THE RABBIT FEST.

Grey River Argus, 19 May 1922, Page 5

THE RABBIT FEST.

STOATS AND WEASELS FAVOURED SYDNEY, May IS. Press contention is raging round the advice given by Coleman Phillips, n New Zea lander, to a pastoralists’ meeting, that stoats and weasels should be introduced to combat ihe rabbit plague. The meeting resolved to ask the Federal Government to permit their int reduction. Mr Symons, Chief Inspector of Stock, declares that a similar proposal Ims been considered from time to time by both the Federal ami. State Governments. He says that Phillips’s proposals are largely regarded as theories. Some years ago, official inquiries were made in New Zealand and the information obtained was utterly opposed to the proposal, for the reason that the introduced stoats ami weasels had i quite forsaken the pursuit of rabbits' and became serious destructive pests to poultry am! all kinds of bird life. Later official reports from New Zealand all indicated that Ihe only elfeifivc methods of dealing with, the rabbits ■were netting, poisoning and tra[>]»ing. Mr Froggart, vice president of tin.' Zoological Society, also issues a strong warning against the danger of introduring the Phillips methods.