RABBIT FURS— THEIR VALUE 137 



to some extent in local markets. At a recent 

 fur sale in St. Louis, which is the center of 

 the business in the United States, six million 

 rabbit pelts were auctioned off, bringing a 

 total of five hundred thousand dollars. The 

 top price of the sale was $2.10 a pound, the 

 best lot averaging seven pelts to the pound. 

 Most of these rabbit skins came from Australia 

 and New Zealand, only two per cent, having 

 been received from American shippers. It 

 will be seen by this that rabbit skins are in 

 demand even though the price is low. For- 

 merly all the big sales of Australia's output 

 have been held in London, but the business is 

 being established on so firm a ground in this 

 country that it probably can be retained here. 

 That being true, the opportunity for Ameri- 

 can breeders to find an outlet for whatever sur- 

 plus they may have will be improved. At 

 these auction sales the buyers are mostly fur- 

 riers and hat manufacturers from the larger 

 centers. 



When one has only a few rabbits, of course, 

 he cannot expect to find a ready market for the 

 pelts, as dealers always like to buy in large 

 lots. Now, however, leading rabbit keepers 



