Jewel # 437 (Feb. 26, 2021)

 

And they shall be Mine, saith the Lord of hosts, in that day when I 

make up MY JEWELS.”

Malachi 3:17

To my dear grandchildren

The American Buffalo (Bison)

Part 1

“I have made the earth, the man and the beast that are upon the ground, 

by My great power and by My outstretched arm.”   Jeremiah 27:5 

The buffalo or, more correctly, the bison has the distinction of being the heaviest land animal of North America.  Some bulls weigh up to 2,200 pounds, but cows are smaller.  The buffalo is from nine to nearly 12 feet long and as tall as six and half feet from the ground to the top of its hump.  They are strong and tough and can live through storms that kill other beasts.  They are also great runners.  They can run up to 30 mile an hour for long distances!  

When native Americans were the only people  west of the Mississippi River, there were millions of bison forming herds, often as far as the eye could see on the prairies of middle America, from Mexico north into Canada.  For the Native Americans, the buffalo was their main food, and they made teepees, blankets, clothing and other essentials from the hides.  God provided plenty of grass and water, and even though the Native Americans killed many, it did not make much difference since so many calves were born every year that their numbers just  continued growing.

But as settlers moved west after the Revolutionary War, it became a different story.  It is easy to understand that the settlers, like the Native Americans, found buffalo a good source of food and hides.  Unfortunately, as they settled the land, they not only used buffalo for these purposes, but they also determined to get them off the land they wanted to farm.  As a result, many thousands were killed just to get rid of them.

Hunters from the eastern part of the country and “sportsmen,” even from Europe, went west with their guns, thinking it was great sport to see how many they could kill.  There was no thought about using the meat or hides.  All of this leaves a sad picture of that part of American history.  The result was that, around 160 years ago, instead of millions of buffalo, there were only about a thousand left in the United States and Canada combined.

Bison are part of God’s creation, and He surely had the Native American people in His thoughts in preparing such an abundant supply to meet their needs.  Many people today are sad and ashamed to think of the way the bison were deliberately killed.  God, who said, “I know all the fowls of the mountains: and the wild beasts of the field are Mine”  (Psalm 50:11),  must have been displeased to see this cruelty and waste.  However, we can be happy to know that His watchful eye and care are over the bison that are beginning to flourish again.

(to be continued) 

Love you all - Grandpa