106 TRANSACTIONS OF ROYAL SCOTTISH ARBORICULTURAL SOCIETY. 
on farm-land and woodland, where shooting and trapping are 
difficult, costly, and less effective. Actual experiments have 
proved that where wild rabbits swarm in large numbers they 
can by one well-conducted operation be reduced to about one- 
twentieth ; and wherever extermination is desired, ferretting can 
then be trusted to do the rest. But, of course, it stands to 
reason that where even about 5 per cent. are permitted to 
survive, poisoning will have to be repeated from time to time, 
to keep the pest well in hand. 
Experimental measures of the above sort were taken with 
marked success in adjoining fields and woodlands on thirty-three 
estates throughout the Grand Duchy of Hesse during 1903; 
and from these some interesting details are obtainable as to cost 
and result. In one case operations were conducted over an area 
of 2125 acres (1425 acres of woodland and 700 acres of fields) at 
a cost of £51, 13s., or less than 6d. per acre, of which rather 
more than one-half was for material and rather under one-half 
for wages. The result was very good, about nineteen-twentieths 
of the rabbits being killed off. In another case 4353 burrows 
were operated upon at a total cost of £20, of which £13 were 
spent in wages, £5 on bisulphide of carbon (6} cwts. being used), 
and £2 on rags, etc. On another estate 10,530 burrows were 
treated at a cost of £45 (or under one penny per burrow), of 
which £ 29 was for labour, £13 for bisulphide of carbon, and 
43 for rags, etc. In all of these cases the results were highly 
successful, but the operations will have to be repeated again to 
keep the rabbits from increasing unduly. 
Probably there are many places in the British Isles where a 
trial of the above method might with advantage be made by 
landowners desirous of keeping down rabbits. 
