IMPRESSIONS.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 1056, 20 February 1911, Page 6

IMPRESSIONS.

[ADMIRAL SIR WILLIAM KENNEDY j" tj f ON NEW ZEALAND. ■ t, , 'FRANK CRITICISM. [ AND;-BLUFF APPRECIATION. i Whatjbronglit mo hero? Well, partly i'to avoid.tlio English winter,.and also to j«njoy some of tho far-famed trout fisliS ing, of'which I had heard to ranch. For [in all my long servico in tho Navy, emr bracing North and South America, Newfoundland, the West Indies. China, and , tho Mediterranean, I never had tho luck ; to be sent to tho Australian station, nl- •, though I desired it. So long ago f. as 1660 I had arranged-to exchange from f tho Heto>into tlio Orpheus, then at '^Bermuda,/on her way to New Zealand, L but was; detained on account of the (trouble with America over the Slidell and ; Mason affair. . The officer who agreed to f.Mchanjo altered his mind at tho last ? moment,' and 'he met hi 9 fato on ManuLlau BaK » But now at last I havo lad s-.tho great privilego of setting foot in this i beautiful country; enjoying such • sport j M'caii',jiowhero else be obtained. . Among the Trout. i 'After "a short stay in Auckland, where I I enjoviid tho hospitality of tho Northern 1 Club, I > took train , for Waiouru, nnd, ) after a ;long and dusty coach drive, •: reached!'Tokaamt, and put up at Mr. ; Jonts's'Hotel till tho camp on an island at the '-month of . the Tongariro was ' vacant.:'; Hero I stayed, a month and, t 'with; nephew,' succeodcd in bagging i lt>mo'magnificent trout, averaging Bjlb. 1 And liow let me say a word about tho I fishing, livhich is not quite what I ex- . i pected or hadi been' accustomed.- to. " I am . i not speaking of the sport to bo obtained I Mp tho river, where the trout take tlio S (lv-casting in the usual manner, but m \ the Taupo Lakei where they oertainly do ' net. The river spreads itself out where ■ it enters the lake, forming a number of ripples,.and it'is thero that the, fish - assembled in hundreds, preparatory to ■ ascending the river for spawning in Sfarch or April. -. . ■ -If tho'flv be preferred, the line is cast in the usual way, and then paid out, 50, 60, or 70 yards, as desired. T hen you pause a whilo to let the fly smk, nnd -reel , slowly . in, or by hand. Tho proccss is repeated till a ' fiih • takes under water, : the lina J tightens, and you have him, and offer a gallant fiElit. ,comts '* in-on iis side to tho gaff—a glorious fish-' 1 of,'perhaps, 10 to 111b., as silvery n* a -salmon, nnd as good to eat. But to f call it fly-fishing is absurd, it is a prostitution of ,the art and more liko wormnsui- "if the minnow or-spoon bo preferred, f it is equally deadly, and preferable, as h the sport.is really of. a higher order. In fact, most .sportsmen.adopt it, but, it ' tho old-fashidncd stylo of casting be ad- • hered tb, an empty.'creel is the result. ' And this is easy to understand, for, wlie- ' ther wading or fishing from a boat, you stand or anchor on tho edge of tlio bank, whero it suddenly deepens to 30 t 40,, or i,-' even GO-feet, and the rainbows, being bot- ' torn feeders, won't riso to.fly. Still, what- ; ever plan be pursued, the result is satis- - ' factory,. as:' the priio is worth catching, for certainly in no part of tho world aro - such fish to bo found. Camp life is pleasant .enough, and Mr.' ' Jones does all ho can to make ono comfortable, with an excellent, cook to contribute to one's pleasure, but tlio life is : monotonous, as the sport is generally " over by.2 a.in;, and onl.v commences again , at 4 or's p.in.-that is, if it'does riot come. on to blow, which is frequently, the case, r when rolling breakers set in, and >'■ fish moro out into tlio deep water. Often- [' times the rollers set in without any, wind J - or apparent cause. • ,; f ''Missed' Opportunities!. » ■ • With probably 60 to 1001b. of, fisli for a F moruin?; catch, to four'rods,-it may-bo s well bo asked: What, ctm .you' do with ' M) many® Th'jrc ' no.doubt I many aro wasted, ; but \ n0n0.. ; from, our, i « camp, for every, morning Mri. Jones came with milk-and provisions; and took away I —tho fish, , which ho gave to tho Maoris, f ' who were too lazy to fetch them them--1 reives,lt seems a pity that somo ar- ! langement could not bo mado to send t' these fine fish to. Auckland or Wellini;t ton, where they would bo much appreci''.ntcd. This could bo dono by. special [ •- coach to meet tho trains, or clso by .salti •. ing, freezing, or kippering them. • A' can- • :' ninp establishment woultt pay ,1 [ • should imagine. Meanwhile th© Maoris ! 1 liavo tho benefit of them. Now, I have i •' jx great respect for tho Maori race. . The.v f '.were grand figh'ters, and liavo many good >' ' qualities, but, judging by some, of the .. specimens' I saw, 1; fancy they niust have deteriorated. I should say that hard work and sobriety were not their strong points! Their land is uncultivated, they • pay no taxes, and often honour the law " as much by breach as by observance. ■ They shoot-game all tho year-round, and i'" ppear fish in the breeding season—by tons. !■ ' No fishery can stand that. It is claimed that thero ore too many fish in,Taupo, .they will go the sanie vray as those wliero they r.re dying of disease, and starvation from overstocking and want of food (at - least so I am told). Taupo ..Lake, .being much bigger," I do not anucipato any immediate danger, but,> if thero ore too many fish, the remedy is plain: open tho market nnd let them-bo sold, but.prohibit snea'ring in, tho ■ breeding. season,; Thero is plenty of food for them at rnESENT, but food,should bo introduced, , as wo do at' Home—water snails, and '.' fresh-tfater shrimps, which multiply -ex- ' ceedingly. , 1 1 New, Zealand is by nature a magnificent f game country, but is.apparently fast be- ; coming a rather poor one, and what can i'-'."-you expect when" every man boy v ' carries a gun or rifle, and a fisWs rod? ' Tlio wrctchcd birds .are shot on their nests, or killed by vermin, or poisoned . wheat! No wonder that, in tho South :.Island, gamo is scarce. A 'run . license would do come good, and bring in a considerable revenue, and I'should suggest that tho license for fishing all over New v ; Zealand-bo increased," for visitors (of whom I am one) from JCI to Jta. No one who comes out from England to fish, at " tho cost of .£2OO or JC3OO, would object'to paying a fiver for his sport. In this connection I am minded of a remark made by a gallant major, at a public table.'tho'first night I arrived at Tokrmnu"These damned Englishmen," he said, "come hero and 'spoil our sport. I should liko to seo them heavily taxed. I'd make them pay for their sport, etc." Perhaps ho is right from his point of view, though I doubt if ho voices tho opinion ,'of mast colonials, whoso causo ho cliampions with such eloquence and good ■ taste, especially f.j ho lias'not been very long in the country. About Prohibition. I liavo not to far visited nny part of ■ the country where Prohibition applies. • but, from , my experienco of this form of grandmotherly legislation, I fail to seo V its advantage. It has not decreased ' drunkenness, but, on tho other hand, increa-'tfs secret drinking, and is ruination - to hotnlkeencrs nnd others engaged in tho ' liquor trade, which perhaps it is intended ' to do. " ' " ' I am afraid I shall get myself disliked -for.expressing these opinions, but really I liavo r.n open mind rih tho subject, for' • ' Miss. Weston's Sailors' Homes aro all conducted on the teetotal principle, and aro ' a great success, nnd self-supporting. Miss - Weston's .'nnmo is a household ,word j: amongst sailors," and wo'all love and rc,v epect her for hor noblo work. On ■ tho other hand there is an excellent inh gtitution—tho "Union Jack Club"— v closo to the Waterloo Statiort, which is largely 'patronised by' soldiers and sailors, where they can get ,a bed, and tho best of food and liquor ofall sorts, just - us in any other club in-Ipndon.iand yet no case of. drunkenness is ever known there, showing that, in a well-conducted establishment, it is possiblo for a man to enjoy himself without being either a drunkard or a rabid teetotaller.. It is unlikely that Prohibition, will ever bo countenanced in England, where, up to the present, wo arc not rnlod by women, notwithstanding the efforts in that direction i of a handful of disorderly fc-lundorstandthatlhohcadquartors-.nl tlio Navy aro to bo.transferred.to Auckland from Sydney, fig jthg. 'Australians

da not require the assistance of* tho British Fleet any longer, no'iv that they aro going to set up a nnvy of their own. This ought to uo of immense benefit to Nor Zealand, bringing money into the Dominion, and giving nn example to nny hooligans ns to what discipline will ilo, for a ir.ore orderly, respectful set up men than tho British ■ bluejnekets cannot bo met with in any part of tho world. . Compulsory Military Trainlnfl. New Zealand has set, or is aljont to set, n noblo example in enforcing: compulsory military wrvicu for youtns between 18 and Si. .Most sensiblo people in tho Old Country nro strongly supportins Lord Roberts in endeavouring to bring this about ut Homo, but tho bnro idea is repulsive to many fond parents, who would sooner too their darling boys dead than join tho ranks of "ribald and licentious soldiers." And yet wo are tlio only country that has not adopted eomo such system. In Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland tho lads are oniy too. proud to shoulder a riflo in dcfeuco of their l-'atherlnnd, while Great Britain, with a population of 44 millions (or thereabouts), cannot put a million soldiers in tho field, or anything liko it.. Everything is left to tho Nnvy, and yet thero aro some Idiots who would starvo tho Navy, and begrudge tho money voted for it, regardless of tho fact that our oxistenco • depends on it, moro especially now that a powerful neighbour is: threatening to contest our claim ns mistress of tho sea. I have had tho great-pleasure in visiting some parts of the South Island and partaking of tho hospitality of many kind friends, and witnessing tho wonderful prosperity of tho country in tho Canterbury district. But there again is tho samo «ul story. Gamo and fish, onco so plentiful, aro disappearing—pheasants and quail gone, poisoned or shot, fish speared and dynamited. Even that fino bird tho pukeko (swamp hen) has been nearly wiped out by indiscriminate slaughter. ■■■ \.. • >I suppose it will" lie said that,'after all; sheep and . cattlo, (ire. tho first consideration and gamo may go, 'but. it seems a pity as thero is amplo room for both in tnis country. Seo how deer liavo multiplied, giving sport to many who could not afford the luxury in Scotland, ■where cvcryistag costs -v£so.v And.* such magnificent antlers as I ha'vo seen in tho clubs in Wellington, Christchurcli, and private houses, would givo a Highland stalker a fit.. ... What strikes an outsider as comical is the introduction of sparrows, the farmers curse; and such vermin as weasels, and stoats, and then to protect them by law! Certainly tho . man who introduced rabbits has n\uck to answer for. Pleasant Recollections,. . I much regret that tho limited timo-tit my disposal prevents -mo from visiting Milford Sound, and the magnificent scenery in the south, but one cannot "do Now: Zealand in six weeks, so. I; in list bo content with what I have seen. ' Christchurch alone is worth coming out so far to'see, with its fino buildings, wido streets, excellent roads, .and. lovely. river, shaded with weeping .willows. Tho fino steamers of tho Union lino are far in advanco of our coastal steamers at Home.-Tho Maori is a magnificent vessel, quito up to date, and the Slararoa, by which I travelled, is most comfortable and-good enough for anyone. But it is time -1 brought this longwinded yarn to a close, so I shall say farewell to New Zealand for it is not likely I shall over seo it again. But I shall carry back with' mo a pleasant recollection' of its beautiful .scenery, its j delightful climate, and of tho- kindness and hospitality of tho residents. I was told that I might, meet with lmpcrtinonco from some- classes, but-1 havo not seen it. Everywhere there is civility,--never | servile, but free and easy independence, and why not? Tako thcin as you find 'em, the New Zealandcrs are a fine'manly race and a credit to tho land they livo