"PETRIFIED MAN."
LOCATED IN A CAVE,
STORY FROM WANGANUI.
A stop which gained newspaper currency last year to the effect" that in a cave in a wild, inaccessible locality near Wanganui— a, locality that had/been kept a secret —stramge discovery was made by a survey party of a petrified man fasihioned in stone, . ■ seems to be a hoax. The Honorary’ Curator of the Wanganui Museum, in reporting on the matter to the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Hon. R. F. Bollard, states
“1. caw only sjay that I do not know! the locality of .the. supposed petrified man. I have made numerous inquiries about it, but have failed to discover' who the persons! are who.,reported . it, and, like others, I only know what appeared in the Press.- I amy however, of opinion that the whole thing is a. hoax, otherwise we should surely have heaijd. more • about it.” ‘
Hansard' shows that When the discovery of the alleged petrified man was made known the then member for Waimarino (Mr Langstone) ‘brought the matter .before- Parliament, asking that a geologist and'an anatomist be sent to'the .cave.-to have the 4<petrified man” investigated before the find was interfered with. A'promise of in-vestigation-was made. ' Like many other similar strange "finds,” the story of the Wanganui “petrified man” has its 'humorous turn. At the : time it was stated tfrat a syndicate of Wanganui business men had been-formed to go into, the matter, and rescue the venerable relic from the hack o’ beyond. the report: “One of the members of the syndicate stated .to a ‘Herald’ reporter this morning. that all arrangements had been'completed to retrieve the stone man and. bring him .to Wanganui. It will necessitate the chartering of a small steamer and the provision of the necessary tools, and gear to cut out a solid block of about five tons of ilmestone, transport it, and ship it.” The question was asked: “Is it for the Wanganui Museum ?’• “Not on your life,” said the member of the syndicate. “We are going to tajee .him on tour. There is a fortune in it?’
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https://paperspast.natlib.govt.nz/newspapers/HPGAZ19260224.2.15
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Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 4943, 24 February 1926, Page 2
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346"PETRIFIED MAN." Hauraki Plains Gazette, Volume XXXVII, Issue 4943, 24 February 1926, Page 2
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