A correspondent in Kansas says that they have thirty acres of land and their small dog, we assume foraging on the land, has got " sand stickers" on its gumline. It must be have been trying to eat these sand stickers. They have to be removed. Well now, all of us on the British Q and A site where this was posted would love to help but none of us (including some Americans) have any good idea what a 'sand sticker' is. Anyone on AP know? It sounds like some kind of tic for which that is a local name.It must have a scientific name, which would help

I've never hear of them. But they could call a local vet and get some information about it.

Fred, I've never heard of them either. But looking around on the net, I'm wondering, do you think they could be sand burs? A dog could pick these up by foraging. Have a look at this conversation: Sand Burs

Picture of a sand bur.

That must be it, dg. Trust a Canadian to identify the seeds of a plant found in Kansas The plant is Cenchrus incertus or a related sub-species and has a fiercesome seed, which makes running in sandy grassland a hazardous activity.It's also known as 'goathead'.

Now I'm none the wiser but a great deal better informed

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Originally posted by FredPuli:
Trust a Canadian to identify the seeds of a plant found in Kansas

Depends on the day, as to whether I feel Canadian or British. Today, I feel closer to my friends in the UK, in light of the conversation of late in the religions forum.

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Now I'm none the wiser but a great deal better informed

That sounds like the story of my life!

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Originally posted by dg:

quote:

Now I'm none the wiser but a great deal better informed

That sounds like the story of my life!

I nicked the idea from F E Smith QC, a great and fearless (or impertinent, or both) barrister. He was appearing before a County Court Judge, who asked, in a sarcastic and supercilious manner, " And what 'point of law' would that be, Mr Smith ?" to which Smith addressed the usher, saying "Usher! Please go behind, to this court's library, and fetch the most elementary book on the English law of contract as you there shall find, and we'll show His Honour what point it is!"

After further interchanges, books were fetched and His Honour read the parts indicated. Having done so he said, as crushingly and dismissively of this upstart as he could " Mr Smith, I have studied the parts to which you would have me refer and I am none the wiser"

" I expect not", said Smith, sweetly, " but at least Your Honour is a great deal better informed" The young Smith went on to become the greatest advocate of his day. The judge is long forgotten.

But who won the case, and how did young Smith fare in future cases before that judge?

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Originally posted by DorianGreyed:
But who won the case, and how did young Smith fare in future cases before that judge?

I have no doubt that Smith did.He knew his man. Bullying judges are cowards.This one would retreat in the face of the onslaught, fearful of the Court of Appeal and the distinct and obvious possibility that this young man, so bold and impertinent,so confident, knew more than he did and therefore would decide to find for Smith's client.There would be other days, and other counsel, to bully.Next time the judge might be right, you never know,and right or not, his bluster might succeed.

Some judges, years ago took delight in dominating their court. Disappointingly, you'd find that they were the very essence of charm when the man before them was patently experienced and tough.It was with great anticipation that I watched one such insulting and counsel- bullying judge doing his stuff, when it was my pupil master's turn. Not a squeak out of the judge. It was all 'Yes Mr Bolland', 'Of course, Mr Bolland' and the slightest sign of trouble was met by Mr Bolland giving a look, a raised eyebrow perhaps [I don't think your Lordship wants trouble, so we'll leave it there, now, shall we?...] Very disappointing!(Of course, their paths had probably crossed before Once bitten, twice shy, which would apply to Smith too, in the event that he ever appeared again before that lowly judge) In boxing terms,they are not usually 'quick on their feet' and often have a limited repertoire of favourite punches, which makes life easier. Know the law and procedure well and be reasonably quick- witted and the rest is a stroll.They can always find somebody else.

In Smith's day judges often sat with juries, which gave Smith even more rein. When a judge,who was sitting in a case involving a Plaintiff boy injured in a railway accident and Smith was for the Railway Company, was constantly cooing and oodling sympathetically over the Plaintiff, with remarks like 'Poor boy! How unfortunate!' Smith allowed this for a while, looked up, and asked 'Perhaps your Lordship would like him passed around the jury box?' At a stroke this told the jury that the judge was being most unjudicial, swung them towards doing their utmost to be fair (i.e swung them to try too much not to favour the boy) and quietened the judge down. After that, any attempt would be judged cynically by the jury, who wanted to make up their minds (with a vengeance) and not be told by some judge!