Ill 



The Southern Seas 45 



grand wooded hills ; wild masses of rock bursting 

 out from the green. A marvellous trachyte hill away 

 to the south. 



2T,rd, Wednesday. — With Judge Fenton to the 

 hot springs on the other side of the island. One of 

 the grandest forest scenes that I ever looked on. 

 The bald cliffs of the strange trachyte hill gleaming 

 pink and white above the tender green of the tea- 

 tree scrub, on our left ; on our right, tier beyond 

 tier, spur beyond spur, of grandly wooded ranges, 

 lovely violet ranges sleeping in the sunshine in the 

 distance. The fantastic rocks on the higher crests 

 grew quainter and quainter as we advanced. Suddenly 

 a wide valley — swamp, and flax, and tree-ferns fifty 

 feet high — leading down to bright sand-heaps ; be- 

 yond, the lovely dark green sea, dotted with masses 

 of red and white rock. After a perfectly awful 

 struggle in the swamp, without one breath of air, we 

 were so done that we had to give it up — for this time. 



2/\th, Thursday. — From Waryaparapara to Port 

 Abercrombie along the deeply indented cliffs of 

 scoria, evidently vomited from a crater. Landed 

 on a bluff, which we climbed to inspect a wonder- 

 ful ' rookery ' of gannets. The young birds, half 

 grown, were prettily spotted, black and white, 

 like a northern diver. The Captain, who was the 

 first up, was fiercely assaulted ; the old birds flew 

 at him like bulldogs ; he was severely pecked, but 

 beat a gallant retreat, with his legs all holes and 

 his breeks in tatters. The young ones were vicious 



