BANK NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2818, 18 March 1908, Page 80

BANK NOTES.

Nightcaps-Wairio Anglers' Competition. — (A. meeting of the Nightcaps-Waino anglers iwas held Monday week night, to make 'the necessary arrangements for the angling co'nipetit'on • for the gold medal presented l>y Mir M'Kenzie, of the Hondai-Lanka Tea Company. It was agreed that the competition be held on Good Friday, and that the part of the river to be fished by competitors be that part extending from the Avondale Ford to the bridge near Hezlett's. Mr Newton was also authorised to Teoeive entries for the competition up to the 10th prox. Some Alrong remarks were made by anglers about the barefaced way in which that part of the river above Otautau was being cleared of fish by poachers. — Exchange. Angling in South Canterbury. — "Iron Blue" writing on the recent drought, says: To take a cheerful view of things where one can, the large snow rivers, like the Rangitata, Rakaia, and Waitaki have not suffered at all — in- fact, the fishing in these rivers has been better this season than for several years past. The big rain rivers, Buch as the Opihi, pulled through the dry .months somehow, but with a greatlydiminished stock of trout. I was in the Mackenzie country a fortnight ago, and though not on fishing bent, my usual fly rod went with me. There was still some sport to be obtained in the Silver Stream beyond Fairlie, but the Opihi near that place was quite hopeless. Below the junotion of the Opihi with the Opuha things ■were rather better. The Opuha is not so 'handy to the haunts of men, and though the river was low it maintained its reputation, and there was always enough water to iielp the Opihi below the junction. The Tengawai at Albury seemed in evil ease, and here again all the fair-sized fish had departed from the stream. Several of my informants made no secret of the matter ; \ahe trout were dying — as I saw — and going to waste, so uuder the circumstances it was, perhaps, as well to make some use of them, out when it came to being offered half a sugar-bag full of small fish as *a gift, I must say that all my sporting instincts revolted, and I am afraid I made an enemy ifj the abruptness of jny reply. From MQbury to the Ashburton Gorge is a far pry, but the river there formed no exception to the general ■ rule, and was even ynoxe poached. --The- upper Ashburton is toot a neighbourhood"svhere an angler may expect to do much more than to wear, out \jb boots by walking over the riverbed, and . should have put it down as practically fishless had not one individual shown me trout in a deep pool, and told me that yiey had taken some on the previous night. On many of the fly streams the dry weather caused the total extinction of their stock of trout. The water receded, and fish ,ware taken out; it became lower, and predatory birds took toll of the survivors. I sound four small fish and fragments of oiners in a hawk's nest. Afterwards the streams dried up, and that was the end, except where scenes happened such as this : — About 200 trout were left in a deep Hole in an otherwise oU'y creek, and they urere noticed to' be very lively in the evenings, and to rapidly decrease in number, 'mien the^ hole Had quite dried up 38 biff some of them weighing seven pounds or more, were found in the mud. Xhe liveliness of the -wretched trout was explained. Most of these streams are now running again, but there are no fish in them, and the question jpamai'ns, should they be re-stocked? However, where the streams are connected with larger, v. rivers below, the trout coming ip stream on family affairs during the autumn months fill probably do all that ie necessary. Lakes Dial net Acclimatisation Society. — 'At the ordinary meeting of the council of this Booiety a letter was received from Mr D. RuMell, secretary of the Otago Acclimatisation Sooiety, stating that his society j jhl allow netting to a certain extent Uext teuton in Lake Hawea with a 7-inch zne*h net. The writer stated that his Keiei? had not giyen up hopes of catchinsr « fta'r, with rod and line, and if it could & proved that th« could be done Pemoi* a*>«i Hawea peoplo should give the lak* a trial with rod and line. The same official asked for the terms and regulations adopted for netting trout in Lake Wanaka. •- Received. Mr D. Aitkcn, ranger at Head Of Lake, reported that could not say anyShizig in regard to rainbow trout in Diamond

Lake, as he had not the ri^lit to fish it. He thought that they--o"us,ht to be about now. He had turned out some frogs into the creek running into the lake last winter. There was very little poaching heard of now in the district. — The report was received. D. Russell, secretary of the Otago Society, asked for the co-operation of the Lake Society in having the protection removed from seagulls which frequent the inland streams. — It was decided to accede to the Otago Society's "wishes. It was decided to remove the rainbow fish from the park pond by the end of April, and that a notification be inserted in the paper that those interested can apply to the secretary for consignments for placing in the various 6treams in the district. A sub-committee consisting of Messrs M 'Bride and Lynch was appointed to attend to the matter of procuring the fish from the pond. The secretary informed the meeting that it had been brought under his notice by several anglers who visited the district that the General Manager of Tourist Resorts, Wellington, had told them *that there were very few fish in the lake, that they were of inferior quality, and not worth taking out with a rod. These same people, whom the secretary named, had, however, determined to give the lake a trial, and in every instance they were thoroughly satisfied with the sport that they got with rod and line and with the ouality of the fish caught. Mr Gudgeon said that he believed that several enthusiastic anglers would have visited the district bui for these misleading statements. After some discussion it was resolved that the secretary write General Manager of Tourist Resorts, Wellington, pointing out that there is not a stream or lake in the district but what has good fishing in it. — Exchange. A New Dodge in Poaching. — "Iron Blue," in writing, about poaching in the vicinity of the Ashburton. gives a description of a rather interesting encounter he had with one gentleman. He says: — The spear part of the performance is too usual to record, but the lighting arrangements seemed rather ingenious. My informant instructed me more or less in these words : " Some of the people here would make a fuss if they saw lights on the river, so I get half-a-crown'6 worth of quicksilver" — perhaps he meant phosphorus — "and put it in a clear glass bottle ; then I hammer up a handful of quartz in pieces about as large as-a pea and put that in too, then fill the Bottle with water and cork it up. When you want to use it, tie the bottle on a long stick and hold it in the water ; you can see all over a pool, but it throws no light on the banks." I was assured that this improvements on the hackneyed torch was in constant use among the inner circle of the poaching fraternity — "them a* 1 knows," my mentor said. But I must keep one necessary direction for some future time, for fear of accidents.