Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1883-02-01
THE JACK RABBIT.
The stronE Arm or,he Law Invoked Against
Him.


Him.
1t has long been curious aud ac-
ccpteu fact in natural history that
baSs-viol playing Is fatal to the per-
formers back hair, and that parrots
are more than usually disposed to pro-
family when employed In a clergy
man : family, but that the telegraph
had anything 90 do with the multiple
cation of rabbits has hitherto been
unknown. Yet this seems TO
be the ease according 10 the testi-
mony Of several Texans, and therefore
uninspeachable. papers, which have re-
Gently and conclusiyely shown that
sinceth introduction OF the telegraph
along the line Of the Rio Grande, from
Laredo to Fort Rlpggold, the jnckass
rabbit has increased to such an extent
| that he threatens to ovcrrun the coun-
! try. The jackass rabbit Of that section
! has heretofore been upright and peace
able In his habit ana although not OF
much use except to furnish the local
! dogs with occasional heathful exercise,
and to supply the native mince-meat
vendors with an able substitute for
their usual wares during the periodical
cat famines which sometimes sweep the
state, was universally accorded to be ~
free from guile as it Is possible for n
Texan to be. During the day he
couched innoccntly in the shade of the
mesquit, the Spanish bayonet, and the
prickly pear, and at sundown elevated
liis majestic ears and assumed that de-
vout attitude which has always struck
travellers with dumb surprise as being
proof positive that there were excep-
tiOns to the generally accepted rule
that nothing could pray on the Rio
Grande. Upon the military telegraph
line being built by Licuten-
ant Greedy, now of arctic fame, this
was all changed. The line was run
by that officer in 1875 from Fort Clark
small but thickly settled community
low Laredo. For several years no
outbreak occurred, but this Is perhaps
due to tho fact that tho line did not
work we'll. Lieutenant Greedy, al
| though an able telegraph en-
gineer, had unfortunately been
educated in Washington City,
where the Texan hornet ia un-
known. He therefore used in the
construction of his line I'm insulator
which met the approval of
| the most advanced Wash
! ington electricians, but which I'M
| fortunately contained large and com
! Portable cavity between the cap and
! the shalt. Four days after the line
| was completed il ceased working.
Battery power was added in vain, and
| investigation showed no break in the
| continuity of the wire. The insulation
was evidently wrong, however, and it
took Lieutenant Greedy three weeks TO
ascertain that the border hornets, Ia
boring under the impression that the
line was built for their exclusive bene-
fit, Ind filed every individual insu-
intOr with mud, and had established
communities In every post throughout
tire entire circuit. This put
Lieutenant Greedy into II
frame Of mind peculiarly
Texan but he finally went patiently
over his work again, this time taking
good care that the insulators were
solid rs "A cannon ball. Tie hornets
ga in some fine work on the scientific
party during this process of reConstruc-
ton, but once ousted, gave no further
electrical trouble. Now however, comes
the riot aud suflusion OF iackass rabbits,
which, though not as stimulating
to personal activity as Lieutenant
tINtlN = tittlcN loIIleiS, arc SI;Slu 10
ba vastly more destructive to property
II seems that FROM the formerly said
and 5elt-contained village near
Laredo have swarmed untold
thousands of maniacal rabbits to
devastate the border 20 such extent
that the inhabitants are unable longer
to cultivate tobacco, red pepper and
garlic, and are complied to exc out n
miserable existence on crackers and
whisky. II Is difficult to account for
the phenomenon on known electrical
, principles, but II Is certain that ii is
| Lieutenant Creely's line with the im-
proved insulator which has caused
the trouble, and ii therefore behooves
the authorities nj Washington to re
call him AT once from the north pol,
and set him to examining this ncH
and most pernicious phase of tele
graph engineering in Texas. Ncu
/