de of the river, a magnificent herd of buffalo
came up from the water over the bank, not less then seven or eight hundred
in number, and commenced slowly crossing the plain, grazing as they went.
The prairie was here about three miles broad. This gave the hunters a fine
opportunity to charge upon them before they could escape among the distant
hills. The fleet horses for hunting, were brought up and saddled.
Lieutenant Fremont, Kit Carson and L. Maxwell mounted for the chase.
Maxwell was a veteran pioneer, who had been engaged as hunter for the
expedition.

The herd were about half a mile distant from the company. The three
hunters rode quietly along, till within about three hundred yards of the
herd, before they seemed to be noticed by the buffaloes. Then a sudden
agitation and wavering of the herd was followed by precipitate and
thundering flight. The fleet horse can outstrip the buffalo in the race.
The three hunters plunged after them at a hard gallop. A crowd of bulls,
gallantly defending the cows, brought up the rear. Every now and then they
would stop, for an instant, and look back as if half disposed to show
fight.

"In a few moments," writes Lieutenant Fremont, "during which we had been
quickening our pace, we were going over the ground like a hurricane. When
at about thirty yards we gave the usual shout and broke into the herd. We
entered on the side, the mass giving away in every direction in their
heedless course. Many of the bulls, less fleet than the cows, paying no
heed to the ground, and occupied solely with the hunters, were
precipitated to the earth with great force, rolling over and over with the
violence of the shock, and hardly distinguishable in the dust. We
separated, on entering, each singling out his game.

"My horse was a trained hunter, famous in the west under the name of
Proveau, and with his eyes flashing and the foam flying from his mouth, he
sprang on after the cow, like a tiger. In a few moments he brought me
along side of her. Rising in the stirrups, I fired, at the distance of a
yard, the ball entering at the termination of the long hair, passing near
the heart. She fell headlong at the report of the gun. Checking my horse,
I looked around for my companions.

"At a little distance Kit was on the ground, engaged in tying his horse to
the horns of a cow, which he was preparing to cut up. Among the scattered
band, at some distance, I caught a glimpse of Maxwell. While I was
looking, a