THE RABBIT PEST.

Wairarapa Daily Times, Volume 6, Issue 1585, 17 January 1884, Page 2

THE RABBIT PEST.

[Sydney Mail; Dec. 22, Information has been received by the Minister for Mines that the mongoose recently sent into the rabbit districts are doing good work. Mr Quin, M.L.A., has forwarded to the Minister a letter written to Mr Quin, by Mr David Christal, Mulurula, a station in' the western back block's, in which.the writer says;—" Concerning the mongoose, they are doing wonderful work, and my only trouble is that I have no more of them." He thinks that, to toro the complete snccwsof thV

experiment, the mongoose should bo let loose in parts of the country exempt , from the provisions of tho rabbit regu- j lations relating. to fumigation ani: :■■ rabbiters, He expresses this opinion, V becauae the rabbiter can easily trap the - ; mongoose and will do so.' " Recently 1 ," he says "the tally of a trapper on the Manfred run, for a week was 14 cats admitted having trapped 11 iguanas." The plain fact remains." Mr Chrystal writes, " that we aro destroying oyery one of the natural enemies of tho rabbit and unless something is done, and at pneo, wo shall be fating an outlay that all tho squatters. on the land and the Treasury will not be able to meet." He suggests that a fourth division of the colony to be called the rabbit infested divison should be declared in the new Land Bill, and that it should be definedjby a line north of tho junction of the Lachlan and Mumiuibidgoe, Running to the South Australian and Queensland borders, leaving, out, however, the river frontages, which for ten \ miles back should be included in third division. Referring to the stated of the country in his district with "* regard to the weather and the supply of grass and water, Mr Chrystal says the season is a terrible one, and the losses will be something fabulous. (Marlborough Express, Nov. 22.) . Some interesting information has been given us concerning a shipment of stoats and weasels made from London M to the colony some four or five months ago, About a score oftheso Were shipped on board a sailing vessel in cages, under the care of a man who was sent out expressly with them, and who is now. employed on the Bushley Park Station belonging to Mr Rich, the shipper, The whole shipment with the exception of three were brought to within a few days sail of tho New Zealand coast, but unfortunately in a heavy gale all with the exception ot three were washed overboard. The survivors were landed in the best possible condition. Tho experiment was valuable inasmuch as it proves these animals can bo brought out in close confinement. The three survivors were turned out on Mr Douglas's station at Mount Royal, near Palmerston South, and on , ; examination [of some of the' burrows they were found to contain numerous dead rabbits with the unmistakable bite behind the ear. The weasels and stoats ■were purchased in. Yorkshire, and fed on the voyage on a large number of Antwerp pigeons, We believe that there is a great probability of the same man being sent Home by the Government to make a trial shipment of some hundreds of these enemies of the rabbits,