THE RABBIT 249 



owing to the migratory habits of the latter. Many 

 people refuse to eat rabbits owing to a suspicion that 

 disease is likely to be present. This may be an extreme 

 and an unnecessary caution, but the mere fact that it 

 exists indicates the truth that such disease is apt to be 

 present. 



It is difficult to lay down a general law as to the 

 number of rabbits to be put down each year, when we 

 are not dealing with a warren, but merely with scattered 

 rabbit burrows, but we should say that about three or 

 four to every hundred acres of ground would be suffi- 

 cient. The best time is when the shooting is over, but 

 not later than the middle of January. This is late 

 enough to permit of the Christmas shootings. When 

 there is sufficient evidence to prove that the rabbit 

 stock is diminishing from any cause apart from the 

 destruction by gun and trap, the whole stock should 

 be obliterated and an entirely new one laid down. 

 Great care should be taken in the selection of the 

 ground from which the new blood is taken. It should 

 come from districts at as great a distance awayas is con- 

 sistent with convenience, and should be from ground 

 where the laying down of new blood is consistently 

 and habitually practised, and, if possible, from ground 

 where rabbits are not too numerous. In selecting the 

 rabbits, bucks should preponderate. In the majority 

 of cases it is easy enough to arrange an interchange of 

 blood. For this, it is of course necessary that the 

 health of one's own stock should be above suspicion. 



