In The Blindness Of The Chase The Hunter
Rushes Over It Unconscious Of Danger; His Horse, At Full Career,
Thrusts His Leg Deep Into One Of The Burrows; The Bone Snaps, The
Rider Is Hurled Forward To The Ground And Probably Killed.
Yet
accidents in buffalo running happen less frequently than one would
suppose; in the recklessness of the chase, the
Hunter enjoys all the
impunity of a drunken man, and may ride in safety over the gullies
and declivities where, should he attempt to pass in his sober senses,
he would infallibly break his neck.
The method of "approaching," being practiced on foot, has many
advantages over that of "running"; in the former, one neither breaks
down his horse nor endangers his own life; instead of yielding to
excitement he must be cool, collected, and watchful; he must
understand the buffalo, observe the features of the country and the
course of the wind, and be well skilled, moreover, in using the
rifle. The buffalo are strange animals; sometimes they are so stupid
and infatuated that a man may walk up to them in full sight on the
open prairie, and even shoot several of their number before the rest
will think it necessary to retreat. Again at another moment they
will be so shy and wary, that in order to approach them the utmost
skill, experience, and judgment are necessary. Kit Carson, I
believe, stands pre-eminent in running buffalo; in approaching, no
man living can bear away the palm from Henry Chatillon.
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