38 Transactions. — Botany. 



After ascending the valley the top of Moehau and the- 

 undulating ridges that lead to it caine into view. All the high 

 ground is densely covered with forest, but on the lower part 

 of the range, where the kauri formerly grew, a fire had been 

 raging lor son:ie dajs before our arrival. The steep spurs were- 

 black and smoking, and some large trees were still burning ; 

 but the rain that had fallen the previous night and also during, 

 the morning had cooled the ground. My son, who was leader 

 of the expedition and carrier of the swag, took a leading spur 

 on the right bank of what had been a driving-creek for kauri 

 logs, and after a steep climb of about i, 000ft. we reached the 

 bush that had not been touched by the fire. My first impres- 

 sion of the ridge that we were now to follow was that it was. 

 impassable— kiekie, mangemauge, and karioi twined and inter- 

 twined in the wildest confusion. Any opening between these 

 intertwining creepers was occupied b}- GaJiiiia lacera and 

 Astelia grandis. My guide, however, took no notice of these 

 obstacles. Where there was no way over, a passage could be 

 made under, and, by crawling sometimes very close to the 

 ground, and sometimes by walking on partly-fallen trees some 

 distance above the ground, progress was made. I was more 

 than once advised to crawl on my hands and toes, and not on 

 my hands and knees ; but, although I have no doubt the former 

 is the correct way, yet I feel sure that it is acquired by long- 

 practice only, so that I had to do as well as I could on hands 

 and knees. We advanced for a couple of hours in this way, 

 when we reached the main range. The way was now more 

 open, and there were signs of a survey party, at some distant, 

 time, having been on the ridge, and shortly afterwards we 

 reached the trig, station, that has an elevation of 2,054ft. The 

 plants I observed here were those that occurred with more or 

 less frequency afterwards on the ridge as we advanced towards 

 the summit. They are Drimys axillaris, Mclicytus rami- 

 flams, M. lanccolatus, Fjlcocarpus hookerianas, Quintinia, ser- 

 rata, Ixerha brexioides, Wcinmannia sylricola, Myrtus bullata,. 

 Fuchsia excorticata, Alscnosmia viacrophylla, Cojyrosma ro- 

 busta, C. foetid issi ma., Scnecio gladifoliiis, S. myrianthos, 

 Dracojohylliim latifolium, lUiij^ogonum scandcns, Astelia grandis,. 

 A. trinervia, Pteris incisa, and Polypodiavi ruguloswn. The two- 

 last-named had no doubt arrived since the trees at the trig, 

 station had been levelled. The largest trees on the range are 

 tawhero {Weinmannia sylvicola) and pukatea {Laurelia novce- 

 zelandioi.) 



The ridge leading to the peaks, though it appears from a 

 distance to undulate gracefully, was found to be very irregular. 

 A steep ascent was followed by a steep descent, and then 

 succeeded a broad saddle on which supple-jack, kiekie, and 

 niangemange grow in surprising luxuriance. On these saddles- 



