15

I.—ll

113. Mr. Dodson.] Have they got right up to Carter's ?-^ Yes; right up to Birch Hill. 114. Hon. Mr. Walker.] Which kind of rabbit are they, the brown or the silver-grey ?—They are a mixture of both. 115. Mr. Dodson.] The grey rabbit is the dangerous one?— They appear to me to be more white than grey. 116. Mr. Lawry.] Do you know anything of the rabbits about Maxburn?—Knyvett tells me they are worse than formerly in some places, but I cannot see that they are worse. The returns show there are more, sheep than formerly—lBB4, 52,000; last year, 56,000. 117. What is the weight of wool ?—I do not know. 118. Mr. Dodson.] People are fencing a good deal more; that accounts for the increase?—l do not know about that. 119. Mr. Lance.] But you have not much to do with rabbits : do you think the Board is dqjng its duty ?—No fault can be found in their way of working. At present they are poisoning and trapping, and should continue doing so. 120. Mr. Dodson.] The new Board ?—Yes. 121. Are they going on different lines ? — They are going in for the natural enemy and poisoning. 122. Mr. Lance.] What about the factory ? —That might be done away with. When in the Awatere, in December last, I asked why they did not kill the rabbits; I was told they were being kept for the factory. I think there are about eighty men engaged in trapping, who have killed somewhere about 520,000. 123. They cleared the country pretty well last year ?—They had to go then into Taylor Pass. But the rabbits came in great numbers. After the men had been poisoning during the winter, and got them fairly under, they came on ,so that it seemed as if to rain rabbits. 124. The only way of stopping them is to fence ?—Yes. 125. Captain Russe.ll.] When you were telling us about the rabbits spreading so rapidly you apparently connected that fact with the natural enemy : do you want us to understand that the natural enemy caused the spreading?— The present Board are introducing the natural enemy. 126. Have you any theory as to how the rabbits spread : is it at all due to the introduction of dogs and ferrets ?—Either will spread them about the country, for they must travel for their food. 127. Then, you do not wish to connect the fact of them spreading with the efforts made to destroy them ? —No ; not in any way. 128. Hon. Mr. Pharazyn.] Do you know the number of ferrets that have been let loose ? —I do not know how many have been let loose, but lately there was a shipment of three hundred stoats and weasels arrived, and I think another shipment of two hundred are on their way, if they have not already arrived. I think there are about five hundred ready to be turned out now and in the spring. I do not know whether it is proposed to turn them out this spring. 129. Mr. Lance.] Then, at present, you think they are doing well? —At present; but Ido not know whether they will do so well in the future. All the settlers are poisoning, but as soon as their funds are done they stop work. 130. Mr. Kerr.] In your opinion they ought to continue on ?—I think they ought not to leave off altogether. When I was in the Wairarapa district I saw some splended work done on Mr. Martin's estate at Martinborough. 131. Mr. Dodson.] Have you any theory in your mind as to where the Vernon rabbits come from ? They do not breed there ? —I was not over there last winter. Four years ago I noticed that after they had finished poisoning in the winter time all along the Eenwick Koad, after a couple of months, the rabbits came so numerous it seemed as if it had rained rabbits. 132. Hon. Mr. Pharazyn.] Have they acquired the habit of living in the bush ?—There is no bush there.

Mr. Chaeles Phabazyn examined. 133. Hon. the Chairman.] What is your name ?—Charles Pharazyn. 134. Would you state to the Committee what special evidence you have to bring forward ? — Perhaps it would be better if I were to make a statement of facts which have come under my own special knowledge and personal experience. 135. Very well, Mr Pharazyn; I dare say that will be the best way ?—Well, then, I will relate what I know. I have properties situated in South Wairarapa extending over about forty thousand acres, and it would be difficult to find any country which would be more suitable for the increase of rabbits. It is in many parts rough, like the country in the South Island where rabbits are so plentiful. One of these properties I purchased right in the middle of the rabbit-scare. Persons laughed at me, and ridiculed the idea of my ever coping with them. In one part of this property a man with a gun and dogs could kill eighty rabbits a day ; so the Committee will see that they were pretty bad at that time. Some of us in the district at once recognised our position :we saw that we had a serious matter to deal with, that no time was to be lost, and that what we did should be of a methodical and permanent character. We saw others spending large sums of money every year without very good results. We therefore agreed to act on one line, and that was, to take such steps as would get rid of the pest without permanent annual cost, and those steps, I am happy to say, have been most successful. We said to ourselves, " Here is a grass-eating animal which must be dealt with by an animal living on flesh." We put everything on the land that would eat flesh— cats, ferrets, stoats, and weasels—encouraged hawks; in fact, look upon everything that would kill a rabbit as a being of considerable advantage to us. We carefully avoided one thing—we never would have the so-called "rabbiter;" we employed men more of the game-keeper class. We would have nothing to do with the " professional " rabbiter, who would, in most cases, be far more likely to destroy the natural enemy of the rabbit than the rabbit itself. Again, we never trapped,