45 



100 feet in height. Some of them are coraline, and 

 at the caves alluded to I saw pieces of coral embedded 

 in them. Most of the land passed through was fertile, 

 and in many parts suited for coffee growing. Good pas- 

 ture abounds everywhere, and this part of the country 

 is well adapted for rearing cattle, horses, and sheep. 



An old heathen temple exists at Nadrau, the 

 only one I saw in .Fiji, but it is far gone to ruin. 

 We stayed at this place a day or two and then went 

 on to na Babuca, on the Wai ni Loa (or Black river), 

 a branch of the Wai ni Mala. After crossing the 

 Siga Toka we ascended the cliff on its east side by a 

 narrow path. We subsequently proceeded up a narrow 

 valley, the path running along the bed and by the 

 side of a canal, made with some ingenuity and much 

 labour by the natives on the steep, rocky side of the 

 valley to irrigate dalo beds. About a mile or so in a 

 straight line from Nadrau we came upon some marshes 

 among which the Wai ni Mala has its course. Then 

 on we passed through some flat park-like country, 

 and entered the primeval forest near the village 

 of Wai Dra-dra. At this village the inhabitants of 

 Nadrau grow their provisions, as yams, bananas, 

 land dalo, &c. As at Vienunga, a portion of the 

 forest is annually felled for the purpose of making 

 new plantations. The journey hence to Babuca was 

 the most pleasant that I made while in Fiji. The 

 path was through the virgin forests, well shaded from 

 the sun, either level or gradually descending. Here I 

 made a good collection of rare ferns and other plants. 

 The timber trees usually seen in such localities 

 abounded. On the way we passed some agglomerate 

 and basaltic rocks, but the sedimentary kinds were 

 most common. The soil was of excellent quality, and 

 suited for growing either coffee, cinchona, or tea, the 



