HOMING NOTES.

Otago Witness, Issue 2857, 16 December 1908, Page 35

HOMING NOTES.

. ♦ Br Mausta Mealy. - :

Th-e Dunedin Homing Pigeon Club fleiH off a race last Saturday from Orepuki, an airline distance of 137 miles. ■ Seventy-two pigeon* competed. 1 representing 19 lofts. Mr C. Bateman liberated- the pigeons at 12.15 int fine weather, with a light south-west wind. The race resulted as follows: — ■> W J. Sewell's Wsmaka (time, 2hr 18min; velocity. 1721 yd lft Bin) I "W Ta.vlor"s liiltie (thus, 2hr 20min; velocity." 1723 yd lft lin) .. ..,••_•• •• 2 J Know'es's (jun.) Old Stonewall (time, 2hr 19imin; velocity, 1724 yd 2ft Sin) . S ■ J Cox's Prospero (time. 2hr aOJmin ; velocity, 1721 yd 2ft llin) * J Henderson's Leith M (time, 2hr 29mm; velocity. 1721 yd lft llin) 5 ■ C Gore's Masonic (time, 2hr 14min; velocity. 1719 yd lft) 6 The following also, competed . — Messrs Gibson. Baker. Tattetlßeld. Hutchen*. Reeves, Umber«. Finnegani"^E«Quilant, Veitch, Niven, Stone. Hunt, and Fleming.

East Cape and , Marion races will be flown next Thursday a|ij3. Saturday. A privaf? wire ; received from Wellington =«tate3 that the *TW.liiigton pigecras were released at Stewart Island at 6 a.m. on Friday. The first in^cnxu-fxrivcd at Wellington at 5.30 a.m. on Satu.fC&J'-.^-'

Twenty membsrs of the Commercial Traveller" Club ha'.e chartered a steamer for a 14 cb««^crui=o among the Sounds, leaving D\l\%z<*xa~ on the 22nd inst. MGeorge Wa^ch? the n'anuger. has secured a number of lio;;;ii!': ;,>\reor.s from Messrs Eaquilant, Finr-e^ar-, (iib-on. Hutchens. Knowjop, Nivevi, fi?---'' ;ir ] T'mber^, and will liberate the: 1 * r r .-.tcr\<. is during- tho trip. On*the arrival i-i r-nr -!in of a bird with a message, if owult vii'-l immediate!-' take the communication to feus flwmrefij-'w

Travellers' Club, where it will be posted kA the club's notice board. Mr R- Henderson, of the Forbury. had three of his racing pigeons, including Lupulite, the winner of an Oamaru race, shot last week in the vicinity of the cliffs above St. Clair. He liberated five for exercise anij they made off in the vicinity of the cliffs, and up to the present, three have not returned. If they picked up poison, in all probability the lot would have been affectedMr J. Henderson, of the Leith Loft, received from D. Thomson, Nelson, four very nice young: birds bred from an imported •N. Barker pair. They arrived in fine -condition. WELLINGTON TO INVERCARGILL. 500 MILES IN 141 HOURS. A correspondent sends the following report:—Oh" Saturday last, the sth inst.,'the Inveroargill Society, in their race from- 9 Wellington. completed a fly of 500 wiles air-line in the one day. This is the second occasion that the club have achieved this success, and makes the fourth time in the Dominion iha* a flight of 500 males baa been, accomplished in a single day. Arrangements have been, made by Mr Muir, the local secretary for Mr Gordon Dunlop, an enthusiastic supporter and an absent member of the Inver-oargill Club, to tend the birds at Wellington and liberate them on Saturday, at 4 o'clock in the morning. Mr Dunlop, with the assistance of Mr Douglas M'Robie, carried the hampers to the heights of Kelburne, and after watering the homere sat down and waited for 4 o'clock. As the .Post Office clock chimed the hour, the hampers were opened, and the 40 birds rose together. They circled round a few times, but with each circle worked their way southwards. Mr Dunlop wrote:— The pigeons did not 6eem to get away so well as last year's batch, appearing to hesitate at crossing the Stiaits. There was a hazy look towards the South Island, and I noticed by the weather report at the Wellington Post Office that there was mist about Cape Campbell, and thie would, no doubt, be the cause of their taking some time to get their bearings. Although there was practically no wind when I liberated, it rose later on, and by about 9 o'clock there was a fresh northerly wind blowing." However, despite the fact that the etart was not so favourable as the previous race from Wellington, the birds made faster time by 40 ,minutes. The .winds north of Oamaru were mostly favourable, but in Southland a strong southwesterly prevailed, which -mus* have kept the birds back. . . The first of the competitors arrived in Imvercargill at 6-45 p.m., and when the members met with their clocks, it was found that Mr Muix's "Vanity ' had won the race with a substantial lead. Messrs etranc Bros.' "Scotch Lass" was second, a,h4 Mr Alan Dunlop's bird third, followed by Messrs Friend and Pope. The distance of 500 miles was completed in 14| hours, and is a magndfioient flight. This is another feather in the cap of the Invercargill Homing Society, whose records for f long distance beat anything in Australasia. Ten pigeons out of the 40 entered menaged to arrive heme on the Saturday evening, and early the following morning a large majority of the remainder returned. This is a pleasing <fact, as , it ' shows that these birds, which will be required for the next event that takes place from Napier some time this month, will be in a very good flying condition. If the society secure the services of Mr Laing, of Napier, to liberate the homers, and the weather is favourable, the members feel confident that the birds will put up a good performThe club desires to thank both Mr Dunlop and Mr M'Robie for looking after the pigeons in Wellington. No doubt it is partly due to their special attention that the birds made such a good flight. 1 j