New Zealand, Wonderland of the Pacific.

Different from other islands of the Pacific, the main Islands of New Zealand are of the continental type, very interesting to visiting scientists as well as to other tourists. Indeed, the country is the remnant of a very much greater land mass which extended northward.

Including outlying isles and the Ross Dependency, the Dominion now stretches from the tropics to Antarctica, but the main islands (North, South and Stewart) lie in the mild temperate region between the parallels of 34deg. and 48deg, south latitude (a stretch of 1,000 miles) and the meridians of 166deg. and 179deg. east longitude—about 1,200 miles to the east of Australia. The area of New Zealand proper (103,285 square miles) exceeds that of Great Britain by more than 13,000 miles.

Abel Tasman, who sailed around these islands in 1642, was the first known European to see this territory. Next came the famous Captain Cook in 1769 and subsequent years. His voyages prepared the way for British colonisation of “The Brighter Britain of the South,” but organised settlement did not make a successful beginning until 1840.

In the short space of eighty-eight years New Zealand has grown into a prosperous, progressive country, developing on modern lines of efficiency. Mildness of climate, fertility of soil, and other natural advantages assure a high standard of comfort for a much larger population than the present total (about 1,440,000 in 1928).

About 94 per cent of the population of the Dominion proper is of British origin. The proportion of the native race (Maori), including half-castes, is about 5 per cent. There is no racial problem whatever. Peace between the new settlers and the Natives was firmly established half a century ago. The great majority of the Maoris live in the upper part of the North Island, where they have their own settlements.

The clean air of the Pacific, a liberal share of sunshine (an annual average exceeding 2,000 hours), and other factors—including a vigorous public health policy—have given New Zealand the world's premiership in health. The annual death rate is usually below 9 per 1,000 of population. The average expectation of life at age 0 is 61 years for males and 63 1/2 years for females.

Farming is the mainstay of the Dominion's prosperity. New Zealand is pre-eminently a pastoral country, a well-known exporter of dairy produce, frozen lamb and mutton, and wool.

There has also been some creditable development in various manufacturing industries.

A remarkable advance has been made during recent years with the provision of electric power

(Photo, W. W. Stewart.)
Having been stripped of all useful gear and fittings the old locomotives illustrated above were recently dumped at Westfield, Auckland.

page 47 for urban and rural areas. Very favourable conditions are enabling the Government to supply hydro-electric power cheaply for domestic and industrial uses.