aware that the road he traveled was more than a buffalo path.[1]
That buffaloes were accustomed to traveling Indian routes is clearly proved by a number of incidents. It is said that when the Catawbas came up to Ohio in search of the hated Iroquois they cut off buffalo hoofs, tied them to their own feet, pursued the Indian trail and ambushed themselves. The Iroquois, following the fresh buffalo tracks, soon found themselves the victims of their own credulity.
Two instances of travelers meeting buffaloes on Indian thoroughfares and the quarrel for the right of way are to the point:
Joseph Buell, in a journey from Vincennes to the Ohio, relates this incident in his journal under date of October 4th: "In our march today, came across five buffaloes. They tried to force a passage through our column. The general ordered the men to fire on them. Three were killed and the others wounded."[2]
