FISHING WITH THE CREEPER

Taranaki Daily News, 15 October 1930, Page 7

FISHING WITH THE CREEPER

DESIRE TO ACQUIRE TROUT.

A NOVICE AND HIS TUTOR. An. absorbing desire to acquire trout by some other angling means, when fly had proved, abortive in a declared fly Streaip, led to two fishermen, a novice and a map who had fislied the stream for" nine years,'breaking the rules by using “crebper” as bait, Two interesting letters from the delinquents, who .were caught in the act by the society's ranger, were read at a jneeting of the We’Uingtpn Acclimatisation Society. “On Sfinday, October 5,” wrote or,» of the njen, “I was. fishing, the Akutarawa in company with Mr. J. Marshall, who had just taken np the sport and was out with a rod for the first time. After fishing about half a mile of the stream with no results, and wishjno- to retain his interest in the spoit, I advised him to try a creeper, whep your chief ranger appeared and charged us with creeper fishing in prohibited water.-. .'For myself, although not actually using .creeper when Mr. Willson (the ranger) appeared, 1 admit that I •had been doing so. 1 may state that J have been fishing the Akatarawa lor about nine years; in fact it is tfie oply river that I fish, and each year my catch h;i6 been smaller than the previous one- Last year I did not take two dozen fish, and in desperation rpsorted‘to live"bait,. thou’gh I did not look on it with the seriousness, that Air. Willson pointed out to me.’’ • The writer hoped that the breach suf regulations would be overlooked. ' The novice' urged in his letter that, fie was keen fo secure a fish, but now realised the'seriousness of his actio ;. It was after two’ hours’ fishing With the fly without avail that he resorted to the creeper. Some divergence of, opinion in regard to prosecuting these men was voiced in the ensuing discussion. It was pointed out that one |uan was a novice, and had acted oft the advice of an experienced aimler, and that the latter should be prosecuted, while the novice should be let off with a caution. . ’ Mr. E. J. C. Wiffen dieagreed. It would be'just as logical to let a novice off for using dynamite, if he could get fish no other way. The novice, must have known the use of creeper in the Akatarawa was illegal; as it was Diluted on his license. That- he had been prompted to break the regulations mafic no difference,' A motion by Mr. S. G. Nathan, however, that the man who had fisfied nine years tshould be prosecuted, and that no action be taken in regard to the othei. was carried by 5 votes to 2.