People's party paper. [volume] (Atlanta, Ga.) 1891-1898, 1893-03-03
Australia's Rabbit Plague.

In 1862 an English resident OF
Victoria imported several pairs Of
common rabbits from his own coun-
try and set to work breeding them
in the interests of Australian sports
manship. His friends and acquain-
tances applauded his public spirit,
and the people Of the colony regard
ed him as a public benefactor. AS
his stock Of the rabbits increased, re-
quests for pair or two came to him
from all parts Of the country. In a
short time several dozens of Aus
tralian sportsmen were enlisted In
the good cause of replenlshing in
this manner Australia's failing sup
ply of game. They met with such
pre-eminent success that within
twelve years rabbits had become SO
numerous as to be universally re-
garded as a public nuisance. The
custom grew up among the farmers
and sheep owners of organizing rab
bit drives, and common result was
the killing of from 5000 to 10000
of the pestiferous animals In q single
day. The rabbits, nevertheless, went
on increasing at prodigious rate.
So destructive to the pasturage
and vegetation generally had they
become in 1880, and SO universal was
the complaint against them that the
Australian Government passed Gan
act to provide for the suppression of
rabbits" appointing bailiffs whose
duty it was to destroy them on crown
lands, and to see that all walls, brush
piles and whatever of like mature
might afford them harborage were
removed. They were also empow-
cred to do likewise with all other
lands at the cost of the occupants,
provided the occupants failed to do
so. The killing Of certain carnivor-
Gus wild animals, hitherto considered
an unquestioned evil, was likewise
made illegal on the ground that they
assisted in the determination of the
pest. But the measures proved ut
terly futile. A large unoccupied
tract of country, supposed to be their
main breeding ground, was fenced
off in 1888 by woven wire fence
three and a half feet high. The bot
tom Of this fence was buried to
depth of six inches SO as to prevent
burrowing under it. To stop jump
ing out barbed wire was stretched
six inches above the top of the fence.
It required 1877 miles of this fencing,
and two years later it was extended
$50 miles further to cut off ingress
from another direction. That this
expedient brought little relief ap-
pears in the fact that in 1887 the
government of New South Wales
offered a reward of 100000 to any
person who would devise or suggest
a method or expedient for Kidding
the country of rabbits. A commits
sion of twelve from the several Aus
tralian colonies was appointed to
pass upon the 1,400 plans submitted
and rejected every one of them.
Mr.. Austin's weakness for English
rabbit hunting has cost Australia
enormously in public money expend-
ed in fighting the pest, not to speak
of the enormous losses suffered by
individuals from its devastations. An
official report on the subject places
the amount Of public money thus ex-
pended by Victoria, New South
Wales and South Australia down to
December, 1890, at nearly $20,O00,-
900. Private expenditures in the
same direction must also have been
considerable. One gentleman so
used $4,000 on his own plantation
within six months in destroying $780,
900 rabbits. 1t is a fair assumption
that the residents Of Australia, in
Guiding Mr.. Austin, if he is alive to
witness the outcome of his game
breeding enterprise, regret that they
did not content themselves with hunt
ing kangaroos.