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Hokitika Guardian, 10 February 1930, Page 4

A considerable amount of space lias of late been devoted to the discussion of of the deer menace in the columns of some of the metropolitan newspapers. The subject was also brought up at last week’s meeting of the local Acclimatisation Society, A conference' is to be held in /Wellington next month regarding the matter. There is the aim in some quarters to set up a special Government department to deal with the matter, but that hardly appears necessary at this juncture. Under present arangements the State has a good deal of honorary and experienced assistance from the Acclimatisation Societies from people in the respective districts, and that aid would be lost were the control removed solely to a separate body. The Societies are doing a good deal in the effort to control the deer, and it is due tothose efforts that the menace is not greater than it is. No doubt more w'll be done in the way of open seasons, and if a market can lie established for ’deer skins, the killing of the aggressive herds will he more and more encouraged. An onslaught on the deer of course, has the tendency to drive them hack further into the high and more difficult country, and in that event, it may not pay to kill the deer merely for the skins, owing to the cost of transport to the railway. A regular system of culling at a fair rate appears to he the most satisfactory way of dealing with the menace. The Government bonus is 2s per head, and it is thought if a bonus were in addition paid for the hides, experienced cullers would he prepared to go into

the back blocks and wage more serious war on tJio invading deer. At present very little culling is done in the back country, excepting in the Haast region where the Westland Society has a ranger out every year; and good results are being obtained. 111 this immediate neighbourhood at the A rail 111 a and Kokatalii, regular culling is not carried out, blit the settlers and even sportsmen out for a week-end jaunt, no doubt account for a. good few hundred in the year. Where the deer threaten to become a nuisance the settlers wisely take the matter in hand and soon account for the invaders. On the whole therefore the menace in Westland is not specially serious. So far as tiie high country is concerned, the deer may not do much harm if any, and when they come down from those fastnesses there are those ready to deal with. them. Continuing along these lines it does not appear the deer on this Coast is going to do much damage.