Audubon County Republican. [volume] (Audubon, Audubon Co., Iowa) 1885-1894, 1889-11-14
,oAHo.s RAsslr PLAGUE.
Gen. Iris bin Says IL Is Almost as bad
There as IL IL In Australia.

There as IL IL In Australia
Tic rabbits are again becoming a
plague in many portions of Idaho.
Nevada and Wyoming. These little
,unnies d far TO do as much damage
n our country as they have In Austria
In unless timely steps are taken for
heir exterm.nat.on. In Australia in
many places they have eaten up the
whole of the country. even sheep pas.
lures being destroyed by them. 1t seem
strange that national legislation should
e required against SO small an animal
IS n rabbit, but the English colonists Of
Australia are glad enough to have the
Government aid them in destroying the
title pests. Every thing green and every
,lade of grass is eaten by them to the
,arth, and. except the grass hopper, it
would be impossible to conceive OF any.
hing more destructive to vegetation
han rabbit. They appear In vast arm
es, and moving across country. strip
of all vegetable matter. Gardens are
heir special delight. and not vegeta-
de is left where they can once take
iold.
When out in Idaho, q year or two ago.
had some experience with rabbits.
They appeared in great numbers along
he Oregon Short Line, and at some
owns destroyed all tho gardens. Near
Bose they attacked the grain fields and
wen the pastures. The methods Of
destroying them were sometimes quite
aovel. One gentleman who had a grain
ield and garden patch surrounded the
ield with board on his fence next to
the ground. Above the board he drew
awire very tightly and just close enough
10 the board to let the rabbits heads
through. In trying to get over the
board thew got fast and hanged them.
Ielves. His field was pretty we'll
strung around every morning with dead
:abbits.
Another farmer put q bush fence
around his field and here and there
made hole through it. On the other
tide of the holes he sank large boxes in
;he ground. The bunnies would run
through the whole, fall into the boxes
and be unable to get out. Another
farmer put boxes under his fences with
iilting lids. The outside was firm
enough, but no sooner would the rab-
bit attempt to run through than the
:reacherous lid would tip up and land
him in the box below. Then 1t would
lip back into its place again and be
ready for another rabbit. In the morn
ng the boys would 60 around the field,
Kill tho rabbits and pitch them into a
wagon. They often got wagon load
in morning. The rabbits we're fed to
The hogs.
Another method was the ''sur-
round" A large pit or hole was dug
in the ground where the rabbits were
lhickest. and brush piled round the
pit for some distance out. Then the
men and boys made a surround, beat
ING the brush up and Frightening the
Dummies towards the pit As they clos
I'D IN the rabbits would take refuge in
The brush around the hole or pit
When all had closed in tho brush was
fired all around out side. and the little
creatures TO escape the flames would
Jump into the pit. Those that did not
fall into the pit were roasted or killed
by the men and boys who stood close
together around the outside armed with
clubs and pitchforks.
Lux & Miller. the great cattle raisers,
whose ranches were completely over
run with rabbits. offered q reward of
i've cents apiece for them. and the boys
make good wages killing them. A boy
IN a day with good luck could kill and
1eliver from fifty to ono hundred, so he
made good sum. Lux & Miller threw
:he dead rabbits into a big vat, where
they were boiled. skin and all, and then
led to the hogs TO falten them. 1t ia
said they mrke good hog feed. and the
hogs fatten very rapidly upon rabbit
desh.
Pasteur. the great French specialist
and curer of maddog bite by inocula.
lion. says he can kill of
all the rabbits in the United
States and Australia by inocula-
lion. His plan is to inoculate live rah-
bits with chicken cholera and then let
them go among other RABBITS. The di.
leaS is yeyy contagious and fatal. and
Ae contends they would soon give it to
saeh other and all lie Off 1t is certain.
" worth try nc. for a greater pest than
al excess of rabbits cannot be imagin.
ed.-NeW YORK. HOrYd