L— 5.

Section 29—Amendment: When any owner shall have several flocks of sheep depasturing upon any run, and one of such flocks shall become infected, it shall not be lawful for such owner to remove any sheep from any such flock for a period of three calendar months after he shall have obtained a clean certificate for such flock, unless with the written permission of the Inspector upon each occasion of removal, and unless such sheep shall be dipped under the supervision and to the satisfaction of an Inspector. Section 32 —Proposed Amendment: No clean certificate shall be given to the owner of any infected flock until the Inspector shall have satisfied himself, by examination, or by the declaration of the owner, that the adjacent flock or flocks on his run are free from disease. New Clause—Certificate : When the owner of an infected flock shall have complied with the provisions of the Act, and the Inspector shall have found the sheep free from disease at the end of three months after the last dipping, the Inspector shall forthwith give such owner a clean certificate. N.B.—No power given under the Act of 1878 to compel the issue of certificate. New Clause —Simultaneous Dipping : The Inspector shall have power to require owners of all or any infected flocks in any subdivision to dip their sheep twice simultaneously at any reasonable time of the year, and also to require the owners of sheep adjoining infected flocks to dip once simultaneously with the owners of infected flocks any sheep depasturing in paddocks adjoining or near such infected flocks. Section 46, present Act—Proposed Amendment: Word " shall" to be substituted in lieu of "may," and the word " reasonable " in lieu of " sufficient." Section 52, present Act —Proposed Amendment: That every owner of sheep in an infected district shall maintain, to the satisfaction and in the opinion of the Inspector, a sufficient dip, with all necessary appliances and material for dipping his sheep once, and in default shall be liable to apenalty. That, in case of subdivisions infected at the time of passing of this amendment, this section shall be in force at the end of one month after the passing thereof, and, in case of subdivisions proclaimed infected hereafter, at the end of one month after the date of such Proclamation. Section 67, present Act—Fees, Fines, &c.: All fines, &c, to be paid into an account to be called " the Sheep Fund," and in the case of " fines " to be applied in districts where levied in the eradication of scab.

APPENDIX D. Sib, — Hawea, Otago, 4th October, 1884. I am directed by the Progress Committee of this district, in answer to the letter of the Colonial Secretary of the 9th ultimo, to forward you the following information as to the administration of the Babbit Act in this district: — When tenders were first called for the extermination of rabbits on the Haw-oa Hundred, about fifteen months ago, the tender of L. McLean, at £15 per 1,000 acres, was accepted, although C. Dalton tendered at £8 por 1,000 acres. Tenders were again called nine months ago, when L. McLean's tender, at £20 per 1,000 acres, for twelve months, was again accepted; although T. Fox's tender was only £11 for the same work. There were, besides, several other tenders at a much lower rate than the accepted one. The Inspector, on being questioned at a public meeting, referred his interrogator to the Colonial Secretary, who replied that the Inspector had been instructed in future to send all tenders to his office for consideration. The inference is that previous tenders had not been sent. * lam further to inform the Committee that the settlers here are quite prepared to exterminate the rabbits on the hundred, free of expense to Government, if the depasturing fees could be applied to that purpose, as they are convinced that their rights of depasturing stock will be seriously imperilled if the present unsatisfactory manner of dealing with the rabbit question is to be continued. I have, &c, Mungo Albion, Hon. Secretary, Hawea Progress Committee. The Chairman, Sheep and Babbit Committee, Wellington.

By Authority Geoboh Didsbuby, Government Printer Wellington.—lBB4.

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