Rod and Gun,

Evening Post, Volume LXXVII, Issue 73, 27 March 1909, Page 14

Rod an d Gun,

(By "Minnow.") Mr. Neville B. Scantlebury, who has just returned from Taupo district, has had a most successful trip. A 16pouuder was the largest trout landed amongst a lot of fine fish. Mr. Scantlebury is afraid that the reports of fish caught will cause the district to be overrun with anglers. Mr. F. Whitley, fishing the Ruamahunga near Martinborough, was unfortunate enougth to strike bad weather. The first day's fishing resulted in four fish being landed, the best a 3-pounder. On tho second day the river was in flood, and Mr. Whitley, fishing worm, secured seventeen eels, the largest scaling S^lbs. Six fish — the largest 2£lbs and the .smallest I£l bs — was Mr. Pritet|ard's tally for one day at Wainiu-o-mata. In the best fish of the basket Mr. Pritchard found a trout, partially digested, measuring seyen inches in length. Only fancy fishing with an artificial minnow as large ! * The local gunsmiths are busy people these times making preparations for the coming season. Deer shooting commences on the Ist April, and many sportsmen have marked down heads up to twenty points. One thirteen-pointer, which had been seen near Pirinoa for the past few weeks, disappeared recently, and a headless carcase found proves poachers are at work. It is not generally known that it is a misdemeanour to sell stags' heads. Only this week "Minion" was offered a fine ►Royal for £5. Fishing from Mr. Horace Smith's 'launch on Wednesday, a party of four caught seven fine moki'and about sixty terakihi. "Rimutaka Jack," a boar reported to be as big as a donkey, with tusks about fourteen inches long, is reported to hay« made his way as far north as Urenui. Pig hunters in that district are all keen to secure "Jack," who has settled a lot of dogs belonging to Wellington hunters. The coming season for imported game promises well as far as quail and hares are concerned. Pheasants, however, are almost as extinct as the moa in Wellington district. From Taranaki also, where a few seasans back a shot could get four or five brace in a day, dismaJ reports are to hand. Eabbit shooters are still getting record ' bags. South Karori yielded two sportsmen — one with a gun and the other with a spade — forty-seven bunnies. The wielder of the spa.le was responsible for thirty-five of the total. Messrs. Dowkin (2\ and Green relieved South Karori stJream of twentytwo fish last week-end, the largest a I^- pounder. "Minnow" was sorry to hear that poor health had necessitated a| six months' spell being given Mr. *J. J. Pilkingtbn, the popular pedagogue of Porirua, one of the keenest and cleanest of sportsmen. May he come back fully restored.. Times have changed since he, with his well-trained dogs and faithful gun, tramped the district and returned with fine bags of game. "Bunnies" predominate there now. "Angler " writes- this, week :—": — " I noticed a paragraph under the heading, ' Rod and Gun,' in Saturday's Post, wherein a correspondent, ' Rosso,' writes denying the possibility of catching butterfish with hook and line. You are quite right in saying that they can; I have caught them, and can catch them still. I use a very small bronze hook, fine gut, with a bit of .crayfish the size of a shirt-button on it. ' I can tell you that a fair-sized fish A will give you an exciting time, as good as that given by any trout. Of course, lam referring to the use of the rod. It is a splendid sport. Yes, flounders have been caught , with the hook. What will ' Rosso ' •say when I tell him that I have caught wild ducks with a line and hook? True It is a fact. I set my line vvith a dozen hooks attached, and baited with worm on a mud flat, and during the night the birds |ceding got caught, as I found them in. the morning, . some having swallowed hook and all. This was on the flats in Napier. I am still an-en-thusiastic angler, and am a member of the Deep Sea Angling Club. Last Monday, and again yesterday, a party of four of us went out in a boat, and, fishing off Phillip's Point, Island Bay, caught numerous blue cod, teiakihi, conger, etc: There are plenty of these fish out there. Some of the cod weiglied four pounds." It was reported at the last, meeting of the Council of the Southland Acclimatisation Society that 2741£1b of trout 'had been purchased by the licensed fishmongers during the present season. A party of deerstalkers, including Messrs. H. F. Penlington and H. Hammond, of Leeston, have completed arrangements for a trip to the Blue Mountains, in the Tapanui district, during the deer-stalking season, which will open on Ist April. Fallow deer are reported to be very plentiful. Mr. H. W. Penrose and Mr. George Penlington, of Christchurch, are included in the party, who will leave for the South on Bth April, and will probably be away about ten days. -They will be accompanied by Mr. W. Cobledick, of St. Albans, who has stalked deer in the Blue Mountains on previous occasions. Fishing at .the mouth of the Rangitata last week a party of Ashburton anglers, reports the Lyttelton Times, landed over eighty trout, ranging in weight up to 101b. The fish, it is said, are not taking well this season, but are in fine condition. • > ■ Ashburton Acclimatisation Society has issued 374 fishing licences, including free licences granted to schools. At a meeting of about thirty sportsmen at Invercargill, it was decided to recommend the Government to declare an open season for shooting paradise ducks in Otago and houthland. It was said that paradise ducks were exceedingly plentiful, and had in certain localities, notably the lake districts, become a nuisance. The farmers "there poisoned them in large numbers, but no one was allowed to shoot them. ' The Pelorus Guardian states that Mr. C Mills, of the Rai Valley, witnessed a cpntest in the Tinline liver. In a deep pool he noticed a trout that appeared to be about 41bs in weight, and harrying the fish "were nine eels, the largest of which would be about 151bs. After a lot of wolTyifig ,. by the eels, the trout was driven out of the pool into shallower water, and its enemies began a vigorous attack on it. The big eel would deliver a broadside that sent the unfortunate trout scurrying through the shoals, but the smaller eels would head it back with vicious snaps. It fought valiantly for some time, but eventually became completely exhausted, ana whilst in that condition the big eel, with a wrenching snap, pulled the pcor creature's head off and swallowed it

A district visitor was going her rounds one bright spring morning. In a crowded tenement some five or six children gazed enquiringly at her as she entered. "Well, well, children," she said, " never saw so many grubby faces in my life ! Why don't you use some soap and water?" "We are waiting for the angel, mum," replied a small boy. "What angel?" replied tho young woman. "Why, tho lady that come here last week and gave one of the kids a tanner to wa«h his face." "Did you ever," said one preacher to another, "stand at the door after your sermon, and listen to what people said about it aa they passed out?" The other lepliod; "I did once" — a pause and a sigh r="but I'll never do it again."-