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JACK RABBITS OF THE UNITED STATES. 



State and by Wyoming, largely from the region between the Fremont, 

 Elkhorn and Missouri Valley and the Burlington and Missouri Eiver 

 railroads. No reliable statistics of the number consumed in Kansas 

 City, Mo., are at hand, the estimates ranging from a few hundred dozen 

 up to about 75,000. 



Texas probably furnishes most of the rabbits sold in the markets of 

 its principal towns as well as some of those in New Orleans. Only a 

 limited number of 'Jacks' are used in New Orleans — probably not more 

 than 25 per cent of the total number of rabbits sold — and these are 

 shipped mainly from points along the Kansas City, Fort Scott and 

 Memphis Eailroad. 



Minneapolis and St. Paul, Minn., receive their main shipments from 

 North and South Dakota and Minnesota. It is reported that 12,000 jack 

 rabbits (1,000 dozen) were handled by a single commission house in St. 

 Paul during last winter, probably nine-tenths of which were obtained 

 from the Dakotas, the remainder being received from Minnesota and 

 Iowa. 



Estimates of the number of jack rabbits sold in the markets of some 

 of the cities west of the Mississi])pi River have been obtained from 

 boards of trade, chambers of commerce, or reliable commission mer- 

 chants, and are shown in the following table. Such figures are only 

 approximate, but in most cases are based on the sales of the season of 

 1801-05 : 



Estimates of Jack Eahhits sold in IVcstern Cities. 



Handled by a single commission house. 



f A|i]iroxiiiiat<'. 



Most of the jack rabbits sold in Chicago, St. Louis, New York, 

 Boston, Philadelpliia, Baltimore, and Washington seem to come from 

 the Great Plains — from Kansas to North Dakota — but the attempt to 

 secure accurate statistics from Eastern cities is almost hoi)eless, as 

 quantities of the large Varying Hares {hepnn amcricanns) are also 

 received and sold indiscriminately with jack rabbits under the name of 

 hares. 



These data will give some idea of the extent to which jack rabbits 

 are shii)ped to market. The total number sold in the cities men- 

 tioned above is about 300,000. Allowing an equal number for local 

 conbumplion in small towns and for those sold in other cities would 



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