ACCLIMATISATION SOCIETY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2914, 19 January 1910, Page 61

ACCLIMATISATION SOCIETY.

The ordinary meeting - of the Otago Acclimatisation Society’s Council- was held on Friday afternoon, there being present— Messrs K. Chisholm (chairman), A. E. Farquhar, A. E. Jenkins, P. Aitken, A. Co we, G. M. Marshall, It, Forrest, O. P. M. 'Butter worth, D. Russell (secretary), and F. , Deans (manager). Apologies for absence were received from Messrs Chamberlain and Brinsley. In the minutes' of a meeting of the executive held on December 9 it was stated that t he -president, Messrs Brown and Chamberlain be appointed a committee to inquire into the relationship existing between the officers of the society. It bad boon resolved that Perry and Buckley be asked to submit their -proposal for culling the deer in the lower portion of the Hawea district, as the executive was favourable to the moderate culling of the herd in that .district. Further, that the local executive be asked to inquire if there were others in the district who would be prepared to do the culling on the same terms. At a meeting of the executive, held on December* 14, it had been resolved that Mr Samuel Jones be recommended as ranger to -take charge and supervise all matters connected with the red deer herd in- the Hawea district, at a-salary of £BO for six months during the year. His duties,; among other things, would be to superintend the culling of the herd, allotting the .blocks to stalkers, issuing licenses, using ways and -means to stop illegal and unsportsmanlike practices, and otherwise ensure the best for the future of the herd. The appointment of Mr Jones was to date

from Ist January, 1910. The minutes were confirmed. , , , r The following was Mr Deans s report tor December :—The work of fish d i stribu tion has been carried on continuously except for a little while during holiday time. There are about 25,000 Lake Blagdon trout fry in the boxee at Opo'ho, 'which I would recommend should bo put into the prinoip,al rivers in the Dunedin district. Some 10,000 have already been sent away to the Silver-stream and to Alexandra, and St. Bathane. Mr Steven .suggests the keeping of his for yearlings, if a suitable pond is available. This is a good idea. Mi Steven reports having reached Do oh Loudon with the* fish allotted to that water, with a very small loss, thanks to tho excellent arrangements made by Mr Stark, electrical engineer. The Tomahawk lagoon, ie very low at present. The late winds have swept away the most of the weeds the anglers were complaining about lately. It is reported that better baskets are now being got in the rivers, and also in Lake Logan. _ I hear the. opossums are very numerous in the CatLins district. I think it was decided some time ago to fix an open season. —Approved. _ Mr J. Steven reported from the Clinton, hatcheries as follows: —Although the work of distributing fry and yearlings has been pushed forward on every possible opportunity i,since October 18, I regret to say it is not -quite finished yet, there being 2500 yearlings for the Dunedin, district to be dealt with : also some Lake BJ»,gdon fry, which, so far as I know, have not been allotted to any particular stream. I would suggest the latter -being retained for yearlings, if we can spare pond accommodation. I have also retained in. tho hatchery boxes some 40,000 brown trout fry, with a view to stocking the largo new pond in course of construct ion. This work, I might add. is progressing very satisfactorily. Tho 10,000 fry and 1000 Loch Levon yearlings allotted to Loch Loudon were got up there with a very small percentage of loss in the yearlings and a clean bill as far as the fry were concerned. I have to express my appreciation of tho way in which arrangements were made to enable the work to he done with the best possible success. Several small, lots of fry have been forwarded for distribution in creeks in outlying districts, and 5000 Lake Blagdon fry have been forwarded for liberation in Gow’s Lake, in the Waikaia district. —Approved. The High Commissioner wrote as to obtaining 25 pairs of partridges, and stating that the birds could be- got at a cost of £2B Bs. Gratification was expressed at the receipt of tho information, and it was suggested that in acknowledging the letter the High Commissioner be. asked to make inquiries as to Hungarian paiitrdg'cs. The Waikaia Anglers’ Society wrote stating that a comfortable fishing hut had been erected on the Waikaia River. —Received. The Tourist Department wrote as to the Issue of a book containing sporting information, and asked that societies assist pecuniarily to the extent of £lO or £ls, in which case they would receive a number of the booklets for distribution. —It was decided to contribute £ls. Mr P. J. M‘Oa.rthy, Hawea Flat, wrote on tho 3rd inst. as followsl notice in the Otago Daily Times three letters in re shooting hinds at the present. It a-ppoare to me to be a case of making- a mountain out of a mole hill. When Perry and Buckley were going out I pointed out to them’ that the greatest objection to shooting at. the present time was. that hinds may be shot which had calves planted, and I gave strict instructions that in all cases of doubt the hinds were, not to be shot unless thev were sure they could get the calf as well. I met Perry this morning, and ho informs ms that , so far' only seven wet hinds have been shot, and the calves belonging to those were, all shot. So far they have shot over 100, and these, are all stags and young birds with the, exception of the seven aleady mentioned.” —Mr Cowie said a great many persons were talking about this matter.—The Chairman Yes, but. they should make sure, of their facts before talking.—Mr Cowie said in view of the ■ source® from which their information came—those making a living out of the sport—lie paid, very little attention to it.—

The '"Chairman: That man is not making a living out of it, but he gets- information from those who ■do. There is no doubt whatever that McCarthy, is a very reliable man, and gets his information, from all sources. Hanger Jones will bo on the spot, and will dec that nothing improper is done. —Mr Cowie said Ranger Jones’s opinion on deer was not worth much.—Mr Brown: I think wo have reason to think there is an, object —a personal object —in what is written. Some people have too much time on. their hands. —The Chairman: It is the old story of people outside knowing best.—Mr Cowie expressed the opinion that the doer were being shot at the wrong time of the year.—The Chairman replied that he did not think there was a member of the society who would lend himself to anything that was in the slightest degree cruel, and it would take a lot of argument to convince him that the best time for 'exterminating creatures was not when they wore young. —Mr Cowie said that these hinds, after being shot at for a few weeks, would get wild, and would; go away into the back country and. carry then young ones with them, and would help to contaminate the g-oed herds. A letter was then read from Mr E. Haraoastle, applying for the right to use tno same block in the dingle as he and his party had used for red deer shooting for a number of years past. Mr T. E. Donne, lately in. charge ot the Tourist Department, wrote from London as to Colonel E. A. Grove, C. 8., and Mrs Grove visiting New Zealand for fishing ana shooting - , and asked the society to assist the visitors in every way possible. Mr L. G. Reid wired from Wairakei asking the society to arrange to give Colonel Moore and his sister the best deer-stalking' procurable. . . The Chairman said the general opinion, was that the best thing to do was to appoint a ranger to fix the blocks, and it was decided that the fixing of the blocks be left to the soecty’s local ranger. it was also decided that this decision be advertised. , , In connection with the fallow deer herd the Tapanui Stalkers’ Association wrote recommending that the season be from 11 h April to 11th May; that it had been resollved to ask the Acclimatisation. to procure fresh blood; —20 stags if Possible—and; on the deer being liberated at least two close seasons be declared. Further, that the number of points in stags to be shot be raised to 14; also that culling operations be suspended until after the close of next season.—lt was resolved that tne shooting season for fallow deer be from April 11 to May 11, and that the license fee be £2. ~ The opening of the shooting season tor red deer was fixed tor the Ist April. The season to extend to the end of May. It was further decided that if stalkers came across mailforms they be permitted to shoot them. As to the license fee, it was resolved to write to the Waitaki ,^ ocl , suggesting that it be £5, and if that society agreed, that the same be recommended to the Government. Mr Forrest referred to a complaint as to the fish in the. canal at Kaitangata being poisoned by refuse from a flaxmill, and as to flood-gates; that had been put in at Otanamomo which were an obstruction to the fish getting up the river, presumably the Puerua. —It wa»s decided that the ranger should report on these matters. The following letter from Mr A. Cowie was referred to the executive; —“Seeing that no Native game may be shot this year, I would ask, on behalf of the shooting men, that the deer country at present overrun with malformed stags and weedy hinds be thrown open to sportsmen at say Easter time, when large numbers of people get their annual holidays. With a little management on behalf of the society and Ranger Johns, a large tract of country could be swept and practically cleared' at no expense to the society. This would also provide sport to a largo number, some of whom I have no doubt will afterwards become licensed holders. It would also do away with a widespread feeling that the society has chosen the wrong time of year to shoot off the deer. It would also appeal to many from a humanitarian point of view.”