VI

It was while Rolleston held the portfolio of Native Minister that he realised the great possibilities of the thermal springs district as a health resort. He foresaw that in future years the marvels of this district would draw visitors and patients from all parts of the world. He therefore devoted much thought and labour to the task of acquiring land and laying out the present township of Rotorua, and the beautiful grounds and gardens that surround the spa. Writing to page break

Mrs Rolleston in1900

page 163his brother, the Reverend Robert Rolleston, on 18 April 1882, he says:

My wife and I have just returned from travelling all through the wonders of the hot springs district. I suppose there is no hope of seeing you come in search of rejuvenescence, like Medea's grandfather, in the boiling cauldrons of New Zealand. Here you would see the sun shine as it never does in the Northern Hemisphere, moonlight as bright as your daylight, glacial and volcanic action in active operation and wondrous forests. Trees of the Lord, which he—no mortal hand—hath planted—from one of which you may build a small village. I have been travelling many hundreds of miles on horseback over yet uninhabited country, through peach groves and apple trees under which, the wild pigs lie waiting for the fruit to drop. The great beauty of the country however is its shrubs. They are something marvellous in their colour and variety.