A CIRCUS ON THE ROAD.

Taranaki Daily News, 16 February 1922, Page 3

A CIRCUS ON THE ROAD.

EXCITING EXPERIENCES. A travelling menagerie of lions, tigers, and monkeys, which has been doing a circuit of the country towns of Auckland province had an exciting trip on Sunday in negotiating the notorious bad patch of road on the Rangiriri Hills between Rangiriri and Mercer. On the ordinary country road the menagerie en I route is a stately procession of five large motor-lorries bearing the big cages in which the wild animals arc confined. But on the stretch of rutted, scarred, and soggy clay switchback at the Mere Mere Hills it became a circus that was anything but “merry-merry” for the animals and their keepers (says the Auckland Star). Making troubled progress over ruts and through clay which was at times axle-deep, the lorries got slowly through the bad going till the Mere Mere patch was reached, where the rough journey caused a fault in the gear of one of the lorries, which had to be towed, and excitement was added to the journey by the breaking of the wire tow-rope. Further on the wav the breakage of the king-bolt of the lorry holding a cage of five lions in separate compartments resulted in the forewheels coming adrift, with the result that the fore-end of the cage dropped to the ground, eliciting roars of bewilderment from the animal kings within the cage as their floor space was thrown up on a sharp pitch. The_. roars brought a gathering of thirty or forty Maoris on the run from gum-digging camps round about, and they enjoyed the circus what time they helped to get the lorry once more on the level and on the move. Enthusiastic native labor helped another lorry out of difficulties in a deep rut, and the natives were then put to wild flight by the carriage lurching downhill into another deep rut and threatening to capsize and liberate the wild animals the wreckage of the cage. Fortunately all the cages stood the strain, and after having spent nearly twelve hours in covering as many miles the menagerie was helped on to smooth going once again, and proceeded on its way to the accompaniment of a Maori haka.