502 Tr ansae tions .—Miscellaneo us . 



in clover, so that a stay was made in Ship Cove lasting a 

 little more than three weeks. "The land here-" is no longer 

 an entire forest. The traveller cannot but lament the great 

 destruction of trees all along the beautiful shores of Queen 

 Charlotte Sound. Close settlement has made the cutting- 

 down of the trees necessary, and much of the clearing is 

 of very recent date. "You want scenery, we want grass," 

 was the retort made by a settler to me on pointing out to 

 him the harm that was being done. The Government of 

 New Zealand has very wisely made a reserve of 20,000 acres 

 of land round Ship Cove ; but that reserve runs a great risk 

 of destruction by fire. It would probably be judicious if a 

 broad belt were cleared round it, especially at the back, 

 away from the water, so as to prevent mischief from any 

 bush-fire that may break out on neighbouring lands. 



Ship Cove is, what Cook called it, "a snug cove " indeed, 

 lying not far from the entrance to Queen Charlotte Sound, 

 which runs fully twenty miles to the south, with varied out- 

 line and gently swelling hills, once timbered to the shore, 

 and with many inviting coves and bays. Ship Cove is all 

 but land-locked : from the head of it, Cook's landing-place, 

 only a narrow opening is visible to the north-east. The 

 Government has now rightly reserved the land close around 

 the cove, but about a generation ago a few acres (perhaps 30) 

 near the landing-place were partly cleared and cultivated ; 

 hence there are a few cherry-trees, and a few garden 

 flowers run wild, together with some other trees that do not 

 belong to the native bush. Nature, with prodigal hand, has 

 repaired the destruction of the timber ; and the tree-ferns are 

 abundant and beautiful. At a spring not far from the shore 

 the water is excellent. This is the place where Mr. Banks 

 heard the bell-birds, and Hawkesworth adopted his descrip- 

 tion (with little, changes that are not improvements) in a 

 passage as famous as any in the once well-known account of 

 the voyage. This is how it stands in the manuscript. Even 

 Sir Joseph Hooker, in printing it, has varied the wording : 

 " This morn I was awak'd by the singing of the birds ashore, 

 from whence we are distant not a quarter of a mile. The 

 numbers of them were certainly very great, who seem'd to 

 strain their throats with emulation. Perhaps their voices 

 were the most melodious wild musick I have ever heard, 

 almost imitating small bells, but with the most tuneable 

 silver sound imaginable, to which maybe the distance was 

 no small addition. On inquiring of our people, I was told 

 they had observed them ever since we have been here, and 

 that they begin to sing about one or two in the morn, and 

 continue till sunrise, after which they are silent all day, like 

 our nightingales." 



