FIJI-NEW ZEALAND EXPEDITION 237 
ealls. There were many rhododendrons, not in bloom at this time, 
which doubtless make a noble display in summer. Mr. Stead 
pointed out a kind of miniature water-lily that was in bloom and 
entirely new to me; it had a long, smooth leaf*and a deep, vase- 
like blossom, white with many conspicuous black stamens arranged 
in a circle inside. 
At lunch we met Mrs. Stead, a very charming hostess, who pre- 
sided with the easy dignity which makes English hospitality so 
pleasing wherever it is encountered. After lunch Mr. Stead 
showed us the treasures of his New Zealand bird collection, the 
most complete one which I saw in the Dominion. He pointed out 
the curious fact that many New Zealand birds were characterized 
by a marked fiuffiness about the feathers of the ramp. He showed 
a species of duck in which the young female had the plumage of 
a male and afterward took on the proper dress of the mature 
female; the only case of the kind I have seen. There was a fine 
series of kiwi skins illustrating the several species of this strange 
wingless form, many yellow-wattled and blue-wattled ‘‘crows,’’ 
parrots, parakeets, etc., in fact, a nearly complete collection of the 
birds of New Zealand, all in the best of condition and arranged 
in suitable trays that slid into metal boxes where they would be 
safe from insect pests. 
Mr. Stead remarked that if an arrangement for exchange with 
the museum could be made, he would add some of his own speci- 
mens to the series sent to Iowa. Later on he took me in his auto 
to the tram-car which quickly returned me to my hotel in time 
for afternoon tea with Dr. and Mrs. Chilton. Here was another 
home of the finest type of culture such as one finds among the 
Oxford University instructors. 
August 7 was cold and clear and I took a walk, with my 
eamera, through part of the city. There is a noble monument to 
Captain Scott, the Antarctic explorer who lost his life after reach- 
ing the South Pole. It stands with a background of willow trees 
near the banks of the river Avon and is a very well executed 
portrait statue in white marble showing the noted explorer in his 
polar costume. At night a search-light is turned on the monu- 
ment with very fine effect, making it stand out sharply against 
the dark background of trees. 
All of the more important Antarctic explorers are well known 
here as most of them made Lyttelton, the port of Christchurch, 
their point of departure for the unknown region of the Antarctic. 
