KAROO VERMIN (JACKAL) EXTERMINATION CLUBS 1918-1921

Half leather Letter Book containing 248 pages of original copies of typewritten correspondence by members of Vermin (Jackal) Extermination Clubs of the upper Karoo area during their formative years - June 1918 to February 1921. The Letter Book contains valuable historical insight into efforts to combat vermin on sheep ranches in the greater Karoo area over a hundred years ago. Letters are in legible English and Dutch/Afrikaans.

At the inaugural meeting of the Circle Committee, No. 16 on 24 June 1918, there were 6 Divisional Councils: Victoria West, Prieska, Kenhardt, Fraserburg, Upington and Carnarvon. The Secretary (Chief Government Inspector, Office of the Administrator, Cape Town) concluded his report of the meeting "... to push the extermination of Vermin to the utmost".

Clubs had to have clearly defined boundaries and records were kept of the number of vermin that were killed. Dogs and poison were used to exterminate vermin, and packs of foxhounds were also used to hunt jackal, primarily during the winter months due to excessive heat in summer. Registered hunting dogs were exempted from dog tax. During the year 1918 bounties were paid out for 1661 jackals, 156 lynxes and 34 baboons, thus making a total of 1851 in the Victoria West Division alone. This Division "covered an area of 380 miles or 63 hours by car, or 1 286 325 morgen".

There are various mentions of the Spanish Fly epidemic at the time. On 4 December 1918, a member reported that due to the epidemic, he was restricted from executing instructions given to him by the committee (to print and distribute rules of the committee). During 1919 meetings were postponed due to the heavy draught that plagued the semi-arid area.

"The jackal problem was elevated to the highest political level in the Western Cape in the early 20th century by Sir Frederic de Waal, Administrator of the Cape from 1911-1925. He took over the reins of government at a time when economic recession was imposing hardship across the economy, and where jackal numbers had increased during the 'Boer War' as farms and livestock were left unprotected and carrion was abundant. De Waal stressed the importance of local coordinated action against 'freebooting jackals' and sought to transcend the festering war wounds by arguing that jackals were 'non-political chaps' who would 'eat lamb impartially' irrespective of the politics of the owners. As the price of wool and mutton rose significantly between 1914 and 1920, De Waal prioritised the interest of sheep farmers over crop farmers and urban dwellers by increasing the bounties paid on jackals, expanding hunting and poisoning in state forest land, subsidising hound packs and supplying poison at cost to vermin clubs and landlords. Between 1914 and 1923, 317 787 jackal bounties were paid out...".

- Nicoli Natrass, Beatrice Conradie; Jackal Narratives and Predator Control in the Karoo, South Africa; CSIR paper, Centre for Social Science Research, 2013.