The sun., 1905-08-02
eIIE { IN NEW ZEALLND.


DEER AND TROUT INTRODUCED
THERE ny WHITE MAN. 1. :.
extraordinarily Rapid Increase q Ned
Deer in the Last 90 Years--FAllew Door
80 - tho Island BY Capt. Coek--nomark.
Down In the South Pacific. sixteen days
steam from the Golden Gate. lies ono Of the
best sporting countries IN the world. Its
hilh and valleys swarm with deer, says the
Loo A~sslss Times. and its streams and
lAkes boil With trout which average I'VE or
si1 times the size and weight Of those In the
Northern Hemisphere. ,.... @.
Old World deer stslkess sail around the
globe for the satisfaction Of bringing home
from this happy hunting ground hAads
which far surpass In size and symmetry
the sntlsrs that adorn the monarchs Of the
Scottish glens, and English anglers for
the pleasure Of fishing. IN trout waters
whose supply Of grand, heavy fighting
Ash u ine1haustible. This country u the
British colony Of New Zealand, now almost
- I8IOOO0 IOI Nb ouOOtn8 aAO uohhA8 -
for its Wild and beautiful scenery.
Yet before the white man came to New
Zealand there was not . single game AMI
nal In the whole Of Ito $1,000 900 acres, and
not . single trout In its rivers. It's natural
history y probably the most remarkable Of
any region on earth. The forests and marshes
snos nsreoed nEhss:s :nS
rnoa) stood twice the height Of q man:
But the only fourfooted animal that livod
In the dense woods and the ferny plains
vas email black rat-the solitary repre-
sentative Of the worlds mamral. When
from the islands Of the Eastern Pacific,
they brought With them their dogs (Which
were frequently killed for food In ancient
times) and blue. plumaged. long legged
swamp bird; called The Pukeko. Thus
the pioneers Of aoclimatization In New
Zealand-their Ao-tea-roa. the Long White
World
But not q pig or sheep or an OK did they
see until the white man came. Capt. Cook,
whs practically disoovered New y Zssand In IN
country. The offspring Of those which he
presented to the wondering savages soon
peopIed tie waste places Of the north island.
and to this day the fern root ,grubbtng,
razor backed "tuskers' that haunt the
D0CkWOOOb An COuuOIoco tuoo0oAAsA"
called BY the bushmen Capt. Cooks. It
was nearly . century lster before New
Zealand saw the first Of the red and fallow
deer whose descendants now rove the ranges
Of South Auckland. the wooded noun
and Marlborough and the bushy. valleys
which trend down to the noble glacial lakes
Of Wanaka and Hawea.
The story Of the extra ordinarily rapid
increase Of deer since their introduction
T. -. <,fk hA NNat -
derfui chapters in the history Of aoolimati-
zation. A little over forty years ago there
was not q head OF deer In New Zealand.
Now there are countless thousands, thriving
nightly under the perfect conditions OF
life in these fortunate islee.miid and
shelter and running water.
The remarkable fashion In which deer
have multiplied under these favorable con-
ditions is we'll illustrated by the history. OF
the wsirarape herds q red si,,. deer which which
tains Of South WAirarapa, only short dis
tance from Wellington, the capital city
Of the colony. These deer sPrsng from
Zealand. from England, IN the year 1852
and came from the secttiah rad dear herds
in Windsor Park. Two stays and four
kinds were shipped to the colony. the in
tention being to divide them between the
pre9vHtnces o. wellinSto1n IS 1.,.nS Morth 1sland)
""o Ono stag and % two hinds were sent out
by the ship Triton to Wellington, where the
stag and ono hind arrived safely, after
passage Of i27 days, one hind having died
at sea. About the same time the three
a', But as 'ss only % one 'na hind was landed there
alive. 1t was sent to Wellington and placed
with the two others. For some months
they were kept in a Wellington stable,
and were regarded somewhat in the light
o. white elephant There % was con. on
members Of the provincial Government
at the expense Of their keep until G. r.
Carter, then M. H. R. for the Wairarapa,
offered to defray the cost of conveying 9
them to the Wa'rarapa. They we're carted
station on the Taratahi Plains, where they
were given in charge Of James Robieson:
After being kept In confinement for several
weeks they were liberated early in the
year 1858, and crossing the Ruamahanga
on the Maungarald ranges. This country.
is Of rich limestone formation. and has been
we'll sown with English grasses.
In these favored regions and the ad-
jabent mountains the deer increased with
Feat r.pidity. until nov the Wsirsrapa
deer ground on the globe: On one large
run" or sheep station in this district, that
known as Te Awaiti, bordering on the east
coast Of the North Island, the deer may
head. At the beginning Of this year it
was estimated that there were fully 10000
head on this station alone. They consume
much Of the feed on the runs, and In fact
are 50 destructive to crops and fences
tina. they are becoming . nuisance to estate
owners. Hero surely Is the deer stalker's
paradise. Many q fordly branching head
has been taken from these hunting grounds:
Qssian's stag Of ten" would be accounted
but small game here. Royals" are every
where to be seen, and splendid heads Of
seventeen. eighteen, even twenty-two-
pointers are not uncommon.
OF the other deer forests In New |
Zealand the best Ia the rough bush country |
surrounding Lakes Wanaka and Hawee,
In Northern Otago. Here red deer abound, |
and magnificent heads are taken annually. |
Red deer are also numerous In parts Of the |
Nelson and Marlborough provinces, par
in the vicinity Of Lake Rotoiti. |