ACCLIMATISATION SOCIETY

Press, Volume LXX, Issue 21179, 1 June 1934, Page 3

ACCLIMATISATION SOCIETY

ANNUAL MEETING HELD SUCCESSFUL YEAR REVIEWED Many matters of interest to anglers and shooters were discussed at the seventieth annual meeting of the North Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, which was? held in the Jellicoe Hall last night. Mr F. Steans was in the chair and there was a large attendance. The chairman reported that the committee set up last year to revise the rules had not yet submitted its recommendations. He had no t new council would continue the work and bring the rules up to date. The chairman said the finance committee had been able to show a credit balance of £ll6, replacing a loss of about £B4 last year. Good allowance for depreciation had also been made. The hatchery committee had liberated fry to the value' of £4OO and game valued at £3OO had been liberated by the game committee. The hatchery committee had also made sales to the value of £l6l, and had a working balance of about £IOO. The game committee had made sales to the value of £3O. and it was left with a deficiency of £IOO, so that the two committees balanced each other after carrying out works to the combined value of £7OO. Rainbow Trout The liberation of rainbow fry in the upper reaches of the Waimakariri was advocated by 1 a member, who said that the river could be made as popular with anglers as the Tongariro if what he suggested was done. The chairman explained that the council had discussed stocking one of the big rivers, probably the Waimakariri, with rainbow but the difficulty was to secure supplies of fry. The matter would be considered by the council. The Ashley River Mr J. F. Hutchison suggested that the upper waters of the Ashley river, above Fernside, should be stocked with trout. He moved that in the coming year two-thirds of the fry to be liberated in the Ashley river be put in above the mouth of the Okuku river. I Mr Whitesides said that 40 years ago fish weighing from eight to W pounds were taken in the Upper Ashley but nothing would now be taken untilthe | poachers there were dealt wtih. Then there would be fish right up to thej watershed. . The motion was carried. Lake EUesmere j The chairman referred to the proposal to restrict the size of Lake Mlesmere. and said that every sportsman should combat that movement as much as possible. The society and the council depended largely on Lake EUesmere, and any curtailment, in his opinion, would be a catastrophe. Mr W. A. D'Oridant said he could assure members that Lake EUesmere would never be opened. He had that on the authority of Mr F. Langbein, engineer in charge of the Public Works Department. The lake, he said, was full of springs, and he could show members 50 large ones. As long as those springs were there the Jake would never be opened permanently A member asked if anything had been done about the pollution of the Cam river below the woollen mills. He said that quantities of dye had been poured into the river, but whether it was poisonous or not he did not know. The chairman explained that no complaint had been received of pollution during the year. Game on Private Property Mr D'Oridant moved that it be a recommendation to the incoming coun. cil that no game birds be liberated on

private property unless the owner undertook to allow license-holders to shoot on the property. A member seconded the motion. , The chairman said the matter waa a very serious one. He quite, realised that many members wefe of tlifa opinion that as the society distributed the game it should have the sole righi to that game. He used to be of that opinion himself, but after listening to men who were much more conversant with the matter than he was, he waa quite convinced that they had no earthly chance of stocking the country with game unless they secured the cooperation of the farmer or the pro-perty-owner. The matter had been discussed freely by the council, and. some members had taken the stand that Mr D'Oridant took. He asked members to discuss the recommendation thoroughly before they voted on it. , ' Mr Whitesides said that as 1 far as he had been able to ascertain, the majority of the pheasants had been liberated"on riverbeds. The chairman: Not the majority of them. Mr Whitesides: I should like to Know the exact numbesr. The chairman: I cannot *;ive l;.tm to you now. Mr Whitesides said that the riverbeds were the worst places to liberate pheasants. There weve not man» men who went along riverbeds who would not drop a cock pheasant if one rose in front of him. He had seen pheasants which vvei'o liberated in private property which vere thriving. A member said that, if pheasants were liberated on private property men would not take out shooting licenses. The chairman said that though pheasants were liberated on private oroperty they would not stay there; but they must be protected in their earl" stages. After some further discussion the motion was lost. Equipment of Mia-Mias The regulations governing the erection of mia-mias was referred to by Mr W. Savage, who criticised some shooters for the way they provided comforts for their while others erected the regulation mia-mias, which was only a few sticks. The secretary (Mr C. W. Hervey> said that the regulations had been sent to the society's solicitor for an opinion and when it was received, it would be made available to members. A member said that shooting licenses this year produced £.40 less than last year, and he claimed that shooters were being driven off the lake. If a man attached a piece of sacking to the few sticks he was able to erect, he was breaking the . law. It was moved that the legal opinion, when secured, be printed on the back of the shooting licenses and that was carried. Council Nominees The members who were nominated for the council were called upon to face the meeting, but few, other than jocular, questions were put to them. Messrs Stewart, Beckett, and Co. were re-elected auditors. Messrs P. Chinnery and R. Berry | were appointed scrutineers of the counI cil postal ballot and it was decided I that the fee should be not more than £1 Is..

On exhibition in the main hall at the Otago Museum is a fine example of the golden pheasant, from China, resplendent in its golden back, scarlet breast, orange ruff, sage green neck, and golden crest. In the same case is a silver pheasant, and nearby another case contains that rare bird, the takahe, the only specimen on exhibition in any mussum in the world, its sober blue and green colour forming a marked contrast to the brilliance of the pheasant. It is the intention of the curator (Dr. W. B. Benham) to make from time i to time a special exhibit of some of the treasures of the University ' Museum.