THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 
times brought us very fine cray-filh, equal to our large!! 
lobfters, and cuttle filli, which they eat themfelves. 
Infetfts are very rare. Of thefe, we only faw two forts 
of dragon-flies, fome butterflies, fmall grafhoppers, feveral 
forts of fpiders, fome fmall black ants, and vaft numbers 
of fcorpion flies, with whofe chirping the woods refound. 
The only noxious one is the fand-fly, very numerous here, 
and almoft as troublefome as the mufquitoe ; for we found 
no reptile here, except two or three forts of fmall harmlefs 
lizards *. 
It is remarkable, that, in this extenfive land, there fhould 
not even be the traces of any quadruped, only excepting a 
few rats, and a fort of fox-dog, which is a domeftic animal 
with the natives. 
Neither is there any mineral worth notice, but a green 
jafper or ferpent-ftone, of which the New Zealanders make 
their tools and ornaments. This is efteemed a precious 
article by them ; and they have fome fuperftitious notions 
about the method of its generation, which we could not 
perfectly underhand. It is plain, however, that wherever 
it may be found (which, they fay, is in the channel of a 
large river far to the Southward), it is difpofed in the earth 
in thin layers, or, perhaps, in detached pieces, like our 
flints; for the edges of thofe pieces, which have not been 
cut, are covered with a whitifh cruft like thefe. A piece of 
this fort was purchafed, about eighteen inches long, a foot 
broad, and near two inches thick; which yet feemed to be 
only the fragment oka larger piece. 
The natives do not exceed the common ftature of Euro- 
* In a feparate memorandum-book, Mr. Anderfon mentions the monftrous animal of 
the lizard kind, defcribed by the two boys after they left the illand. 
VoL. I. X 
153 
1777. 
February. 
peans; 
