NEW ZEALAND 



Attd wild animals that have been introduced there hav«; 

 multiplied and thriven in a remarkable degree. For 

 example, sheep flourish so that mutton and wool have long 

 been two of the leading exports ; and rabbits multiplied so 

 rapidlj' that they became a pest, and farmers had to fight 

 them with traps, poisou and barbed wire fences, but uovv 

 they are turned to some account by exporting by the ship- 

 load their dressed bodies in a frozen condition to England. 

 Many excellent varieties of timber trees, such as beech, 

 pine and cedar, are found in the forests. Flax is a native 

 plant, from the fibre of which the Maoris made blankets 

 and clothing. American and European cereals, vegetables 

 and fruits have been introduced, and they flourish 

 remarkably. The water-cress, introduced bj^ accident 

 probably, increased so fast that it threatened to choke half 

 the streams. The sweetbriar, another invader, grows 

 tall enough, it is said, to arch over the head of a man on 

 horseback, and has extended its domain so rapidly that it 

 has become one of the principal vegetable pests of the 

 country. The resin of the Kauri, a native gum tree, is 

 one of the chief exports. It is used in the manufacture of 

 oil varnishes and also as a substitute for amber. Insect 

 life is less prevalent than in Europe or America. 



During the early years of the nineteenth century 

 whaling and trading vessels came in increasing numbers, 

 but no event of importance occurred till the arrival of the 

 missionaries in 1814. It became known that the Maoris 

 were a very superior race of savages and thus attracted 

 Christian missionaries. The leader of these was Samuel 

 Marsden, the Chaplain of New South Wales. The apostle 

 to the Maoris was a plain, unassuming, kindly man, who 

 made no claim to scholarship, brilliancy, wealth or rank, 

 but had a practical knowledge of human nature and earnest 

 zeal. 



While returning to Sydney from a visit to England in 

 1809, ^e noticed on the ship a brown-skinned ragged man, 



