Colenso. — On Waikaremoana District. 377 



excited, I, while breakfast was getting ready, set off, with 

 a native of the village as a guide, to the boiling spring ; 

 but, after goino- up one steep hill and down another, and 

 not perceiving any sign of the same, and being almost 

 exhausted from want of food, and the sun's rays this still 

 morning bein^' very powerful, hunger conquered curiosity 

 and I returned to the village. I have often been surprised 

 at the great carelessness which I have shown towards rare 

 natural productions when either over-fatigued or ravenously 

 hungry : at such times, botanical, geological, and other 

 specimens — which I had eagerly and with much plea- 

 sure collected, and carefully carried for many a weary 

 mile — have become quite a burden, and have been one 

 by one abandoned, to be, however, invariably regretted 

 afterwards. Breakfast ended, we, accompanied by the 

 chief of the village, paddled nearly to the opposite end of 

 the lake. This sheet of water appeared to me to be about 

 three miles and a half in length, and from one to two miles 

 in breadth ; it is surrounded on all sides by barren hills, 

 and is very deep. Landing, and walking about two furlongs, 

 we came to Karelia, another little lake, much smaller than 

 the preceding. Here we were obliged to sit and wait some 

 time before we could get a canoe, which having obtained we 

 paddled to the opposite end. This little lake is about a mile 

 in length, and about three-quarters of a mile in breadth. 

 Eesuming our journey, and gaining the summit of a high hill, 

 we had a fine prospect of the principal Lake of Kotorua— a 

 fine sheet of w^ater, about six miles in diameter, with a very 

 picturesque island nearly in the midst. An easy journey of a 

 few miles from the top of the hill brought us to Te Ngae — a 

 Church mission-station on the eastern side of the lake, where 

 we were very hospitably received by Mr. Chapman, the 

 resident missionary. I gained not a single botanical specimen 

 throughout the whole of this day. 



Having thus briefly narrated my return journey as far as 

 Kotorua, I end my relation there, merely adding that I con- 

 tinued it on foot, and, crossing more than once from the east 

 coast to the west coast, arrived safely at the Bay of Islands 

 on the 22nd February, 1842. 



II. My Second Early Visit to Waikaee Lake. 

 On this occasion I had travelled up the east coast from 

 Eangiwhakaoma (Castle Point) in company with Archdeacon 

 William Williams (afterwards the first Bishop of Waiapu) to Te 

 Wairoa, in Hawke's Bay. At Te Wairoa we parted company, 

 the Archdeacon going on to his residence in Poverty Bay, 

 and I going directly inland, to carry out the instructions of 

 the Bishop of New Zealand (Dr. Selwyn), viz. : to take the 



