REGISTRATION OF RABBIT DOGS.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 4, Issue 1018, 9 March 1882, Page 2

REGISTRATION OF RABBIT DOGS.

MEETING OF Betwbkn seventy and oigAtJtameri, runholders, and others inter wtetTiir the above question assembled in the oommsr* cial room of Mr Corbett'i Empire Hotel last evening to discuss the best meant of obtaining the remission of the tax on rabbit dogs, the meeting having been calUd by Messrs R. K, Welch, J. Stuclcey, and R. Campbell. , . v >.:j ■!;. Mr J. V. Smith was voted to the chair, on the motion of Mr Stuckey,'. and in - opening theproceedingssaid he thoroughly concurred in the feeing which had pramyted the calling of the present netting. The Babbit Act, as all, knew, wit very stringent, and heavy fines mo tn< forced under it against those .who failed to keep the rabbits down. He thought they , would all recognise that though Jhe Aet ut was strict it was very necessarily, po. But* v .what, he-wished; to express was thi monstrous injustice of. inflicting pensltiei for not keeping down the, rabbits and at the same time placing a, tax: unon the most efficient aids they had/for thfi extermination of the pest.. (Loud;applause), In his place as a member of the East ut County Council he. had done his utmost a to; obtain the reinispicn. of ,th» .tax on I rabbit dogs, but the Aot was ptyin.on thaJj matter, and absolutely , required thabdHß dogs should be registered, and duty of registering. tfiem in .the handßH the County Councils, .which had to prorlH for the cost of tha collar and' He thought there ' was a way of meeting this, however. There was no, doubt thg Legislature intended that ..rabbit ", dog#" should be exempt, from the tax, as in th« 20th clause of the Babbit; Act it wu stated that all. : . do«s kept" : solely for rabbit purposes, should,/ on mripb of a certificate to that'effect, be exempt' from tax.. He thought the Oounciljihould be applied to, to haTe appointed R.ijo'iil| registrar all dugd as lie visited" the varioqi properties. No badges or coUars were required. Dogs could not hunt rabbits with collars on, and therefore the expenit of collars was money thrown away {Hear Hear.) Sheep dogs could bo taxed in « separate class, He thought it very unfair that Maori dogs should go free if Europeans were compelled to pay. He read a which set forth their astonishment,at first iFthey did not get plenty of 'dogs and ' poison to kill the rabbits, and now were to be taxed to limit the number of their dogßi the writer? winding up by declaring they would not pay for their dogs (Loud laughter and applause.) With regard to the statement in the. Rabbit Aot that dogg alioi?ld be exempt, ho (Major Smith) lia'd written to Inspector Sutton in who had replied he had no power to grant : . certificate as the Ijog Registration 4<S| said all dogs must be registered. 'He (thj ohairmaq) would now call upon My Stuckey to move tlje first resolution, Mr Stuckey then moved, and Mr J, Vile seconded :—" That this meeting feel-: - iug tho injustice of 'the obarge for registration of rabbit dogs, and the high price of collars for the Bame, consider it desirable that a deputation should wait on the County Council, asking them to remit such charges. ; ' Mr Stuckey in moving this-stated that 811,08 he had been in the district ho 'hud ■ • Worked hard to exterminate 1 the rabbits" both privately and as a membor of the Rabbit Trust, but he considered the Government by taxing rabbit dogs were actually trying not tq do away with the rabbits, The cost per single .dog, vis "; l«9d was uot a large amount, but when there were 40 or fifty dogs to pay for 'it came very hard. If the Council could not do anything for them, tho Goremment should have tho matter urged upon -; its attention, Proporty owners 5 were i already heavily taxed, and the damage * ' Mid loss caused by tho rabbits made it additionally severe to pay a tax on dot;s. Mr Skipper: You cannot alter it now. _ The resolution was (hen put and car* riod unanimoi)3)y, Mr McKay then proposed and, Mr R, R. Welch seconded- 1 ' That a deputation consisting of Messrs A. Stewart, R, Hunt, and J. Stuckey be.requested to wait' on"" the County Cquncil atUheir next sitting to plapa the iviews'of this before tlioiji ar)d to report at an adjourned meeting to ba held at 4 p, 111,011 Saturday th? 18th inst,' —Carried unanimously. • Mr B,: Hunt' then; proposed land Hf Stuckey seconded-" That this meeting be adjourned until 4 p.m. on Saturday thi 18th inst., such meeting to be hold in thii room,"—Carried unanimously,"' j ] s u dipper good : mighV be done next sossion but nothing at present. ......... ' .•(••., I

Major Smith thought thero was - : '" ; « li 'l *- wa y out nf this difficulty, ~ Jtrß/.Htwt said be was afraid M present tax was bat the thin end of the - • wedge: .If they submitted to that, Wk x . year it .would be increased, and the wedge" S ' gradually dnvon right home. There ,6hoald:beuo difficulty and no expense with the registration of rabbit dogs. , The 01erk of the County had 1 tlietiame M A all property owners, and ho could send : a notice, to thorn asking thoniV send in a return of dogs kept, upon their pUoes, • | and he could enter the register book from such tetunjs.. The present tux on rabbii ; - Msoally'."iniposilioi}. %e, were tod to destroy the rabbits, anj fined if they did not do so, and then they were taxed for keeping tho animals whioh exterminated the rabbits. It wasoominff to " all tax," Tho Government appeared l .? - f '■] to be striving to drive out-tbe'veiy bone"'''' and sinew of the county. ' There were men who made their living by rabbitiag and traveled with 30 or 40 doga, these men oould qot afford to pay the tax and yet Ihey must have their dogs;. There '" was another aspeot of the qnesbon too!'-' and that was that these severe taxes wore really a tax on the-'working ben, ' for it took money out of jsettlers' A. for a useless purpose which otherwise jBP would be expended in labor. Tho they agitated on this matter, 'the better • the more they submitted the more they., n >:'■ would be'asked to bear till' tliey beoanw v '" a thoroughly tax ridden community ' (Loud anplause.) ■ ' Mr A. Stewart then proposed a rote of na,r,ks to the chair and the prdo'oedinss "" ■ pinnated. .' * 8