, 1888-10-05
THE LONG cared PESTS
Attempts to Extfrminate Rabbits In the
Australian Colonies.

Attempts to -Extfrminate Rabbits In the
Australian Colonies
1t Is morally certain that Australia and
New Zealand. those rabbit ridden coun-
tries, will be quick to adopt the drive"
idea. and probably the farmers of those
distant Islands will find the method more
effective in the matter of allaying the
rabbit nuisance han all the theories of
incubation
A reporter met a gentleman recently
who had been largely Identified with
pastoral interests both In Australia and
New Zealand. and from him some inter
esting facts were ascertained In connec-
ton with the efforts of antipodean agri-
~culturists to combat the plague of the
long cared pests.
The drive idea" said the gentleman.
lis not entirely new to Australians.
They have for years employed a some
what similar method of Kidding pastoral
lands of the destructive kangaroo"
From kangaroos the conversation
drifted back to the rabbit question, and
theg gentleman from the ~antipodes related
his experience in the matter, together
with the efforts of colonial governments
to subdue the pests.
First of all. | suppose you AVE heard
that valuable pastoral holdings. both in
New Zealand and Australia. have had to
be abandoned through the depredations
of rabbits. and | assure you that the
losses these harmless looking creatures
have entailed have been very much under
estimated. The rabbits In the colonies
ale borrowers, and this makes them harder
to get at. A few years age a system of
fencing with wire netting was introduced
there, but 1t only proved effective on uni
formly level land. Rabbits do not, as a
rule, burrow on fat places. but where the
fence ran over the slightest knoll or hill
bunny would get his deadly work in by
Kidding the mound with holes and open
ing up an avenue to the inner pastures.
'On small holdings the owners obvi-
ated the difficulty by sinking narrow
trenches and inserting the wire netting
below ground, but the cost this system
would entail in making a large run rabbit
proof would constitute total abandonment
of the place a profitable alternative. 1t
is only on these large runs that the dep
relations are felt severely. as around
farms and tillage lands the constant pres
ence of plowmen and other laborers scares
away the colonial rabbit, which is as shy
as it is destructive. nave often read of
grasshopper plaques In this and other
countries. but l don't think there can be
a more desolate sight than that of a run
which has been abandoned to rabbits. |
believe that out that way the furry de-
stroyers breed four or five times a year.
THE methods experimental with in
order to exterminate them have been as
varied as they were effective. Poisoned
grain was tried, but a short experience
illustrated the fact that valuable sheep
and cattle dogs were killed through eat
ing poisoned rabbits, while sheep were
occasionally poisoned by eating the grain.
Then an enterprising German came along
and announced to the long suffering CO.
lonial stockmen that he had an infallible
remedy for the curse. His plan was to
inject some poisonous acids into the bur-
rows, but as far as appeared on the sur
face the rabbits devoured his patent medi-
cine and asked for more. Then we began
to introduce ferrets and kindred small but
vindictive animals. which it was expected
would glide noiselessly into the burrows,
and in time wipe the rabbits off our Sec
ton of the globe. The ferrets, however,
after a while tired of an exclusive rabbit
diet and turned their attention to poultry.
They nave also been known to attack
children, there being one case in particular
where a child at Damara, New Zealand,
had its eyes nearly eaten out before as
sistance arrived. | lave not heard any
thing anent the ferret question lately,
but l should not wonder If the colonists
are not, - pursuance of the chain of de-
struction they have organized, looking
around for some antidote to ferrets. The
only method that mas been In any manner
effective in keeping the rabbits down in
the colonies has been the employment of
men known as rabbiters. They are, as a
rule, clever with the fowling piece, and the
run-holders supply them with ammunition
and tucker (Anglice, provisions) They
wage a steady and merciless war on the
pests, and as rabbit skin properly cured
find a ready sale, rabbiting is a fairly
lucrative calling The introduction of
this method of meeting the difficulty on
the New Zealand side has been brought
about by the establishment of a rabbit de-
partment, the maintenance of which costs
the government 500. 600 a year.-San
Francisco Examiner.