WHAT TO SEE

Southland Times, Issue 21899, 28 December 1932, Page 8

WHAT TO SEE

STEWART ISLAND ATTRACTIONS FOR THE VISITOR PATERSON INLET (From Our Correspondent.) Perhaps the most striking part of Stewart Island, from the visitor’s point of view, is Paterson Inlet, that fine expanse of almost ■ land-locked water which pierces to the centre of the island. It is about three miles wide and runs inland for a distance of 10 miles, putting forth three extensive arms, Glory Harbour, North Arm and South West Arm (Caerhowel on maps). The whole is skirted by beautiful bushclad hills, ranging up to 1000 ft in height, the bush extending to the water level, where there is generally a fringe of rata. Add to this, numerous wooded islands, sandy beaches and sheltered nooks, together with a profusion of bird life, and there is presented an almost ideal spot for a holiday with Nature. To quote from Dr Cockayne in his Botanical Survey of Stewart Island: “This is a great contrast to the mainland, where fire and axe have driven primitive New Zealand far beyond the reach of most, and where many interesting plant formations and botanical phenomena are gone for ever, unstudied and unknown. But in Stewart Island, a journey of two hours merely from Bluff, is to be seen a primeval land with meadow or forest exactly as Nature planted, and stocked as abundantly with our native birds, so fast vanishing elsewhere, as New Zealand in pre-European days. Still at night time does the kiwi steal forth from its shelter, and probe the peaty mountain meadows in quest of worms. Tuis, less timorous, haunt, in springtime the settlers’ orchards in quest of honey from the blossoming trees. In marshy ground, the sombre fern-bird utters its monotonous call, making short flights over the sedges. . . . “And this brings me to that feature which gives the island its special, and perhaps some day unique value. The face of the earth is changing so rapidlv that soon in temperate regions at any rate, there will be little of primitive Nature left. In the Old World it is gone for ever. Here then, is Stewart Island’s prime advantage, and one hard to over-estimate. It is an actual piece of the primeval world. Valuable Reserves. “It has been shown that the future of Stewart Island does not depend upon its agricultural capabilities, but upon its value as a pleasure resort, this value arising, indeed, from the general uselessness of the plant-cover-ing as food for stock, and the slight value of much of the forests for timber purposes. “The lesson to be learnt therefrom, and which is illustrated by almost every page of this report, is that the plant-covering should as far as possible be kept intact; that, in fact, the forest as it is, and the other plant associations as they are, are far more valuable from the monetary point of view to the Dominion than if they were destroyed and turned into farms, the value of which would be at best very problematical. This fact the Government has recognized by the gazetting of those parts of the island shown on the map as, on the one hand, scenic reserves, and on the other, reserves for the preservation of the fauna and flora. “It now remains to see that these reserves are kept sacred. No bird should be destroyed within their precincts, no trees should be felled, and fires should be carefully guarded against. On the preserving of these reserves inviolate, the prosperity of Stewart Island depends. Certain sanctuaries for plants and animals have now been in existence for several years in New Zealand, but in order to protect them no one is allowed to visit them. This gazetting of the large areas in Stewart Island has virtually created another sanctuary, but here is the difference, it is one which can be visited, and where for all time, if it is religiously guarded, our own people, and visitors from all parts of the world, will be able to see the wonderful plant-life of New Zealand and her unique birds exactly as Nature planted the one and provided for the other.” Paterson Inlet can be reached by any of the passenger launches which run almost daily from Halfmoon Bay, or 10 minutes’ walk will take one to Golden Bay, which is situated on the inlet and from which launches visit the various beauty spots. Having treated the inlet in general it now remains to enumerate the various places of interest. Native Island. Situated at the entrance to the inlet, Native Island is well worth a visit, as it is an old Maori encampment which has at various times yielded up a number of Maori relics in the shape of bone fish hooks, axes, chisels, etc. It appears that these relics are buried in the sand dunes, just back from the beach, and as the various winds shift the sand from one place to another, interesting curios are often uncovered. Evidences of Maori occupation are fairly numerous, there being many stones such as were used by the natives in their ovens, and at times quantities of bones are uncovered, believed to be those of dogs which had been killed and eaten. Somewhere on the four-mile stretch of water between Native Island and the mutton-bird islands to the east, a Maori naval battle was fought between the Maoris living on Stewart Island and members of the Ngati-mamoe tribe under Chief Tu-wiri-roa. The Ngatimamoe had a fortified dwelling at the mouth of the Taieri River, while further up the river at Lake Waihora, the Chieftain Tukiauau and his tribe had built a pa. Koroki-whiti, son of Tukiauau contracted an intimacy with Haki-te-kura, the beautiful daughter of the Chief Tu-wiri-roa. This maiden, unknown to her father used to meet her lover on the sands when the tide was low and these clandestine meetings continued up to the time of Tukiauau’s departure further south for hearing rumours of Ngatimamoe movements he became alarmed and determined to place himself beyond pursuit. Accordingly, he embarked with his warriors in war canoes. As they were passing below her father’s pa, Haki-te-Kura, frantic in her eagerness to join her lover, jumped off the cliff into the water, but in doing so she fell on a rock and was killed. Tu-wiri-roa was overwhelmed with grief and rage and swore to destroy the man who was the cause of his daughter’s death. Waiting for a while to lull suspicion, he followed in Tukiauau’s wake but could not for a long time discover his retreat, which was at length betrayed by the smoke of a fire on the island of Rakiura. Concealing himself behind some islets, he waited until Tukiauau and his followers came out fishing in their canoes. When they had anchored and their attention was fixed upon their lines Tu-wiri-roa emerged from his hiding and cut them off from the land. Taken unawares Tukiauau could offer but a feeble resistance and his canoes were soon taken. Other Versions.

There are two versions of this battle, one being that Tukiauau settled on Green Island off Ruapuke and that the fight took place nearer Ruapuke. The local version is that the settlement was

on Native Island and the Neck and that Tu-wiri-roa hid on Bunkers Island while watching these two places and when he saw them setting out to fish, he left Bunkers and came up behind Bench Island and through the passage between Bench Island and the Neck, this cutting off Tukiauau’s retreat. According to Mr John Bragg, of Halfmoon Bay, there is a valuable greenstone buried somewhere on Native Island. A greenstone is a sort of heirloom which each tribe used to keep and hand down from chief to chief. The Maoris on Native Island, fearing an attack, buried theirs in a secluded spot and from all accounts it is there yet. Native Island is better known locally as Rabbit Island. There are no rabbits on Stewart Island, but many years ago someone liberated two on this island. Fortunately they were not a pair. The beaches on Native Island are well worth watching as small pieces of ambergris have been found on the one to the east, and the one facing up the inlet is splendid for some kinds of shells. The seas coming down the inlet pound this beach rather badly, and many of the shells are broken but by careful sifting some very beautiful specimens can be obtained. The Pectens, or fan shells, can often be found in great numbers, and in many colours, ranging from bright yellow to deep purple. The rare little Polinices Amphialus, or rice shell, is also to be found here, a pure white shell about the size of a grain of rice, but round. According to Suter’s “Manual of New Zealand Mollusca,” there are only two places where it may be picked up on the shore, Stewart Island and Chatham Islands, and although a few specimens may be found on other Stewart Island beaches, this is the only one where they may be collected in quantity. In addition to sea shells, the tussocks on the sandhills harbour several species of land shells. Ringa-Ringa. Across the narrow passage to the west is Ringa-Ringa on which is seen the grave of the Rev. J. F. H. Wohlers, who was missionary on Ruapuke from 1844 till 1884 and whose daughter and several of her descendants still live on Stewart Island. Off the south end of Native Island is the spot where the C. A. Larsen grounded when she was being towed into Paterson Inlet for shelter and repair. She stayed there for some days with her bow submerged and a small portion of her stern above water. She was eventually raised and towed into Glory Harbour at the south side of the inlet. (To be continued.)