get those rockets," he said, "any time you have a
mind to. That lake dries up about the middle of September."

"By what right--" began the professor.

"I plumb forget what sub-section you called that partickler right just
now," Rifle-Eye replied, "but out here we calls it fool-hobblin'. You're
off your range, Mister Professor, an' the change o' feed has got you
locoed mighty bad. I reckon you'd better trot back to your own pastures
in the East, an' stay there till you know a little more."

"What is your name and address?" blustered the professor; "I'll have the
law invoked for this."

"There's few in the Rockies as don't know old Rifle-Eye Bill," the
Ranger replied, "an' my address is wherever I c'n find some good to be
done. Any one c'n find me when I'm wanted, an' I'm ready any time you
say. Now, you're goin' to celebrate the Fourth to-morrow, to show how
fond you are o' good government. You c'n add to your lectures on Social
Economy one rule you don't know any thin' about. It's a Western rule,
this one, an' it's just that no man that can't govern himself can govern
anythin' else."

He turned on his heel, ignoring the reply shouted after him, and
followed by Wilbur, mounted and rode away up the trail.

"I've got to get right back," said the Ranger; "we're goin' to start
workin' out a special sale of poles."

"Telegraph poles?" queried Wilbur.

"Yes."

"When you come to think of it," said the boy, "there must be quite a lot
of poles all over the country."

"Merritt said he reckoned there was about sixteen million poles now in
use, an' three and a half million poles are needed every year just for
telegraph and telephone purposes alone."

"When you think," said Wilbur, "that every telegraph and telephone pole
means a whole tree, there's some forest been cut down, hasn't there?"

"How many poles do you s'pose are used in a mile?"

"About forty, I heard at school," the boy replied, "and it takes an
army of men working all the year round just puttin' in poles."

The old hunter struck a match and put a light to his pipe.

"More forest destruction," said the boy mischievously, "I should think,
Rifle-Eye, you'd be ashamed to waste wood by burning it up in the form
of matches."

"Go on talkin'," said Rifle-Eye, "you like tellin' me these things you
picked up at the Ranger School. Can you tell how much timber is used, or
how many matches are lighted an' thrown away?"

"Three million matches a minute, every m