DUEL WITH STAG

Evening Post, Issue 19, 23 January 1932, Page 12

DUEL WITH STAG

AN EXCITING EXPERIENCE

An experience of an unusual nature 'befell a resident of Five Eivers last week (writes a correspondent of the '"Southland Times"). While tiding out -.to his run on Thursday his dogs ran. after an eight-pointer red deer. After an. exciting chase the dogs bailed it up in a patch of bush. Having only a pocket knife with him at the time, the man. picked up a piece of timber •■with, which he approached the, beast. A3 he came near, the stag lowered its head and with a couple'of quick twists sent two of the dogs 15 feet in the air, while the third it stamped on-with its fore feet. The man was able to get only one crack on' the maddened beast's head when suddenly it turned on him and charged. ...■'■".

After having seen what happened to the dogs the man made for the nearest tree. Then the strangest part of the affair began. The stag came round the tree after the jnan, and with the dogs dodging around and barking they tore round and round with the man only a few jumps ahead of the deer. This proceeding lasted some time, till at last the stag stopped and he took the opportunity to get behind a clump of bushes. To his great astonishment the stag, after ■worrying all the dogs, made for this clump, and with a magnificent leap cleared bushes and nian, and made off with the dogs after it. The mSn followed as fast as he could and came up with .the beast again bailed up in a pool in a creek. The dogs would only stand round and bark, but would not take hold. The man made a stab at the deer with his knife, but caught it in the flank when the beast flung its head round hitting his wrist and sending the knife spinning. He then got into the water and took hold of. the antlers, forcing its head into the water with the intention of drowning it. The beast evidently had other views and tried to drown its assailant, for with a' jerk of its head it threw him into.the water. Shortly afterwards the man managed to twist its head round till tho antlers were against the roots of a tree on the bank. Not having enough string to tie the boast down he left it with the dogs while he went a short distance to get some flax.

Returning to the scene of battle, he again came to grips with the sta^ and managed to twist its head sufficiently to get one side of the antlers tied to the roots of the tree. He then got the other side tied down in a similar manner and started for home to get a knife. After going a short distance he came on a pieeo of wire, and returned with it to make the antlers more secure. When he returned with a knife to dispatch the beast, only the wire was holding it down, the flax having parted with the beast's struggles. This will, no doubt, be one of the few times a. red (leer has been taken with bare hands.' '

tor at the labour bureaux, since the vast majority of placements through the bureaux are on unskilled work. The marked increase in registrations by skilled tradesmen in 1931 is evidence of a willingness on the part of such workers to take any work that is offering, whether skilled or otherwise." An analysis of 51,018 cases at the end of last September gave the followbig occupational groupings:—

Building 5,780 Engineering 2,107 Other skilled -work ...... 5,875 Labourers 25,149 Farm hands 2,670 Hotel workers and cooks .. 769 Others ..'.„'.. :.^ r .^ Tl>J](^_ 8 66.8