Were the destruction less we think it would have the effect of increasing these animals so that many must die for want of proper grazing or be forced to seek other lands for food. This would reinstate us in our first position, that it is more probable the small number of Indians now in existence will disappear before their game, or at least will be so reduced as not to retard their increase. Immigration in settling the country would banish the buffalo from that part of it where these movements were going on, and force them to the alternative of scattering through the settlements and thus be destroyed; or, being confined and limited in their grazing, they would die for want of sufficient nourishment. They are a shy animal and will not remain where they are much troubled. Indian hunting has not this effect. The Indians do not occupy the proportionate space of a town of 100 houses to a county, and in some places not more to a State of the United States. Moreover, they herd with order, and in the winter, not being able to remain on the plains where there is no fuel, and very deep snow, are obliged to place their camps on the banks of streams and hunt merely the outskirts of these immense herds.
The increases of buffaloes must be very great. Each cow has a calf yearly and the fourth year these also have calves. Now, supposing a band of 4,000 cows to increase for eight years without accident. The computation would be as follows:
Say increase One-half one-half cows bulls 4×4=16÷2=8 8 === === One-half increase----------------------------------- 8 Old stock------------------------------------------- 4 --- 12×4=48 Old stock------------------------------------------------ 12 One-half bulls------------------------------------------- 8 ------- Total in 8 years----------------------------------------- 68,000
Now supposing the whole number of buffalo cows in existence to be 3,000,000, which is certainly not an overestimate, then—
One-half One-half cows bulls 3×4=12÷2=6 6 === === One-half increase in 4 years-------------------- 6 Old stock--------------------------------------- 3 --- 9×4=36 Stock------------------------------------------------ 9 Bulls------------------------------------------------ 6 ----------- Total in 8 years------------------------------------- 51,000,000