whose placid surface, now broken into a thousand ripples, as it shivers beneath 

 the touch of the passing breeze, laden with sweet perfume, collected from the 

 thorny Discaria, the formal solitary Cordyline, or the creamy bells of the 

 brown-leaved Epacris. Now perhaps behind a favouring flax bush, we watch 

 the visitors that dot the Surface of the water (amongst them, the Black 

 Widgeon and variegated Shoveller were rarely to be seen) and observe some 

 early flapjrters skimming along in hot pursuit of their insect prey. Crossing 

 towards the higher stony ground over patches of gizzard-stones, and many a 

 bleached bone, crumbling in decay, of the giant Moa, that tells a tale of days 

 philosophers may dream of; perhaps the sprightly lark, with lively chirrup, 

 mounts from its freckled eggs, or the banded Dotteril flies round with warning 

 note, whilst its grey-clad young hide cunningly behind some stick or stone ; or 

 red-billed Terns gather round in screaming flocks, returning from a blackened 

 patch of new-burnt ground, that stretches far out on the plains, whilst 

 from many a beak dangles the writhing lizard ; or maybe the slowly 

 repeated twit, twit, of the red-breasted Plover chimes in, as it sidles 

 slyly off with alternate run and halt, nor could you find its slight grassy 

 nest till half a dozen times the ground had been stepped over. The 

 rock-bound gully reached (the heights above, as New Year's day came 

 round, ablaze with crimson Rata flowers), from the swift stream below, 

 amidst its noisy brawling with the rocks, arose the plaintive whistle of the 

 Blue Duck, as with soft-fringed bill it explored each little foaming eddy ; or 

 scrambling through the scrub, we might observe, on the rifted top of a huge 

 lifeless tree, the great Black Shag, perched motionless ; beneath, Bell-bnds, 

 with noisy blustering flutter, seek the konini, clinging to its brittle sprays, 

 extract the honey of the pendant flowers; or high up, clear into the golden 

 glow of sunshine, ascends the glistening Tui, discharging a whole volley of 

 strange sounds ; or perhaps from the rocky bush, the green-clad Parroquet 

 descends, its harsh note repeated rapidly ; where sand-flies gather thickest and 

 irritate the rambler with their dusky swarms, the Fly-catchers, pied and black, flit 

 around, then perching, spread their fan-like tails with twittering chatter, 

 whilst from a bare branch above, the strong-billed Kingfisher keeps watch 

 above the gurgling creek. Then we might note where the small striped Wren 

 crept round the lichen-covered trunk, or moss-clothed branches of some 

 spreading shrub, or the grey warbler (Piripiri) with quivering notes fluttered 

 near its cosy, dome-shaped . nest ; perhaps on a huge blackbirch the Kaka 

 might be seen rending down the bark in long ribbon strips, to reach the insect 

 dainties that lay housed beneath ; or, with rapid flapping wing, the Pigeon 

 seeking the straight-stemmed Kohi, whilst concealed by the rising tiers of 

 leafy canopy, the bronze-winged Cuckoo whistled from the topmost bough. 

 Emerging from the bush's dusky light, into the full glare of noon, we might 

 perhaps have seen the Quail-hawk, rapidly ascending with spiral flight, till it 

 appeared like a dark speck against the cloudless sky, its shrill jarring scream 

 distinctly heard the while. Descending through groves of formal Ti palms, 

 the steep, stone^paved terraces of the great river that rushes in milky streams 

 below, the large Qrey Cull might perhaps be found feasting on the carcase of 

 a sheep, stretched on a patch of dark-green tutu ; or hard by the margin of 

 the sandy spit, the little Qull was perched neat and trim m any quakeress, 

 whilst the Black Stilt, with its uneasy cry of pink, pink, settled a few yards 

 onwards, to lead us from its grouching young, or the Crook-billed Plover 

 gcuttlpd slowly off with outstretched wing, Those less common birds, the 

 great White Crane, Avocet, and Spoonbill Duck were seen at rarer intervals. 

 Now the scene is changed, and so thoroughly ; it seems almost like a 

 dream that such things were. The wooded gulleys denuded of timber, show 

 amidst blackened stumps, some isolated shrubs, still green, of olearea, panax, or 



