THE SPORTSMAN.

Waikato Times, Volume X, Issue 615, 29 April 1876, Page 3

THE SPORTSMAN.

'another 'issue 1 of thin journal 'is 'in 'the •hands t>f the : public 'the "'close" season for lpheasants will hare expired, "and the Anxiously 'looked fbr'lst of May h»re corns mnd 'gone. "Noipfrhaps'in the otony it 'more 'interest * taken in sporting matters than 1 in the Wftiltato, •and the fact'thtt the number of'licentes issued year for this district largely exceeds that of •any previous season, shovrs that 'ia this depart* "ment of sporr, %t till events, there is no retro. ■< grade movement, The prospeot 'bf «port thi, year is good. Tho birds during the last fortnight dr thwa weeks hart bogun to ihow oot -in 'large numbers, and are almost at tame m barndoor fowlf. Although if the day i» windy, and •one of our younger sportsmen happen to come •acrotsan "old cock " topping the fern «nd -going away down wind at *n angle of forty-fire, he -wont look quite 'as large as that. The only drawback to -sport is that the bltds are, many of them, 'Tory -small as jet. The'heary rains we experienced in 'the early ipart of the season 'destroyed ft larsfe proportion of the first brood , sand the second lot hate scarcely had time to grow <to a-*ekt and -strength calculated to -give first-class sport. There appwrs, howe Tar, to be -ft very creditable show of last year's birds. 'On the Waipa-side particularly the " bagtailt*' seem 'to be much more numetpus than during last ■•aion.We btnr of sweepstakes and rnmours of •Bweepitakes as to the best bags to be made on the fgwat oeoasion of the Ist. If 'either Sir S—•or tit L— — is in good 'form, and happens to iget amongst the birds, w» beliere that their bag •will probably be found the heaviest at the end of 'the day in the lower tportion of the Waikato, though they 'nay possibly even probably 'be •eclipsed by some of the etaoks nearer the border. Wt heartily with all a .good day's sport, and •confidently 'expect (hat several gigantic specimens of the pbea*ssl tribe will be submitted for ■our snalyiu hy our iportiug 'friends 'during 'the <*uuing vcek, , '