president's address — SECTION c. 99 



is definitely proved that no such elevation took place, then the land 

 connection must have been in the late Mesozoic, for there is, I believe, 

 in New Zealand a complete stratigraphical conformable sequence 

 from rocks that contain Cretaceous fossils to the youngest tertiary 

 sediments. Careful work in connection with Messrs. R. Speight 

 and C. A. Cotton in the typical district of North Canterbury has 

 made us of one mind in this matter, and has caused us, at first with 

 diffidence, but afterwards as work progressed with confidence, to 

 oppose the views of Haast, Hutton, Hector, and Park. At first 

 sight this may appear a conflict against the united opinion of older 

 geologists, who have devoted much time to the elucidation of New 

 Zealand geology. Such is, however, not really the case, for although 

 each observer has broken up the series that we believe to be con- 

 formable into several divisions, yet each observer has put these 

 divisional planes at a different horizon in the series from all of the 

 others. We are therefore more in agreement with each of the 

 geologists mentioned than is any one of them with the others. 



If our view of the New Zealand Stratigraphy is adopted, the 

 northward extension of New Zealand must have been in the late 

 Mesozoic or in the Pleistocene. Would the former sufficiently 

 account for the present distribution of flora and fauna ? I think 

 not, for it is well known that the Cainozoic flora of New Zealand is 

 quite fundamentally different from that of the present day. 



We are compelled, then, to believe that this continental 

 expansion took place in quite late geological times. It is for bio- 

 logists to say whether the great differences between the islands in 

 faunal and floral characters could have been developed within that 

 time. But in making any statements about this matter a liberal 

 allowance must be made for latitudinal effect and for local climatic 

 peculiarities as well as soil. 



Within New Zealand itself the flora of Mt. Egmont differs as 

 much from that of Cape Farewell as does the flora of the Bluff 

 from the Auckland Islands or the North Cape from that of the 

 Kermadecs. 



This somewhat random discussion ends with little more cer- 

 tainty than that with which it began. It appears, however, that — 



1. Bathymetrical, structural and petrographical character- 

 istics support the idea that the real boundary of the south-west 

 Pacific passes through New Zealand, Kermadec, Tonga, Fiji, New 

 Hebrides, Solomon, and on to the Admiralty Islands. 



2. That this practically coincides with biological knowledge 

 as to plant and animal distribution within the area. 



3. That the land connection or approximation took place in 

 the late Mesozoic or in the Pleistocene, probably in both. 



4. That the eastern Pacific islands are different in structure, 

 nature and origin from the lands on the line of islands mentioned, 

 and that they have derived their fauna and flora by chance 

 migrants from them. 



EXPLANATION OF MAP. 



Platk I. 



Map of South Pacific, showing structure lines suggested by various authors. 



