Hill. — Bucqychn and NgoAirulioe. 621 



water. On watching more closely, the water appeared now 

 and again to assume a rotatory movement, eddies and whirl- 

 pools passing through it from the centre to the sides, and 

 steam flashing up from the eddies, leaving little doubt, to my 

 mind, that the water was in a boiling state." 



It is difficult to harmonize the two accounts here given, so 

 chameleon-like in character, as to the condition of the crater, 

 except on the supposition that the glacier or icefield which sur- 

 rounds the western half of the crater pushes itself forward as an 

 immense sheet over the lake, covering it like a hollow dome, in 

 the winter months, and that this ice-cap does not melt before 

 February or the begianing of March. I do not see how it is 

 possible to account for the crater being " occupied by a sheet 

 of ice," as Mr. Park states, in any other way, as from the 

 manifestations of temperature on the walls towards the north 

 and east it is certain that the activity of the mountain is not 

 of recent date. When this lake was first seen, in March, 1881, 

 by Mr. Birch and his party it presented phenomena almost 

 identical with those seen last year, as the following account, 

 supplied by Mr. Arthur Eussell, a member of the party, will 

 show. He writes, " We made straight round the east slope 

 of the west point (Ruapehu), having now the crater in full 

 view. It was about 400ft. perpendicular below us, the snow 

 sloping easily to it for 400 or 500 yards, and then fall- 

 ing sheer down some 200ft. into the crater. . . . The 

 lake is nearly round, with its greatest diameter south-east 

 and north-west some 700 yards by 600 yards. The surface 

 of the lake, which is of the colour of very dirty soapsuds, 

 was covered with steam-wreaths, which made it difficult to 

 say whether the water was in motion or simmering. 

 Small clouds of steam rose and passed off at intervals." 



Here, then, we have proof that the crater of Euapehu pre- 

 sented the same appearance when seen ten years ago as what 

 it did in March last year, when seen under much more favour- 

 able conditions ; so that the difficulty of accounting for the 

 state of the crater as described by Mr. Park becomes still 

 more perplexing. But I think it is possible to go yet further 

 back for evidence to prove that the crater is by no means of 

 recent origin. This evidence is to be found in a peculiar kind 

 of heavy siliceous pumice on Euapehu itself. I well remem- 

 ber that in 1888, when Messrs. Petrie and Hamilton were 

 with me in the exploration of the Whangaehu Eiver, on our 

 approaching the mountain we were led to believe the eastern 

 slopes between 5,600ft. and 7,000ft. were well grassed but 

 somewhat browned, owing, as we supposed, to the long period 

 of dry weather experienced in the district. A special journey 

 was made to the supposed grassy slopes in anticipation of 

 sonie rare botanical specimens, and the disappointment of my 



