RANDOM REMINDER

Press, Volume CXIV, Issue 33454, 8 February 1974, Page 13

RANDOM REMINDER

Two years ago this column told the tale of a man who had the misfortune whilst fishing in the Opihi to make a mighty, muscle-straining cast resulting in his catching nothing more interesting than his own posterior. Gin was the anaesthetic used to tackle the offending, deeply embedded hook, but before the introductory incision, circular pieces had to be cut from his shirt, his singlet and his underpants in order to contact his raw flesh. Two surgeons attended the oper-

ation, the first was the patient's wife, who retired just before fainting; the second, a fellow fisherman, carried on carving up the injured party til! buttocks and hook were happily parted. In January this year the same two couples returned to the Opihi. but with no fishing licences as the only thing hooked the previous holiday seemed not to warrant the expense, nor, for that matter, did it legally require one. However, at a late hour one dark night a certain person did go down to the nearby river to retrieve a further supply of

refreshments, put there to keep cool, and the plank he had to walk along was not wide enough. Also, this wa big eel country. ■ All things considered, one could be forgiven for losing one’s equilibrium. And one was. The next morning, on a line strung between two towering pine trees, his ever-forgiving little wife hung out a pair of und rpants with a carefully stitched circular patch in their rear and a singlet identically repaired. Was it just a coincidence or has the Opihi something against that particular brand of underwear?