LIFE ON THE MACQUARIES.

Southern Cross, Volume 1, Issue 7, 13 May 1893, Page 9

LIFE ON THE MACQUARIES.

Interview with i&ir. J. Hatch

Our enterprising townsman, Mr J. Hatch, returned to Invercargill on the Bth inst., after a sojourn at the Macquarics of nearly five months. In the course of a chat with a representative of this journal. Mr Hatch, who is, by the way, in splendid trim, gave some interesting particulars as to his experiences on the Island. Early in November last he fitted out a party for the penguin oil trade, and took them down to the Macquaries in his staunch little craft, the Gratitude. A call was made at Stewart Island for firewood —as Mr Hatch puts it. there is not enough native wood at the Macquarries to make a lueifer—and the vessel reached her destination on 16th November. Two days were devoted to landing coals, casks, and digesters at the Nuggets. It was found that the roof had been blown off the hut, and two men were left to repair it while the rest went on to the other depot at Lusitania Bay, where some more cargo was discharged. The vessel left for New Zealand on 23rd November, and Mr Hatch and his companions went from the Bay to the penguin rookery at South End. This rookery is from 25 to 30 acres in extent, and Mr Hatch estimates that at the time of his visit its occupants numbered about two and a half millions. The penguins here are of the species known as “• royals,” and to see such a great concourse of these creatures is worth a very long journey. It was the hatching season here, and the business was carried on with the utmost regularity the male and female birds relieving each other every three days. The returning penguins receive a noisy welcome from their companions, and it is curious to note the unerring accuracy with, which a penguin just back from the outside world will make straight for the particular nest on {which it had been doing duty, although only one of many thousands exactly similar. There are also two large rookeries between South End arid Lusitania Bay, which togetherjilmost equal the former in numbers. At the Lusitania rookery, which is occupied by king penguins, weighing when fat about thirty- pounds each, there arc from 400,000 to 500,000 birds. The latter suffer a good deal from their natural enemies in the shape of sea hawks and sea tigers, eggs and birds being alike sought after. The penguins bring up their young and feed them for a year. The youthful penguins retain a kind of brown -wool until the first moxdting time in February or March, and they never go to sea until they get rid of that covering. The breeding birds come and go as they require, but those that have moulted remain away, about twelve months. They go South, but their destination is unknown ; as Mr Hatch puts it, “ they clear for Guam.” The Island is well supplied with good water, which flows in streams from the hills, and the rookeries arc located in creeks and running water. The king

penguins hatch their eggs, which are about three times as large as cluck eggs, by carrying them in a kind of pouch at the bottom of the stomach, and when disturbed they get their feet round them and carry them away. The rookery at the Nuggets contains about two millions of penguins, and runs along a creek from the beach to the hills. -A tally was kept here, and it was found that the birds passed up and down at the rate of 100 per min. each way all day till dark. This countermarching, in which the rule of the road is stricty observed, slackens a little during the night, which in these Southern latitudes does not begin till 11 p.m., daylight returning about 3 a.m. At 10.30 p.m. one can see to read a newspaper, a scarce and much-prized article in that part of the world. Penguins, like sheep, follow their leader. If he is disturbed or alarmed on his way to the rookery, and turns off on another track, hundreds will'follow him, no matter how circuitous the route he selects. For the purposes of the party, the fat birds are selected in the same way as the Maoris take mutton birds—the ones a year old being those sought after. After being killed the penguins are bled and cleaned, and then thrown into the digesters, feathers and all, and are there steamed for some hours. The season for fat birds lasts about six weeks, and during that time the party w r ere kept hard at work. After the oil is extracted the digesters are emptied, the oil stored in casks, and the refuse, which would form a valuable fertiliser if it could be shipped easily, is deposited a little distance away. In addition to the royals and kings there are also victorias and rock-hoppers. The victorias are located in small rookeries along the coast; as the birds are small their eggs receive special attention from the hawks. The rock-hoppers are exposed to the same enemy. During his stay at the island, Mr Hatch poisoned a lot of sea hawks with strychnine, and by doing this he reckons that birds and eggs w'ere conserved to an extent that goes far to make up for 'the destruction ihat takes place in the interests of commerce. With regard to the other animal life on the island, Maori hens are to be had in abundance, also mutton birds, and rabbits. The latter, however, are suffering severely from eats, of which a number were introduced some years ago. The felines lodge in the burrows wdth the rabbits, and help themselves to the little bunnies at a rate that bids fair to result in ultimate decimation. Already the rabbits have been driven down to the south-east harbour, a distance of about eight miles from the north, where they were liberated. The cats thrive amazinglyhere, and are much larger than the domesticated puss. The season’s take of oil amounted to fifty tuns. A market is found for the oil, a very superior article, with the local, Dunedin, Auckland, and Melbourne twine inarm* facturing companies. The weather during the visit of the party was fairly good. A Macquarie summer, roughly speaking, resembles a New Zealand winter, but with less frost. In April a fall of snow occurred, and was on the ground for about a week. The Gratitude returned with coals, etc., early in January, and Mr Hatch decided that it would bo more economical and convenient to keep her at the Island till the close of the season, three weeks later, instead of letting the party be broken up. On the 10th of February, three days before the season finally closed, a westerly gale set in and the vessel was blown off the island, was unable to make it again, and returned to New Zealand minus Mr Hatch, and leaving the shore party with only biscuits, mutton birds, rabbits, and Maori hens on which to live. On the 7th of March what was thought to be a sail was sighted about ten miles off, but it presently loomed into view as a gigantic iceberg, to the general disappointment. Early in April a succession of heavy seas, due to bad weather from the south-east, caused much alarm for the safety of the oil which had been stored on the beach. The water rushed up in a wall 24 feet high, and rolled over the beach to the bottom of the hills, ten chains away, coming within a few feet of the hut, and tossing heavy hogsheads about like so many ninepins. Special precautions had to be taken to keep the oil in place, and these fortunately proved successful. The Gratitude returned to the Macquaries on the 23rd April and left for New Zealand on the 29th, leaving on the island for next season’s work four of the party, viz., Messrs Donnelly, White, Stevens, and Walpole. The Gratitude will go off shortly to bring back a number of mutton-bird parties, and will afterwards return to the Macquaries with more men and supplies. Mr Hatch’s closing words were at once significant and characteristic : —“ It is fortunate that I have got back in time for the elections, and many of my old friends have congratulated me on my return, as they expect they will not lose my usual address, which they suppose will probably come off about September next.”