THE AORICVLTURAL JOURNAL. 



433 



consist of a number of weather-proof 

 boxes, such as whiskey cases, etc., placed 

 in a dry position, and turned bottom 

 upwards with a small entrance. By 

 moving them about once a fortnight 

 perfect cleanliness is secured. Rabbits, 

 and especially Belgian hares require 

 absolute dryness of soil ; damp kills them 

 off rapidly, therefore the breeding hutches 

 and boxes for the little ones must have a 

 trench dug behind them to carry off 

 water. Another important point is to 

 avoid handling the does. More harm is 

 done in this way than is guessed. I have 

 examined scores of breeding does who 

 have had their ribs fractured and other 

 internal injuries brought about by the 

 silly meddlesomeness of owners or their 

 children. A Belgian hare is kept for 

 profit, not as a pet, and should be re- 

 garded as a wild animal. 



Coming to the purely practical part of 

 the business, my twenty years' acquaint- 

 ance with the subject has satisfied me 

 that breeding for the market can be made 

 much more profitable than poultry farm- 

 ing, while the risk is infinitely less. If 

 properly looked after, a three or four 

 months Belgian weighing 51bs.and fit for 

 market ought not to have cost more than 

 6d. to rear, and should bring at least 2s. 

 When the promised cold storage vans are 

 available on the N.G.R. the demand on 

 the Rand alone for this article of diet 

 should keep many rabbit breeders going. 



How TO Begin. 



The best course for a person to adopt 

 who wishes to embark in the business is 

 first to enclose with stout inch mesh wire 

 a space from oO to 100 yards square, in a 

 dry spot open to the sun and the same 

 time having some shelter. A space of 

 100 i ards square, or as much more as can 

 be spared, should be ploughed up and 

 sown broadcast with blackjack, thistles, 

 cabbage, lettuce, pumpkin, and grass, and 

 got well under weigh before the rabbitry 

 is stocked. Then purchase ten of the 

 best does obtainable and two or even 

 thrre bucks, and proceed to breed. A 

 native or coolie should be told off: to do 

 nothing else but attend to the rabbitry. 

 That should be his sole duty, for as soon 

 as he is inspanned for general work the 

 rabbitry gets neglected, and disaster is 



the result. By the time 100 rabbits have 

 arrived he will find all his attention 

 needed for them. I presume that snakes 

 and hawks would be the principal pests 

 of the rabbit breeder in Natal, but I am 

 assured that if the inch wire net is pro- 

 perly pegged down and the enclosure 

 looked over frequently, snakes rarely get 

 inside Hawks accounted for a large 

 number of youngsters at the East Rand 

 rdbbitry, and a boy with a gun had 

 to be constantly on the qui viue. Of 

 course the runs of the young ones 

 can be wired on the top, and 

 the extra expense would be justified. 

 There are several excellent books on the 

 rabbit, from which details of breeding 

 can be obtained, but it must not be for- 

 gotten that the conditions that prevail in 

 England may not necessarily apply to 

 Natal. For example, I have noticed that 

 the Belgian hare does not grow so fast 

 here, nor attain quite the same weight as 

 at Home. Neither does the doe litter 

 with such regularity as to number. It is 

 not unusual to find a doe throwing nine 

 at the first litter, then six or even five, 

 then jumping to eight. The only rabbit 

 disease I have yet heard of in Natal and 

 the Transvaal is the very common liver 

 ailment. There is, however, a cfrtain 

 and speedy cure — knocking on the head. 

 It does not pay to doctor a rabbit, not 

 even a prize animal. At the first symptom 

 of sicknf ss weed him out, and the first 

 loss will be the last. I agree with Mr. 

 Power on the unwisdom of attempting a 

 a cross. The Belgian hare is as perfect 

 an animal as need be. His colour is that 

 of the wild rabbit, and his flesh is firm 

 ai-id sweet. I have seen hundreds of re- 

 sults from crossing with the Flemish giant, 

 but the product was a bastard in every 

 sense. 



Locust Report, 



MR. BROWN, Stock Inspector, Lower 

 Tugela, repoits on the 1st instant : — 

 Only one swarm of locusts has passed 

 over here during the last month. The 

 swarm came from Zululand, and was not 

 a very large one. The locusts did not 

 settle, but passed on. This District for 

 the month has been very free from locusts. 



