TILL the discovery of the New World by Columbus, no cattle except the bison, or, as they are commonly called in America, buffaloes, roamed its forests or its prairies; and the inhabitants of the whole continent, from ‘the land of fire’ to the frozen North, knew no more of them than of the horse. Both the domestic cow and the horse were introduced by the conquerors of Mexico—Cortez, and his companions in arms—and now both are to be found in immense numbers; the horses generally keeping to the plains, and the horned-cattle to the forests.

The wild cattle are mostly descended from the large Spanish cattle first introduced into the country, but they have been largely crossed of late, i. e. during the last half-century, with American cattle, the descendants of English breeds.

This being the case, there is little to describe, as the wild cow shot in the forest resembles, in all respects, its brethren who daily feel the pole-axe of our English butchers, so that, in treating of wild cattle hunting, I shall confine myself to one or two personal adventures.

In all my varied hunting experience, I think the narrowest shave I ever had was from a wounded wild bull. It happened in the Brazos bottom, a wilderness of forest, of immense extent. I was armed with a double smooth-bore, loaded with ball, each weighing about an ounce, and mounted on my best huntinghorse, having with me three trained cattle-dogs, nearly full-bred mastiffs.