1902.J 193 



small beetles, including some interesting little Histerides, 

 Staphylinidce, Scoly tides, Cossonidce, and several very remarkable 

 minute forms allied to Lcemophlceus, &c. The beetles which usually 

 accompany commerce all over the world were to be found in plenty at 

 Noumea, and such familiar things as Calandra oryzes, Cathartus 

 advena, Triboliumferruqineum, Typhcea fumata, Silvaniis surinamensis, 

 Necrobia ntfipes and rujicollis, with two or three species of Carpophilus, 

 could be picked up ad libitum on the whitewashed walls of the houses. 

 But even with these, I could only make up 130 species of GoJeoptera 

 during my three visits to Noumea, though it was probably not the 

 best time of year for these insects. Hemiptera, Hymenoptera, and 

 Orthoptera were not abundant, but a few nice forms in each of 

 these Orders were obtained. 



We left Noumea on June 9th for our first trip to the New 

 Hebrides, passing round the south end of the island inside the great 

 barrier-reef, and out by the so-called " Havannah Passage " into the 

 ocean. The scenery here was of a most curious character, a well- 

 wooded belt of low land next the shore, rising into steep barren- 

 looking hills, exposing wide stretches of bare soil of singularly bright 

 red, chocolate, and ochre-yellow colours. On the hillsides, as well as 

 on the low islets inside the reef, were numerous groves of the native 

 pine-tree, Araucaria Cookii, which is certainly one of the ugliest trees 

 in the world, from its rigidly upright formal growth and scanty 

 foliage, of dark, almost black colour. When first seen by Captain 

 Cook, in rather thick weather, these trees were even mistaken for 

 basaltic columns ! Next day, Aueityum* and Tanna, the two southern- 

 most islands of the New Hebrides, were sighted, the smoke from the 

 active volcano on the latter island being visible in the evening. On 

 the 11th we coasted round Tanna, the scenery of which, at a little 

 distance, is not unlike that of NoTth Devon on an enlarged scale, 

 being a succession of steep, rounded, grassy hills, intersected with 

 beautifully wooded deep valleys or "combes," and rising into an 

 irregular group of peaked mountains about 3,000 feet high. I had 

 no opportunity of landing on Tanna on this occasion, but on the 

 morning of the 12th we anchored in the fine landlocked harbour of 

 Port Fila (or Vila) in the south coast of Efate or Sandwich Island, 

 the largest of the Southern New Hebrides. This is the most im- 

 portant settlement in the islands, and boasts of a few well-built 

 houses and stores, and even of a sort of hotel. The land round the 



* The names of Islands, &c, in the New Hebrides are spelt according to the Admiralty 

 Charts.- J. J. W. 



