The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1907-05-03
ENGLISH LORDS BUY
1000 PRAIRIE DOGS
a New Industry Springs Up
Through Sporting ProcIivi-
ties of Britishers.
TAKE PLACE OF HAREsl
AobIemen Said to Have Signed Conc
tract to Pay So Each at Point of
Shipment-Misied as to
Character Of Beasts.

Huron, s. d., April 2.-Securtng q,
contract from English lords, holding
to take the place of the exterminated
rabbits and hares for sporting purposes,
Mrs. Nellie Madden of Waukon. Wis,
refuses to place any valuation upon her
land situated four miles north Of HuS
ron, and has taken 1t from the market!
The land is overrun with prairie dogs
which have made it wholly unfit for
farming or grazing purposes, and has
always been considered practically val5
uelesS
The prairie dogs are very prolific and
multiply rapidly and for this reason
thing possible to exterminate them, Of,
1ering bounties for their capture or deJ
struction. The colony of the little pests
is the only one in the Jim river valley
and one of the few east Of the Mis-,
souri, river, and the little animals are
considered worse plague than that Of
the Russian thistles Of a few years
ago.
May Be Caught in Nets.
Much money has been spent in vainl
IN the attempt to rid the county Of the
little beasts, and the prospect Of their
with delight by the farmers Of the VII
ctnity. How the dogs will be capturedl
TOT shipment is as yet problem, butt
this will doubtless be accomplished byl
means of a net. for when one becomest
entangled it's loyal brothers rush to itsi
assistance and become themselvesl
caught in the meshes.
Ihough the land which the prairiei
dogs have taken possession of Is prac-I
tically worthless, still C. c. Issenhuth, |
real estate dealer of this city, wished
to list it for sale, and to that end
wrote the owner, receiving the follow
ing letter today in reply: x
VIII say that my land north of HUI
ron Is not for sale. I have never seenl
this land. but under stand there is al
large city of the prairie dog family IN
possession.
IS Per, F. o. 3. Cars at Huron.
II have a contract to furnish parties|
In Ireland with 1000 dogs to take the
place of the exterminated hares and4
rabbits for sporting purposes. will be |
out there June and will send the first
consignment of dogs to Queenstown byI
canada Royal steam vessel Majestic
The dogs bring IS each at the depot in
Huron"
Evidently the foreigners are expect
Ing certain species of dog about the
size of an ordinary canine. and as the
prairie" naturally implies wild they
are anticipating rare sport in running
down these willy natives of the western
plains. The ordinary prairie dog is
ABOUT as large as an overgrOWn rat
and as they live in towns where the
holes are as thick as in cribbage
board and all connected by under
ground passages, the dogs seldom get
more than six or eight feet from shell
ter. They are saucy, but very timid.
1t is hard to shoot them. as they sit
directly over the mouth OF the hole
and when wounded will drop back into
It, or failing to fall entirely out of sight
the other dogs will drag the unfortu-
nate one to safety. There is simply no
sport in shooting them, and they are
without doubt the worst pest that has
ever infested this section of the coun-
try, and If st. Patrick were alive TODAY
he would have his work TO do all over
again.
Receiving SO each for 1000 prairie
dogs, Mrs. Madden viii realize $4,000 on
this years "crop''-a profitable yield
ticular piece Of land