The aurochs also resembles the bison in fighting fiercely when cornered; he is worse than the bison in one respect, as he will not try to escape when he meets a with that of the huge creature whose remains have astonished the scientific world.
“From the bison to the buffalo is a very natural step, and by buffalo I mean the animal to whom the name properly belongs. But before taking him up I will mention the yak of Tartary, which has a flowing tail like that of a horse, a hump on its shoulders, a tuft of hair on its forehead, a mane along its neck and shoulders, and long hair on the lower part of its body which varies in quantity according to the season of the year. He is used as a beast of burden and can carry a very heavy load, and he is as sure-footed as a goat. The Tartars keep large herds of these animals and move about from place to place to find pasturage; they make tents and ropes of the hair of the yak, and clothing out of his skin, and they occasionally eat the flesh of the beast, though they prefer that of the horse. They make butter from the milk, and by putting it in bladders tightly closed against the air they can preserve it a long time.”
“I've been reading about another animal,” said Harry, “that must be a near relative of the yak.”
“What is that?”
“The musk ox of North America,” was the reply.
“Yes,” said Mr. Graham, “he is a relative of the yak, though somewhat smaller, in fact he is so small that he resembles a large sheep more than an ox. He belongs in the cold regions of North America, and is very useful to Arctic explorers, who feed upon his flesh. He has a covering of thick and long hair of a dark brown color, and his horns are thick and large, bending downwards over the sides of his head and then suddenly backwards and upwards at the tips.”
“He looks very clumsy.” said George, glancing at the picture of the animal, “and evidently can't, get over the ground very fast.”