoury flesh supplies him with food, and their soft skins are articles of merchandise. The

that the hunter chases; for you spoke before about beav

though, how they catch the musk

sing from the level prairie, you may sometimes see, for miles together, small hillocks of a conical form, thrown up by the prairie dogs, which burrow some eight or ten feet in the ground. On a fine

he cunning l

eases, to pass into the shallow water beneath his burrow or lodge. In taking a musk-rat, a person strikes the top of the burrow, and out scampers the tenant within; but no

rairie dogs, though one has his house

y, in succeeding years, assume another character. White men will possess them; civilized manners and customs will prevail, and Christianity sprea

a great deal indeed, to

ut I must relate an adventure of my own, of a kind not likely to be forgotten. So long as a prairie fire is confined to the high grounds, there is very little danger from it; for, in such situations, the gra

hose great, high, round bluffs on fir

ight of a bluff on fire, on a dark night, is very singular; for as you can only see the curved line of flame, the b

ust look very

like the thunder; the appearance is not beautiful, but terrible. I have heard the shrill war-whoop, and the clash of contending tomahawks in the fight, when no quarter has been given. I have witnessed the wild burst wher

! it must

war as he does with danger; and the Indian from his childhood is familiar with peril: yet the Indian, the

almost afrai

nsense! It will

ow and then, a flight of prairie hens, or grouse, rapidly winging their way by us. Two of our party were of the Blackfoot tribe; their names were Ponokah (elk) and Moeese (wigwam.) These Indians had struck into a buffalo trail, and we had proceeded for a couple of hours as fast as the

ess what was

And s

ail towards us. No sooner did they set eyes on us, than they abruptly turned southward. By this time, we all understood that, to the north, the prairie was on fire; for t

you set off a

g which my horse got his feet entangled, and he fell, pitching me over his head some yards before him. I was not hurt by the fall, for the thick herbage protected me; but

t not to have s

burning prairies than I did, and were therefore more alive to our danger, became very impatient. By the time my rifle was found, and we were ready to proceed, the fire had gained upon us in a crescent form, so that

nk what you could do

tain; when Ponokah, judging, I suppose, by the comparative thinness of the smoke eastward, that we were not far from the boundary of the prairie bottom, dashed boldly along a trail in that direction, in the face of the fire, crying out to us to follow. With the daring of men in extremity, we put our horses to their speed, broke through the smoke, fire, grass, and flame, and found ourselves almost instantly on a patch of g

as, indeed, a

the conflagration nearest to us resembled the breakers of the deep that dash on a rocky shore, only formed of fire, roaring and destroying, preceded by thick clouds of smoke. Before then, I had been accustomed to sights and scenes of peril

he world like a burning prairie,

ng to accustom ourselves to regard the works of creation around us with that attention and wonder they are calculated to inspire, and especially to ponder on the manifestation of God's grace set forth in his holy word. When burning prairies and b

alo