CHAP. XXIII.] 



315 



CHAPTER XXIII. 



River Waipa Mission-Station of Otawao. 



IN the evening we arrived at the banks of the Waipa, 

 and were welcomed in the house of an Englishman, 

 a trader and old settler. The river was swollen by 

 the late rains, and had risen about eight feet above 

 its usual level. The banks being elevated, this made 

 no difference in its breadth, which was here about 

 fifty yards. Its average depth was now from one 

 and a half to two fathoms ; but even in dry seasons 

 a boat can go up ten or twelve miles higher than 

 this place. The valley itself has little slope, and 

 the average velocity of the river cannot be sufficient 

 to hinder boats from going against the stream : its 

 velocity per second I found to be nearly two feet and 

 a half. The banks consisted of a stiff loamy earth, 

 with layers of sand, but without any fragments of 

 rocks. All the surrounding country is flat, and of 

 the most promising description for the growth of 

 grain. Our English host had a quantity of tobacco 

 hung up to dry, which he had grown here : it was 

 of an excellent quality, and the rich soil and humid 

 climate seem to be well adapted for the cultivation 

 of this plant. 



