The Daily News. THURSDAY, JULY 5. ACCLIMATISATION HUMOURS.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XLVII, Issue 8149, 5 July 1906, Page 2

The Daily News. THURSDAY, JULY 5. ACCLIMATISATION HUMOURS.

A coiiREsroSDEST, "Nemo," made a valuable suggestion in our columns /esterday. He suggests that anyone jarrying a gun anywhere but on his )\vn property must have a license for ,he same or be lined. Applied to a ■lass of shootists it would, no doubt, result in less shooting accidents. But no Society, Acclimatisation or >tlienvise, should be allowed to say who should and who should ,iot use firearms. Restricting the use of arms to prevent .incidents, especially amongst boys md youths, is what is wanted, and some day we hope to see the Government take action in the matter. The Acclimatisation Societie ire patriots doing a great and iiseful work for this country. If it were not for Acclimatisation Societies, the wandering tourist who ;omes to this country might imagine he was in New Zealand, but when, through the very kind offices of these gentlemen, he is able to see the port-aianteau-like head of the Canadian moose looking at him through a patch of scrub, various foreign deer leaving for the next country ; when he sees the dear little birds of Britain, which are quickly killing out the stupid feathered denizens, who e only right to be here is in the fact ohat they were born here —well, he •' dunno where 'e are." The sweot little white-tailed rabbit looks so much like Home, and the charming little stoat, weasel and ferret, which ire fonder of chickens than rabl.i s, uake the tourist feel as if he were in the Shires, don't you know ! Verily, the country owes a debt of gratitude to the brave souls that acclimatise these animals. Just a while ago Wairarapa settlers actually had the nerve to complain that the deer were father a nuisance! There is a deer sanctuary of many thousands of acres in the Wairarapa, and although the settlers say the deer are a nuisan;e, they are being reared there. If it annoy the settlers it does not annoy tourists, and the latter are of more consideration than settlers any dav. «Itis within the memory of readers that- one of the Acclimatisation peo pie said !:? Culd at once obtain very ,ine samples o' brown bears, which would help to make Nett' Zealand looklike North America. A few buffaloes >vould go very well with these brown dears, and a barreiful of pythons would cheer us up a bit and make the life of bush-children more interesting than it is. Speaking plainly, the imported animal, fiirre.l or feathed is mostly a curse—from the common vat to the common deer, and from the stoat to the blackbird. II there is any farmer's wife who like.' having to watch her baby all the time for fear the ferrets don't kill it, wt would like her photo. The passioi for making this country look like al *»+* nf.nther cQiliitiie.iia'ows.. Plenh of people cut out native bush—tin handsomest vege'ation m the worldii order to plant foreign horrors ii the shape of pine trees! Australh has spent millions of pounds in try ing to cope with, the acclimatise! rab bit, and in that country aid Ne« Zealand there are thousands of mile.' of wire-netted fences, necessary onl\ because of this pest. New Zealanc may yet give " scalp-money " for deei and many other imported pests. I a farmer without a liconse is fur bidden to shoot an acclimatise; animal that is damaging property 01 is prevented from carrying a gui without a license, it is time that ihi Acclimatisation Societies got the oh English game laws restored to theii virulent strength, in which case am -port who was not a member of tin Society could be either hanged o: 'ejorted to the Kermadecs as : member of a chain-gang.