PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS.

Otago Witness, Issue 3336, 20 February 1918, Page 37

PREVENTION OF CRUELTY TO ANIMALS.

A meeting of the Otago .Society for th#» Prevention of Cruelty to Animals was hek|]r in the office of the secretary (Mr T. Sflj Graham) on the 12th instant. The presfjß dent (Mr G. Fenwick) occupied the ohair/T The inspector's report stated, Inter ah*W~ that in his visits throughout the. countrWJ he had observed further Improvement ial the condition of stock, ana the efforts oil the society appeared to have been moss]; effectual in educating owners in this rdfli; speSt. He had received the utmost a«sistt|| ance from the police and private individual^' A draft copy of the thirty-sixth annurf,. report was approved. The salient point!; are as follow: —The number of cases deaUr, with was about the same as for the prejfjr vious 12 months, and they were of th#j usual character, as detailed in the inspeoH tor's report. There were 117 cases reporter upon during the year, as gainst 115 hi 1916, and 142 in 1915. werap: taken in one of these cases, md convictioa]; obtained, resulting in a fine amounting tcjj; 461, payable to the Government, the costf| being £l 7s 6d. Twelve cases were proceeded with on account of weakness oE? evidence, and 60 coiriplaints were. Jnveetig' gated and considered no cases, for variouifi'r reasons. Forty-four persons Were oautionedffi

for different offences; and 26 horses, toum cows, and two dogs were destroyed. That-, number of members is 1231, aa against 122 M last year. This was proof of the continued! • energy of the inspector (Mr Craig), and «= most satisfactory result considering thafl; between non-renewals, removals, deaths, ana| men at the war, last year's roll of member',' ship was seriously reduced by 140. Thatsubscriptions for 1917 amounted to £394 15s. as compared with £397 14s 3d in 1916fi and £577 in 1915. In March the committed received from the Royal Society in Lon* don an appeal for funds towards the ereo* tibn of a veterinary hospital for the horse* of the New Zealand division at the front:-* a scheme in which the general officer com* manding was interested, and anxious thajjt the hospital should be provided aa sooflj; ai possible. In response to the application the committee remitted £SO towards carry? jag out tho good object.