164 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



some Buff-rumped Tits, Acanthiza reguloides, axnomg the saplings. 

 A welcome rest at the foot of the Minnie Falls gave us the 

 opportunity to quench our thirst at the rushing stream, and 

 admire the tree-fern trunks clothed with their filmy covering of 

 Hymenophyllum. But onwards and upwards were our orders, 

 and shortly we reached the foot of " the Cascades," where a seat 

 has been thoughtfully provided under the shade of the fern trees, 

 so that visitors may watch the billows chasing one another down 

 " the Cascades " into the pool at their feet, only to rush away 

 immediately down the valley of Jack's Creek to augment the 

 Melbourne water supply. The original stream as it trickled into 

 the basin was icy cold, and was much appreciated after our climb. 

 Close by the fern Lomaria patersoni was found. It was now 

 necessary to climb the steep bank alongside •' the Cascades," but 

 we were soon at the top, and practically on the top of the 

 Dividing Range, about 1,700 feet above sea-level. This spot is 

 easily discernible from Melbourne, being situated at the foot of 

 a somewhat sudden descent in the main ridge of the Plenty 

 Ranges, eastward of Mount Disappointment. We now had to 

 follow the road alongside the aqueduct bringing the water from 

 Wallaby Creek for some five miles, but the road is good and 

 almost level, so that the task was not a difficult one had we not 

 been encumbered with so much collecting material, &c. The 

 aqueduct is a succession of graceful curves as it is carried on a 

 contour line along a spur of the range running in a north- 

 easterly direction, and at every turn one wonders what is beyond 

 the next curve. The first mile or so passes through good forest 

 country. Our attention was directed to the curious Acacia 

 spinescens growing alongside the track ; presently, at a bend of 

 the road, some fine specimens of the Mint-tree, Prostanthera 

 lasiantha, were noticed in full bloom. Ferns of various kinds 

 were seen as we headed several good gullies. Some fine 

 Eucalyptus saplings, which must have been fully 120 feet high, 

 attracted attention, and we were afterwards assured that these 

 trees were not more than sixteen years old, which will give some 

 idea of the rapidity of growth in these mountain regions. The 

 soil was of a rich ferruginous colour and of great depth where 

 exposed by the cuttings for the aqueduct. Presently, owing to 

 the ravages of bush fires, the country became more open, and 

 extensive views to the eastward were obtained, revealing two 

 prominent mountain peaks, probably in the vicinity of Marys- 

 ville. Fine specimens of the hill tree-fern, Alsophila australis, 

 stood out prominently from the tangle of bracken covering the 

 hillsides, looking like so many circular tables standing on a 

 green carpet. But the afternoon was close and warm, and it was 

 necessary to try the qualities of the aqueduct water several times ; 

 however, about five o'clock the welcome sound of a southerly 



