WAR ON RATS

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LVI, 16 August 1924, Page 8

WAR ON RATS

INTENSIVE DRIVE

PLAGUE PRECAUTION

As ail anti-plaugue precaution a rat drive from the eastern, .side of Sussex'street, Sydney, to the -water’s edge along Darling Harbour is .being conducted by tiro City. Council’s rat-catcb-nig staff. Tho plague regulations made under t liePublio Health Act place tho onus of keeping premises free of rats upon the occupier, who is reguired to set traps and lay poison , daily until, all Has have been captured. Owners and occupiers are soon reminded of any dilatoriness in the matter, as wherever members of tho ratcatching staff find premises rat-infest-ed or not reasonably rat-proof they report direct to the City Health Department, arid an inspector takes whatever action ho deems necessary. During the last, three months of the 1921. plague outbreak 22,498 rats were killed. Tho tally for 1922 wn. s .39,290 rats, and for 1923 1.9,000 rats. So effectively had then war on rats, progressed at the end of June, 1923, that the City Council discontinued paying a. rat bonus of 6d per head.' to which the Government, had contributed half. Cor the six months sotf this year the number of rats killed, stated Mr Vogwell to the ‘Daily Telegraph,’ was. comnnra.tiycly low, showing that the rodents are being gradually wiped out. dn important feature of this work is that rat 3 are -taken every, dnv to the Govrnment Microbiologist, for examination rift order to see that tllbv are not carriers of plague.' Tri dealing out death to the rata' the 1 rat-eatchrs use with much success j screens made of pliable material which can he placed round slacks of fodder lor other goods, jtnsido these screens a replaced the “ratters”—trninffed dogs which know their work, and do it wel;