HUNTING THE BUNYIP.

Lyttelton Times, Volume LIX, Issue 6873, 10 March 1883, Page 3

HUNTING THE BUNYIP.

She following sketch of atrip in search of the bunyip, whom the good people of a certain part of tio'nth Australia hare just been trying to diilodge with dynamite, waa lent to an Adelaide paper by a contributor:— Bo many reports of this wonderful animal hare reached Glare, where 1 am stationed, that I determined to go when opportunity offered and see with mine own eyes this creature, which does not appear in any Natural History, but is reported to rise out of a waterhole nightly. The waterhole in which the bunyip is said to spend moat of bis existence is near Koolunga. “ 1 have seen it frequently; but always at night when the moon was up,” said a gentle* man of Koolunga to me a few days since. " It looks,” he went on, “ something like a fat wether with a head somewhat like that of a rhinoceros, and a back either of shell or short hair.” Another man told me it was about as big as a foal two weeks old. It is reported thiA the natives told white people years and years ago that the bunyip (or Devil) was in that pool. Many old residents of Clare, Koolunga, and other places, remember hearing of euoh an animal having been seen; but it was always looked upon as an imaginary creators, or that it could only be seen by men who were in that condition of being unable to discern the difference between a haystack and a meatsafe. The thought of perhaps being able to capture the bunyip. and travel as a showman certainly hod something to do in prompting me to go forth and wage war with him. ” Has he ever done anyone any harm?” I asked my Koolunga friend. “ Well, I don’t know that, but the children are frightened of it, and so are some of the women.” “ Of course the men are not” ”N—-0,” said he, "——went out with a gun to shoot him, and when he saw the bunyip be got nervous and could not um straight end then the bunyip jumped into the water again.” " Are you certain you saw it P” “ Oh yes, on my soul I did,” said he, “and, istrange to asy, the horses and cattle will not drink at that hole at nights.” I could not help thinking that the bunyip was near akin to Lewis Carroll’s mark or boojum. On Saturday, the 17th February, I arranged for a trap to drive lour of us to Koolunga early in the afternoon, so as to be in time to witness the bunyip come out of the water as the moon shed her mystic rays o’er the haunted pool. Many of the Clare people chaffed us on going on suoh a wild-goose chase, and as soon at a gentleman who writes in the Clare paper under the nods de plume of “ Idler,” heard of our going, it is reported he commenced a satirical poem, viz., “Theßunyip Hunters.” Not a few of the Clare people looked surS'sed when they heard I was off for the day. e people 1 allude to are those who never consider a Bank olork to be out of harness } that they are always to be at a customer’s bock and coll, and to be always willing (no matter at what hour of the day or night) to return to the Benk to change cheques they neglected cashing during business hours. ft was a lovely afternoon, and the drive was most enjoyable. We stopped for a few minutes at Boohester. How strange il seems now for any township not to b« connected with others by telegraph wires. How isolated one feels now dwelling in suoh a township, and how fresh the stalest of news seems to the inhabitants of suoh places I The wire has not yet been carried to Koolunga, so we heara no news of how the KngUthmen were getting on at orioket until Sunday, when two buggies from Clare arrived, on which more bunylp-hunters were.’ When we arrived at Koolunga we had tea at the hotel, and as soon as we had digested some we started to see the bunyip. The following announcement on a placard hung up in the bar of the Koolunga Hotel attracted my notice;—“An attempt will be made on Wednesday, Feb. 21, to capture the bunyip, which was last seen in the water-hole near to Mr Freeman’s farm. Dynamite will be used. A start will be made from the Koolunga Hotel at two o'clock in the afternoon. Feb. 17, 1888.” Now this placard •earned to add much to our belief in the exi*tones of the bunyip. I do not wish to flatter the Koolunga people, but 1 ,“ T -wst thev are without exception the very worse people 7ersr cams across f« directing on. 40 wTMtKoolungaat 7.20, and was a distance of about lour miles to the

water-beta la which the bunyip was, that we bad to keep to the river (Broughton), and that wo eoalil not go wrong. After keeping to the twisting and twirling river, and having walked considerably more than five miles, I saw in the distance a bouse, in the window of which a light glimmered. Leaving my friends to ramble along slowly, I went up to the house (encountering several dogs), snd askod the way to the haunted hole. An Irishwoman opened the door, and in answer to my question, said—"lt aint no more than a mile away crot* the river down there, keep to that ride, and you will come across tome tent*, it* j net there," In Scotland, when a man toll* you that you an about "three mile* and a wee bittoek" away from a place, you can rely that the wm bittoek I* oftentimes much more than the three miles. It was the same in this cate," it aint no more than a mile," was at least two mil** and a half. At last the tents came in view, and we noticed a mm wa* carrying water from the river. Him we addressed, and he, regardless of grammar, said—- " It* just »D 0 perch from here." Xhi* gave rise to an examination amongst ua a* to what a perch wa*. A bet was made, and by that 1 paid my expense* to the bunyip and back again. My opponent believed it took sixteen yard* to make a perch. At last we arrived at the facred ipot. Wo took up our positions a few yard* away from one another, and waited and watched, and watched and waited. Mr Freeman and some friends of hi* came down to the water* hsle. Mr Freeman say* he ha* frequently seen it, and many who were with him had also seen the bunyip several times. About midnight one of our party heard a peculiar noise exactly under where he wa« stationed. Soon after he taw what he describes a* a tort of seal, about the size of a sheep-dog, emerge from the water and come up on the bank about three yards. He shot three chargee from hie revolver at it, but before he had lime to shoot again, or see if hi* shots had hit, the animal he aimed at wasintho water. At least six people, mostly Mr Freeman’s friend*, saw this creature on this occasion. I failed to nee the bunyip, but I saw the disturbance he made in the water. Frequently after that we heard the sound of him, whieh, when in the water, wae n3t unlike the struggle* of a porpoise. lam perfectly sure that then is more than one of the same specie in that waterhols, a* we heard the same noise simultaneously is very different parte of the hole. We remained there until the moon vent down, and then we started on our return pedestrian journey to Koolonga. Certainly the bump of locality is in no way developed in either of our heads, for we lost oar way, andtaking a short cut, as we thought, we found ourselves miles and miles from the river, which was to be our guide. The numberless ploughed paddocks we waded through, the countless paddock* of stubble we passed over, and the innumerable number of wire fences we got over snd through, will never be forgotten by me. At last we determined, at 3 o’clock, to wander no longer in a state of darkness, but to wait for Aurora’s rising. In the middle of a ploughed paddock, having no "friendly moon " to smile on us, cr even a wire fence to protect as from the bitter wind, we lay down and tried for » while to lose ourselves, in the land of dreams. At about swe rose refreshed by our snatch of sleep, and started off with a quick step and great appetite. When we reached the hotel we ordered breakfast, and although we were all hungry, not one of us enjoyed what waa provided for us. Ohope and steaks were huddled together on the same dish, and they were neither hot nor cold. If the landlady had not informed us that a roast goose wu for dinner, we would there and then have had the horses put in, and either gone on to Yscka or back to Glare. As it wu, the promise of a roast goose for dinner, and the luxury of a sleep in a bed for a few hours, coupled with the chance of seeing the bunyip properly, made ns decide to remain and rest until dinner time. Mr Freeman says the bunyip can jump like a kangaroo, and that it is like a sheep-dog, another declared it wu like a fat wether, while another said it wu like a foal. I am perfectly satisfied that there is a curious animal in that pool, and that be is not the only one there. We heard the noire of snapping nfehes, of which there are many round the hole, and came to the conclusion the bunyip was baring a meal. At last dinner-time arrived, and we were greatly delighted at what this tkne wu put before us. We forgot the tea, the chops, the steak and the bread of oar early meal, and did honour to what is railed the Englishman’s meal—his dinner. Daring the morning two buggies with other friends arrived from Clare, heir* anxious to see the bunyip. So it wu arrang-d that after tea we should return tothoicere of mystery. We reached the hole about 8 o’clock, and remained there until 2 o’clock on Monday morning, when we returned to Clare. On Sunday night we saw nothing of the bony ip at all, but occasionally heard the splash before described. Sven those of our friend* who only heard the few splashes thoroughly believe in the existence of the bunyip, and express a desire to make another trip cut there when the moon is at its full, in tbs event of the hundred charges of dynamite (or demenite u some Soohmga gentlemen rail it) failing ,to put an end to this curious and interesting creature..