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raisins stuffed with strychnine in his vest pocket 

 as a matter of course along with his toothpick and 

 matches, to drop into the gopher runs. Then the 

 jack rabbits! "We've a few left now, but they're 

 degenerates compared with their grandfathers. It 

 seems to me now they were as big as foxes with ears 

 like mules, and they'd stand on their hind legs and 

 eat the bark off trees as high as they could reach, 

 and you know a jack rabbit has considerable reach 

 of hind leg let alone all that's before it. Every 

 tree had to be wrapped around with old cloths or 

 something while we had the boys shooting off the 

 rabbits. Then, of course, frost caught us once in a 

 while, for we knew nothing of smudging, and some 

 years water was scarce. It was all very different 

 from the way it had been figured out for us on paper 

 back East. But, bless you, we worried through 

 the climate was fine and we helped one another like 

 good neighbors and joyed and sorrowed together, 

 and learned in the school of experience a whole lot 

 that is commonplace to the rancher to-day; and 

 that's why I say we are seeing the good end of it." 



