RABBIT EXTERMINATION.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1705, 1 March 1888, Page 1

RABBIT EXTERMINATION.

Paris, Feb. 27.

M, Pasteur's latest experiments have proved completely sucsessful. Under the chicken cholera rabbils lived one day only, fowls lived two days, whilst sheep and lambs were not in any way affected. M. Pasteur is now convinced of the superiority of his scheme for the extermination of rabbits, and is determined to spare no trouble or expense to have it properly submitted to the authorities of New Pouth Wales with a view to securing the reward of £25,000 offered by the Government of that colony; Three delegates from M. Pasteur, who fully understand bis scheme, will leave for Australia by the s.s. Ouzco. Sydney, Feb. 27.

The Central Board of Health have drawn up a recommendation to the Government on the rabbit extermination schemes proposed by M. Pasteur, Professor Watson, and Drs Butcher and Kllis, in which they urge that no disease for that purpose should be introduced into the colony until it is positively certain that it will not have fatal or dangerous effects upon hum an beings or stock. The report describes the scheme of Drs Butcher and Ellis, of which thousands of rabbits are now dying in the Darling district, as meroly the itcb. whilst the scheme of Professor Watson they consider not of a sufficiently fatal character to make it of any permanent use to the colony. The Government replied to the memorandum to the effect that they proposed to ask for legislative power to control experiments within the colony, and to authorise them to introduce any disease providing it is absolutely innocuous to stock and human beings, pending consideration of the whole subject by the proposed intercolonial commission of experts on the rabbit question. Adelaide, Feb. 28.

Government have agreed to a Conference of rabbit experts to decide on the best means of extermination.