The field north of Roundrock is easily more than a hundred acres. This year my neighbor has grown maize there. The stalks are yellowing and papery, but the cobs haven't been harvested yet. I don't know about these things, and maybe it's too soon for harvesting. That doesn't mean it isn't being taken though. When Libby and I made our walk to the northeast corner on a recent visit (to find the source of the mysterious sound that continue to come from that direction, which we failed to do) part of our hike was along the fence that separates the maize field from our woods. And about ever ten feet along there, we saw what you see in the photo above. Some forest critter is stripping cobs from the stalks and eating them. I don't suppose that is surprising, and I suppose the farmer must tolerate some amount of that, but why is the critter bringing the cobs onto my land to eat? The empty cobs were lined up neatly all along my side of the fence. It looked as though the critters knew that the farmer couldn't come after them if they just crossed the property line. I don't want to be abetting vandals and thieves but I don't know how to stop them, especially if they wear black masks as I suspect these vandals and thieves are. Missouri calendar:

• Jewelweed seedpods explode when touched.

Today in Missouri history:

• A future Missouri senator, Thomas Hart Benton, and a future U.S. president, Andrew Jackson waged a shootout in a crowded hotel hallway on this date in 1813. Had either man’s aim been better, American history might have been much different.

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