PUBLIC HEALTH.

Taranaki Daily News, 20 December 1921, Page 5

PUBLIC HEALTH.

THE WAR-ON RATS. The Director-General of Health (Dr. T. H. A. Valintine) forwarded a circular to the New Plymouth Borough Council regarding the necessity of taking precautions against the introduction of plague into the Dominion, and he invited the co-operation of the council. In a report on this question received by the council last night, the inspector (Mr. R. Day) stated that for the past six weeks the centre of the town had been under weekly inspection. Six weeks ago he had laid a large quantify of poison for rats in well-establisned haunts, and found the following morning that 95 per cent, of it had been effective. Recently he had made investigations and had laid 100 baits. On the day following he found that only ten had been taken, and from this he inferred that the first poisoning was very successful. He thougift there was no "doubt the public were co-operating in the matter, but there should be no relaxation of the effort. While not suggesting that free poison should be distributed, he proposed that the council consent to the distributing of quantities in cases where he thought it would be made good use of. » It was decided that the inspector be allowed to distribute poison at his discretion. In moving the motion to this effect the Mayor (Mr. F. E. Wilson) said he thought the recent campaign had been very effective.