TWO CHILDREN CHASED BY A SAURIAN REPTILE.

Kumara Times, Issue 3100, 9 October 1886, Page 3

TWO CHILDREN CHASED BY A SAURIAN REPTILE.

The Hamilton correspondent of the Auckland Herald gives the following particulars of the reported chase of two boys by a strange reptile resembling an alligator on the 28th ultimo:— Some little sensation has been occarr I' d by an extraordinary occurrence, which took place yesterday on the farm of Mr Castleton, of Frankton. The property is situated near the slaughter yards, and was formerly held by Mr Maunders. It is intersected by a creek which empties itself into the Waikato at No. 1 bridge, a mile below the Hamilton township. It appears that yesterday morning, whilst Mr Castleton, who leaves home early to deliver milk in the town of Hamilton, was away from home, one of his boys, an intelligent lad aged fourteen and who is less active than most lads, through an injury to his foot, went down to the creek and observed a considerable commotion in the water, which he supposed to be caused by a large eel. On going c’oser, however, be saw that the animal was entirely different, with a long pointed head a fool in length, brownish in colour, and covered with scales; and on its discovering him the creature at once dashed, for the bank, crawled up, and gave chase to the lad open-mouthed. The boy described it as being of brown colonr, covered with scales, with a body as thick as a young calf, and having two legs behind the head and two further back in front of the tail. I ts mouth was large enough to grip the leg of a man, and was armed with formidable} rows of serrated teeth. Whilst pursued the boy turned round, »nd> seeing the creature stop, stopped

too, and critically examined it. A second brother, twelve years of age, some little time afterwards went down to the creek, attracted by his brother’s story ; when a similar scene was enacted—the creature this time chasing the boy as far almost as the homestead, when it beat a retreat and returned to the creek. The description given by the younger lad corresponds with that of his elder brother in the main, but he stated that in girth the animal was as big as a large retriever dog belonging to his father, and the length of the kitchen table. Mr Oastleton, formerly a teacher under the Board of Education, of whose bona fide belief in the narrative of his sons there can be no doubt, informs me this morning that he shall devote the day to watching for and shooting the reptile. It is possible that the creature may be a solitary specimen of the native guana to be found down South, though these reptiles have not the character of showing fight, as this one undoubtedly did. One of the writer’s own sons informs him that there was a report among the hoys in Hamilton, some two or more years ago, that a native had brought some of the fry of these creatures into the district, and that three of them had escaped into the Waikato River.