A RANCHMAN'S RECOLLECTIONS 



and express my thought, and to put quotation marks 

 about it, without crediting it to anyone. I worked 

 several days on it, finally getting something which 

 sounded all right, and then I had another brilliant 

 idea : I would try it on some bible student, and see 

 if it would go by. I chose Mrs. Hastings' mother, 

 a clever bible student, and one of the sweetest, 

 dearest women whom I have ever known. I loved 

 her next to my own mother, and felt a little guilty 

 about trying my product on her, but she was a good 

 sport, so I said, "I cannot find this in the bible; 

 can you tell me what book it is from ?" Without any 

 hesitation she said, *'It is from Kings; I will find it 

 for you." I let it go at that, but she hunted Kings 

 and the concordance diligently before I 'fessed up 

 to the whole plot. John Reid, in charge of our 

 Foreign Department, was also a bible student, so I 

 tried it out on him, being careful to begin with, 

 *'I cannot find this in the bible." Offhand he re- 

 plied, "It is from Kings." The next day he told me 

 that he had spent several hours trying to find it, 

 and again I had to 'fess up. 



I have never consciously been guilty of plagiarism 

 and in writing I am careful in the use of quotation 

 marks, but it is strange how quotations, particularly 

 long ones, in the spoken word and properly credited 

 before being used, are accepted so often as original. 

 When the old National Live Stock Association held 

 a meeting in Kansas City about twenty-five years 



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