In The Beginning
Of Time And Change
Buffalo! Their size and abundance frightened or astounded explorers and settlers; more than 60 million beasts roaming freely across the vast plains of North America To the Indians, buffalo promised food, warmth, tools, medicine, and an opportunity to prove their brave expertise during the hunt. Most hunts took place between the months of November and March when the hides were coated with warm winter hair. To save themselves the work of scraping away this protective growth, the Indians sometimes hunted through the summer, using these skins for teepee coverings. When the whiteman appeared on the scene, the slaughter and destruction of buffalo multiplied, depleting the herds by sometimes 1000 per expedition. Where once there were millions of bison, there now were threats of extinction. The Canadian government issued parliamentary legislation in 1893 to protect the remaining 500 within its borders. Remnants of buffalo hunts are still evident today; circles of rocks used to secure teepees, “pounds” having become deathtraps to unsuspecting stampedes of buffalo tricked by clever hunters, and bones so plentiful that they were collected and sold to the railroad by the ton. It was in 1873 during a buffalo hunt along the Milk River that Walking Coyote, a Pend d’Oreille Indian, was fortunate enough to capture four buffalo calves. Having been separated from their mothers amidst the commotion of the hunt, they followed the riders’ horses as their maternal substitutes. Walking Coyote wintered with his newfound livestock and in the spring, returned to the St. Ignatius Mission on the Flathead Indian Reservation in Montana. As the years slipped by, Walking Coyote’s foursome matured and multiplied. By 1884, thirteen purebred plains bison grazed along the banks of the Pend d’Oreille River. Soon it became apparent that maintenance of such numbers severely outweighed the owner’s financial ability. The animals would have to be sold. Michel Pablo and Charles Allard were Montana ranchers with grazing rights on the Flathead Reservation. Hearing of the partners selected ten healthy buffalo and paid a delighted Walking Coyote $250 per animal. A short time later, the once rich Indian was found dead under the Missoula Bridge. The cause of his death has been surrounded by speculation, folklore presenting various situations but none being completely accurate. Pablo and Allard saw their flock increase adding 26 purebred plains bison and 18 acquired from the Buffalo Jones’ in 1893. About two years later, Charles Allard suffered a knee injury, which eventually resulted in his death. The partnership dissolved, existing animals were divided between Allard’s estate and Pablo, each claiming approximately 150 bison. The heirs separated their stock by selling to individuals throughout the central and northern states. Pablo’s lot remained together, protected within the confines of the Reservation. Their presence was not endangered until 1905 when Pablo learned his grazing rights would be terminated soon due to this land being opened up for settlement.