Old-Time Echoes.

Southern Cross, Volume 8, Issue 30, 10 November 1900, Page 3

Old-Time Echoes.

ABOUT SEALS. ’ P The anhual report of the Lands and Survey Department includes some interesting information from the curators in charge of the sanctuaries for wild animals in different parts of the colony. We make the following extract from the report submitted by *Mr Richard Henry, who leads a Robinson Crusoe-likelifeat Resolution Island, West Coast Sounds. He writes: —

When at the Bluff some time since Mr John Parker, an old identity, gave tne the following information : In about 1847 the natives sealing on the West Coast used to think seventy or eighty skins a good season’s work, but after that they increased, so that in 1867 or 1868, they used to get six or seven hundred in a season. Of course, they would increase now if left alone, but there is no use protecting them, because there is a Hobartown whaler down at the Auckland Islands now (15th September, 1899) as well as the exploring ship the ‘ Southern Cross,’ which is pretending to be after the South Pole.

Tame seals P —Yes ; we had one on the barque ‘ Celestial ’ for three months. It would crawl round between the dead - eyes and the rigging, and make pretence to jump overboard with its fore flippers out, but would hold on with its hind ones, and would drink tea in any quantity. We used to just chuck him bits of fish. At Okarito there was a fellow used to hawk one round for show, Gilroy had pet hair seals several times. Dusky Sound was the principal place for seals. To the northward of West Cape is a harbour for boats to pull out —not to lie in a gale. Ahiweka is its name (ahi, fire, and weha, woodhen), but the sailors’ name is ‘ Knife and Steel River.’ There is a sunken rock off Gulshes Head, 51 yards towards Coal Island, t Tfiik side of Martin’s Bay there is a boat - harbour to pull out, with not much surf. A couple of miles eastward of Dea’s Cove is a better anchorage in 16 fathoms, safe from north winds. ‘ ’ (a name for Resolution) means the meeting of a large quantity or numbers. Nancy’s Sound was called after Captain Groner’s daughter. He had a big knock-down of seals there, but I do not remember his vessel’s name.

When Howell had the .new ‘ Amazon ’ and Gilroy was mate, they had an accident off the west point of ‘Crayfish.’ 'There is a big rock there, and they anchored too near it, and swung round and knocked her rudder off. They took her into Crayfish, put her ashore, and Gilroy made a gudgeon out of the stock of a small anchor. The ‘ Amazon ’ (old 4 Korari ’} was a two-boat ship, and would have about sixteen or seventeen hands. The narrows going into Luncheon Cove we called Pinch-gut, because the yards caught in the cnuTie.

Kokina is the Maori name of Blind Cove, now marked ‘ Luncheon Cove ’ on the charts. We always knew the other as ‘ Luncheon Cove.’ It was the biggest of the outward islands, where it was 9 said the Lascars were put and the skeletons seen. Just out of Luncheon is an island where we used to skin the seals on a big flat rock. ‘ Storehouse Island ’it was called.

It seems the ‘ Otago ’ was also called the ‘ Kirody,’ which was a nickname meaning ling-eater. There were clearly two vessels called' the ‘Amazon,’ and, perhaps, the ‘ Otago ’ was renamed when she changed hands. Kanaka Bill seems also to have been called Paramatta, so that there is the usual room for confusion, as in the case of the two ‘ Endeavours,’ and the two Luncheon Coves.