CENTRAL OTAGO.

Press, Volume LXII, Issue 12478, 14 April 1906, Page 6

CENTRAL OTAGO.

A DEERSTALKING EXPEDITION

EXPERIENCES Of MR G. LAURENSON, M.HR.

On Wednesday Mr G. Laurenaon, M.H.R., returned to Lyttelton from A deerstalking expedition, in Central Otago. A representative of this paper had a that with Mr Laurenson about his experience, and Sleo about the counbty through which he travelled. "Our party," B*ld Mf Laurenson, •'left dhristohlirch on Maroh 27th. There were four of us, my companions being Captain Power and Messrs R. M. Morten, junr., and J. Forbes, With the exoeption. of one man, it was a new experience for us all. At Kurow w« were met by Messrs Con and Hal fiodgkinaon »»id McGkwan. JVom Kurow we drtWJ by way of Omaram* end Malvern flilk etation* to Lake Hawea, which W«« reached after a thoroughly etfjoyable three days'drive. At Mr Bell's station at Lake HaWea the party split into two, four of tbe number going up Timaru Creek, seven miles inland, and three of ue going to tbe Dingle, about eighteen ttiies farther on, to which point W#. packed' our tente, blankets, and provision*. Mr I«ur«iwm said he would not go into the details of the suOOting further than to cay that the deer appeared to be very numerous and in fine condition, and the party were rarely out without seeing from thirty to forty in a day. Most of those seen, however, were hinds and young stage, with heads of from eight pointa downwatds. "Royal" heads, that is, heads of twelve points and upwards, appeared to be somewhat rare. .■ „, „ "At all events," said Mr Laurenson, "I only secured one bead of twelve points, but all the indications appear to be in favour of the tneory that the deer std rapidly inoresaing in numbers. As btttUiets called mc away, I hau to leave the camp before my companions." In Ms* Laurenson'e opinion, deer-eMk>. ing » splendid aport, hut a man needs to be in a very "fit 1 ' oondition, or it is "killing" work. "We pitched oar camp down in the bush, so as to have the water close handy," said Mr Laurenaon. "Every morning we had a very stiff climb of about 3000 feet up from the oamp, in order to reach the deer oountry. it .is a oountry in the waking, and it is desperate work getting about. It took us fully two hours to get down one gntiy barely half a mile in length." Mr Lanrenson speaks in terms of high praise (regarding Messrs Hodgkinoon -Brothers, whom he describes as splendid types of manhood—powerful, hardy, and deadly 6hots. "Very often," said Mr Laurenson, "when I was out with don, he would tell mc that there was a deer on the hillside across a gully. When asked where, he would say 'Jost below that stump,' or 'A little above that rock.' I would strain my eyes and see nothing, and then, after -peering through a -pair of fieldglaeees for five minutes or more, I would pick op tbe deer which Con had noted with a glance of the naked eye." Mr Lanrenson tfeld our representative that he was much impressed with the climate and ths potentialities of the Hawea and Central Otago district. He states that the Hawea Flat land, which can be bought for from £3 to £5 per acre, is producing over 80 bushels of wheat to the acre. "But," remarked Mr Laurenson, "aa the 6ettlers are over seventy miles from the nearest railway etation, the fertility of the soil is of little use to them. I walked from Hawea Flat to Cromwell, a distance of thirty-five miles. This country presents no engineering difficulties, and a railway connecting these two points oould be veiy cheaply laid. The Central Otago line will be open to Clyde, which is thirteen miles from Cromwell, next December.

"As to the soenery and the beauties of lake Hawea, and the mountains surrounding it, I need at this time say nothing further than to .state that it is in my opinion one of the most magnificently beautiful districts which I have yet seen in New Zealand. One oan form some idea of the climate, when I state that lees than half an inch of rain has fallen in the district during the past three months. The chief characteristics of the climate seem to be bright sunny days and clear frosty nights. Altogether, as a health resort, or a pleasure ground, I feel certain that there are few places in the colony that will be able to compete with the Lake Hewoa district, when once it gets into touch with oar centres of population." Mr Laurenson then went on to cay that the great drawback to the country, from a sheepovraer's point of view, ia the rabbit post. "One station through which we psesed." said Mr Laurenson. "paid £6000 to trappers last year, and sent down for shipment over 600,000 rabbitakins. The morning I oame down the Central line, one man was sending away, as the result of only two nightr trapping, 6000 rabbits from Amakau station to Dunedin. The country simply swarms with vast flocks of rabbits. When going along the roads, they start up in hundreds beneath your veiy feet. From a sportsman's point of view it is a wests of powder and shot to shoot them, as you could bag them by hundreds."