THE RABBIT NUISANCE

Otago Witness, Issue 3419, 26 September 1919, Page 14

THE RABBIT NUISANCE

AMENDING LEGISLATION SOUGHT. (IfxoM Ooa Own CORBKSPOKJD£KT ) WELLINGTON, September 17. _ ' Members of the Banks Peninsula Rabbit Board interviewed the Minister of Agriculture (the Hon. Mr No'sworthy) to-day in order to ask for improved legislation dealing with the rabbit nuisance, and also for an interpretation of some portions of the existing law. The deputation consisted of Messrs 11. T. Chapman, J. Parkinson, J. C. C. Gebbie, and J. Wallace. Mr Chapman explained that the rabbits had become a menace on some parts of Banks Peninsula. The board feit that the Act ought to be made to work with greater speed, and that there should not bo an interval of months between the time when a property was declared to be infested and the time when effective remedies were applied. Under the present system the inspector allowed a month to elapse after serving a notice on a fanner to clear his land of rabbits. Then the inspector and a Government officer made an inspection of tho property to see if the rabbits had been cleared, and if tho occupier was found to have neglected his duty a summons would be issued against him. Further delay would follow owing to the fact that tho court sat only once a month, or even less frequently. The danger of this process was apparent to any person who understood how quickly the rabbits spread. The deputation asked that the board should be empowered to clear land without a summons if the owner disregarded tho first notice, and to charge the cost to tho settler. This arrangement would avoid a great deal of dangerous delay. Tho present Act, the deputation pointed out, gave a rabbit board power to clear land at the expense of the occupier, but tho machinery moved far too slowly, and the rabbits had time to increase enormously before anything was done. Another point raised by the deputation was tho disposal of the fines paid by dilatory settlers. The Government retained tho fines, but the board had to bear the cost of the prosecution. A fairer arrangement would be for tho board to receivo at least a part of the fine.

The Minister said he realised the importance of the work in which the board

was engaged. He would get the opinion of the Crown law officers as to the powers of the board in certain directions. He was in sympathy with the spirit of the requests, and would like to be able to assist the board. His aim and the aim of the Agricultural Department was to eradicate the rabbits in all the infested districts as quickly as possible, and to assist all the authorities and individuals who were working in that, direction. Rabbits were a pest, and should be treated in the light of that fact. It was true that, some people were making very good profits out of rabbits at the present time, but that should not be allowed to hamper the drastic measures necessary to check their spread, and the serious loss they caused. Mr Nosworthy added that he intended to face the rabbit question in a determined manner. Ha would give careful attention to the points raised by the deputation. .