TowNSON. — On Vegetation of Westport District. 395 



had arranged for a fresh expedition next day, so I once more 

 forded the Buller on horseback, and with a son of Mr. Win's 

 left the Owen Junction for the deserted township situated close 

 to the foot of Mount Owen. We loaded our outfit on to a pack- 

 horse and walked the eight miles over a very indifferent road 

 which traverses Baigent's run, and crosses and recrosses the 

 Owen River. On the marshy lands through which we passed I 

 saw great quantities of Bidhinella hookeri, but I could not find 

 time to examine the flat. We took up our quarters at the old 

 Enterprise Hotel, which contained the furniture and fittings, 

 which had never been interfered with since the house had been 

 abandoned many years ago when the Owen reefs duffered out. 

 It afforded us an ideal camping-place, and we had a paddock 

 also for the horse. We got on our Avay by starlight in the morn- 

 ing, passing the ruined huts and batteries, and by sunrise were 

 well up the lower spurs of the mountain. My attention was 

 first arrested by the curious little orchis, Adenochilus gracilis, 

 which grows amongst the cushions of moss between the Fagus 

 roots, at an elevation of about 1,000 ft. In the scrub belt 

 Olearia lacunosa was conspicuous, but I could not spend much 

 time at that level for fear of fog invading the higher regions. 

 On leaving the subalpine forest the climbing for some dis- 

 tance was mostly done on hands and knees, owing to the 

 steepness of the spur and the slippery nature of the surface. 

 Here Epilobi^im vernicosum was in bloom, and formed the most 

 striking feature of the flora, in conjunction with Myosotis concinna. 

 Veronica linifola formed bright-purple patches amongst the rocks, 

 and a peculiar form of Aciphylla with flaccid unarmed leaves 

 proved of great service in affording good hold for our hands on 

 the steep spurs. Erechtites glabrescens and Cotula pijrethri folia 

 giew on the middle slopes, and at an altitude of from 3,000 ft. 

 to 5,000 ft. I gathered Angelica decipiens, Cardaniine latisiliqua, 

 and Ranunculus geraniifolius, whilst amongst the fissures of 

 the rock Ranunculus insignis and Colobanthus canaliculatus were 

 not uncommon. These, together with Coprosma cuneata and 

 C. repens, Euphrasia cheesemanii, Gnaphaliuni microphyllum, 

 Notothlaspi australe, Veronica armstrongii, and Poranthera alpina, 

 made up a very interesting collection. At an elevation of 

 4,500 ft. Cystopteris fragilis was growing under the shelter of the 

 cliffs, and from that point on to the summit, 6,100 ft., was the 

 most difficult travelling which I had encountered. The forma- 

 tion was crystalline limestone, which was fissured and channelled 

 and riddled with caves, in which the snow still lay at midsummer, 

 and the surface was cut about in such a way as to compel us to 

 travel with great caution. 



It may not be out of place to quote from a magazine article 



