CHAP. XVIII.] BAY OF ISLANDS. 257 



capital of New Zealand, and that the harbour 

 which offers the greatest facilities for assembling 

 around it a large agricultural population, and which 

 possesses the easiest communication by land as well 

 as by water with the surrounding country, has the 

 best chance of ultimate success. Now, the Bay of 

 Islands possesses none of these advantages : the 

 country which surrounds the harbour consists al- 

 most entirely of hills, which are steep, although not 

 of any great height, and alternating with ravines, 

 which continue far inland. These hills are formed 

 of a yellow argillaceous stone, and a basaltic rock, 

 and it is only in the narrow ravines that there is a 

 little fertile soil. Even where the coast-hills were 

 formerly covered with forest, it has now disap- 

 peared, and is only met with some miles inland. 

 Towards the harbour these hills form diminutive 

 bays, inaccessible from the land. The different 

 parts of the harbour are separated by arms of the 

 sea, so that the construction of roads to connect 

 them with each other, and with the interior, is 

 impossible. There is, besides, scarcely sufficient 

 room in any of the bays even for a moderate-sized 

 town, unless placed on the side of a steep hill. 

 The only exception to the mountainous character 

 of the place is the table-land extending from the 

 Waitangi towards the Hokianga and the Keri-keri. 

 But this district, as already observed, cannot be 

 ranked amongst the best portions of New Zealand, 

 VOL. i. s 



