194 THE RABBIT 



enacts that a person shall not be deemed an " occupier " 

 by reason of his having a right of common over such 

 lands ; or by reason of an occupation for grazing pur- 

 poses for not more than nine months. Now, if the 

 land in question is downland, over which the farmer 

 has a " right of common," and it is merely enclosed with 

 a wire fence, as many such lands are, to prevent the 

 sheep from straying, we should say that the farmer has 

 no right whatever to the ground game. On the other 

 hand, if he is an occupier for the purpose of grazing 

 sheep, he can only kill or take ground game if his 

 tenancy is for a longer period than nine months. In 

 this case it would follow that, if our correspondent 

 wishes to keep the rabbit shooting in his own hands, 

 he must take care to let the grazing for short periods 

 of not more than nine months.' 



The second section of the Act provides that an 

 occupier, who is entitled to kill ground game on land 

 in his occupation, cannot divest himself wholly of such 

 right. If he holds under a lease dated prior to Sep- 

 tember, 1880, and the game has not been reserved to 

 the owner, he has an exclusive right to game both 

 furred and feathered, and can let that exclusive right 

 to anyone he pleases. But, if his tenancy has been 

 created since that date without any reservation of the 

 game, he cannot let such right in its entirety, but only 



