FIELD AND STREAM.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 86, 4 January 1908, Page 10

FIELD AND STREAM.

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:'i. rain arrived before the •.C'Hristmy;'! but'...not' in sufficient •- do ; much': good.' Consequently big. 'Scarce, and'fish, generally speaking,,.}!!: pqor coiiditiotm--:Makuri, one of the haunti of.-the,, keenly-sought.,rainbow trout, :-a •fair.nUMberiof.'lqbal anglers. A ldttfffl'.ir^ve3:^isht r .tKeijs./states. that tho i;.river..is ; iiitfairly , goql ffi'der 'iind fish numerous; Several rainbows/.oyer ."41b. in weight v fly; but the* 'fish} igeneraHyi speaking, are' Sot such ravenous; feeders as a ..few-seasons .apfo. The Wai-'haMayKiTOr--is'-'"MithM i . a; disappointment it,, but the majority !qf them: dd.'so ( ;4itlfput much, success. One of the best ;bags secured this season was 16 fish, scaling! 24ilb ; .' r " woro taken 011 a ; fanoy. fly. called the "Ngatiawa," which has Jie'en aioed.- : with great success in tho upper rejiches -of-- Waikanao for. tho last two seasons.; The, Otaki River-, alike to the Hutt River--.for." its uncertain yielding powers and irregular,-feeding fish, is well stocked, and any: anglor- ! .cast a decent lino is fairly certain-/of' c ma.K'%i-. ! ' bag. Fish run.nirig from'llb. m 'weight wero taken ■by ■a. party whb ; campetr on its; banks at . Theyr- : r.eturned';-'a large; number, of -trovt to the. th'oir stay, keeping oiily. .enough for food" purposes. Tho day. previous ,br?aking.. camp the party set out liuck was against them, seven-was the bag

r.l:.<!^st.ilucK?"- ! y : iS 'tbo 'usual question &'sketl"- : 'of 'iiit angler -STio" embarks on a train ■ aifnied'with a ,: creel-'aud'rod. The'old hand gen'orally--haS ; '; : d stock; ; answer, ile., "fairly, goodi" --The Ombryo angler hastens to snow | : tho;ii^iiKili'v| 4^Jl'6''th'^daddy : of the catch, •' occupies the elevat'ed'-p'ositiqn in h» bag. An exception fo. -tli.b ''rule' was v .discoVefod tho other even'ing in-'a tfainfboming.tq toivh'from Porirua, when; a' , remarked that for aevon hours' fisHing; hay-Tiad ' only secured 16 eolsj- ; was tho stream is tho only one lsnpw.n 'of the trout cliasb' the. spinning "artificial Where wero the peoplp'yivTio^lo6lc-'fcfr r such. anglers as .can openly'catclv'-'ecls oit." artificial baits, in prohibited? harbbui,; has on .-.different oc•ci&ions '.'yie\d(f4. ; 3B!en4jd specimens, of sea--goin'g ''t'rbbt'one;. takeii--'i'on-;-, Saturday .by. a Iboy -:olf tlio ilailway-;Wharf scaled about 81b. Tho-. ignorant trout was secured 011 a picco of berring-bait that wag intended for kahu-

wai.- • :••; '' 1 reports as follows nJ^'isjfiSg^. ; ! b'eeii exceptionally th'e'fish rising and feeding freoly. Tbp "fplipwing I "arb.'a few'; large' brown trout Anglers:—Mr. .Driii-y;-; -of lOhakliflfe,., ''securer! ..on Dccembor r:ynpn'gst;^othcrs- ) i --'fisli ' weighing ; 141b., 19}lb.y2bfb. ;* : 6nitliO 28th, one!cach,l2lb. and 141b.-;; tho '^Oth,/one'each,-161b., and 201b. .Mr; 'Mcßeatli; .of got two: on i)pceiiiber. - 27,- wbight ; 16lb; and 191b. each, tiro 'dayß; later' ho "spcurcd another brace ■wli'i(ih 1'llb."- a'ntl -15ilb. each. Mr. Spenco, also of. .Wiing'anui, has ]iad good .apprti '.Qil ,the'27tho 'lib" secured ono.fish of '191b.' and the next,day got two. weighing 161b. atid '• 141b each. Another angler from Wanganui, Mr. ;Woodley'Prouse, who fishe'd .here, previously"-with :.greai.-'success, seottred a 16-po'uiider .on the 27th, a;id the following .diiy,''secured'"two ?nibre., weighing 141b. and jc'jlb.* each- I'he above'.trout were taken on minnow, and ,in-.addition to those re-6ofded,',-many': - others "ranging; from 71b. to 121b. havo been .taken.

. The Hutt River is the homo of some of the largest eels to bo'found, in New Zealand waters. .Two lads.'.'(Dorwent Lee and Roy Kingdon),- whilo eel . fishing in the Hutt liiver, 'just above the ballast pit, at Kingdon's Siding,. on Tuesday afternoon hooked a:'monster eel—* The" boys had a long struggle,:. but:,the>eel' remained stationary, defying-, their combined efforts to dislodge liini, until', timely - assistance, in the form of an angler, arrived, and the fish was grassed. It measured'4ft. -Bin. long, was 18in. in girth, flnd. over .201b.'in weight The-same two lads seo'urod another' fcel' on Wednesday in tho ■Korok'oro stream/ which was 3ft. '10in. long, and scaled 121b. This was taken high up the stream, just^above : the l Maori . Bush at Belmont. : ' W ; y.

;' ,The big fish have now •made their appearan'ca .in"; streams, and to la'iitV'fish.teaUjig'-frbjn fill).' tip to 151b.: afc the .QpiliV.fias; boon guito . a common experienco lately, ~ . ••' .; ; V:

/y'Some. very fine trout'were again taken by anglers: who fished tho Opihi on Christmas niglit.-. One angler- got three, weighing re-spectively-121b., 131b., and 151b.; and others got- fish -scaling fr'o'm -'lOlb. to 141b. —"Timaru ■Post;":!;.*:; ; '

V.'Sotta"e>:cc!llorit..;taXos. of fish from the mouths'' 1 of the. ;:I?ahjgij;iita and Ashbnrtou : rivere*are reported'./Fow anglers returned to Ashburtori Qn.'a..-recent;',.morning from tho Rsiiigitata' with ii. total ~catch of 41 fish. Mr. -J.- Stephens .landed 14. fisly , averaging 41b.; Mr. A. Pilb'row' 13, : weighing' between 41b. and 131b.; 'Mr. D.. ■ Ericdlander 9, weighing botween 41b'. and 121b'.";'and Mr. 15. Presto a s,"averaging Gib. Soiho of .tho largest of thpso fish- arc being frozen, and' will bo :'BCin.t: to .Great tho mouth of tho Ashbui'.totuou Saturday Mr. A. C. Jonasscn succceded in' landing 29 fish, of a total woigiit hcSviest- weighing 71b.

Tho "Rotorua Chroniclo" records that whilo-angling in.Lako Rotorua recontly, Mr. and Mrs.i.lles caught on'the'fly nino fine .trojit, th.o., aggregate weight of which was "31Jflb. As 'a''rdsult'"qPa Second day's fishing, they placed 22 more in their basket, averaging 31b. Mr. E. A. Burgo had a successful time on Lake ltotorua, having secured, whilo fly-fishing, 19 nice .(tali; t-bo aggregate weight "of which was ,571b. Messrs. Leask and Buchanan, angling in Lako llotokakahi, hooked 22 fine trout, tho" aggrogato weight being 641b. On Saturday last, Mr. Dansoy and party cauglit with fly 26 beautiful fish, two at 01b. each, whilo tlie-lot ayoraged 3Jlb. In company .with Johnson Mr .D*nsey secured s'oven'nicK "trout,' 1 said to liavo boon "beautiesi' ! " "Golonel Hopton and friends, as (iho placed 24 fish in...tlipir,vbaskot,....theso;';having. been caught with ; tlif l fly atfdHrolliiigrTho trout averaged 3}lb.-- Mcsrsr- Cotton and Shepherd, angling l iit : "'WaitMi)V''socufod : |ivith tho fly 50 trout, tho aggrogato" weight'"of which was 1751b. Many jjthcrs arcont ou-tbo lakes, and liavo boon for somo,days', .hut so far no record of .their ;'ca.t'ch'Qg'i3"tb',;h.andy.

Miss- coiirso you'vo road that now . love story of his." Orabbe (book reviewer)—"Vcs, I had to.. Very realistic, wasn't it?" Tho dialogue between' tho lovers was positively silly." Crabbe —"Well?"

„'i Tho .Count— I "Yes, I 'was almost positive zt> fair girl was thinking of 1110." The Duke— "Then'why"didn't'foii walk up and say: 'A penny for your thoughts' ?" Tho CoSnt — "Too risky, monsieur; far too risky. I didn't have a jißttoj.' 1