314 IOWA STUDIES IN NATURAL HISTORY 
from the mountain attest this heavy precipitation, and since they 
are fed by the melting snow a high percentage of them is perma- 
nent. However, little or no snow is carried over from year to 
year. 
It is gratifying to know that the Egmont area has been made 
a reservation with hotels and guides for tourists under govern- 
ment supervision, and a wise policy of conservation of its natural 
beauty, we were told, has been adopted. With the mountain top 
as a center, a circle with a radius of six miles has been drawn, 
and along this circumference, a road has been established; several 
well kept roads lead from this periphery to convenient points and 
rest houses nearer the base of the cone whence ascent is begun on 
foot. 
The Taranaki district because of its heavy rainfall is better 
adapted for dairying than for sheep farming. Dairy factories 
are numerous, and their products are famous. The land is nearly 
all in small holdings, and large sheep runs common elsewhere are 
absent. This makes for a denser population with the accompany- 
ing advantages; one of them worthy of special mention is the fine 
roads of the district partially maintained by a system of tolls 
collected every few miles along the way. These remarks are not 
meant to east any reflection on roads elsewhere in New Zealand; 
in fact, it was a source of constant surprise to find such uniformly 
good roads in so new a country with an average population density 
of only ten or twelve per square mile. 
WELLINGTON AND ITS ENVIRONS 
Wellington, the capital of New Zealand, is located at the 
southern extremity of North Island. Its latitude, 41°17’, is almost 
the same as that of Iowa City except that one is south and ihe 
other is north. It has a population of about 103,000, and besides 
being the seat of government it is the location of Victoria College, 
beautifully situated on the hills overlooking the city and harbor. 
The new Parliament building is architecturally attractive, being 
constructed of very pleasing types of granite and marble trans- 
ported from the north end of South Island, just across Cook 
Strait. The Town Hall is another fine edifice, and the business 
district is substantial and handsome. The place has an air of 
prosperity, and there is a large volume of business. . Lambton 
Quay, the main street, is no longer the quay but is now separated 
