BY D. MAWSON. 403 



It may be said, therefore, that when we commenced work 

 in the Group previous knowledge of their geological features 

 was not only very partial, but also to some extent unreliable. 

 As our work progressed, however, the evidence (geological and 

 biological) we were able to collect demonstrates the great 

 interest that attaches to the Group as an important factor in 

 elucidating the past history of, at an}-- rate, this portion of the 

 Pacific, and should be of service in settling that much debated 

 subject — the history of coral reefs. 



GEOGEAPHICAL FEATURES. 



Omitting the Santa Cruz Islands, often geographically 

 considered a continuation of the main New Hebrides Group, 

 the belt of islands under consideration stretches for a length of 

 550 miles in a N.N.W. direction, between Aneityum 169° 51' 

 E. long., 20° 15' S. lat. and North Island of the Torres Group 

 165° 40' E. long., 13° 10' S. lat. 



Hunter Island, an active volcano 180 miles to the S.W. by S. 

 of Aneityum, and Matthew Island in the same direction, but 

 30 miles nearer, are to be considered as representing geologically 

 a southerly continuation of the belt. 



In relation to neighbouring islands, a reference to the map will 

 show the New Hebrides Group to lie more or less centrally 

 placed, with New Caledonia to the S.W. distant about 190 miles, 

 Viti Levu of the Fiji Group about 400 miles to the east, and 

 San Cristoval of the Solomon Islands about 300 miles to the 

 north-west. 



Amongst the islands of the New Hebrides proper (Plate xxvii.) 

 there are twelve larger islands varying in size from Espiritu 

 Santo with an area of approximately 1500 sq. miles, to Aneityum 

 with an area of approximately 40 sq. miles; of smaller islands 

 there are about 18, averaging a little over 5 sq. miles; in 

 addition there are innumerable small flat coral islands to 

 be considered only as portions of the larger islands around 

 which they are distributed. The archipelago preserves a 

 general N.N.W. direction, along which the factors are arranged 



