RATS AND HOW TO DESTROY THEM By Mark Hovell. Originally published in 1924, this rare early work on rats and their control is both expensive and hard to find in its first edition. READ COUNTRY BOOKS has republished it in an affordable, high quality, modern edition using the original text and artwork. The author was an expert and dedicated destroyer of rats who also invented the "Terrier" Death Run Rat Trap and the Blocking Trap. He was persuaded to write this fascinating book after fighting a memorable battle in ridding a friend's house and farm of a long established and numerous rat colony. Utilising his vast knowledge of the Brown and the Black Rat, and his many years of practical experience in their destruction, he penned this, the most comprehensive of all books ever published on this particular subject. Over five hundred pages contain forty eight detailed chapters including : - Habits and Natural History of the Rat. - Traps, Type and Use - Signals. - Trapping Methods. - Snaring. - Ferrets and Ferreting. - The Mongoose. - Dogs. - Trailing. - Poisoning. - Virus. - Blocking. - Flooding. - Fumigation. - Varnish and Rat Lime Trap. - The Rodier System. How to Deal with Rats in the House, Shop, Outbuildings, Yards, Stables, Cow -Houses, Fowl Pens, Pig Sties, Gardens, Greenhouses, Rivers and Ships. - Rats on Shooting Estates and Farms. - Sewers. - Notes on Plague. - Cancer in Rats. etc etc. There are also chapters on the control of mice, cockroaches and sparrows, with extra detailed chapters on traps and their design. Over fifty text illustrations are included, detailing trap design and usage etc. Also retained are several pages of vintage advertisements for rat traps, poisons, baits, books etc. This is a fascinating read for anyone interested in the countryside, rural conservation, pest control, game keeping etc, with much of the historical information remaining useful and practical today. Many of the earliest sporting books, particularly those dating back to the 1900s and before, are now extremely scarce and increasingly expensive. READ COUNTRY BOOKS are republishing many of these classic works in affordable, high quality, modern editions, using the original text and artwork.