172 IOWA STUDIES IN NATURAL HISTORY 
Although we were in no serious danger, the continuous and 
violent motion was exceedingly tiresome even to those who were 
not seasick and we soon had enough of it. 
In the evening the ‘‘survivors,’’ meaning those not down with 
seasickness, had an enjoyable time around the piano in the lounge. 
The Britisher enjoys singing and the Colonials on the Makura were 
no exception. Some of them were first-class vocalists and there 
was a good accompanist at the piano. I was surprised at the 
number of old time American favorites which seemed familiar to 
them—‘‘Suwanee River,’’ ‘‘My Old Kentucky Home,’’ ‘‘John 
Brown’s Body,’’ ‘‘We Are Tenting Tonight on the Old Camp 
Ground,’’ ‘‘The Vacant Chair,’’ ‘‘Dixie,’’ ‘‘Hail, Columbia,’’ and 
a lot of others. We really had a jolly time, although it was hard 
to keep on our feet, as the vessel reeled her way over and between 
the big seas. 
By daylight we sighted some of the out-lying islands of North 
New Zealand, more or less in the lee of the land. By noon we 
were in the great Hauraki Gulf which deeply penetrates and al- 
most bisects the North Island of New Zealand, and ends in the 
beautiful landlocked harbor of Auckland, with sufficient depth of 
water to enable the biggest trans-Pacific liners to go up to the 
extensive series of docks on the sea front of the metropolis of the 
Dominion of New Zealand. 
We passed in sight of Great Barrier Island, where the wreck 
of the ‘‘Wiltshire’’ was breaking up. We heard of this disaster 
during the voyage. It seems that a captain had in some way lost 
his bearings during a severe storm and foggy weather and the 
vessel had been caught in the set of an unexpected current and 
piled up on the rocky coast of Great Barrier. I afterward secured 
a good photograph of the wreck which was a frightful one as the 
big, new ‘‘ Wiltshire,’’ a fine steel ship, was actually broken in 
two, the two halves being separated as cleanly as by a cleaver and 
lying side by side on the rocks. By what seemed little less than 
a miracle no lives were lost although great difficulty was ex- 
perienced in getting a line ashore. I was told that one brave 
fellow jumped into the icy sea which raged around the stricken 
ship and the ugly rocks of that very rugged coast and succeeded 
in getting a line ashore through the breakers, a feat that seems 
impossible to one who has witnessed the fury of these breakers 
and knows the sheer rocky coast at this place. Others on shore 
helped him, however, and they fastened the end of the line high 
