FISHING AT ROTORUA.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 869, 16 July 1910, Page 15

FISHING AT ROTORUA.

GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION CRITICISED. ; The Government administration of the •fishing at Kotorua, Moulding to statements made at a meetiiii; of tho„Aui:kland Acclimatisation Hocioty, is proving pretty much of a farce. A member of tho society who recently visited Kotorua with tho society's curator, for the purpose of securing a supply of ova, declared Jhat ho had never seen matters in a inbro deplorable condition. The Fairy Spring was a uost ' undesirable spawning ground, as mostly the slabs, got up there, and for some . unaccountable reason tho Government officials seemed to think Hint it was tho best. They were now preventing tho fish from getting up tho rivers by tho use of wire netting, tho idea being to prevent tho fish frum spawning. They did not seem -to know that by preventing the fish from spawning they would die. The gentleman in question also discovered that the Governmeat representatives were hiring launches and were traversing the lake killing fish wholesale, tho fat fish, as well as the slabs. They were killing hiihdieds of the best fish to be had there. As a matter of fact, so many fish were being killed that at each hotel in Rotoiua trout was put on at every meal. The first four streams'he and the curator'inspected had lio fish in them at all, and there wore very few in Lake Rotorua, and none in Kotoehu. Tho Government men were evidently at their last resource now to get eggs, and were working Rotokakahi, near Tarav.era, where' the fish and eggs were better. It was decided to leave the ni;il- • ter of getting ova in Die curator's hands for tho present. Later on it' was stated that it was a curious thing that tins •brown trout were getting more numerous than the 'rainbow trout in Lake Rotorua. It seemed that the brown trout came on as the others went off. It was decided' to purchase 00.000 brown trout ova from the south.