When Monkeys Got Loose In City Gardens

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 16, Issue 28, 4 December 1950, Page 3

When Monkeys Got Loose In City Gardens

From “Pioneer,” Wellington About 70 years ago there was a monkey house in the Wellington Botanical Gardens. It was a big attraction, especially for children. Through mischance or mischief the monkeys got loose, and took up their abode in tall pinus trees which then grew close to the present main entrance. The monkeys appeared quite happy and could not be caught, remaining at liberty for a considerable time. They were of a small variety, and, as far as I recall, numbered a dozen or more. I saW them on many occasions. My father, who had a bakery business, often gave them pieces of bread. They got to know him well, and as soon as his cart appeared they surrounded him and clamoured for a “hand-out.” They became inveterate thieves, and frequently raided the adjacent premises of, I think, Messrs Lomax and Walmsley. One day a Chinese with heavy cane baskets left his wares unattended momentarily while he made a call at a house. The fruit and vegetables disappeared—a great day for the simians. The monkeys damaged the gardens, pulling up plants, and the like. Perhaps they were the ancestors of those ' vandals which a while back destroyed the tulip beds. As for the original monkeys, they could not be caught and were eventually shot.