RIFLE AND ROD

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 108, 16 February 1935, Page 2

RIFLE AND ROD

TIGERS AND ELEPHANTS. AMERICAN PARTY’S ADVENTURES (Special to the “ Guardian.”) AUCKLAND, February 14. Hunting tigers, elephants and water buffalo in Indo-China, fishing off the Philippine Islands and in the Dutch East Indies—these activities were only the preliminary to a big-game fishing excursion in New Zealand and Papeete waters to be undertaken by two Americans who arrived by the Marama this week. They are Messrs H. Rutherford and R. H. Poole, who brought with them their own boat and an engineer and boat manager, Mr E. Williams. Mr Poole is to spend 10 days’ trout fishing at Tongarjro before going on to Papeete. His companion will take his boat up to the northern fishing ground for two months before leaving by boat -for Papeete to join Mr Poole, i Mr Rutherford explained that the plan for the trip originated while they y,-e:re both at Princeton University. He comes from New York, where their jioat was built, his companion is from Chicago, and Mr Williams from Florida. They left for Vancouver last year and from that city their wanderings began. >

Cruise in Philippine Waters.

They took ship for Japan and China, spent a month there, and went to Manila, where their boat had arrived via Panama Canal. They went on a 1500. miles’ cruise in Philippine waters, but without much success as far as fishing was concerned, because the run of the fish was late. Then they went on to Indo-China, where their biggame hunting commenced. In the lowlands near Saigon, in French Indo-China, they shot water buffalo, two of which were said to be the largest lie had ever seen. The horns were each 52 inches long. That particular part of the country had never been huntedi before, so that the water-buffalo were not as dangerous as they are when they have been shot at before. Often, Mr Rutherford said, a whole herd would charge, and theii the hunter became the sorely hunted. Once, he said, he saw a herd milling preparatory to a charge, but a shot at the leader frightened them. The country was a series of vast plains, covered with high grass, in which it was difficult to move. “You have to work for all you shoot,” he added. Then he told of tiger and elephant shooting on the plateaus of Annam. Mr Poole had shot a sladang, which is the largest of the bovine family, standing sometimes seven feet at the shoulders.-, They used that tor tiger bait. Then they built ai borna, or light shelter hut on the ground, made of thin sticks lashed together, and thatched to look like a big bush. This they placed c at the large and safe distance of 15yds away from the kill, with a small hole for the rifle barrel. In this safe place Mr Poole spent two nights. ‘‘You have to he absolutely soundless,” Mr Rutherford said, “because the tiger has a wonderful sense of hearing. His sense of smell or sight is not nearly as highly developed, so you have a fair chance of escaping detection in the boma if only you keep quiet.” Mr Poole waited in vain during two nights, but at 7 o’clock in the morning the tiger came. He just seemed to be •there, suddenly materialising from the undergrowth. He was dropped with one shot. Then they discovered that he was only a small one, a year old. Mr Poole has the skin with him. He admitted that the .was tremendously excited when the tiger came. It was Mr who got the elephant. They had climbed to the top of various hills to try to sight a herd. One had 1 been reported from the vicinity, and after a march of 25 miles through unbelievably thick grass 10ft high, they came in sight of their quarry. Even then they had to look most of the afternoon. They had to get very close on account of the thick grass. “We were just getting near when the elephant heard us. Now they have a marvellous sense of hearing and smell, but cannot see well, so we, up-wind, kept very still. The herd moved off, and so did we, after it. Again we got to within 50 or 60 yards. We tried to pick out a big bull, but could not get" near enough to distinguish individuals through the grass. At last we saw three together. It was my shot. I picked the largest, and down lie came with one shot. Unfortunately, though lie was big, his tusks were small.” “Better Luck” in New Zealand. Mr Rutherford described the heat and weariness of trekking through long grass for hours on end, sometimes to no avail. ' For instance, lie built a boma. near where he killed the ele-. phant; but though fresh tiger pugs were seen quite near, the tiger did not eventuate. He killed a six-foot lizard feeding off the flesh. Then they both returned to Saigon, recovered from a mild bout of pialaria, and set off to Sourabaya, whither their boat had been sent before them. They went on another fishing excursion, but again without luck. In the bay between Java and Bali the water was alive with porpoises, which left the bay bare of bait for sailfish and swordfish. “However,” he added, “we hope for better luck here.”

Their boat, named the Mako, is 27 feet long, with a beam of Bft lOin. It is driven by two engines, each of 75 h.p., and each driving a screw. It does some 14 knots, but they hope for a greater speed when they fit larger propellers.