Phillips. — On Rabbit-disease. 437 



nature's true remedies is applied. As to any disease like 

 cholera suddenly sweeping off millions, I do not believe in its 

 applicability to our present circumstances. Too much 

 virulence would do harm. 



In the use of so many dogs there is, of course, a danger of 

 some dogs going wild. I should recommend the Government 

 to publish the resolutions the settlers arrived at in my district, 

 in 1884, upon this question. We are now through the rabbit- 

 pest, and I do not think the wild dogs have killed a 

 thousand sheep during the last four years over a million 

 acres. Still, there are a few dogs gone wild in the bush, w^hich 

 we occasionally hear and see ; but these can easily be got if 

 the search for them is properly gone about. Prevention in 

 this matter is better than cure. I prefer this danger to the 

 introduction of the fox or wolf tribe. 



There is some talk of this rabbit-disease attacking man in the 

 form of hydatid. So it will. Hydatid from sheep attacks a 

 few persons in Australia. Hydatid from the dog attacks a 

 few of the Iceland people. I do not think much of these 

 things. People cannot give up eating rabbit or mutton, or 

 keeping dogs. To do that is the true remedy for the alarm- 

 ists, and it is impracticable. 



I would repeat that Professor Thomas does not draw the 

 same conclusions from the mode of conquest of the pest in the 

 Wairarapa that I draw. The winter poisoning had little or 

 no effectuality. The ferrets worked well only in isolated 

 places ; in other places they would not live at all. But the 

 three things acting in combination — viz., the poisoning, the 

 natural enemy, and these diseases^effectually did the work of 

 suppression. The poisoning swept off the millions ; the ferret, 

 cat, stoat, and weasel ate the young ones left ; and then this 

 bladder- worm and liver-rot attended upon all and completed 

 the cure : but the poisoning itself was of little good. Herein 

 it will be seen that practical experience is better than scientific 

 conclusions. I hope Mr. Thomas, after reading this paper, 

 w^ill amend his interim report in the proper direction. It is 

 not because the tape-worm here may not be exactly the same 

 tape-worm that sweeps off the jack-rabbit in North America 

 that Sir James Hector was wrong in the application of the 

 general principle. That principle is that the excess of 

 every order of life is held in check by some particular 

 worm. 



On the other hand, I must say that I saw far more from 

 my ten years' practical experience in reducing the pest than 

 Sir James Hector or Professor Thomas could tell me about it. 

 Combining these things with M. Pasteur's proposals, I 

 must be excused for doubting scientific conclusions. Sir 

 James Hector proposes the introduction of the kit-fox here : I 



