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Hawera Star, Volume XLVII, 24 July 1928, Page 9

A recent Wellington visitor to Kapiti Island, which is a sanctuary for New Zealand flora and fauna, states that some parts of the island are infested with rats of unusual size and brown in colour. They have been doing a good deal of damage among the seedlings in the Maori gardens there, and the visitor suggested that possibly they might also account for- the fact that the wekas are not increasing as fast as might be expected. He thought a number of rats might harass the lien bird until it left the nest, when the eggs were taken by the rats. The weka is an enemy of the rat,-of which it is an adept at - killing and skinning. Another frequent visitor to Kapiti confirmed. the statement that rats had greatly increased in number on the island, and were becoming a menace which would have to be dealt with in the nearfuture. While he -did not think the wekas were decreasing just "at present, a few years ago there were far more than there are now T-he definition of a dairy cow was keenlv debated at the meeting of the Waimairi County Council, when the question of stock routes was discussed. When Mr. W. J. Walter asked that the term “local cattle” be inserted instead of “dairy cattle,” Mr. G. T. Mulc-rrk said that the latter term was sufficient-, as it included store cattle (reports the “Lyttelton Times”). Air. Walter: “Ob. no. A store- cow is a dry one.” Mr. Mulcock. who claimed that lie “knew as much about .it as the next man,” maintained that a dairy cow was ono used for dairying purnoses, and that a store cow came within that definition. Air. W. P. Spencer: “A dairy cow is one that is in milk or springing.” Air. Walter’s motion was lost, and the council confirmed the decision of the recent conference of representatives of the city, regarding routes for cattle, sheep, etc.