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PART 11.

AREA, POPULATION, TRADE, &c., OF THE PRINCIPAL GROUPS OF ISLANDS.

(BY MR. W. SEED, SECRETARY OP CUSTOMS.)

HorN-. Mb. Vogel,— In obedience to your directions, conveyed to me in Mr. Fox's letter from Christchurch, dated the 20th ultimo, I have had a map of the Pacific Ocean made from the Admiralty sheet charts. In order to save time I had this done by tho photo-lithographic process : it would have taken a long time to construct a chart of this size by hand. I have also collated all the information I could procure as to the area, population, and trade of the principal South Sea Island groups, and of the other tropical islands named in Mr. Fox's letter. This information is appended hereto. For facility of reference I have prefixed to it a table showing the area, population, imports, and exports of the islands referred to where statistics of this nature have been procurable ; as also a tabic showing the latitude aud longitude within which the principal groups of islands in the Pacific are situated. I feel that the information here presented is most meagre and incomplete; but it is all I can procure at present, after most careful search in the library of the General Assembly, and in other directions where I thought it likely such information might exist. The general descriptions of the islands have been mainly taken from Findlay's South Pacific Directory ; but some of them have been taken from Admiralty Hydrographic notices, from McCulloch's Commercial Dictionary, from Chambers's Encyclopaedia, from missionary notices and reports, and from various books of travel. The statistics have been gathered principally from the Statesman's Tear Book for 1873, the American Year Book for 1869, and from the reports from Her Majesty's Consuls, which are printed annually and laid before Parliament. "With regard to the government of the various islands, so far as I can ascertain, ail the groups that are situated north of the equator (with the exception of tho Sandwich Islands, which have a settled form of constitutional government, the Marshall Islands about which I can gather no information whatever, and the Kingsmill group, part north and part south of the line, and which has no form of government) are either claimed by or are in the possession of some civilized power. The Philippines, Ladrones, Palaos or Pelew, and the Caroline Islands are all Spanish possessions. The Galapagos belong to the republic of Ecuador. Of the islands in the South Pacific, the Society Islands, Paumotu or Low Archipelago, Loyalty Islands, New Caledonia, and New Hebrides are in the possession of or are claimed by the French. The Tongan Islands are governed by a King assisted by a Parliament of chiefs. Fiji can scarcely now be said to have a government; whilst all the rest are a kind of " no man's land," are without government, and are constantly torn by the debasing and savage wars of the petty chiefs inhabiting them. In relation to the question of annexing tho Samoan or other group of islands to New Zealand, I find that a small group in the Indian Ocean, the Seychelles, occupies the position of a dependency of the Mauritius, from which it is distant over 900 miles; there is, therefore, a precedent for distant islands becoming " dependencies of a dependency." The revenue of the Seychelles is principally derived from Customs duties. The duties on goods sent from Mauritius to Seychelles are carried to the credit of tho revenue of the dependency. Through this arrangement, which appears only lately to have been made, the Civil Commissioner, in his report to the Governor of Mauritius, dated 9th February, 1872, says: —" The settlement of the much-vexed question as to whether the Seychelles group is a burden to the parent colony or not is now happily solved." From this it would appear that the ordinary revenue of the group is sufficient to meet its expenditure without assistance from the Mauritius. In further relation to this question, it may be worthy of consideration whether the plan which is adopted in Ceylon for the government of the Native races inhabiting that island, would not furnish a I—A. 3a.

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useful model for framing a system of government for tho Polynesian Islands. "Whatever may be done with regard to the occupation of those islands, it is certain that one of the main questions to be considered in connection with that occupation will be, "How are the natives to be governed?" I have been led to refer to the case of Ceylon, because, in the course of looking up the information appended hereto, I came across a copy of the Governor's address on opening the session of the Legislative Council of that colony in September, 1872, in which reference is made to a " Village Communities Ordinance " and to an amendment which it was proposed to make in that Ordinance for the purpose of empowering Police Courts to try breaches of rules made by village communities where no village tribunals exist. The object of this Ordinance is stated to be, "To enable village communities to frame their own administrative regulations, and to enforce them in Police Courts in districts where it may be inexpedient to establish the village tribunals created by tho Ordinance of 1871." The importance of the occupation of some of tho Pacific Islands by Great Britain cannot be better set forth than by quoting the following passage from the letter addressed by the late Admiral "Washington to the Colonial Office in 1859, on the occasion of his being called upon by that department to furnish some information regarding the Fijis. He remarked, " But on looking into the subject I have been much struck by the entire want, by Great Britain, of any advanced position in the Pacific Ocean. "We have valuable possessions on either side, as at Vancouvers and Sydney, but not an islet or a rock in the 7,000 miles of ocean that separate them. The Panama and Sydney mail communication is likely to be established, yet wo have no island on which to place a coaling station, and where we could insure fresh supplies * * * and it may hereafter be found very inconvenient that England should be shut out from any station in tho Pacific, and that an enemy should have possession of Tongatabu, where there is a good harbour, within a few hundred miles of the track of our homewardbound gold ships from Sydney and Melbourne. Neither forts nor batteries would be necessary to hold the ground. A single cruising ship should suffice for all the wants of the islands. Coral reefs and tho hearty good will of the natives would do the rest." \v Seed 23rd December, 1873.

TABLE showing the POSITION of the principal GROUPS of ISLANDS in the PACIFIC OCEAN.

ISLANDS IN THE SOUTH PACIFIC OCEAN.

.SLANDS IN THE OEin 'ACIFIC. Be rEEH Names op Groups. Latitude. Longitude. Latitude. Longitude. Sandwich Islands Ladrono or Mariana Island ... Pelew Island Marshall Archipelago Gilbert Island Galapago Island Caroline Islands 18° 54, 12° 24, 6° 53, 4° 45, 3° 00' 1° 42, 1° 00' 154° 50' W. 144° 24' E. 134° 21' E. 165° 22' E. 172° 55' E. 89° 30' W. 137° 33'E. 23° 34' 20° 30' 8° 9' 11° 40' 1° 33' S. 1° 23' S. 11° 21' 164° 32' W. 146° 03' E. 134° 55' E. 172° 30' E. 177° 45' E. 91° 34' W. 162° 52' E.

Admiralty Islands ... Phccnix Islands New Ireland Now Eritain Solomon Islands Ellice Islands Marquesas Islands ... Charlotte or Santa Cruz Islands Louisado Archipelago Navigators' Islands ... New Hebrides Islands Low Archipelago Fiji Islands Society Islands New Caledonia Tonga Islands Cook's Islands Loyalty Islands 1° 57' 2° 41' 2° 46' 4° 4' 4° 36' 5° 29' 7° 53' 9° 57' 10° 58' 12° 53' 13° 30' 14° 09' 15° 42' 16° 11' 17° 59' 18° 02' 18° 05' 20° 25' 146° 49' E. 171° 8'W. 150° 33' E. 148° 17'E. 151° 55' E. 179° 15' W. 138° 43' W. 165° 41' E. 151° 03' E. 168° 00' AV. 166° 40' E. 124° 48' W. 176° 51'E. 148° 05' W. 162° 55' E. 173° 40' W. 157° 11' W. 166° 25' E. 2° 55' 4° 37' 4° 51' 6° 30' 12° 20' 10° 41' 10° 30' 12° 15' 11° 30' 15° 57' 20° 15' 25° 03' 19° 48' 17° 53' 22° 46' 22° 52* 24° 26' 22° 32' 147° 48' E. 174° 40' W. 153° 02' E. 152° 15' E. 162° 30' E. 176° 06' W. 140° 44' W. 167° 11' E. 154° 26' E. 178° 21' W. 170° 11' E. 148° 44' W. 178° 12' W. 152° 12' W. 167° 35' E. 179° 24' W. 171° 48' W. 168° 05' E.

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TABLE showing the AREA, POPULATION, and VALUE of IMPORTS and EXPORTS of the undermentioned Countries.

Tonga or Friendly Islands. The Tonga Archipelago is composed of at least 100 islands and islets, comprised between IS 0 and 02° S. lat., and 174° and 179' "W. long. The three islands of Tonga-tabu, Vavaoa, and Eoa arc alone of any extent, which is from fifteen to twenty miles in length. Seven others namely, Late, Tofua, Kao, Namuka, Lefuga, Eoa, and Haano, are from five to seven miles in their greatest extent. The rest are much smaller. Many of them are only banks of sand or coral, covered with some tufts of trees. Tofua, Kao, Late, and the two rocks of Hunga Hapa'i and Hunga Tonga, are sufficiently high to be distinguished at fifteen or twenty leagues off at sea. Eoa, Namuka, and Vavao are of a moderate height, Tonga-tabu, and all the rest are very low. The population of the Tonga Islands, as given by the missionaries in 1839, was 18,500 ; namely, Eoa, 200 ; Hapa'i, 4,000; "Vavao, 4,000; Keppel's Island, 1,000 ; Boscawen Island, 1,300 ; Tonga-tabu, 8,000. At that time about 4,500 of the natives were Christians; of whom 2,500 were church members. But a later missionary estimate made it very much more, about 50,000, but this is probably excessive (Erskine, p. 161). The group is divided into three Protestant missionary stations, Tonga-tabu, Hapa'i, and "Vavao, at each of which missionaries reside. Tonga-tabu Group. —This is the principal and southernmost group, taking its name from the best known and largest of the islands. It is of the form of an irregular crescent, whose convexity faces the south and the concavity the north, deeply indented by a lagoon of five miles broad and three miles deep. Immense reefs of coral extend six or eight miles off the island on all its north part, and form different channels, with a useful road for any ship that anchors hero. Many islets are disseminated on these corals ; the greater parts covered with trees. The island itself is nearly a dead level, with the exception of a few hillocks 30 or 40 feet high. Its highest point is 60 feet. Eoa, or Eooa, lies to the south-east of Tonga-tabu; a channel' of three leagues broad separates them. Tasman called it Middelburg. The island is about ten leagues in circuit, and is about 600 feet high. It is rocky and barren, and contains only about 203 inhabitants. Namuka Group. —The principal island of this group is that which gives it the name. Namuka is rather higher than the small surrounding islets, but still is low. It is composed of a steep, rugged, coral rock, 9 to 10 feet high, except where there are two sandy beaches ; defended, however, by coral reefs to seaward. In the centre of the island is a salt-water lake, without communication with the sea, and about one mile and a half broad. Cook found the island to be well cultivated, chiefly with yams and plantains, with bread-fruit and cocoa-nut trees interspersed. To the north and east of Namuka the sea is sprinkled with a vast number of small islands-. They lie scattered at unequal distances, and are in general as high as Namuka, but only from two to three miles to half a mile in length, and some less. Most of them are entirely clothed with trees, among which are many cocoa palms, and each forms a prospect like a beautiful garden placed in the sea. The Hapa'i Group is composed of four larger and numerous smaller islands, connected by coral reefs, so that they are considered by the inhabitants as but forming one island. They are all very low.' Lifuka is not above seven miles long, and in some places not above two or three broad. The east side of it, which is exposed to the trade wind, has a reef running to a considerable breadth from it, on which the sea breaks with great violence. The Kotoo Group may be almost considered as a portion of tho Hapa'i Group, as the distinction is not so well marked as in the others, being more or less connected together by coral reefs. The largest island of the group is called Kotoo, and is scarcely two miles long, and about the same breadth ; a coral reef surrounds it. Its N.W. extremity is as low as Hapa'i, and around it are eight other islands, as shown on the charts.

Area: Square Miles. Population. Value of Imports. Value of Exports. Sandwich or Hawaiian Islands jadrone Islands Caroline and Pelew Islands Navigators' Islands jow Archipelago or Paumotu Group 6,000 1,254 905 1,050 square kilometres, 6,600 square miles, 3,300 7,400 square kilometres, 1,175 square miles, 5871 62,959 5,500 28,000 34,000 (1871) 325,176 £ (1871) 378,413 (1871) 25,000 (1871) 45,000 ! 3,500 W Society Islands ... 170,000 (1870) 71,950 (1870) 98,735 5 21,000 (1871) 120,000 (1871) 90,000 Noit Indies (including British Guiana) square miles, 89,103 1,190,400 £ (1871) 6,310,173 £ (1871) 7,374,729 /eylon 24,454 2,405,287 (1871) 4,797,952 (1871) 3,634,853 Philippine Islands 65,100 4,319,269 •. of British produce, (1871) 463,359 (1870) 3,902,342 To Great Britain, (1871) 1,391,254 (1870) 5,464,183 "ava ... 51,336 16,452,168 rlauritius 676 C Census, 1871,} £ 316,042 j 193,491 (1871) 1,807,382 (1871) 3,053,054 * British Guiana 76,000 1,572,275 2,383,422

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Tofoa, or Toofoa, an active volcanic island, lies to the N.W. of Kotoo, in lat. 19° 45' S., long. 175° 3' AY., according to D'TJrville, and is about 2,800 feet high. A remarkable lake is said to exist on it, from which the islanders bring small black volcanic pebbles, which are much in request, to cover the graves of their friends. It is covered with trees to the summit, and is about five miles in diameter. Kao is a vast rock of a conical figure, and about 5,000 feet high, to the N.E. of Tofoa. Vavau Group. —This, which is the northernmost cluster, is one of the most important, as it is perhaps as much frequented as any. It lies seventy miles N.N.E. of the Hapa'i Group. Vavau is the principal island of the group. Latte, or Lette Island, lies to the west of the Vavau Group. It is a high island, formerly a volcano. The peak, 1,790 feet high, is in the centre of the island, from which the hill falls with a pretty gradual slope into the sea. The island is six or seven miles in circumference, and is sufficiently high to be seen at twenty leagues off. Amargura, or Fanoualsi, is the northernmost of the group. It is a barren spot. It is formed of two hills, the N.E. the highest, connected by a very low space, everywhere surrounded by rocky cliffs, except in two places on the west side. The following particulars regarding Tonga-tabu are extracted from Lieutenant Meade's account of the South Sea Islands, visited by him in 18G5, in H.M.S. " Curacoa:"— " The native population numbers from 9,000 to 10,000, all of whom profess Christianity. " The present King, whose name is George Trebon and title ' Tui Kanakubulu,' governs with the assistance of a Parliament of chiefs, and has reigned for twenty years. There are fifty-four Europeans in the island, who look to the Consular Agent in the Fijis." In Commodore "Wilkes's account of this island (1840), he states that "The natives cultivate yams, sweet potatoes, bananas, cocoa-nuts, bread-fruit, sugar-cane, shaddocks, limes, and the ti (Spondias dulcis) ; the pandanus is much attended to, and is one of their most useful trees, and of it all their mats are made ; a little corn is grown, and they have the paparo apple (Papaya) and water melon. The missionaries have introduced tho sweet orange from Tahiti, and a species of chirimoyer (Aunona). The botany of this island resembles that of the Samoan group. A species of nutmeg was found here, differing from either of the Samoan ones; tho trees were full of fruit and much larger • one of them was observed a foot and a half in diameter, and upwards of forty feet in height." Fiji. Admiral Washington, the late Hydrographer to the Admiralty, in his report dated 12th March, 1859, in reply to certain questions sent to him by the Colonial Office, states that the " Fiji Group" consists of some 200 islands, islets, and rocks, 1,900 miles N.E. of Sydney, and 1,200 north of Auckland; the two largest islands may be some 300 miles in circumference; 65 of the islets said to be inhabited. A proposition was made in 1858 by Thakombau, the present King of Fiji, to cede the sovereignty of the group to Great Britain. Tho British Government thereupon sent Colonel Smythe, 8.A., in December, 1859, as a special commissioner to inquire into the nature of the cession, and as to the desirability or otherwise of accepting it. Colonel Smythe, it will be remembered, reported that it was not advisable to accept this offer. Tho principal islands are, Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, Ovalau, Lakemba, Koro, Moala, Totoia, Vuna, Kandavau, Ngau, Vanua, Valavo, Vatata, and Yasawa; the following description of them is abridged from that given in Findlay's South Pacific Directory : — The Island of Viti Levu is the Largest of the Fijian group. The affix Levu means " great," thus Viti-Levu means Great Fiji. It is about thirty miles in length by fifty-five in breadth. Vanua Levu. —" Great Land" is the great northern island of the group ; its greatest length is about ninety-six miles from E.S.E. to W.N.W., and its average breadth may be about twenty-five miles. Ovalau is eight miles in length north and south, by seven miles in breadth east and west; it is of volcanic formation, and its rocks are composed of a conglomerate or pudding-stone; it is high and rugged throughout. The valleys only extend a short distance into the interior, and leave but little level ground ; they are, however, exceedingly fertile and well cultivated. Ovalau is the principal residence of the white men of the group. It possesses a fine harbour, Levuka, on its eastern side. It has always been the favourite residence of the whites, and must continue so to be from its central position with regard to the remainder of the group. Lakemba is the largest island of the eastern group. Its form is nearly round, with an extensive encircling reef. Lakemba is five miles from east to west by three miles north and south. Like the rest of this (the eastern) group, is of volcanic formation. The soil is similar to that of Vanua, composed of a dark red loam. Koro, or Goro, is considered by the natives one of the most fruitful islands of the group. It is a high island, though not so much so as the others, and from appearance would be susceptible of cultivation to its very top. The island is nine and three-quarter miles long by four miles wide. The produce of Koro is oil and tortoise-shell, and exceeds in quantity that of any other island of the group. Moala, or Monala, is of a triangular form, and may be about eighteen or twenty miles in circuit. It is mountainous and volcanic, about 2,000 feet high, and covered with wood. Totoia, is of a circular form, six miles in diameter, and when viewed from its peak presents a huge extinct crater, now full of ocean water, of thirty fathoms depth, over a space of three miles diameter; the wash of the tide and swell on the southern side has reduced the rim to low water level, while the ridge contains peaks nearly 1,200 feet above the sea, surrounding this large but to a vessel inaccessible basin. The island is surrounded by a barrier reef of the triangular form, twenty-two miles in circuit, the elbows of which are two miles off the south-west, the north-west, and the eastern projections of the island. Vuna is one of the principal islands of the group. Its length is twenty-five miles, aud breadth five miles; it rises gradually to a central ridge, tho height of which is 2,052 feet. The summit is

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generally covered with clouds. From its gradual rise and its surface being smoother, it is susceptible of a much higher state of cultivation than the other islands. The soil is a reddish loam, and it appears to be considered as the most fruitful of the islands. Kandavu is the south-westernmost of tho Fiji Islands ; it is twenty-five miles long, and throughout its whole length is high and mountainous, except a small part .at its centre, near Malatta Bay. The island is well covered with pine timber, resembling the New Zealand kauri pine, and most of the large canoes used in the Fiji Islands are built here. The people are industrious, and have abundance of provisions. , Vanua-Valavo is the largest of the group called the Exploring Isles; it is of a serpentine shape, and fourteen miles in length. Each island of this group has its own separate reef around its shore, and the whole are enclosed within an extensive reef, somewhat in the shape of a triangle, whoso sides are twenty-four miles in length. Vairti, or Nairti, is the largest of the Yasawa group, and rises to the height of 954 feet above the sea. Yasawa, or Ya-asaua, is the northernmost island of this group; it is very narrow, and about ten miles in length ; towards its southern end it rises to a peak 780 feet in height. Area. —According to Dr. Petermann's calculation the superficial area of the Fiji group is equal to that of Wales (7,397 English square miles), or eight times that of the lonian Islands. Productions. —Mr. Consul March, in his report for 18G9, in speaking of the capabilities of Fiji, says,—" The productions aud resources of Fiji have been described in previous reports ;it is sufficient, therefore, to state that these islands, rich and fertile, yield an almost endless variety of vegetable treasures. They abound in edible roots, medical plants, scents, and perfumes, and timber of various descriptions; whilst sugar, coffee, and tobacco grow most luxuriantly, and if cultivated would, I think, prove as remunerative as cotton." Dr. Socman's report to the Colonial Office, printed in the Appendix to " Correspondence relative to tho Fiji Islands," presented to Parliament in 1862, contains an elaborate description of the productions of Fiji. He remarks that " Colonial produce, properly so called, such as sugar, coffee, tamarinds, and tobacco, may be expected from Fiji in considerable quantities, as soon as Europeans shall have devoted their attention to the subject, since the plants yielding them, long ago introduced, flourish so well that a judicious outlay of capital might prove a profitable investment. The sugar-cane grows as it were wild in various parts of the group, and a purple variety, attaining 16 feet in height and a corresponding thickness, is cultivated to some extent. Coffee will one day rank amongst the staple products of the country, the mountain slopes of the larger islands, especially those of Viti Levu, Vanua Levu, and Kandavu, and, above all, those of the Valley of Namosi, seeming well adapted for its growth." Population. —Colonel Smythe in 1860 estimated tho native population at 200,000, and the permanent white residents at less than 200. Mr. Thurston, formerly Acting Consul at Fiji, in ISO 7 estimated the natives at 100,000 ; but this number must be considerably below tho mark, for in the report of the Australasian Wesleyan Missionary Society for the year ending March, 1873, there is a return given of 109,250 attendants on public worship. Mr. March in 1870 estimated the native population at 170,000. In 1868 the number of white settlers had increased to 1,288, and in 1870 to about 4,000, of whom three-fourths were British subjects. Notwithstanding the unsettled condition of Fiji, the progress of the group, especially in tho production of cotton, has been remarkable, as will be seen from the following statistics, taken from the commercial reports of the Consul for 1809 and 1870: — " In 18G5 the quantity of cotton exported was 2,400 cwt., valued at £9,300. In 1870 tho value was, of sea island cotton, £91,500; and of short staple cotton, £1,200; —total, £92,700. The total value of exports in 1870 was £95,735. The approximate total value of imports in that year was £71,950. Most of the articles were of English manufacture, and shipped from Australia and New Zealand. The imports from the latter place amounted to about 2,000 tons; and, judging by tho efforts there made to establish regular communication with the South Sea Islands, it is probable that tho present year (1871) will see the trade doubled, and competing successfully with that of Sydney, which port has hitherto supplied Fiji with the bulk of its requirements. The principal articles exported in 1870 were, — Cotton, Sea Island ... ... ... ... ... ... £91,500 Do., Short Staple ... ... ... ... ... ... 1,200 Cocoa-nut oil ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 4,950 Tortoise shell ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 260 Cottonseed ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 250 Kauri gum ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 100 Other articles ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 475 Total ... ... ... ... £98,735 This augmentation in the trade of Fiji is due to the increasing operations in cotton planting, and the continued immigration from the neighbouring colonies. The passenger lists of the vessels reported at the Consulate show that the white population in these islands received an accession of 1,035 souls during tho past twelve months (1870)." Navigatobs Islands. The following description of this group is by the Ecv. J. Powell, F.L.S., of the Samoan Mission :— " Samoa is the native name of tho Navigators Group, which lies between 13° 30' and 14° 20' S. lat., and 169° 24' and 172° 50' W. long. Its number of inhabited islands is ten-, with a population of about 31,700. It is 265 miles long, and includes an area 1,650 square miles. All tho islands are of

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volcanic origin, and contain several craters, the largest of which, if we except the harbour of Pangopango, Tutuila, is on Savaii. " The variety and beauty of the appearance of these islands almost baffle description. The effect upon visitors of a first sight of them is enchanting, nor is much of the enchantment lost after a long acquaintance with them. " The first island that comes in sight of voyagers arriving from tho eastward is Ta'u, the largest of tho three islands that constitute the group which the natives call Manu'a. It is about six miles long, four anS. a half broad, and sixteen in circumference, and contains 100 square miles. " About six miles west of Ta'u is the island of Olosenga. This is a very rocky island, three miles long, five hundred yards wide, and about 1,500 feet high. It contains twenty-four square miles. It is precipitous on every side, least so on the north-east, most on the north and south-west. On the latter side, about 200 feet from the shore, rises up a mural precipice 1,200 feet high. The principal village is situated, in times of peace, on the strip of land in front of this precipice. In times of war the people live on the mountain. " About two miles and a half off the eastern, point of the island, a volcanic eruption burst out from the deep ocean in September, 1860. " Ofu, the smallest of the three islands included in the Manu'an group, is neither so high nor so precipitous as Olosenga. It is separated from the latter by only a narrow, shallow strait, about a fourth of a mile wide. A double-pointed crag off its eastern extremity, together with the precipitous, craggy nature of Olosenga, give to the neighbourhood a remarkably romantic appearance. The population of the Manua'n.group is about 1,500. " Aunuu. —Sixty miles west of Ofu, is the island of Tutuila. A mile from Tutuila, off its south-east point, is the little island of Aunuu. This island is about five miles in circumference. Population, 200. " Tutuila is a most beautiful island. It is seventeen miles long, five wide, and sixty in circumference, and contains 2-10 square miles. Its population in 1866 was 3,948. It has a mountain range running along almost its entire length from east to west. Prom the main ridge spurs branch off north and south. The island appears to have been formed by a number of volcanoes, situated in a line extending in a direction from cast by north to west by south. As these have thrown up their burning lava and scoria, they have formed one united ridge, and many craters on both its north and south sides, ■with wide openings towards the sea. The spurs running down from the ridge are the sides of these craters, and near their junction with the main ridge there occur at intervals, along the island, mountains towering far above the ridge and spurs. Thus are formed mountains and ridges, slopes and valleys, and bays of varied forms and sizes, which, covered with the luxuriant vegetation which a moist tropical atmosphere produces, furnish scones of surpassing beauty. " Upolu is situated north-west by west of Tutuila, at a distance of about thirty-six miles. It is about forty miles long, thirteen broad, and one hundred and thirty in cirumference. It contains 560 square miles, and has a population of about 15,600. " Manono. —Two miles from the western point of Upolu, and encircled by its reef, is the island of Manono. It is nearly of a triangular shape, and less than five miles in circumference. It contains nine square miles. It has a mountain a few hundred feet high,'from whoso summit can be obtained a splendid view of Upolu and Savii. It is itself "one entire garden, in looking at which the eye can scarcely tire." It has a population of about 1,000. This island held a very extensive political supremacy over Upolu till the war of 1847-54, in which she lost that supremacy, and was obliged to take her place on a level with those over whom she had formerly exercised much despotic power. "Apolima is about two miles from Manono. It is a crater somewhat resembling a horse-shoe, while its depth may well suggest the idea of the hand with the fingers contracted, which is the meaning of the name. Its highest part is 472 feet above the sea. The population is about 200. " Savaii. —This island is the largest of the group. Its most eastern point is about ten miles from the western point of Upolo. It is about forty-eight miles long, twenty-two broad, and one hundred and fifty in circumference. It contains seven hundred square miles. It has a high mountain-chain running along its length, the highest point of which is more than 4,000 feet above the sea level. This is the edge of a large crater. The volcanoes which formed this island seem not to have been extinct so long as those which formed tho other islands of the group." The Native population of Samoa, at the beginning of 1872 was estimated at from 3.3,000 to 34,000. Of Europeans there were then about 250 on the group. The value of imports in 1871 was set down at £25,000; but the year before they amounted to £42,000. The exports in 1871 were valued at £45,000, and consisted chiefly of Cobra (dried cocoa-nut). Purther particulars regarding tho Navigators Islands can bo gathered from Mr. Seed's report on them, dated the 13th February, 1872, and printed in E. No. 2. " Further Papers relative to the San Francisco Mail Service," presented to the General Assembly in the Session of 1872. Cook's Islands. This group of islands, which lie scattered over a considerable space, extending from lat. 18° 54' S. to 21° 57' S., and from long. 157° 20' W. to 160° "W., without any intimate connection between each other, consists of nine or ten separate islands, the greater part of which were discovered by Cook, hence the appropriateness of their collective appellation. Mangaia is the south-easternmost of the group, is of volcanic origin, and is about thirty miles in circumference; population, 2,000. The productions of the island are numerous and cheap ; they consist of pigs, turkeys, fowls, ducks, yams, sweet potatoes, pine apples, which the inhabitants obtain, in spite of the poverty of the soil, by assiduous labour and care, but little common to these islanders. liarotonga is a beautiful island ; it is a mass of mountains, which are high, and present a remarkable and romantic appearance. It has several good boat harbours. The productions of this island, which is much more fertile than Mangaia, are exactly the same. The population does not exceed 4,000.

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Atui resembles Mangaia in appearance and extent. It is a mere bank of coral, 10 or 12 feet high, steep and rugged, except where there are small sandy beaches and some clefts, where the ascent is gradual. Mitiero is a low island, from three to four miles long and one mile wide.^ Mauki, or Parry Island, is also a low island; it is about two miles in diameter, well wooded, and inhabited. Hervey Islands. —This group consists of three islands, surrounded by a reef, which may be six leagues in circumference. Aitutaki presents a most fruitful appearance, its shores being bordered by flat land, on which are innumerable cocoa-nut and other trees, the higher ground being beautifully interspersed with lawns. It is eighteen miles in circuit. Population, 2,000. TiJBAI, OE At/STEAL ISLANDS. This is a dispersed group lying between lat. 21° 50' S. and 23° 42' S., and long. 147° 11' and 154 W., to the southward of the Society Islands and Low Archipelago. They have not been much frequented as they are small, and do not offer many inducements for the calls of passing navigators. Keemedic Islands are a scattered group of small rocky islets to the north-east of New Zealand, within lat. 29° 15' 30 S. and 31° 27' 30" S., and long. 177° 54' 52" and 179° 14' W. Society Islands. Tahiti—The area of Tahiti and its dependencies is 1,175 square kilometers; the area of Poumotu Islands, 6,600 square kilometers. Tahiti is about thirty-two miles long from N.W. to S.E. Tetuaroa is a small low island, or rather group of small low islets, about six miles in length enclosed in a reef about ten leagues in circuit. , Moorea, or Eimeo, is ten miles distant from Tahiti. There are several large villages on the southern side of the island. Coffee, cotton, sugar, and all other tropical plants succeed well at Eimeo, and sugar is made to a considerable extent. Tapamanoa. —Length from E. to W. is about six miles. Huaheine is the easternmost of the group which was called the Society Islands by Cook. It is about twenty miles in circumference. Raiatea or Ulietea is situate about 130 miles to the N.W. of Tahiti. It is about forty miles in circumference, of mountainous character, covered with vegetation, and well watered. The soil is .exceedingly fertile. Taha, or Otaha, lies to the northward of, and is about half the size of, Eaiatca. Bola-Bola, or Bora-Bora, is four and a half leagues N.W. of Tahua, to which it is inferior in extent. Marua, or Maupiti, is the westernmost of the group. It is a small island of about six miles in circumference. Tubal, or Motu Iti, is the northernmost of the group, and consists merely of some very small low islets, connected by a reef about ten miles N. of Bola-Bola. Population (foreigners from all quarters included) spread over Tahiti and the whole of its numerous dependencies is approximately estimated at 21,000, of whom some 500 or 600 are Chinamen, labourers, domestic servants, and artisans, whilst a large number are natives of distant islands in the Pacific, imported as contract labourers. Imports —during the years 1869, 1870, and 1871, valued approximately at from £110,000 to £120,000 per annum. About one-third of this consisted of British or British Colonial products and manufactures, imported for the most part from Australia and New Zealand. Exports. —Value of Tahitian and other island products : — In 1869 ... ... ... ... ... ... ... £105,000 „ 1870 ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 96,000 „ 1871 ... ... ... ... ... ... ... 90,000 Cotton was the principal item of export. The value of it in 1871 amounted to about one-half the total value of exports. The apparent falling off in 1870 and 1871 was owing to a reduction of the valuation of this chief article of export. The important position of New Zealand in relation to the South Sea Islands is shown by the following passage from the British Consul's report from Tahiti for 1871, from which the above figures are taken: — " The countries for which the exports of island produce were destined may be stated as follows : — England (chiefly through New Zealand or Australia), Prance, California, Chili, and lately some to Hamburgh. " The foreign merchandise mentioned in the return as re-exported was mainly that portion re-shipped for islands in the Pacific beyond the limits of the French Protectorate over Tahiti." Government. —Tahiti is nominally under the Prench Protectorate, which was established in 1844, but practically their power is absolute. Papeite is the seat of Government. It stands at the foot of the highest mountain of the island. The ground here is level, but there is not much space between it and the foot of the mountains. It is covered with the richest and most beautiful vegetation. Commodore E. A. Powell, C.8., of H.M.S. "Topaze," who visited Tahiti in 1867, in speaking of the Prench occupation of the Society Islands, says, " The Prench appear to be very liberal in their government, and the natives have only to pay a small capitation tax, in default of which they give so many days' work. The Protestant religion is not interfered with, and the missionary schools are encouraged; order is preserved, and the only restrictions on the natives are for their own benefit. On

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comparing the state of this island with that of others where European influence is not felt, I am of opinion that the presence of the Prench at Tahiti has been very beneficial, and it is to be regretted that their settlements in the Marquesas have been abandoned, although, doubtless they were expensive to keep up." Low AEcmr-ELAGo, oe Paumotu Geotjp. This vast collection of coral islands, one of the w 7ondcrs of the Pacific, extends over sixteen degrees of longitude, without taking into consideration the detached islands to the S.E. of it. They are all of them of similar character, and exhibit very great sameness in their features. When they are seen at a distance, which cannot be great on account of their lowness, the aspect is one of surpassing beauty, if the dry part of the island or belt is sufficiently covered with trees; but much of this beauty is dispelled on a nearer approach, as the vegetation is usually found to be scanty and wiry. Tho archipelago, like the adjoining groups of the Marquesas and the Society Islands, are under the Prench protectorate. There are seventy-eight islands ; eighteen are uninhabited, and sixteen are still occupied by savage tribes. These are in the south-eastern parts of the group, farthest removed from the civilizing neighbourhood of Tahiti. The western portion is divided by the Prench into four groups or circles ; that to the west with eight islands, tho north with five, the centre with fourteen, the eastern of seventeen islands. They are all coralline or lagoon reefs, with three exceptions, and a few have entrances for large vessels. The native population of the entire archipelago only amounts to 3,500, of which 700 arc still uncivilized. There has been much improvement of late in their houses and clothing, to procure which they have opened some branches of industry, the chief of which is cocoa-nut oil and mother-of-pearl shell. Maeqtjesas Aeciiipelago. The Marquesas Archipelago is composed of two tolerably distinct groups, lying in a general N.W. and S.E. direction, between the parallels of lat. 7° 50' and 10* 31' S., and long. 138° 39' and 140° 46' W. They are all of volcanic origin, very high, and may be seen in clear weather at fifteen or twenty leagues distance. The sovereignty of the group was ceded to France by a treaty with Admiral Dv Petit Thouars, in May, 1842, and a military colony was established in Taiohai Bay, at Nukuhiva, but the result was in no way commensurate with the expense of tho establishment; and this, after the experiment lasted seventeen years, was abandoned on January Ist, 1859. Nuka-hiva is the principal island of the Marquesas Archipelago. It is seventeen miles in length from east to west, and ten miles broad. It has been frequently visited and described, and its inhabitants are perhaps the best known of any in the archipelago. The population of this island was estimated by Captain Krusenstern, when he visited it in 1804, at IS,OOO. Notwithstanding tho opinion of Krusenstcrn that his estimate for so large an island was low in 1804, it is reduced to 8,000 by the estimate of M. de Tessan in 1838, and to 2,690 by Lieutenant Jouan in 1856 ! O-hiva-oa, or La Dominica, is tho most fertile, the most populous (6,000 inhabitants), and the most important for its productions of the whole archipelago. It is about twenty-one miles long from E. by N. to S. by W., and seven miles in its average breadth. The following remarks aro from the report of Commodore E. A. Powell, C.8., of H.M.S. " Topaze," 1867 :— " Magdalena Island.- —On .Tune Bth, at 9 a.m., the island of Magdalena was sighted, bearing W.-JN., and distant forty miles, tho summit of the high mountain being observed in tho clouds. The eastern side of the island is extremely rugged, steep ridges coming down from the central mountain, and terminating in high precipices over the sea. Very few of the valleys or gorges appeared to reach the beach, so that, independent of a dangerous surf which dashed against the rocks, landing would have been quite impracticable. On the north and south sides of the island the land sloped more regularly towards the sea, but there was no landing. " Point Venus, on the south side, is a perpendicular rocky cliff, about 700 feet high, overhanging tho sea, which breaks within a few yards of its base; from some points of view the break assumes the appearance of a reef extending out further than it really does. Bon Eepos Bay is immediately round Point Venus, on the western side of the island, and the best anchorage is about a mile from the shore in seventeen fathoms, opposite a shingly beach, with the valley well open. This bay is open to westerly winds, which, according to tho native account, blow occasionally with great force from December to March, which would appear to be the bad months. A heavy surf rolls continually on the beach, but landing can be effected on the rocks on the north side of the bay. Water can be obtained, but with difficulty, as boats must lie a considerable distance from the beach where the stream comes down. The'valley, which winds up among the hills from the bottom of the bay, is very beautiful, being covered with the rich foliage of tropical fruit trees, whilst tho native cottages and huts, sheltered under tho bread-fruit, cocoa-nut, and orange trees, add greatly to the attractiveness of the scene. " Pruits of all descriptions are to be procured in sufficient quantities to refresh a large ship's company, but meat and vegetables are very scarce, pigs and poultry being the only animal food. The inhabitants are supposed to be less than 500 in number, and aro said to bo fast decreasing ; this may be attributed to the prevailing custom of polygamy, as well as to continual warfare, which exists between the tribes inhabiting the two principal valleys. " The Prench have practically given up all control over the natives, whose only intercourse with foreigners is confined to the crows of the few whalers that occasionally call for supplies. They are to all appearance in the same primitive state they were described to bo in one hundred years ago ; for though some have Polynesian Bibles and all profess Christianity, they still practise the same heathenish rites, and entertain the same superstitions as formerly, whilst cannibalism yet exists in connection with prisoners of war. " The men, who are of ordinary stature, with good features, are rendered hideous by tatooing ; the women are fairer than the men, and pleasant looking, as they aro only tatooed on the face, with a few

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blue marks on the lips. The only apparent difference between what we saw and read in early accounts was the conduct of the women, all of whom wore a becoming robe of tappa or native cloth, and were very modest in demeanour, whatever their morals may be." San Christina Island was sighted on June 10th. The " Topaze" remained here two days without experiencing any difficulty from the swell or squalls from the mountains. There is no doubt, however, that a heavy swell sets in from the S.W. The landing-place, constructed by the Prench authorities at considerable expense, was washed away, and there were other marks of destruction by the waves. It was also reported that vessels had been driven to sea by the force of the violent gusts down the valley, and altogether the bay has such a bad character that whalers seldom visit it, although it is believed to be the only place where it would be advisable for ships to anchor. The formation of the island, with its steep shore on the east and numerous valleys on the west sides, closely resembles Magdalena Island, and the facilities for watering and obtaining supplies are about the same. There are wild cattle on the mountains, but difficult to get at, and still more difficult to carry away when shot. The inhabitants of this island are far inferior in appearance and manner to those of Magdalena Island ; they do not number more than 300, and from disease and other causes are fast decreasing. The Prench had a considerable settlement here some few years since, but they have now entirely abandoned it, and fort, house, and gardens have fallen into a state of decay. Dominica Island. —Whilst the " Topaze " remained in Resolution Bay, Commodore Powell proceeded to Dominica Island with two boats. After skirting the shore around Tava Bay without being able to land, the boats made for a small round island (not marked in the charts) at the entrance of Taogon Bay, and, passing to the eastward of it, a small land-locked harbour was discovered, known to the Prench as Traitor's Bay, where the landing is good, and water can be obtained with great facility ; ships of 1,000 tons could here refit with great security. The Prench have no settlement on Dominica, but there aro two or three priests on the island, one of whom stated that they had entirely failed in making converts, and that in his opinion there was not a native Christian. He also described the inhabitants as being inveterate cannibals, always at war with each other, much addicted to drunkenness and other bad habits. The priests had succeeded in cultivatiii£ cotton, and had lately sold their produce for £2,000. The island has some well-watered, beautiful valleys, and was described as being extremely rich, and well suited for coffee, sugar, and other tropical productions. It was extremely difficult to arrive at any correct estimate of the number of inhabitants, but they are said to amount to about 1,500, and decreasing. The men are tall and able-bodied, but the women are depraved and ill-looking. Nouka-Hwa, or Marchand Island. —The " Topaze " left San Christian Island on the 12th June, and sighted Cape Martin, Nauka-Hwa, at daylight the following morning. The Prench have reduced their establishment hero to a resident, four soldiers, and a captain of the port, who also acts as pilot. The Prench authorities insist upon vessels taking the pilot, although ho cannot possibly be of any service, as the only difficulties to contend with are baffling winds. The payment amounts to 200 francs going in, and the same sum going out; and this charge has effectually kept out whalers that formerly were accustomed to frequent the bay. The island of Nuka-Hwa offers great resources for cultivation, for its valleys are broad, well watered, and possess rich soil. Tropical fruits abound, as in the other islands ; but the guava, recently introduced, is fast overrunning the land, and destroying tho broad-fruit and many other valuable trees. In 1864-65 the small-pox raged here with great virulence, and carried off all but a few hundreds of the Natives; in the Happar and Taipi Valleys, where the population numbered nearly 2,000, only about 150 arc left. These valleys have been purchased by an English land company, but as yet no s-iteps have been taken to people or cultivate them. New Caledonia and LoTALTr Islands. New Caledonia belongs to the Prench. It lies .about 720 miles EN.E. of the coast of Queensland, in Australia, in lat. 20° to 22° 30' S., long. 164° to 167° E. It is about 200 miles in length, 30 miles in breadth, and has a population estimated at 60,000. It is of volcanic origin, is traversed in the direction of its length, from north-west to south-east, by a range of mountains, which in somo cases reach the height of about 8,000 feet, and is surrounded by sandbanks and coral reefs. There are secure harbours at Port Balade and Port St. Vincent, the former on the north-east the latter on the south-west part of the island. In the valleys the soil is fruitful, producing the cocoa-nut, banana, mango, breadfruit, Sec The sugar-cane is cultivated, and the vine grows wild. The coasts support considerable tracts of forest, but the mountains are barren. The inhabitants, who resemble the Papuan race, consist of different tribes, some of which are cannibals. New Caledonia was discovered by Captain Cook in 1774. In 1854 the Prench took official possession of it, and it is now comprised under the same government with Otaheite and the Marquesas Isles. The Loyaltt Islands May be considered as part of the New Caledonia group, running parallel with the trend of that island at a distance of fifty to sixty miles. They consist of three principal islands, Mare, Lifu, TJea ; between the former two are five smaller islets. New Hebetdes Islands. This group extends from lat. 13° 16' S. to 20° 15' S., and from long. 166° 40' to 170° 20' E., and includes the following islands : —Aneiteum, Tana, Erromango, Vate or Sandwich Island, Api, Ambrym, Whitsun, Aurora, Lepers, Mallicollo, and Espiritu Santo. The last named is the largest of the group. It is twenty-two leagues in length, and about half that breadth. Mallicollo is eighteen leagues in length and eight leagues broad. 2—A. 3a.

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Erromango has acquired a sad notoriety from tho massacre there of the indefatigable missionary Mr. Williams, the well-known author of " Missionary Enterprise." Aneiteum, Tana, and Vate are thus described by Lieut, the Hon. Herbert Meade, 8.N., who visited these islands in H.M.S. " Curacoa" in 1865 :— " Aneiteum is about fourteen miles long by eight broad, and bears a population of 2,200, which is at present stationary, or very slightly decreasing. The Natives are all Christians ; the first teachers (Samoan) were placed here in 1841. The last case of cannibalism occurred thirteen years ago. Every person in the island above five years old can read more or less, and attends school. Crime is rare, life and property secure. Mr. Inglis, the missionary, states that their standard of morality is at present a high one, but asserts that before Christianity took hold on them they were as bad as any in the group. The climate is damp, and rather unhealthy. Cotton grows well. There are about twenty Europeans, traders and others, usually in the island. Tho island is volcanic, but reef-bound. Hurricanes frequent and severe. " Tana is about twenty-five miles long by twelve broad, and tho population is between 15,000 and 20,000. But since the introduction of European diseases and weapons, there has been a steady decrease. In 1861 a third of the people died of the measles. The state of morals is extremely low; the natives assert that tho present excessive licentiousness was introduced by the whites who formerly resided on the island. The chiefs endeavour to get drunk every night on Kaoa. Tho women do all the work, the men the fighting, which is their constant employment. Cannibalism is the custom all over the island. " Vate. —This island is from thirty to thirty-five miles long, and about fifteen broad. Population, which is said to be decreasing, is estimated at 10,000 to 12,000. Climate rather damp, but healthy enough if care be taken. One village, Erakor, is Christian, and in another are a few favourable to the faith; but all the other people are up to their ears in paganism, cannibalism, murder of old men, widows, and children, and all the other ills that affect the heathen morals at dead low water. The cotton-plant, which has lately been introduced, does well. Tho Government is carried on by petty chiefs, who mostly rule over independent villages. Earthquakes common, sometimes severe." Tho following description of the New Hebrides is by Commander Thomas C. Tilly, 8.N., lately in command of the Melanesian Mission schooner " Southern Cross " : — " General Remarks. —The fine weather or dry season among the New Hebrides and Solomon Islands may be said to extend from May to October, both months inclusive, and the wet season from November to April; occasionally much rain falls in the so-called dry season, and is generally accompanied by a change of wind from the eastward. Tho normal direction of the trade-winds is from E.S.E., but the stronger winds which usually succeed calms are from S.E., and as a rule such may be expected when the wind veers round to E. or N.E. " When in the vicinity of the islands, the prevailing trades are frequently interrupted, ana calms occur, followed by easterly and north-easterly breezes accompanied with rain ; occasionally the wind backs round, by way of north to west, and tho trade direction is resumed with what is known among the Banks Islands as the ' Lan San ' or strong S.E. wind. " Hurricanes prevail during tho whole of tho wet season, and blow with greatest violence during the months of January and Pebruary. It does hot appear that they are of frequent occurrence, but tho information on the subject derived from the natives is very vague. " It is said that storms are experienced more frequently at Aneiteum Island, at the southern extremity of tho New Hebrides range, than amongst the islands further to the northward, and have been described as blowing with sufficient violence to destroy trees, huts, Sec, their length of duration varying from two to four or even six days. They generally commence from the westward, from which quarter it blows hardest, and veer round by way of north, causing the sea to advance as a wave on the shore; whilst between Amota, Vanua Lava, and Valua Islands, the sea breaks as on a reef. " The approximate mean temperature of the air amongst Banks Islands, during May and Juno, was 84°, and that of the sea generally corresponded with the temperature of the air at 9 a.m. " Population. —The natives of the New Hebrides Group are dark in colour, of moderate stature, and in some places, as at Pentecost and Mallicollo Islands, are robust, muscular men, with woolly hair. Por weapons they have clubs, spears, bows, and arrows —the latter generally poisoned—and in some places tomahawks. Their canoes are rude in shape, clumsily made, and fitted with outriggers. They have no recognized chiefs ; and as their lives arc characterized by suspicion and constant quarrelling, there is no security for either life or property. " Although an appearance of friendly confidence w 7ill often tend to allay their natural feelings of distrust, strangers visiting those islands would do well to maintain a constant watchfulness, and use every precaution against being taken by surprise. " Productions. —The productions of the islands composing the New Hebrides, including Banks Islands, consist of bread-fruit, cocoa-nuts, sago, bananas, nutmegs, sugar-cane, taro, arrowroot, sweet potatoes, and yams. Pigs are also occasionally procurable at Banks Islands, but principally at Mai Island. The best articles for barter consist of beads, fish-hooks, calico, axes, and, in some of the less frequented islands, iron hoops, and iron cut into short lengths. " Mai, or Three Hills Island, has three elevations, which are respectively 1,850,1,450, and 1,400 feet high ; tho eastern and highest hill, Eave-na, is the most regular in outline, with a gentle slope from its summit, whilst its sides are thickly cultivated. Tho island lies about N.E. and S.W. for a distance of six miles, the average breadth being about two miles and a half. " A supply of pigs and yams, the latter very good, may be procured; the barter used by the ' Southern Cross ' being calico and tomahawks. No fresh water is obtainable, and but little firewood. The population has been estimated to bo about 800 or 1,200, and in this small island no less than three dialects are spoken. The character of the natives is noisy and quarrelsome, and during communication strangers should be on their guard against surprise. The arms of these islanders consist of clubs, tomahawks, bows, and poisoned arrows, and they daub their faces, as well as other parts of their bodies, with turmeric. They possess only a few canoes. " Api, or Tasiko Island. —This island is about twenty-five miles in length in a N.W. and S.E. direc-

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tion, and from six to ten miles in breadth. It is of a very fertile character, well wooded, with a high rango on its western part, and numerous appearances of streams, or where water may bo found after rain. The island is apparently thickly inhabited, and the natives in character and appearance resemble the inhabitants of Mai Island. " Namuku Islet, off the centre of the south side of Api Island, rises to the height of 500 feet, and forms a conspicuous object. " Lopevi Island resembles Star or Meralaba Island in appearance, but with a sharper cone. The crater was very active, and only a few inhabitants and but little vegetation remain. Ambrym Island. —Tho population appeared to be numerous, and the natives at the village on tho north part of the island appeared very friendly; but at other places arrows were occasionally shot at the Bishop's boat, probably in consequence of some injury received at the hands of traders. The canoes, like those of other islands of the group, aro clumsily made, and would probably contain ten or twelve men. Mallicollo Island. —The north-east coast of this island is bordered with a succession of islets and fringe reefs, which in some places run out some distance. At the Islet of Orumbau, which has a white sandy beach along its N.E. face, and somewhat bluff at its S.E. extreme, the reef projects about half a mile from its northern end. This islet, which lies in lat. IC° 4' S., long. 167° 21' E., is covered with cocoa-nut trees, and has a good landing-place on a steep beach at its inner or western side, with deep water close to the beach. The natives were friendly on the only occasion the islet was visited; from 200 to 300 were assembled on the beach, and the island may possibly contain about 500 inhabitants. St. Esprit Island. —The Bay of St. Philip is not so deep as it appears on the charts ; the position of tho mouth of the Eiver Jordan, which flows into the head of the bay, was found to be in lat. 15° 9' 41" S., long. 166° 53' 15" E. This is a most convenient place for watering, as the boats pull into the river, where any quantity of good fresh water may be obtained. The ordinary trade-wind comes beautifully fresh and cool over tho land, whilst the temperature is about 4° lower than in other parts of the group, and occasionally sea breezes from northward contend with the trade-winds when light. Lepers Island. —The magnificent mountain of this island, rising to the height of 4,000 feet, resembles a whale's back in outline, and from the sea assumes a most imposing appearance. An abundance of yams and cocoa-nuts are grown on the island, but in consequence of the swell on all the beaches it is difficult to land a ship's boat, and the natives, though apparently energetic, have not yet accustomed themselves to bring off supplies in their canoes, which, though numerous, are small. Pentecost, or Wliitsuntide Island, lies N.N.W. and S.S.E., with moderately high ranges, and occasional fringe reefs on its western or lee side, extending in some cases half a mile off shore. There are two good watering-places towards the south-west end of the island, where boats may lie a few fathoms off' running streams ; but it should bo borne in mind that the beds of the streams are liable to change after heavy rains. It is apparently more thickly populated and highly cultivated than tho neighbouring island of Aurora. Communication was established with the natives at Vunmarama, a village at the north-west point of the island, where, in general, a good supply of yams, See., may be obtained. At the southern portion of the island the canoes are large, and the people dark, tall, and muscular. Banks Islands. These lie to the northward of the New Hebrides, between the latitudes of 13° 16' and 14° 10' S., and between 167° 17' and IGB° 34' E. Vanua Lava, the largest of the Banks Islands, is fifteen miles in length north and south, and is a remarkable looking island, with several high rounded mountains, the highest, to the north-west, being some 2,800 feet above the sea. In the Suretamiti Mountain are several hot springs always steaming, whilst a stream impregnated with sulphur runs down to the sea on tho north-west coast, and a similar ono falls into Port Patteson on the eastern side. There are two waterfalls on the western side, one single and the other double. The population of Vanua Lava amounts to about 1,500; tho natives were quiet and friendly. Santa Maria, or Gana Island. —The second largest of the Banks Islands, lies between the parallels 14° 12' and 14° 22' S., and between the meridians 167° 23' and IG7° 36' E. The main range of mountains, about 2,000 feet high, lies on an east and west direction, and, excepting on the south side, where the land falls in ridges, the slopes are regular to the shore ; the island is well wooded and cultivated, but during the usual trade-winds landing would be very difficult, even if practicable, on the southern and eastern sides. The information respecting this island is somewhat limited, owing to the quarrelsome nature of the inhabitants of the western side, who seldom failed to shoot arrows after the boat on her leaving the shore. This occurred at Lakona, a village near the waterfall at the north end of the western bay. Although the natives at Lakona proved themselves unfriendly, those at Losolava, Avire, and Tarosag were disposed to be friendly to strangers, though quarrelling amongst themselves. The population appeared to be great, but the island cannot be recommended to strangers for obtaining supplies, in consequence of the uncertain nature of communication with inhabitants. Mota, or Sugar-Loaf Island, is about eight or ten miles in circumference, and derives its English name from its peculiar shape. It lies about nine miles to the eastward of Port Patteson, in lat. 13° 49' S., long. 167° 39' 30" E., and attains an elevation of 1,350 feet. The island is better known by Bishop Patteson than any other ; the inhabitants are quite friendly, and some of them understand a little English. The number of villages amount to forty-two, with an aggregate population of about 2,000, but no recognized chiefs. Tho weapons of the natives consist of spears, clubs, bows, and poisoned arrows. Pruit, sugar-cane, taro, potatoes, and yams, and occasionally pigs, are to be procured ; the. articles of barter being beads, fish-hooks (very small fish-hooks at Mota), calico, and axes. Valua, or Saddle Island, lies between lat. 13° 36' and 13° 41' 8., and long. 167° 31' and 167° 41' E., and is about eight miles long, north-east and south-west.

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Araa- Island. —Off the S.W. end of Valua Island is the small island of Aran.. The distance between Araa and the main island can be waded. The natives, numbering from 2,000 to 3,000, are friendly and well disposed. Urcparapara, or Bligh Island, about sixteen miles to the north-west of Rowo reef, attains an elevation of 1,950 feet, is nearly circular in form, and about twelve miles in circumference; it is steep too, except a few fringed reefs close in on its lee side ; is well watered, and produces abundance of taro, though but little else. Santa Cbuz Islands. This group is composed of seven larger islands, Vanikoro, Santa Cruz (Nitendi), G-uerta, Volcano (Tinakoro), Edgecombe, Ourry, and Lord Howe, besides several smaller ones to north and north-east of Volcano Island. Vanikoro is the southernmost of the group. It is an important island in the eyes of Europeans, not from its extent or riches, but from its being tho scene of the disastrous loss of the two ships of La Perouse in 1788, an event which was not ascertained with any certainty until May, 1826, or 38 years afterwards. The group forming the Vanikoro Islands is composed of two of unequal extent: the first is not less than thirty miles in circumference; the other is not more than nine, miles. They are both high, and covered with trees to the water's edge. Vanikoro has but a slender population. The coasts are alone inhabited, all the interior being only a dense forest, wild and nearly impenetrable. Santa Cruz Island is thus described by Captain Tilly : —■ " Santa Cruz Island is about fifteen or sixteen miles in length, with fringe reefs along the shore, but apparently no off-lying dangers. The north point, near the centre of the island, was found to be in lat. 10° 40' S., long. 166° 3. The high land extends close out on its north-east side, but towards the north-west the hills slope at some distance from the extreme, leaving a considerable extent of low land near the coast. The island is well wooded and watered, the streams in some places running through the villages into the sea. " The natives are a fine athletic-looking race, and come off readily to the ship, bringing pigs, breadfruit, and yams ; mats, in tho manufacture of which great skill is displayed, are also offered for sale. The appearance of the canoes, houses, Sec, evinces great ingenuity. Canoes with outriggers, and mostly limewashed, have a neat appearance ; they have also large sea-going double canoes. Tho villages are large, and houses surrounded by stone fences. On the north side, the villages are close to the sea, with from 300 to 400 inhabitants to each. " The natives are apparently merry and good-natured, but not to be trusted; for without any known reason they attacked the Bishop's boat on leaving a village at tho N.W. extremity of the island, and nearly succeeded in cutting it off. Three of the crew were wounded with arrows, and of these two died from the effects of their wounds. Their bows are formidable-looking weapons, being 7 feet in length, with arrows in proportion." The Solomon Archipelago extends north-west and south-east for the space of 200 leagues. It is composed of eight or ten principal islands, and many other smaller ones. The largest are Bougainville, Choiseul, Tsabel, Gaudalcanar, Malayta, and San Christoval. The last named is stated to bo seventy-three miles long and twenty-three miles broad at its widest part. Malayta is seventy miles long ; Ysabel, one hundred and twenty miles long and twenty-five miles in its maximum breadth. The sizes of Bougainville and Choiseul have not been ascertained, but they must be of greater area than those named above. The structure of these islands is throughout the same ; it is a long chain of mountains, often very lofty, which form their axes in the general direction of the group. On either side the slopes incline gently towards the sea; the shores generally appear low, and often furnished with a belt of mangroves, the edge of which is washed by the salt water. An active and vigorous vegetation covers the whole of the land, and it is only here and there that in rare intervals the soil may be seen, or only covered with ferns, or often consumed by fire intentionally. The principal islands have all the advantages of extensive land ; extended plains and large rivers descend from the hills, and, if we may judge by the trees which cover the land, the soil is of great fertility. ■ The inhabitants of these islands are generally shorter than those of the groups previously described, and appear to be characterized by greater energy and activity than are usually exhibited. Their canoes are exceedingly graceful and light, and without the outriggers common to all others. The natives also possess large war canoes carrying from thirty to sixty men, and in these they traverse great distances, sometimes beyond tho sight of land. They are skilful in carving, and most of their implements aro inlaid with the mother-of-pearl shell. LOUISIADE AECniPELAGO, near the south-east end of New Guinea, embraces the following islands : —Adele Island, Eoussel Island, the Eenard Islands, St. Aignan Island, De Boyne Islands, the Bonvouloir Isles, De Entrecasteaux Islands, and the Trobriand Islands. Eoussel and St. Aignan are tho largest of the group ; the last named is about twenty-seven miles in length. The others are small coral islands. This group is but imperfectly known, and little or no intercourse appears to have been had with the natives, who are said to bo numerous. The known productions of the island are cocoa-nuts, yams, bananas, and sweet potatoes. It is probable that fuller information regarding this group will result from Captain Moresby's recent visit to the coasts of New Guinea in H.M. ship " Basilisk," under his command. New Britain and New leeland are two large islands situated between the eastern part of New Guinea and the Equator; contiguous to them are numerous smaller islands.

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The western part of New Britain is thus described by M. D'Urville, who visited it in 1827 :— "Earely has nature imprinted so delicious an aspect on a country untouched by the hand of man, with such an agreeable diversit} 7 of surface and beautiful effects of perspective. The coast throughout quite safe, accessible, and washed by tranquil waves; the land gently rising in the form of an amphitheatre in various places, here and there shaded by dark forests ; or by less thick vegetation and more particularly by extensive tracts of greensward, tho yellowish tints of-which contrasted richly with the darker shades of the more sombre forests and woods surrounding them. The two peaks of Mount Gloucester crowned this smiling scene with their imposing masses, their majestic summits frequently hidden in the clouds. In all the western quarter, and at twelve miles distance, our horizon was occupied by the undulating lines of Eook Island, which, with New Britain, forms the Strait of Dampier." Adhiealty Islands. The largest of this group is Admiralty Island, the centre of which is in lat. 2° 18' S., long. 146° 44' E. Some of the islands of this group are described as being thickly populated by an apparently happy and contented people. They appear to live principally on cocoa-nuts, which are abundant on the islands. Torelat; or Union Geoitp, Ellice Geoup, and Gilbert or Kingsmill Group. These islands are thus described by the Eev. J. S. Whitmeo, of the London Missionary Society, who visited them in the missionary barque " John Williams" in 1870 : — " Tokclau or Union Group. —This group consists of three clusters of islets, named respectively Eakaofo, Nukunono, and Atafu. The islets of each cluster are connected by a reef, forming one of the numerous atolls to be found in the Pacific. These reefs are more or less circular in form, enclosing a lagoon in the centre. Tho land is formed on the raised reef by the washing of sand and broken coral from the sea during rough weather. In some of the older .atolls the land is connected and forms a continuous ring around the lagoon ; but more commonly land exists only here and there along the reef, thus forming a ring of islands, some from one mile to six miles in length, covered with cocoa-nut palms and other trees, and some only a few yards across, upon which two or three stunted cocoa-nuts barely manage to exist, while others again are mere sandbanks destitute of all vegetable life. " Takaofo (Bowditch Island), lat. 9° 26', long. 171° 12' W., the most easterly in the group, consists of more than twenty small islands, encircling a lagoon eight miles long by five miles wide. All tho islands are very barren, yielding little except cocoa-nuts, palms, and a species of edible pandanas. Upon these and fish, which are plentiful, the people entirely subsist, and they appear to thrive very well upon them. The population of the island is only 223 at the present time, and more than twothirds of the adults are females. "Atafu (Duke of York Island), in lat. 8° 33' S., and long. 172° 25' W. This atoll is of similar formation to Takaofo, but the lagoon is smaller. The islands studding the annular reef are about twenty in number, and consist of sand and broken coral washed up by the action of the waves, without the slightest trace of soil. Here I had a peep into the secret of island formation. As I was walking on one side of the island on which the village is situated I noticed a series of sandy mounds running parallel with the coast, and varying from ten to fifty feet in breadth. Some had cocoa-nut palms and pandanus already growing on them .and producing fruit; on others the vegetation was of a more recent growth, while others were bare, or with only a few of the pandanus fruit, which had by some accident been cast upon them, sprouting and giving promise for the future. The outer mound was fully fifty feet across it, and had been washed up during heavy weather at the beginning of the present year. The population of tho island is 136, it having been greatly diminished by Peruvian slavers. "Ellice Group. —Nukulaelae (Mitchell Island or Group). It lies in lat. 9° 18' S., and long. 179° 48' E. There are several small islands encircling this lagoon, on one of the largest of which is the village. The population is very small, only ninety at the present time. This is the place where the Peruvian slavers made tho greatest havoc in 1863. " Funafuti (Ellice Island). —We reached this atoll the day after leaving Nukulaelae. Its position is in.lat. 8° 29' S., and long. 179° 21' E. The lagoon is twelve miles or more in one direction by five or six miles in the other. In two places there is a sufficient depth of water over the reef to allow vessels to go inside the lagoon. Captain Eowler took the vessel inside and anchored. The island presents an appearance very similar to the others we had visited. Some of them were evidently older than any we had hitherto seen, except Quiros Island. The island on which the village stands could boast of a nearer approach to a legitimate soil; consequently more variety of food is produced. Besides the cocoa-nut palm, which is almost sure to be found wherever a sandbank raises its head above low watermark, and the pandanus, we found here a few bread-fruit trees and bananas, with two species of the edible arum or taro. One of these grows to an immense size ; and although to our palates it appeared to be quantity without quality, it doubtless is an acceptable addition to the alimentary stores of those whose daily fare is chiefly confined to cocoa-nuts, pandanus, fruit, and fish. The way the people cultivate the taro, bananas, &c, in these islands is worthy of a brief notice in passing. They dig large trenches, like wide moats, along the centre of the islands. Some of these are from 100 to 200 yards across them, .and from six to eight feet deep. To carry out the sand from these trenches must have been the work of generations. Those low levels are moist, and on them they make as much soil as possible by throwing in decayed wood and leaves, and here they plant everything which requires special care. Nothing edible but the cocoa-nut and the pandanus grows on the upper sand. We brought two cases of useful plants from Samoa, and distributed them amongst the islands we visited, in order to add to the temporal as well as the spiritual well-being of the people. These were very gladly received. " Vaitupu (Tracy Island), lat. 7° 31' S., long. 178° 46' E. We reached this island the morning after we left Funafuti, Oct. 7. It is nearly round, about four miles across, and has asalt-water lagoon in the centre, completely shut off from the sea by a ring-like strip of land about half a mile across. The island is evidently older than some of the others we have visited, and is more productive. Cocoa-nut palms arc very abundant, and very productive. There is also a good supply of taro, and there are

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some bananas. The people are the most advanced we have yet visited. They were delighted to see the missionary ship, and give us a hearty reception. The population amounts to 376; and besides these there were thirty or forty natives of Nintao, a heathen island in the group, here on a visit. Before we went ashore we were struck with the appearance of the settlement, which is very pretty. A neat stone chapel stands in the foreground, behind which is the teacher's house, while on either side are ranged the houses of the natives. "Nukufetau (De Peyster Island), in lat. 7° 51' S., and long. 178° 35' E., was the next atoll at which we called. AYe arrived on Sunday, a.m. October 9th. Hero there is a large lagoon, surrounded by a coral reef, on which a number of islands have been formed. The village is on one of the larger islands. There is a passage into the lagoon by which ships may enter, so we went in and anchored. The description of Funafuti will apply equally well to Nukufetau, except that the lagoon in the latter is smaller and more circular in form. The population of the island is 202. " Nui (Netherland Island). —We reached this island tho morning after leaving Nukufetau, October 11th. It lies in lat. 7° 15' S., and long. 177° E. It is a single island, nearly circular, with a lagoon on one side of it partly open to the sea, but with no entrance for ships. Its productions are similar to those of Vaitupu, and very abundant. The people are very different from those peopling the rest of the Ellice Group. All the other islands have been peopled from Samoa. The Samoan language is the basis of theirs, and they have traditions of their forefathers being drifted from Samoa to Vaitupu, whence they spread to the other islands. On Nui, the people trace their origin to the Gilbert Group, and they speak the language of that group, which is totally different from the Samoan. Hero, for the first time, I had to speak entirely through an interpreter. The entire population is 212. " Niutao (Speiden Island).—This island is in lat. 6° 8' S., and long. 177° 22' E. It lies to windward of Nui, and we had light winds .and calms on the way, so we were more than two days in reaching it. We landed on the morning of October 15th. The island is of similar formation to tho others we had visited, but has, I was told, two lagoons. I saw one. It is very shallow, and not more than one mile across. The belt of land around is not less than from three-quarters of a mile to one milo broad. This lagoon is situated in one end of the island, and I was told there is a similar one at the other end, but I had no time to visit it. The island is plentifully supplied with cocoa-nut palms and bananas, but there is not much besides of an edible nature. At the time of our visit there was a scarcity of food on account of a long-continued drought. The population on the island at present is about 360 ; but over 100 people are away at other islands, many of them at Vaitupu. " Nunomaga (Hudson Island). —-This island lies to the west of Niutao. I determined not to detain the vessel to call at the island, but to proceed at once to the north, and visit tho Gilbert Group. " Nanomea (St. Augustine Island) is in lat. 5° 38' S., and long. 176° 17' E. This is the last island in the Ellice Group. As a call there would have taken us fifty miles to leeward of our course for the Gilbert Islands, we proceeded first to that group, and called at this island on our return south. But I will give my notice of it here, and finish with this group before describing our work in the other. "Wo reached Nanomea on Sunday morning, October 23rd. There aro two islands within three or four miles of each other, connected by a reef, which is dry at low water. The westerly island is named Lakona. It is nearly round, two miles or more across, well stocked with cocoa-nut and other trees, and has a deep fresh-water lagoon in its centre. ' Tho natives described it as being unfathomable : but by that they would only mean they cannot dive to the bottom. This and Quiros are the only two islands where I have found fresh-water lagoons. Lakena is not inhabited, but is used by the people on the other island for the cultivation of food. Nanomea is the name of the other island, which is about four miles long, by one or two wide. It has a shallow salt-water lagoon towards the east end, partially open to the sea. " The inhabitants of the island are, taken altogether, the finest race of men, so far as muscular development goes, I have ever seen. They are almost a race of giants. I believe nine out of every ten would measure six feet or more high, and their breadth is proportionate to their height. '• As a race, the Ellice Islanders are very quiet and peaceable. Quarrels are rare, and ordinary disputes are settled by the authority of the king or chiefs. On some of the islands wars are unknown. An old man on Vaitupu brought mo a hatchet made out of the back of a turtle, and I asked if it had ever been used in war. He replied that ho had never heard of war at Vaitupu. " Gilbert or Kingsmill Group. —This group of islands lies between the parallels of about 4° N. and 2° 36' S. lat., and 172° 178° E. long. There are, I believe, sixteen islands in the group, nine to the north and seven to the south of the equator. " Arorae (Hurd Island), in lat. 2° 36' S., and long. 177° E. This island is from three to four miles long. At one end it is not more than half a mile across, at the other end it appeared from the ship to be a mile and a half broad. I was told there is a small lagoon at tho wider end, but I had no time to visit it. From the number of houses, which are almost continuous for two and a half or three miles, one would suppose the population to be very great; but we only saw about four hundred, although we walked nearly the whole length over which the villages extended. The small number of people in comparison with the number of houses was soon accounted for. They had been taken away by what the Natives themselves described as 'the men-stealing vessels.' We could not find out the number who had been ' stolen,' but some said there were 'many taken, and few remaining.' When we landed, we found the people armed with knives and hatchets, while one man shouldered an old firelock and had a revolver stuck in his belt. Our vessel was at first supposed to bo a ' man-stealing ship,' and the poor creatures had determined to defend themselves against their ' civilized ' assailants. As we were approaching the shore in our boat, a canoe met us, and we informed the men of the object of our visit. Ono of them had been to a Christian island, and knew there was no harm to fear from a missionary ship ; so the canoe preceded our boat to the shore, and carried the news of our peaceful and friendly intentions. " Tamana (Botch Island), in lat. 2° 30' S. and long. 176° 7' E., was the next island at which wo called. It is not more than two and a half or three miles long, and from one to two miles wide. There is no lagoon. The island is well supplied with cocoa-nut palms and pandanus, and although it was suffering from drought when we were there, there seemed to bo no lack of food. Good water is pro-

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cured in abundance by sinking wells in the centre of the island. Many of the people were away working at their plantations when we were there ; but I estimated the number of those we saw at about six hundred. All the males were naked, as on Arorae. We found a very bitter feeling existing against ' men-stealing vessels,' and especially against those from Tahiti. " Onoatoa (Francis Island), in lat. 1° 56' S. and long. 175° 44' E., was sighted before dark on the same day (October 19th), and we were off one end of it early next morning. This is an atoll, with a number of islands partially surrounding a lagoon eight or ten miles across. Besides this large lagoon, there are several small shallow lagoons in various parts of the larger islands. Where we landed there was very little soil. The cocoa-nut and pandanus trees grow out of the sand, but on other parts there is more soil, and the people said they had plenty of food. When wo were there, they had been several months without rain, and the vegetation was very much parched up. " Peru, in lat. 1° 18' S., and long. 176° E. This is an island several miles long, and varying from half a mile to a mile or more wide. It is not an atoll like most of the islands we visited, but there are several shallow lagoons in it, some very small, surrounded by the land, and dry at low tide, others larger and open on one side to the reef which runs round the island. The island itself is formed of successive ridges of sand, broken coral, and shells. These ridges are most of them from 30 to 50 feet across, and the hollows formed between them are generally from 4to 6 feet in depth. For some distance, at that end of the island which I examined, they run across, and in the middle they run parallel with the sides of, the island. The whole extent examined presented the same appearance, and the ridges were so regular that they gave one the idea of being artificially formed. The waves must exert a mighty force during heavy weather to form these extensivo ridges. There is little doubt but each ridge is the result of a single storm. I have already referred, in the notice of Atafu, in tho Tokelau group, to a similar ridge of smaller dimensions which was thrown up during the present year ; and I have seen several small islands of broken coral and shells, which were formed on the reefs in Samoa during a hurricane of a few hours' duration. " The productions of Peru are in every respect similar to those of other islands in the group. The natives appear to value the pandanus even more than the cocoa-nut palm. They consume immense quantities of the fruit raw ; and the variety which they cultivate in the Gilbert group (which is much superior to that found in the Ellice Islands, and immeasurably superior to the kind cultivated in Samoa), produces a very palatable fruit. The women prepare a kind of cake by baking the fruit till it becomes soft; they then pound a large number together in a fine mat, and spread the prepared pulp in cakes two or three feet wide by six or eight long and one-sixth of an inch thick. The whole is then dried in the sun, and made into a roll like an ancient manuscript. This keeps for a length of time, and tastes something like old dates. " Peru was the last island in the Gilbert group which we visited. We had information from Tapeteuea (Drummond Island), the nearest island to Peru, that the Sandwich Island missionaries were already there ; and we concluded that they had also occupied another island to the north of Drummond Island, but on the south of the equator, about which we had no information. Only one other island remained, viz., Nukunau (Byron Island), which lies considerably to the east of Peru. As this was directly to windward of us, and would have been a dead beat, we made no attempt to go there this year." PhcENIX GbOTTP. This group consists of seven or eight small low coral islands, extending from lat. 2° 53' to 5° 38' S., and from long. 170° 40' to 174° 22' W. Their names are Swallow Island, Eudcrbury's Island, Birney's Island, Gardner or Kemin's Island, McKean's Island, Hull Island, and Sydney Island. The following were visited by Commodore Wilkes, from whose description of them the particulars here given are taken: — Kemin's or Gardner Island, in 4° 37' 42 S., long. 174° 40' 18" W., is a low coral island, having a shallow lagoon in the centre, into which there is no navigable passage. McKean's Island is in long. 174° 17' 26" W., and lat. 3° 35' 10" S., and lies about N.N.E., sixty miles from Kemin's Island. It is composed of coral, sand, and blocks, and is three-quarters of a mile long by half a mile wide. Enderbury's Island is in lat. 3° 8' S., long. 171° 8' 30" W. It is three miles long by two and a half wide, and is only covered in parts with a stunted vegetation. Hull's Island lies in long. 172° 20' 52" W., and lat. 4° 29' 48" S. It has a little fresh water upon it, and a few cocoa-nut trees. Sandwich oe Hawaiian- Islands. Sandwich or Hawaiian Islands, forming the Kingdom of Hawaii, are a rich, beautiful, and interesting chain, eight in number, exclusive of one or two small islets. The chain runs from south-east to north-west, and lies in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, in lat. 19° 22' N., long. 155° 160' W. Area, 6,000 square miles. The names, with the areas of the respective islands, proceeding from the south-east of the group, are—Hawaii (formerly Owhyee), 4,000 square miles; Maui, 620; Oahu, 530 ; Kaui, 500 ; Molokai, 167 ; Lanai, 100 ; Niihau, about 70 ; and Kahoolaui, about 60 square miles. Population. —The official census of 1866 puts the total population of the group at 62,959 souls, of whom 4,194 were foreigners (exclusive of Chinamen), and 58,765 natives. Imports, in 1871,1,625,884 dols., £325,176. Exports, in 1871, 1,892,069 dols., £378,413. Sugar continues to be the great staple of this group of islands, and shows an advance of 2,977,034 lbs. over last year, the whole export of 1871 having amounted to 21,660,773 lbs. Shipping. —There were 57 Hawaiian registered vessels, of 8,068 tons—one of them a steamer of 414 tons ; 163 merchant vessels, of the united tonnage of 102,172 tons, arrived at the port of Honolulu in 1871, from all parts of the world. Of these, 89, of 65,112 tons, were American; 44, of 24,267 tons were British. Government. —In 1840 the King, Kamehameha 111., granted a Constitution, consisting of King, Assembly of Nobles, and Eepresentative Council. In 1843 the independence of tho Hawaiian Kingdom was formally declared by the Prench and English Governments.

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Philippine Islands. Area, 3,100 geographical square miles, or 05,100 English square miles. Population, 4,319,269. Total Exports to Great Britain in 1871 were of the value of £1,391,254. Imports of Briish Produce, value £463,359. The chief article of Exports in 1871 was unrefined sugar, of the value of £604,114. Of the imports in 1871 the value of £290,203, or considerably more than one-half, was represented by cotton manufactures'. The commercial intercourse between the Philippine Islands, as well as the rest of the colonial possessions of Spain and the United Kingdom, has been steadily declining for a number of years. Caroline Islands and Pelew Islands. Area, 431 geographical square miles, or 905 English square miles. Population, 28,000. Pelew Islands. A group of islands in tho North Pacific Ocean 450 miles east of the Philippines, in lat. 7°-8° 30' N. long. 134°-136° E., at the western extremity of the Caroline Archipelago. The group includes about twenty islands, which form a chain running about 120 miles from S.S.W. to N.N.E, The principal island is Babelthouap, twenty-eight miles by fourteen, containing a mountain from whose summit a view of the whole group is obtained. As seen from the sea, the islands appear mountainous and rugged; but the soil is rich and fertile, and water is abundant. Bread-fruit, cocoa-nuts, bananas, sugar-cane, lemons, oranges, and other tropical trees and fruits, are grown. Cattle, fowls, and goats thrive, and fish abound on the coasts. The inhabitants, who arc estimated at about 10,000 in number, are of the Malay race. They show considerable ingenuity in building their canoes, are active agriculturists, and entertain exceedingly primitive notions regarding dress, as the men go entirely naked and the women nearly so. In 1783, the " Antelope " was wrecked upon the Pelew Islands, and the crew were treated by the natives with tho greatest kindness. Further1 acquaintance with white men, however, seems to have altered their disposition, and several vessels, while visiting these islands, within comparatively recent years, have narrowly escaped being cut off. The islands are said to have been discovered by the Spaniards in 1545. Ladeones Islands. A group of about twenty islands, the northernmost Australasian group in lat. 13|°-20|° N"., and long. 145^°~147° E. ,They are disposed in a row, almost due north and south. Their united area is about 1,254 square miles. They are mountainous, well watered and wooded; among the trees are the bread-fruit, banana, the cocoa-nut; fruitful in rice, maize, cotton, and indigo. European domestic animals are now very common. At the time when they were discovered the population was reckoned at 100,000, but the present population is only about 5,500. The inhabitants, who arc docile, religious, kind, and hospitable, resemble in physiognomy those of the Philippine Islands. The islands are very important to the Spaniards in a commercial point of view. The largest island in Guajan, ninety miles in circumference; on it is the capital, San Ignacio do Agamca, the seat of the Spanish Governor. Galapagos Islands. The Galapagos Islands arc a group lying on the equator, extending I\° on each side of it, and about 600 miles from tho west coast of the Republic of Ecuador, to which they belong. There are six principal islands, nine smaller, and many islets, scarcely deserving to be distinguished from mere rocks. Tho largest island, Albemarle, is sixty miles in length and about fifteen miles broad, the highest point being 4,700 feet above the level of the sea. The constitution of the whole is volcanic. "With the exception of some ejected fragments of granite, which have been most curiously glazed and altered by the heat, every part consists of lava, or of sandstone resulting from the attrition of such materials. The higher islands generally have one or more principal craters towards their centre, and in their flanks smaller orifices. Mr. Darwin affirms that there must be, in all the islands of the archipelago, at least 2,000 craters. Considering that these islands are placed directly under the equator, the climate is far from being excessively hot: a circumstance which, perhaps, is chiefly owing to the singularly low temperature of the surrounding sea.

WEST INDIES (1871).

Area. Square Miles. Population. Total Imports. Total Exports. Bahamas Turk's Islands ... Jamaica Leeward Islands St. Lucia St. Vincent Barbados Grenada Tobago Trinidad British Guiana ... 3,021 420 0,400 731 250 131 166 133 97 1,754 70,000 39,162 4,723 441,264 117,732 31,811 35,688 162,042 37,795 17,054 109,638 193,491 £ 283,970 35,345 1,300,212 506,149 196,286 137,474 1,069,S61 104,475 61,448 1,042,678 1,572,275 £ 190.253 . 18,855 1,283,036 670,457 147,172 221,140 973,020 127,184 82,616 1,277,574 2,383,422 Total West Indies 89,103 1,190,400 6,310,173 7,374,729

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Java. Area of Java, including Madura, is 51,336 English square miles. Population, according to census of 1871, 16,452,168, or 320 per square mile. The population has nearly quadrupled since the year 1816. Imports in 1870, merchandise ... ... ... £3,704,929 „ specie ... ... ... ... ... 197,413 £3,902,341 Exports in 1870, merchandise ... ... ... ... ... £5,102,353 „ specie ... ... ... ... ... 361,830 £5,464,183 The principal articles of export from Java are sugar, coffee, rice, indigo, and tobacco. "With the exception of rice, about one-half of which is shipped from Borneo and China, nearly four-fifths of these exports go to the Netherlands. The exports from Java to the United Kingdom in 1871 consisted principally of rice, of the value of £383,757. The chief articles of British home produce imported into Java in 1871 was cottons, including cotton yarns of the value of £600,866. The exports from Java to the United Kingdom have increased enormously during the past few years, having risen from the value of £13,773 in 1867 to £470,235 in 1871. The total exports from Java to the United Kingdom in 1871 were valued at £470,234. The total value of British home produce into Java in 1871 was £826,476. Shipping. —There are 420 vessels of all sizes registered in Netherlands India. Cinchona cultivation in Java, under the special care of the Government, is increasing yearly. Cetlon. Area, 24,454 square miles. The total population, according to the census of March, 1872, was 2,405,287. Of the total population in 1870, 2,128,884, including 2,847 military, 4,732 were British, 14,201 other whites of European descent, and the rest coloured. Total value of Imports in 1871, £4,797,952. Total value of Exports in 1871, £3,034,358. The staple exports are coffee, cinnamon, cocoa-nut oil and coir, the respective values of which articles exported in 1871 were:— Coffee ... ... ... ... £2,432,427 Cinnamon ... ... ... ... 68,410 Cocoa-nut oil ... ... ... ... 257,770 Coir ... ... ... ... 45,448 The greatest part of the exports go to the United Kingdom. The great bulk of the imports are from the United Kingdom and from British Possessions in India. Mauritius. Area. —676 square miles. Population.— Census, April, 1871, 316,042. Total value of Imports in 1871, deducting specie, £1,807,382. Total value of Exports in 1871, deducting specie, £3,053,054. The principal article of export is sugar. In 1871, the quantity exported was 123,000 tons, valued at £2,819,344. Average price per cwt., £1 2s. 7d. The Mauritius has several small dependencies between lat. 3° and 20° S., and long. 50° and 70° E. The chief of these is tho Seychelles Islands, between lat. 4° and s°, about 930 miles north from the Mauritius, one of which, Mahe, is sixteen miles long by from three to four miles broad; fertile, well watered, very healthy, and having a population of about 7,000. Mahe, its chief town, has on its north-east side about 100 wooden houses and a garrison of thirty men. Seychelles, a dependency of Mauritius. The staple article of export is cocoa-nut oil. The quantity exported in 1871 was 253,070 gallons. The total value of Imports, 1871, was £61,780. The total value of Exports, 1871, was £40,598. Eevenue in 1871, £9,787. Total expenditure in 1871, £8,035. Labuan. Area. —Forty-five square miles. • Population. —4,898. Total Imports in 1870, £122,983. Total Exports in 1870, £61,218. The chief articles of Export, the produce of the island, or brought into the island from Borneo for exportation, are bees' wax, birds' nests, camphor, coals, gutta-percha, India-rubber, hides, pearls, seed pearls, rattans, sago, tortoise-shell, and trepang. Borneo (Brunei). The population of the town of Brunei is a branch of the Malay race, and is estimated to number between 30,000 and 40,000 people. The trade is conducted with Labuan, Singapore, and places on the coast of Borneo. The value of Exports from Brunei in 1871 was roughly put down at between £40,000 and £50,000; and the Imports at £46,000 or £47,000. 3—A. 3a.

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THE NAVIGATOBS GEOUP. Eepoet by Mr. Seed. . Sir, — Custom House, Wellington, 13th February, 1872. I have the honor to state that, in obedience to your instructions, I left Auckland on the evening of the 30th December last, by the mail steamer " Nevada," for the Navigators Islands, and reached that group at three a.m. on the 6th ultimo. The steamer, without anchoring, stopped off the eastern end of Tutuila, and sent a boat on shore to land me at Pango Pango Harbour. It was dark when we left the steamer, but daylight dawned just as the boat approached the shore at the Native settlement at the head of the harbour. The Natives, on hearing us, turned out in considerable numbers, and rushed into the water to drag the boat on shore and to assist us in landing. Very soon afterwards the sun rose, and revealed to us the full beauties of the tropical scenery by which we were surrounded. Cocoa-nut palms, bread-fruit, bananas, oranges, limes, native chestnuts, and other trees covered the small flat on which the Native village stood, and extended close down to the beach. Dotted about here and there in the shade of these trees were the Natives' houses, and a little distance in rear of the village the ground rose rather abruptly towards the high, bush-covered hills that surrounded the harbour. I had been led to believe that the language of the Natives was very similar to that of the New Zealanders ; and I was disappointed at finding that, though a dialect of the same Polynesian language, it was so different that I was unable to carry on conversation with them. This was the more perplexing, as the resident missionary, the ltev. Mr. Powell, to whom I had letters of introduction, was absent, and had been so for several months. Fortunately one or two of the Natives spoke a little English, and came to my assistance. They conveyed me to the house of the chief, Maunga, who welcomed me most courteously, and requested me to take up my quarters with him. lat once accepted his offer, hoping that I should soon find some European settler, who would be able to assist me in getting about the islands. My anxiety on this head was soon relieved by the arrival in the course of the morning of a white settler of the name of Hunkin, who, it appears, had boarded the " Nevada " outside, and had been urged by Captain Blethen to communicate with me as soon as possible, with a view of facilitating my movements. Mr. Hunkin offered to assist me in any way he could, and I gladly availed myself of his services. He informed me that he had been a settler on the Navigators for the last thirty-five years, and had acted as British Vice-Consul for a considerable part of that time. I am indebted to him for much of the information I acquired, especially respecting the Natives, with whose customs and traditions he is acknowledged to be better acquainted than any other European in the group. In the afternoon I accompanied him to his place at Tafuna, a few miles to the westward of Pango Pango, where I stayed for the night, and on the following day started for Leone, the principal town of Tutuila, where I was detained for a week waiting for a fair wind to Upolu, the next island to the westward, on which there is the port of Apia, where most of the European settlers reside. Early on the 15th January I left Tutuila by a whaleboat, and reached Apia on the following morning. The distance from Tutuila to the eastern end of Upolu is thirty-six miles, thence to Apia is about twenty miles farther. The British, American, and German Consuls reside at Apia, as it is the centre of trade, and altogether the most important place at present in the whole group. Immediately after my arrival, I placed myself in communication with Mr. "Williams, the British Consul, who showed me every attention in his power, and supplied me with much valuable information. I called on the American Consul and on the German Consul, both of whom courteously furnished me with information on various points. Mr. Weber, the German Consul, is the representative of the large mercantile firm of Messrs. Goddefroy and Sons, of Hamburgh, who for many years past have had in their hands almost the whole trade of the group. I was unable to procure exact returns of this trade, but that it must be very large is shown conclusively by the fact that from ten to twelve largo ships are despatched each year from Apia with full cargoes. These cargoes, however, are not composed exclusively of local produce. Messrs. Goddefroy have trading stations in other parts of the Pacific, and employ small vessels to bring the produce to Apia for shipment. Some of the large vessels occasionally leave Apia and fill up for Europe at ports in the adjacent groups. They have always, throughout tho year, one or two large vessels loading for home, and have four brigs trading to Sydney and five or six small vessels of from 40 to 140 tons trading regularly between Apia and the Solomon Islands, Friendly Islands, Savage Islands, Peru Island, and other islands in the Pacific, where their agents are stationed. The produce brought by these vessels is beche-le-mer, cocoa-nut oil, and cobra, which is shipped direct to Hamburgh. Whilst I was at Apia, they had five or six square-rigged vessels lying in port. I expected to have been able to return from Upolu by one of the small trading schooners, but found that there was no probability of one going to Tutuila for a considerable time : I therefore determined to return by the whaleboat by which I came, and accordingly left Apia on the evening of the 19th January, reached Ulotongea (at the eastern end of Upolu) by daylight next morning, and about II o'clock started for Tutuila with a light leading wind, which died away before we were half way across, and caused us to make a long and tedious passage. We landed at a harbour called Masefau, on the northern side of Tutuila, and the following day proceeded to the small island of Aunu'u, where, by arrangement with Captain Blethen, I was to wait for the steamer. As I was detained at Aunu'u nine days, I took the opportunity of paying a second visit to Pango Pango Harbour, and had the pleasure of meeting tho Eev. Mr. Powell, who had returned to his station a few day 3 previously. He treated me with great kindness, and supplied me with much interesting information. The "Nevada" arrived off Aunu'u on the night of the 30th January, and I returned by her to New Zealand, reaching Auckland on the 17th instant. Having referred to the various localities I visited, I now proceed to give a general description of the whole group, and to remark upon such points as appear to me to be specially interesting. Samoa is the Native name of the Navigators Islands. The group is situated in the Pacific Ocean, between the meridians of 169° 24' and 172° 50' West longitude, and between the parallels of 13° 30' and 14° 30' South latitude. There are ten inhabited islands extending from Ta'u, the easternmost, to Savaii, the most western island, viz., Ta'u, Olosenga, Ofu, Aunu'u, Tutuila, Nuutele, Upolu, Manono, and Savaii. The Native population is from 33,000 to 34,000. The islands were surveyed by the

Appendix, 1872, E. 2. (p. 8.)

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United States Exploring Expedition in 1839. Commodore Wilkes, in his narrative of that expedition, states that they contain 1,650 square miles, divided as follows, viz., — Savaii ... ... ... 700 Apolima ... ... ... 7 Upolu ... ... ... 560 ■ Manu'a ... ... ... 100 Tutuila ... ... ... 240 Olosenga ... ... ... 24 Manono ... ... ... 9 Ofu ... ... ... 10 The principal islands, it will be seen, are Savaii, Upolu, and Tutuila. Savaii, which I was unable to visit, is the largest island. The following description of it is quoted from the work mentioned above: — " Savaii is the most western island of the Samoan group, and is also the largest, being forty miles in length and twenty in breadth. It is not, however, as populous or as important as several of the others. It differs from any of the others in its appearance, for its shore is low, and the ascent thence to the centre is gradual, except where the cones of a few extinct craters are seen. In the middle of the island a peak rises, which is almost continually enveloped in the clouds, and is the highest land in the group. On account of these clouds, angles could not be taken for determining its height accurately, but it certainly exceeds four thousand feet . . . " Another marked difference between Savaii and the other large islands is the want of any permanent streams, a circumstance which may be explained, notwithstanding the frequency of rain, by the porous nature of the rock (vesicular lava) of which it is chiefly composed. Water, however, gushes out near the shore in copious springs; and when heavy and continued rains have occurred, streams are formed in the ravines, but these soon disappear after the rains have ceased. " The coral reef .attached to this island is interrupted to the south and west, where the surf beats full upon the rocky shore. There are, in consequence, but few places where boats can land, and only one harbour for ships, that of Mataatua: even this is unsafe from November to February, when the north-westerly gales prevail. " The soil is fertile, and was composed, in every part of the island that was visited, of decomposed volcanic rock and vegetable mould." Upolu is ten miles to the eastward of Savaii, and is next in size. It is about forty miles long and thirteen broad. It has a main ridge extending from east to west, broken here and there into sharp peaks and hummocks. Erom this main ridge a number of smaller ridges and broad gradual slopes run down to a low shore, which is encircled by a coral reef, interrupted here and there by channels which form the entrances to safe and convenient anchorages for small vessels. At Apia the reef extends across a good-sized bay, and forms a safe and commodious harbour for large ships, which is entered through a deep and clear channel formed by a break in the reef. Between Savaii and Upolu are two small islands ; at the south-east end of Tutuila there is the small island of Aunu'u, and sixty miles to the east of this lies Manu'a. The following description of these islands is taken from an account of the Samoan group, published in 1868, by the Eev. Mr. Powell, in the Chronicle of the London Missionary Society : — " The first island that comes in sight of voyagers arriving from the eastward is Ta'u (Ta-'oo), the largest of the three islands that constitute the group which the Natives call Manu'a (Ma-noo-a). It is about six miles long, four and a half broad, and sixteen in circumference, and contains one hundred square miles. "About six miles west of Ta'u is the island of Olosenga (O-la-say-nga). This is a very rocky island, three miles long, five hundred yards wide, and about fifteen hundred feet high. It contains twenty-four square miles. It is precipitous on every side, —least so on the north-east, most on the north and south-west. On the latter side, about two hundred feet from the shore, rises up a mural precipice twelve hundred feet high. The principal village is situated, in times of peace, on the strip of land in front of this precipice. In times of war the people live on the mountain. " About two miles and a half oft' the eastern point of the island, a volcanic eruption burst out from the deep ocean in September, 1866. " Ofu (O-foo), the smallest of the three islands included in the Manu'an group, is neither so high nor so precipitous as Olosenga. It is separated from the latter by only a narrow, shallow strait, about a fourth of a mile wide. A double-pointed crag off its eastern extremity, together with the precipitous, craggy nature of Olosenga, give to the neighbourhood a remarkably romantic appearance. "The population of the Manu'an group is about 1,500. " Aunu'u. —Sixty miles west of Ofu is the island of Tutuila (Too-too-ee-la). A mile from Tutuila, off its south-east point, is the little island of Aunu'u (Au-noo'oo). This island is about five miles in circumference. Population, 200. " Manono. —Two miles from the western point of Upolu, and encircled by its reef, is the island of Manono (Ma-no-no). It is nearly of triangular shape, and less than five miles in circumference. It contains nine square miles. It has a mountain a few hundred feet high, from whose summit can be obtained a splendid view of Upolu and Savaii. It is itself ' one entire garden, in looking at which the eye can scarcely tire.' It has a population of about 1,000. This island held a very extensive political supremacy over Upolu till the war of 1847-54, in which she lost supremacy, and was obliged to take her place on a level with those over whom she formerly exercised much despotic power. " Apolima (A-po-lee-ma) is about two miles from Manono. It is a crater somewhat resembling a horse-shoe, while its depth may well suggest the idea of the hand with the fingers contracted, which is the meaning of the name. Its highest part is 472 feet above the sea. The population is about 200." Tutuila, the easternmost and smallest of the three principal islands, is thirty-six miles distant from Upolu. It is seventeen miles long, and its greatest width is five miles. The total Native population of Tutuila is about 4,000. The land is generally mountainous, with steep, sharp-edged ridges, rising here and there into lofty peaks, the highest of which (that of Matafae) is 2,327 feet above the sea, and forms a prominent landmark for the excellent harbour of Pango Pango. As the existence of this harbour so greatly enhances the importance of the Navigators Islands, and as a description of it by a nautical man will be more valuable than any account of it I could give, I quote the following from a

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report by Captain Wakeman, an experienced master mariner, who was recently deputed by Mr. Webb to visit Tutuila and ascertain whether this harbour would be a suitable place for a coaling station for his steamers : — "At daylight I found myself in the most perfectly land-locked harbour that exists in the Pacific Ocean. In approaching this harbour from the South, either by night or day, the mariner has unmistakable landmarks to conduct him into port: one on the port hand, a high, peaked, conical mountain, 2,327 feet high, and on the starboard hand a flat-topped mountain 1,470 feet in height, which keep sentinel on either hand. These landmarks can never be mistaken by the mariner. The entrance to the harbour is three-quarters of a mile in width, between Tower Rock on the port side and Breaker Point on the starboard hand, with soundings of 36 fathoms. A little more than one mile from Breaker Point on the starboard hand, to Goat Island on the port hand, we open out the inner harbour, which extends one mile west at a breadth of 3,000 feet abreast of Goat Island, to 1,100 feet at the head of the bay, carrying soundings from 18 fathoms to G fathoms at the head of the bay. The reefs which skirt the shore are from 200 feet to 300 feet wide, almost awash at low sea. They have, at their edge, from 4 fathoms to 5, 6, and 8 fathoms, and deeper in the middle of the harbour. The hills rise abruptly around this bay from 800 to 1,000 feet in height. . . . There is nothing to prevent a steamer, night or day, from proceeding to her wharf. About half way from Breaker Point to Goat Island, and near mid-channel, is "Whale Bock, with 8 feet of water over it at low sea. It has a circumference of about 50 feet, and breaks frequently. A buoy renders this danger harmless. The services of a pilot can never be required by any one who has visited this port before, as tho trade winds from E.S.E. carry a vessel from near Breaker Point with a free sheet in a N.N.W. course into the harbour. It follows that vessels under canvas will have to work out, which in the ebb tide, with the trades, will generally be accomplished in a few tacks. The trouble is that a ship close into the reefs goes in stays, and frequently the whirlwinds off the high land baffle her a few points and prevent her taking properly aback, whence a boat is kept ahead ready to tow her round upon the right tack. Mr. Powell, a missionary, has been a resident of this place twenty-two years, and says that he never knew of a longer detention than nine days to any ships in that time, and of but one gale, which came from the eastward, and unroofed a wing of his kitchen. Even the trades themselves are frequently liable to haul from E.S.E. to E.N.E., giving a ship a chance to get out with a leading wind. At the different quarters of the moon the tide rises 4J feet. . . . On the top of the little island of Aunu'u, to the east of Tutuila, at an elevation of 600 feet, a site for a lighthouse has been secured,, as it can be seen alike from the north or south, and is right in a line with the ship's course in passing. Being only seven miles from the entrance to Pango Pango Bay or Harbour, the ships could pick up the port lights, and go in immediately to the wharf, in the darkest night. There are several fine harbours for schooners on both sides of Tutuila." Savaii and Upolu contain the largest extent of flat land, —fully two-thirds of their area, about 500,000 acres, are fit for cultivation. Tutuila is more mountainous than Savaii and Upolu: probably not more than one-third of its area, or about 50,000 acres, would be fit for cultivation ; but it has a great advantage over the neighbouring islands in the possession of the excellent harbour of Pango Pango, described above. The whole group is of volcanic origin. Craters of extinct volcanoes are seen at various points. Some of the small islands of the group are composed of a single large crater rising abruptly from the sea. The soil on all the islands is exceedingly rich, and is everywhere covered with dense vegetation, from the water's edge up to the tops of the mountains. The high mountain ridges, extending through the middle of the larger islands, attract the passing clouds, which furnish a copious and never-failing supply of moisture, and feed the numerous streams of beautiful clear water that abound in every direction. The climate is mild and agreeable; the temperature generally ranges between 70° and 80°, but the heat is greatly subdued by the breezes that are constantly blowing. Mr. Williams, the British Consul, kept a meteorological register, for the Board of Trade, from 18G0 to 18G5, from which I made an abstract of the mean recorded temperature in every month in the year 1864. (Copy of this abstract is appended hereto.) The south-east trades blow steadily from April to October, being strongest in June and July. Erom November to March, westerly winds frequently blow, but not for any length of time together. A strong gale may generally be looked for some time in January, but frequently an entire year will pass without a severe gale. February, as a rule, is fine, with variable winds. March is usually the worst and most boisterous month in the year, the winds being still variable, and gales occurring from north to north-west. Copious rains fall from the beginning of December to March. June and July are the coolest, and September and October the hottest months, although it will be seen, from the abstract above referred to, that there is very little variation in the temperature throughout the year. Hence the growth of vegetation goes on without check all the year round. Cotton and Indian corn yield three crops a year. I saw some of the latter gathered in the middle of January, which had been sown at the beginning of last October: thus it was planted and the crop gathered within four months. The taro also comes to maturity in four months, and is planted continuously all the year round. When the Natives take up the taro, they cut off the top, make a hole in the ground with a stick, into which the top is thrust without the ground being dug over or in any way prepared. A short time after it is planted they clean the ground, and mulch between the plants with grass and leaves to keep down, the seeds. Bananas yield ripe fruit nine months after planting, —some of the introduced varieties come to maturity in six months. This fruit attains a great size, especially the indigenous varieties, some of which I measured, and found to be eight inches long and nine inches in circumference. Samoa is very rarely visited by the destructive hurricanes that so frequently sweep across most of the other groups in the Pacific. In December, 1840, there was a severe gale, but scarcely what could be called a hurricane. In April, 1850, a hurricane occurred, when two ships and a schooner were wrecked at Apia. Eor twenty years after this, —that is, up to 1870, —the islands were entirely free from hurricanes ; but four or five heavy gales occurred during that period. These hurricanes, when they occur, are often very local: sometimes they visit one island, leaving the others untouched; for instance, in January, 1870, a cyclone swept over Tutuila, but did not reach the other islands.

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The following are the principal productions of the group : —Cocoa-nuts, cotton, native chestnut (Inocarpus edulis), candle-nuts, bananas, mountain plantains, oranges, lemons, limes, citrons, shaddocks, pine-apples, mangoes, guavas, Malay apples, rose apples, custard apples, pawpaws, tamarinds, bread-fruit, yams, taro, pumpkins, melons, sweet potatoes, arrowroot, ginger, wild nutmeg, sugar-cane, mandioc or sweet casava, indigo, coffee, Indian corn, tobacco, chilis, vi (Spondias dulcis), medicinal plants, several trees with very fragrant blossoms that might be used for the preparation of scents, some that exude aromatic gum, and others that furnish very handsome and durable wood, suitable for cabinet-ware and furniture. There are two cotton plantations on TJpolu, of from 200 to 300 acres each, belonging to Messrs. Goddefroy, and several smaller ones, belonging to other Europeans. Both the Sea Island and kidney cotton grow most luxuriantly, and bear well. When planted in March, the first crop is ready for picking in July. The first year of planting there are two crops, one in July and one in September or October ; in succeeding years three crops may be picked. The chief article of export is cobra, which is the kernel of the cocoa-nut cut into small pieces and dried in the sun. The preparation of cocoa-nut oil has been almost entirely given up by the Natives, as they find that they can get a more rapid and certain return for their labour by the simple process of preparing cobra. The oil is now expressed from the cobra on its reaching Europe. The trade mostly iv request by the Natives is white and printed calicoes (which are known by the general name of " cloth," and are used by both sexes as lava-lavas or waist cloths), gay-coloured cotton handkerchiefs, butchers' knives, and American axes. The knives most approved of are large heavy ones, of about 14 or 16 inches in length, which the Natives use for all purposes. Soap, sewing cotton, and small fishhooks come next. Double-barrel guns, powder, lead, and shot, are also in great demand just at present. It is alleged that since the introduction of fire-arms the loss of life in the Native wars is much less than it used to be formerly, when they fought only with clubs and spears at close quarters, as the combatants observe great caution in approaching each other, from fear of the guns, and both sides commence firing a long way out of range. The British Consul puts down the European population as under:—British subjects ... ... ... ... ... ... 250 Subjects of the United States of America ... ... ... 45 Germans, Spaniards, Portuguese, and others ... ... ... 150 445 This must include the half-castes, for I am satisfied, from inquiries I made from old residents and others best able to give information on this point, that the foreign residents do not reach the number here given. I believe there are altogether about 250 Europeans on the group, most of whom are English. The following statistics of imports, exports, and shipping, for the last five years, were supplied to me by the British Consul: — Imports. Exports. Tear. Value. Value. 1867 ... £36,600 ... £40,598 186S ... 37,200 ... 38,020 1869 ... 35,992 ... 32,500 1870 ... 42,800 ... 25,600 1871 ... 25,000 ... 45,000 The imports in 1871 were less than in previous years on account of the large stocks that were on hand ; the increase in exports was caused by the Natives pouring in all the produce they could gather for the purpose of purchasing arms and ammunition for a war that was going on between two of the tribes.

The arrivals of shipping were as under: — No. of Ships. Tonnage. 1867.—British ... 26 ... 5,991 Foreign ... 31 ... 3,800 9,791 1868.—British ... 34 ... 8,038 United States of America 5 ... 3,072 G-erman ... 24 ... 3,875 Tahitian ... 2 ... 159 15,144 1869.—British ... 29 ... 4,402 United*States of America 3 ... 3,690 German ... 22 ... 4,230 Tahitian ... 2 ... 150 12,472 1870.—British ... 32 ... 4,940 United States of America 6 ... 3,791 German ... 28 ... 7,004 Tahitian ... 4 ... 650 16,385 1871.—British ... 26 ... 4,856 United States of America 3 ... 500 German ... 36 ... 8,696 Tahitian ... 2 ... 230

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In 1871, four ships of war visited Apia, namely, one British, one American, one Trench, and one Russian. Referring to the trade of Samoa, Mr. Williams, in his last consular report to the British Government, states that " The imports are from the Australian Colonies and Hamburgh : the greater part, however, are of British manufacture. About one-third of the exports are shipped to the colonies, and go thence to England; two-thirds, to Hamburgh direct, being shipped by the representative of the German firm, Messrs. Goddefroy and Sons. " In 1858 the business of these islands was in the hands of two British merchants, one German house, and one American. In 1870, six British merchants and traders were established in Apia, besides a number of small agencies; one German house, with several out-stations and agencies; and three American houses, with their agencies." Large tracts of land are being sold by the Natives to the foreign residents. Upwards of 70,000 acres have already been so disposed of, principally on Upolu. The price paid has been from 4s. to 20s. per acre ; but where the land is near the sea shore, and covered with bread-fruit and cocoa-nuts, it has fetched as much as £2 and £3 an acre. Whilst enumerating the advantages possessed by the Navigators group, it is only right to point out that these islands, like all other tropical countries, are not free from certain drawbacks. Chief of these is the prevalence of elephantiasis, from which disease the foreign residents are not exempt. They are not usually attacked by it for several years after their arrival, and some have remained free from it after a lengthened residence; but most of the old settlers suffer more or less from it in some shape or other. Opinion varies very much as to the cause of this disease ; —some say that it is caused by incautiously lying about in the bush in wet weather; others, that it arises from the constant and almost exclusive use of vegetable diet; whilst others say it results from the malaria that must constantly arise from decaying vegetation. Many of the residents think that the moderate use of stimulants averts this disorder, and it is generally believed that quinine is an excellent remedy for it. At some parts of the islands, especially in damp, low-lying situations, the inhabitants are more affected by it than they are in others, whilst on the small island of Aunu'u they are entirely exempt from it. Flies and mosquitoes are very numerous, and are particularly annoying and troublesome, especially to strangers; but they will probably disappear, to a great extent, when wider clearings are made in the dense vegetation that everywhere surrounds the towns and villages. The Samoan natives are a fine, tall, handsome race, of a light-brown colour. They are docile, truthful, and hospitable, and are very lively and vivacious. In conversation among themselves and in their intercourse with foreigners, they are exceedingly courteous and polite. They have different styles of salutation, corresponding with the social rank of the persons addressed : for instance, in addressing the chiefs or distinguished strangers they use the expression Lau-Afio, or "Your Majesty." In speaking to chiefs of lower rank they address them as Lau-Susu, as we would use the words " Tour Lordship." To chiefs of lower degree than those who are thus addressed, the term Ala-Ala is used ; and to the common people the salutation is Omai or Sau, simply meaning " You have arrived," or " You are here." The men only tattoo, and not on their faces, as the New Zealanders do, but on their bodies, from the waist to the knee, entirely black for the most part, where relieved here and there by graceful stripes and patterns. At a short distance this tattooing gives them the appearance of having on black knee-breeches. The clothing of both sexes is a piece of calico or native cloth wound round the waist and reaching to the knees. Some of the women wear a couple of coloured cotton handkerchiefs, in the shape of a narrow poncho, over their breasts and shoulders, and hanging loosely down to below the waist. When in the bush, or working in their taro plantations, or when fishing, they wear a kilt of the long handsome leaves of the Ti (Draccena terminalis). They have a kind of fine mat, plaited of fine strips of the leaves of a plant called Lau-ie. These mats are only used on important occasions, and they esteem them more highly than any European commodity. Some of them are quite celebrated, having names that are known all over the group ; —the older they are, the more they are valued. The oldest one known is called Moe-e-fui-fui, meaning "the mat that slept among the creepers." This name was given to it from the circumstance of its having been hidden away among the creeping kind of convolvulus that grows on the shore; —it is known to be over 200 years old, as the names of its owners during that time can be traced down. The best mats are made at Manu'a. They are the most coveted property a Native can possess, no labour or enterprise being considered too great to secure them. Both men and women spend a deal of time in dressing their hair, and frequently apply lime to it, which is laid on in a liquid state, about the consistency of cream, and has the effect of turning the hair to a reddish hue. Both men and women frequently wear flowers in their hair, —generally a single blossom of the beautiful scarlet Hybiscus, which is always found growing near their houses. Nature has supplied them so bountifully with food, in the shape of cocoa-nuts, bread-fruit, bananas, native chestnuts, and other wild fruits, and tho taro yields them an abundant crop with so little cultivation, that they have no necessity to exert themselves much, and they are therefore little inclined to industry, and probably will never be induced to undertake steady labour of any kind. Their houses are neat, substantial structures, generally circular in shape, with high-pitched conical roofs, supported in the centre by two or three stout posts, and open all round, but fitted with narrow mats made of cocoa-nut leaves, which are strung together like Venetian blinds, and can be let down in stormy weather. The Samoans are very expert in the management of their canoes, of which they have five different kinds: the A-lia, or large double canoes, some of which are capable of carrying two hundred men ; the Tau-mua-lua, from 30 to 50 feet long—(these were first made about seventeen years ago, and are fashioned after the model of our whaleboats) ; the Va-alo, or fishing canoes, with outrigger—{these are most beautiful little craft, and very fast, —they look exactly like our modern clipper ships, and probably furnished the model from which they were designed) ; then there is the Soatau, outrigger aug-out canoe, capable of carrying five or six people ; and, lastly, the Paopao, a smaller dug-out canoe for one person. The Natives are all professed Christians. Christianity was first introduced into Samoa in August,

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1830, by the father of the present British Consul, the Rev. J. Williams, who landed a number of Native teachers from Tahiti. A few years afterwards, about 1835, five English missionaries, belonging to the London Missionary Society, landed on the islands, and from that time to the present several Congregational missionaries have been constantly resident on the group. In addition to these, there is a Roman Catholic Bishop resident at Apia, and a number of Catholic priests in various parts of the islands. Tho Natives for nearly thirty years past, I understand, have annually contributed considerable sums towards the support of the mission establishments. There is no principal chief having authority over the whole group, although there are three great chiefs having the title of Tui, or King—viz., Tui-Manua, Tui-A-ana, Tui-Atua. The first-named is at Manu'a and the other two at Upolu. Although holding the high-sounding title of King, these chiefs really have no more authority than the Alii, or chiefs of towns, all being controlled by the councillors of the towns. Formerly there was a Tui Somoa, or King, of the whole group, similar to -the Tui Tonga and Tui Viti (King of Tonga and King of Eiji), but this has not been the case for probably hundreds of years. Each town or village has its own chief. In some cases a number of villages are banded together in a kind of confederacy, over which the chief who has the greatest influence exercises a nominal kind of rule. The principal chiefs are called Alii, next to whom are the heads of certain families in each village, called Tu-la-fale, who comprise a very considerable section of the community, and really exercise more influence than the chiefs. Everything affecting the interest of the village is debated in council, where the Tu-la-fale sit with the chief, and do most of the speaking. The decisions of the council become law for the whole village. The system of government varies in different districts. In some towns the Matuas, or Patriarchs, exercise considerable authority, whilst in others the Tu-la-fales have the most influence; this, however, they only possess collectively, not individually. The Natives, having so little to do, spend a great deal of time in their councils, where they discuss and regulate all the affairs of the town or village, down to the most trifling matter. They are constantly laying down laws for the price of food when sold to the Europeans, and what shall be paid by Europeans to the Natives they employ as boats' crews. The village council leaves no man, not even the chief, free to bargain for the disposal of what is his own. No argument can overcome its decisions, and the only way to remove these restrictions is for foreigners to abstain altogether from having any dealings -with the Natives whilst they endeavour to enforce these mischievous and absurd laws for regulating prices. None of the Samoan Natives, up to the present time, have been taken away in labour vessels. They would have the strongest objection to being removed from their own islands, and would not willingly engage themselves as labourers. There is, however, on Samoa a considerable number of Natives from islands near the Line, and from Niue, or Savage Island, who have been imported to work on the cotton plantations and about some of the warehouses. I saw a gang of thirty-five of the Line Islanders hoeing in a cotton field ; —they are darker in colour, and much smaller men than the Samoans. It struck me that they looked wretchedly dejected and forlorn, and that they plodded along at their work in a most languid and monotonous manner. Some were engaged, I was told, for five years, and some for three years, with pay of from three dollars to five dollars a month. They have to labour from 6 o'clock in the morning to 6 o'clock in the evening, with a rest of an hour for breakfast and an hour for dinner. The Niue men that I saw were working about one of the stores at Apia ; they were clothed in European costume, and had a lively and cheerful look. Several of them, I was told, after being sent back to their homes, had engaged themselves for a second term of service and returned to Apia ; but I did not hear that this had been the case with any of the Natives from the Line Islands. A feud has existed for some time past between two sections of the Natives on Upolu and Manono ; they have already fought twice during the last three years, when several were killed on each side, and hostilities are again imminent. The quarrel commenced about three years ago between Tua Masanga and Manono (one of the small islands off the western end of Upolu, the inhabitants of which formerly had considerable political influence over the people of Upolu), as to which party should have the right to nominate a chief to succeed to the title of Malieatoa, which is an old hereditary title of high rank. The Tua Masanga nominated for the title the eldest son of the late Malieatoa: the Manono party set up the brother of the deceased chief. The chieftainship, although hereditary, does not necessarily descend from father to son. Although the present war began ostensibly for the purpose of settling the succession to the title of Malieatoa, yet it soon took wider dimensions; and the Manono party, with a view of gaining more adherents to their side, declared it to be the Taua o tv lafono, or " war for establishing laws;" but probably the real motive that impelled the Manono party to take up arms, was a jealousy of the advantages enjoyed by the Tua Masanga in having the foreign settlement of Apia within their borders. This jealousy, and the fear of being deprived altogether of their political supremacy, induced the Manono party to establish themselves on the long low point that forms the western boundary of Apia Harbour, the name of which they changed from Murinuu to Samoa na tasi — " Samoa is one." Erom this position they hope to gain the ascendancy over the party who are now paramount in Apia. Great preparations are being made by both sides, and blows will no doubt be come to very shortly; but the Samoans do not appear to be a warlike race, and the war, although it may be protracted, is not likely to be a sanguinary one. The present disturbed state of affairs, however, is most disastrous to the Natives, as they congregate together in largo numbers and neglect their cultivations. They are selling their land in all directions to buy arms, without retaining sufficient reserves for their own support; and of course this disposition is being eagerly taken advantage of by many of the white settlers who desire to acquire land. Although not a warlike they are a very vain race, and their vanity compels them to enter into hostilities that both sides would probably gladly avoid. It is the opinion of many of the oldest residents who are thoroughly acquainted with the Natives, that the parties now at war would be glad to see peace restored, and that they, as well as the rest of the Native population, would welcome a foreign Power that could put an end to their troubles and establish law and order among them. Whilst I was at Apia, I took the opportunity, through the aid of Mr. Williams, the British Consul, f who has been thirty-three years in the islands, and is thoroughly acquainted with the language,

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manners, and customs of tho Natives, and has their confidence,) to ascertain the views, from one of the leading chiefs from each side in the present quarrel, as to the feelings of the Natives with reference to a foreign Power assuming the government of the islands. The most influential chief of the Manono party, and representing one of tho three great districts into which the Island of Upolu is divided, said, " There is no country wo should like to take over Samoa equal to England. We know the English are just; an English protectorate would he sweet." The principal chief belonging to the Tua Masanga, or section inhabiting the central district of Upolu, in which is the harbour and settlement of Apia, said that " his own feeling and that of his people was, that they would gladly welcome British rule, but that they did not want any other Power." He was repeatedly questioned, and his answer was always the same. He was then asked why the Natives preferred the English ? His reply was, that " they knew that the British would deal justly by them, but other Powers would oppress them." This conclusion, he said, was formed from the experience of the oppressive treatment they had already experienced at the hands of the subjects as well as the vessels of war of other nations. His opinion was, that the great majority of the Natives were anxious for the British Government to come to Samoa to establish law and good government. What they would prefer would be to have a council of chiefs, aided by English officers, to frame and carry out laws, and to have the occasional presence of an English vessel of war to back up the authority of the council. On Tutuila, Maunga, the chief at Pango Pango Harbour, told me that the Natives would be glad to see Great Britain take the islands under her protection. He said they made an application to this effect through the British Consul to the Queen about twenty-five years ago ; that they were still of the same mind, and were waiting for a favourable reply. An answer, I was told, was returned to this application, to the effect that the British Government was not prepared to take possession of the islands, but that it would not stand by and see any other Power exercise greater authority in them than it did. The chiefs of Tutuila and of Upolu, I understand, have twice forwarded requests, through the British Consul, to the Homo Government to take possession of the islands or establish a protectorate over them. The foreign residents are exceedingly desirous of seeing some settled form of government established, and the great majority of them are in favour of British rule. In an interview I had with the Eoman Catholic Bishop at Apia, he told me that he very much regretted the present disturbed state of the Natives on Upolu, as it stopped all progress among them. He would like to see some Government take possession of the group, and thought that the Natives would be glad to welcome any Power that would establish law and order, and put an end to their fights. He would rather see England or America than any other foreign Power take possession of the islands. He knew that British rule was just and liberal, and that all religions would have equal liberty. Any authority that came to the islands would have to be from some recognized Government, and should be introduced by a vessel of war. Ho estimated the population at about 34,000 ; —this was the number set down a few years ago, after careful inquiry, and ho did not think there was much difference now —the population was about stationary. He had a high opinion of the Samoans, and considered them docile, truthful, and honest; but the chiefs were exceedingly jealous of each other, which led to frequent wars. In the course of conversation with Mr. Weber, the German Consul, he informed me that he had large claims against the Natives, and that he had been applying to his Government for several years past to get a vessel of war to call. The Prussian Government had at length acceded to his application, and promised that the " Nympha" should visit the islands on her way to China. This vessel is expected at Apia very shortly. Mr. Weber told me that he had no intimation whatever that it was the intention of his Government to take possession of or to assume any authority over the islands. On reaching Auckland, on my return from the Navigators, I learnt from a gentleman just returned from Sydney, that the " Nympha " had reached that place, and that the captain had stated that he had instructions to proceed thence to the Navigators Islands, where he was to refit his ship, and to land and exercise his men. There can be no doubt, I think, that both Natives and Europeans would gladly welcome the establishment of British authority on the islands, and that it will be a matter of lasting regret to all who are in any way interested in the extension of commerce and civilization among the countless islands of the Pacific, if the Government disregard the wishes of the Natives, and refuse to take possession of or to establish a protectorate over this valuable group. The importance of securing possession of the harbour of Pango Pango for a coaling station for the steamers carrying the New Zealand and Australian English mails to and from San Erancisco, is too obvious to require comment. The distance from — Pango Pango to Auckland ... ... ... ... ... 1,577 miles. „ Vavau, Friendly Islands ... ... ... 380 „ „ Levuka, Fiji ... ... ... ... ... 630 „ ~ Tongatabu ... ... ... ... ... 475 „ „ Tahiti ... ... ... ... ... 1,250 „ „ New Caledonia ... ... ... ... 1,445 „ „ Sydney ... ... ... ... ... 2,410 „ „ Melbourne ... ... ... ... ... 2,864 „ Honolulu ... ... ... ... ... 2,283 „ From its central and commanding position in respect to the other groups in the Pacific, Pango Pango Harbour would further appear to be admirably suited for a naval depot, or for a station from which Her Majesty's cruisers, could rapidly reach the different islands, and thus be able to suppress the abuses of the South Sea labour traffic. The Government of tho United States appear to be fully sensible of the important position of the Navigators Islands, for intelligence has just been brought by the "Nevada" that the United States sloop of war " Narragansett," which vessel was at Honolulu when the " Nevada" left that place, is under orders to proceed to the Navigators for the purpose of forming a naval station at Pango Pango Harbour. Commerce is rapidly increasing in the Pacific, and trading stations owned by British subjects are being established in it in various directions. Large numbers of British vessels are now constantly employed in distributing British manufactures, and gathering up produce at the various islands for shipment (generally through the Australian Colonies

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and New Zealand) to Great Britain. Very large interests are thus rapidly springing up among the South Sea Islands, and the necessity for having some station in the Pacific where British authority shall prevail and where British justice can be administered, will year by year become more pressing. If British authority should be established on Samoa, I believe that the Natives, under proper management, would readily adapt themselves to our institutions, and conform to all necessary laws for maintaining order among themselves. They have already made efforts to establish laws for the punishment of crime. A simple code wa3 some time since drawn up by the British Consul, which the Natives approved of, but, owing to dissensions among themselves, it did not come into operation. Perhaps the most certain indication of their fitness for civil government that can be adduced, is the fact that they have adopted the plan of levying taxes among themselves for particular objects. For instance, quite recently the Upolu people fixed a tax of one dollar a head on adult males, a half dollar on youths, and a quarter dollar on male children, for the purpose of buying arms and ammunition for the present war. New Zealand, in addition to being the nearest British Colony to the Navigators, is also most favourably situated for communicating with that group, owing to the prevailing winds for nine months in the year being favourable for the passage both ways. One or two vessels are already employed in trading to them, and it is certain that at no distant date this trade will rapidly increase, as the islands are capable of yielding sugar, coffee, cotton, and almost every kiud of tropical produce ; whilst New Zealand raises in abundance and can'supply, in exchange for these commodities, exactly those articles which the white settlers on the islands.stand most iv need of, such as flour, butter, cheese, preserved meats, &c, &c. Many of the European settlers are fully alive to the advantages they would derive from a connection with New Zealand, and a large number of them, I have no doubt, would willingly aid in establishing such a connection. Several of them recognize that the long experience the New Zealand Government has had in the management of the Maoris, would enable it to suggest measures or to take steps that would avert many complications that they think would arise if the management of the islands were placed entirely under persons having little or no knowledge of the character and prejudices of the Polynesian Natives. Erom the particulars given above, it will be seen that tho Navigators Islands occupy a most important position in the Pacific; that they possess two safe and commodious harbours, suitable for the largest size vessels, which harbours are admirably adapted for stations from which operations could be rapidly carried out for suppressing the pernicious and iniquitous labour traffic that is now carried on among the South Sea Islands ; that the Islands are capable of producing almost everything that is grown within the tropics, and that they are likely to become an important centre for trade; — further, that they arc inhabited by a docile and amiable race of Natives, who have the warmest attachment to Great Britain, and earnestly desire to place themselves under her rule and protection. On reviewing these conditions, and having regard especially to the geographical position of New Zealand in relation to the Navigators and adjacent'groups, and to the fact that a considerable trade is likely soon to spring up between this Colony and those Islands, tho conclusion, I think, that must be arrived at is, that it would bo advisable that the New Zealand Government should strongly support the wishes of the Natives, and should urge upon the Imperial Government to comply with those wishes, by establishing British protection and authority over the Islands of Samoa. I have, Sec, The Hon. the Commissioner of Customs, "Wellington. William Seed.

EXTRACT from the Meteorological Register kept at the British Consulate at Apia, in the Navigators Islands, for the Year 1864.

Lowest and Highest Temperature during the Month. Month. 6 o'clock a.m. 4 o'clock p.m. Highest REC0EDKD Temperature DURING the Month. Lowest. Highest. Lowest. Highest. o o O o 0 "anuary... February .larch ... Lpril ... .fay une uly ... Lugust ... leptember )ctober... November )eccmber ... i ... ... ; ,.. j ... : 70 71 70 70 65 65 61 59 67 61 73 71 75 79 SL 7G 82 7-1 74 77 78 7!) 76 78 76 77 74 71 78 78 7!) 78 81 82 7S 82 82 84 85 88 85 83 82 84 83 84 79. 86 S5 at 8 a.m. 85 at 10 a.m. 86 at 8 a.m. 88 at 4 p.m. 85 at 4 p.m. 83 at 4 p.m. 82 at 4 p.m. 84 at 4 p.m. 86 at 8 a.m. 86 at 8 a.m. 84 at 8 a.m. 86 at 4 p.m. . 4—A. 3a. Authorit; : Geobge Didsbuby, Government Printer Wellinj :on— 1S74.