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http://www.kshs.org/portraits/jackrabbit_drives.htmYonder against the hill I see them,
Their running bodies grayish brown
Amid the thickening clouds of dust!
A thousand, two thousand, maybe more
They dart against the closing lines
Of men and women, children, armed
With clubs, a swiftly closing ring.
Some crouch down behind a weed
Too small to hide them from the throng
Who're striking right and left, killing
Or stunning and going on to others.
A few escape--out through the mob
A moment more the rest remain
Tired from running, some blood stained,
And when they pause one sees their eyes;
They show no fear, instead there's something
That makes one wonder, later--not now,
There's not time now, one has to kill.
The dust is clearing, their bodies strewn
The ground, a few are kicking yet,
One squeals as it receives a final blow.
The rabbit drive is over.
...The size of a drive varied from one or two sections to massive efforts covering several square miles. The largest successful drive was near Dighton and involved 10,000 people in an area eight miles square that netted an estimated 35,000 rabbits. An even larger drive near Kalvesta was to have been 10 miles square or 64,000 acres. The organizers expected as many as 15,000 people to assist, but a dust storm ended the drive prematurely when the opposing sides couldn't find each other. Similarly, the weather ruined a planned 108-section drive near Oakley...
"The Great Jackrabbit Drives" were a series of events that occurred in the late 19th and early 20th century in which large numbers of jackrabbits were killed in an effort to control their population and prevent crop damage.
The drives were a response to the rapid population growth of jackrabbits in the western United States, which led to significant crop damage and economic losses for farmers. The first recorded drive took place in Texas in 1884, and from there, the idea spread to other states.
While the drives did result in the deaths of millions of jackrabbits, they were not ultimately successful in controlling the population. In fact, experts now believe that the drives may have actually contributed to the jackrabbits' population growth by eliminating their natural predators and creating a larger food supply.
The most common method used in the drives was to form a large circle around a designated area and drive the jackrabbits towards a central point, where they would then be killed with guns, clubs, or other weapons. Other methods included using specially trained dogs and horses to chase and capture the jackrabbits.
The drives had a significant impact on the environment, as millions of jackrabbits were killed in a short period of time. This led to a disruption of the food chain and ecosystem, as well as the potential extinction of some species that relied on jackrabbits as a food source. The drives also contributed to soil erosion and other environmental damage due to the large numbers of animals being killed and removed from the land.