A search with "split-rail values" at Yahoo gives these:
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Aldo Leopold called those things that "remind us of our distinctive
national origins and evolution, i.e., that stimulates awareness of
history, split-rail values." He penned those thoughts in his "Wildlife
in American Culture," essay that appeared in A Sand County Almanac. In
this thought-provoking work, Leopold noted "there is value in any
experience that reminds us of our dependency on the
soil--plant-animal-man food chain," and in "any experience that
exercises those ethical restraints collectively called sportsmanship."
http://www.tonydean.com/issues.html?sectionid=643
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Deer hunting is one of those bedrock Wisconsin traditions, built upon
what naturalist Aldo Leopold called "split rail" values, a custom with
echoes of our pioneer past. The annual gun deer hunt, with its tall
tales, cooked-way-too-long stew and carcasses hanging from trees is an
enduring part of our culture.
http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=531976&format=print
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Origin:
Perhaps - values considered during talks at the end of the day, when villagers sit on a split-rail/fence.