Tales of Hoofmen: Southern Crossing

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TALES OF HOOFMEN : The Three Crossings Part One SOUTHERN CROSSING (A Comedy) February 19=21. : : The "hoofmen" enter at Otaki Forks and Exit the "Puffer" Track. The Cast a An English Gentleman - D.Borley; another English Gentleman 0.Roberts; A shooter of Hinds,T.Meyer -others T.Dakir (The leader) Esther Mary Rigg (The Lady) H.Talbott and G.Horwood, the latter alwa.ys in the rearguardiand Wha.kahaere memberss and apparently, L.Hart. THE TALE AS TOLD BY DAVE a "We all made fairly good time up to Fields on the Friday night, despite the fact that the Hut had been moved again a farther baok on the track, so. it seemed. Leigh Hart made iegceptionally good time up to they bush line, which he reached at least ten minutes Korethe main party and where we found him contemplating his future speed. Next morning, or really, the same morning, the leader suggested a spine bash and a game of 500 on account of the bad weather, but I think it was on his own açcount. However, six decided they would try to push through, especially when the alternative was to be beaten at 500?? And so we set out with water streaming from our eyes on leaving the main party; its was just as Ted had said BAD WRATHER. We three Southern Crossers, Tom, Owen and myself, were away before the Neil Winchcombers, as Tom said that he wanted to shoot deer, and about half wa.y to Kime he saw one that had seen him first. Whilst Owen and I waited for Tom to return, he had thought that-his chances of catching up the deer very good * the others caught us up and we then continued along together. At Kime we had a spell and sweets and biscuits from everybody, for everybody. Then we reached the top of Hector and split up. I remember how impressed I wa.s with the false spur when we came to it and thinking to myself"it's a good thing that Tom is leading." Eventually we were at Alpha, after some glorious views, visibility having been about ten feet ="why did I take a camera and bring that bad weather upon us?" I asked myself. It was good to be in Alpha with the Hut all to ourselves and we tmmediately occupied all the best bunks and got the stew under way. After we had eaten our stew I took a few snaps and was just saying "how I wish we could share such a. lovely big hut with the other 14 at Fields" not meaning a. word of it ofcourse, when in through the roof, well they seemed to come from there - dropped 11 of them! We three very quickly got our gear together to give them as much room as possible. The new arrivals told us all the news and how the leader and the only lady member of the party had turned back at Hectorat least I think that they said Hector. Anyway, the leader told us it was to accompany the lady back and the lady said it was because the leader was not keen to go on! Among those who came through was Hugh. He was spending a week up there and wa.s popular on account of the great quantity of food he was carrying, He also introduced me to the opossum trap, such a dainty contraption that I decided to buy one myself. But I have never taken it out because of its weight. We next discussed where we thought the N/W party were, who, with the Chief Guide with them were doomed to get lost,and on this topic we seemed to range over all possibilities except Cone Hut where they were supposed to be heading for. There was also much talk as to which end the truck would come, to pick us up. When the six of us had left early in the morning the leader had said that the still come in at Otaki'as the greater number were there, but now, so tyEte made it that we should be getting the truck, despite the fact that nothing had been said about it. If the Leader kept it: he was something or other - I can't quite remember now, except that if we got it, we would drinkto the health of such a noble unselfish chap à providing that he paid ofcourse. Nezt morning Tom was either up early for a lark or with the lark. He said it wasto shoot deer, but that was as far as any got shot. I then spotted an enormous spider, half the size of the window pane. The first thought that came into my head was "how could Mu/kIL EU I get into George's sleeping beg a naturally with him inside too.?" Then I opened both eyes and found that - it was a rising sun that someone had drawn on the win dow. "How educated they must have been, I thought to myself, as I worked out that it was in the right place= on an eastern window." By this time Tom, Owen and my# self were ready for an early start and everyone else got/ their gear out of our wa.y to facilitate our departure. What considerate companions we had. We mede our wa.y on to the main track, Tom going ahead to shoot more deer. Owen and I followed giving him a 50 yards start. After about an hour, during which time Tom had seen one deer and chased it into the bush, we caught Tom up and found him looking into space, as it seemed. Then SUDDENLY he leapt into action and fired a shot at a Stag. We waited at least a. minute peering into the beech trees and along the small shingle slides, before we heard something falling through the trees. Tom wo.sted no time in going down and firing another two shots at point blank range, just to mnke sure of things. We two made our way down and found that Tom had shot a Hind! He.protested that there was nothing wrong with his eyesight, when he had said he fired a. shot at a Stage there WAS a Stag there, but a Hind was standing beside it and that's why there was a. Hind at our feet now. Hej then tried to tell us that if we liked to look back on the slopes we would probably find a stag's body. He next said that it was the first deer he had shot, so while he proudly placed one foot on its neck I took a photograph of him, Tom then gave us a leg of the deer each, and we promised not to look for the stag's body, but we added that he would never live it down. It was then decided to go down the Tauwharenikau Valley, where we MIGHT see the N/W' S and call in at Allowny-Dickson. We did not see any sign of them and the occupants of A/D said they had seen no one. There was one chap there though who had not seen "Nuts" Bolt for three years and was very keen about seeing him again. His exact interest in "Nuts" was not mentioned and "Nuts" afterwards remarked that he did not seem to know of anyone who would remember him that long. However tley must have been great cobbers at some time. : The. discussion along the track was where would the N/W party have got stuck, and when we arrived at Tauwharenikau Hut the first thing we asked the people there was whether they had seen anybody of the description we gave them and they had not. They told us they were members of the "Scottish Country Dancing Society". We asked then what they were doing there and they explained it was purely a pleasant week-end in the country for them, and that they hadnot brought their musical instruments with them. We next pushed on to Smith's Creek and there we found the N/W Party. They were dead beat # I gathered-this from the wa.y in which they had spread their food aroubd and I know they had just cooked some very nice stewed apples, they were really delicious * you could see it a mile off and from the people who kept dropping in I think you could. smell it a. mile off too. Soon-wewere out over the Puffer where everybody was pleased to find the truck. = God Bless The Leader -