Preface.

The three islands of New Zealand, lying between 34.23 and 47.19 degrees of south latitude, extend over a length of nearly 1,200 miles. Their general direction is north-north-east to south-south-west. North and south the islands extend about 900 miles, so that they possess a great variety of climate. Southland is of nearly the same temperature as England; the north of Auckland is semi-tropical. The average breadth of the islands is about 120 miles. No part of the Colony is distant from the sea-coast more than seventy-five miles. At Auckland the island narrows so that from coast to coast can be reached in six miles. The north island is about 500 miles long—its greatest breadth about 250 miles. The south island is about the same length—its greatest breadth 200 miles. The area of the north island is about 44,000 square miles, or rather less than that of England. The area of the south is 55,000 square miles, or about the size of England and Wales. The two islands are separated by Cook's Straits, thirteen miles across at the narrowest part. Stewart's Island is to the south of the Southern (sometimes called Middle) Island, and is separated from it by Fouveaux Straits. The three islands have an area almost equal to that of Great Britain and Ireland. They are rich in various kinds of beautiful scenery. Picturesque elements are abundant and diversified, on the coast, in the plains, the valleys, the mountains, the forests, the lakes, and the multitudinous streams. The Hot Lake District, in the North Island, is one of the wonders of the world; and the Sounds on the south-western coast of the South Island are scenes of great natural grandeur, being long, narrow, and of great depth, surrounded by snow-capped mountains rising precipitously to 5,000 and 10,000 feet.

Commencing, then, in the north, let us run rapidly over them. Auckland possesses in the waters of the Waitemata and the surrounding scenery one of the loveliest harbours in the world. To the north of the city of Auckland, the provincial district of that name extends some 200 miles. At the Bay of Islands, 120 miles north of Auckland, the Treaty of Waitangi, by which the Maoris acknowledge themselves British subjects, was signed in 1840. This part of the North Island contains large deposits of coal, and possesses splendid forests of the kauri tree. South of Auckland, without leaving the waters of the harbour, the gold fields of the Thames and of Coromandel are reached, and some forty miles from Auckland the Waikato district commences. This district is connected with Auckland by railway, and the projected extension of this railway will bring that city into communication with the southern part of the island. The Waikato is a fine river, and finds its exit on the west coast, thirty miles south of the Manukau Harbour. The Auckland district has a delightful climate, a large quantity of excellent land, and much mineral wealth. Its forests are magnificent, and in them the giant kauri pine-tree grows.

Going further south, after passing Poverty Bay and the thriving settlement of Gisborne, the fertile district of Hawke Bay is reached, the capital of which, Napier, is one of the most rising towns in the colony. Before proceeding further south, mention should be made of the Taupo Lake in the interior of the island, and also of the numerous hot and cold mineral springs, possessing curative virtues of the highest moment.

Leaving Napier, Wellington, the seat of government, is reached by steamer in from twenty-six to thirty hours. Wellington possesses an excellent harbour, and is the port of a large extent of productive country.

Going back again to Auckland, and starting from the Manukau Harbour on the west coast, in a few hours New Plymouth, the capital of the Taranaki district, is reached. This district has been called the garden of the Colony, and well page vii deserves its name. Going further south, we pass Mount Egmont, rising almost sheer from the sea-coast. Frequently, on a bright day, a cloud will envelop the middle of the mountain, and above it, clear in the sunshine, will be seen an immense snow-covered pyramid, suspended apparently in mid-air.

Proceeding south, towards Cook's Straits, Wanganui, a town situated on the river of the same name, is passed. Wanganui is supported by a productive district, and has a prosperous future before it.

Crossing Cook's Straits to the northern portion of the Middle or South Island, Nelson, the capital of the district of that name, is reached. Nelson possesses one of the most enjoyable climates in the world. There is a great deal of business carried on between it and the gold-fields of the west coast of the Middle Island, and there is now every prospect of its being brought into communication with the rest of the island by means of the railway which an English company has undertaken to construct between the east and west coasts, and which will complete the trunk line from the northern to the southern extremities of the island.

Gold was discovered in large quantities on the west coast in 1864-65, and has proved the forerunner to further wealth. Coal of a splendid description has been found along the coast in great abundance, and the forests contain excellent timber, and are very extensive. Prosperous towns have come into existence, and settlement is progressing further south. Proceeding along the west coast, Westport at the mouth of the River Buller, and Greymouth on the Grey River, are passed, and twenty miles from the Grey is the capital of the Westland district, Hokitika. Westland extends south to the Awarua River, and beyond it is Otago, which stretches across the island from cast to west, Passing Milford Sound and rounding the island through Fouveaux Straits, which separates it from Stewart's Island, the Bluff Harbour is reached, and twenty miles inland is the prosperous town of Invercargill, the capital of the Southland district. Further north, on the east coast, is the Otago Harbour, at the page viii head of which is Dunedin, the capital of the Otago district. Otago was originally a Scotch settlement, but of course any idea of maintaining in it an exclusively Scotch element has long been dispelled. The gold discoveries in 1861 suddenly brought to Otago a large influx of population, and the old and the new soon fraternised together. Proceeding up the coast, Oamaru and Timaru are passed, both thriving towns, owing their prosperity to the agricultural and pastoral wealth of the districts of which they are the collecting points. From Timaru, on a clear day, can be seen the tent-like snowy peaks of Mount Cook, towering to the height of over 12,000 feet, and distant from Timaru some sixty miles. Then comes Akaroa, possessing a harbour second to none in the colony, and which no doubt will become an important place when railway communication is opened between it and the interior. Lyttleton, the chief port of Canterbury, is now reached, and connected with it, by a railway passing through a tunnel one mile and three-quarters in length, is Christchurch, the capital city, a busy and prosperous place. In 1857 the population of Christchurch was 978, now it is nearly 35,000. The railway from Christchurch goes north as far as the river Hurunui, and the line south is opened for traffic to Invercargill, and it will soon be connected by rail with the mineral-bearing districts of Westland and Nelson. Completing the circuit of the island, we come to Picton, charmingly situated and possessing a fine harbour, and thence a railway of twenty miles takes passengers to Blenheim, the capital town of the Marlborough district. Marlborough has great pastoral and agricultural resources, and extensive forests of useful timber.

It would not be possible within the limits of this introduction to refer at any length to the political institutions of the country, but the subject cannot be left altogether untouched. Until 1876 the colony was divided into ten provinces, each largely endowed with independent powers of government. Much of the past progress of the Colony may be attributed to the minute local care and emulation arising out of these divisions; but the time page ix came when it was thought desirable to abolish these separate forms of government. At the time this gave rise to much exciting discussion. A more complete revolution of the kind could not be conceived, yet it was effected without any thing in the nature of a disturbance from beginning to end. There is now but one central Government in the country. The Governor appointed by the Queen acts only with the advice of his ministers, and when that advice is not approved in Parliament, he seeks fresh advisers, or commands a general election. The Parliament or General Assembly, as it is called, consists of two Houses, the one nominated by the Governor on behalf of the Queen, the other elected by the people. Then there are County Councils, Municipalities and Road Boards for the local government of the country.

On the subject of education, it may be remarked that under the Provincial Governments it was the earnest endeavour of the several provinces to provide the most abundant means for the education of the children. After the abolition of the provincial system, the Colony did not overlook the necessity of continuing this good work, and the educational provisions of the several provinces were consolidated into one comprehensive system of education, the leading features of which may be summed up in the well-known terms—free, secular, and compulsory. In general terms, it may be said that the State provides a secular education, and that it insists that every child shall be educated.

The public schools are not, however, confined to elementary ones, and children showing special aptitude can acquire a finished education at advanced schools and colleges. First there is the New Zealand University, an examining body with power, under Royal Charter, of conferring degrees, and affiliated to it are all the principal colleges and schools in the Colony. The Otago University at Dunedin was founded in 1869, and has a staff of i eight professors. In connection therewith is a School of Mines, and the University is enabled to offer medical students a two years' course, which is recognised by home medical schools. page x The New Zealand University, also, has recognised the medical school of the Otago University. The Otago University is valuably endowed. The Canterbury College at Christchurch was founded in 1873, and has a staff of six professors. The following Institutions are also under the management of the Governors of the Canterbury College : The Museum, the Public Library, the School of Art, the Boys' High School, the Girls' High School, and the School of Agriculture, all of which, with the College, have valuable endowments. The Auckland University College was founded at Auckland in 1882, and has four professors. Secondary Schools (Grammar or High Schools) and Theological Colleges have been also established in various parts of the Colony, and for the most part are affiliated to the University of New Zealand. There are libraries in every village. In Auckland there are a Museum, a Public Library, and an Art Gallery. Wellington has a large Library, a fine Museum, and a Library of Scientific Works. In Christchurch there is a magnificent Museum, a School of Art, and a large Public Library. In Dunedin there is a fine Museum and an Art Society, also a University Library and a large Athenaeum Library.

The land system of any Colony is a subject which materially affects the prosperity and settlement of the country. In New Zealand the endeavour has been to provide every facility for the real settler to secure land, and to meet the requirements of those who come out to the Colony with a bonâ-fide intention of cultivating the land. Crown land can be obtained, therefore, not only by payment of the full purchase-money, but also by deferred payments. It can also be held under leases which can be perpetually renewed, and under the Homestead system, a limited acreage can be obtained without payment, but subject to conditions of occupation and improvement. Small grazing runs, of not more than 5000 acres, are also let by public auction, the upset rent ranging from 1 ½d. to 1s. per acre. Land offices are established at the principal centres of population, at which every information is given in respect to the disposal of the Crown lands.

The climate resembles that of Great Britain, but is more equable, the extremes of daily temperature only varying throughout the year by an average of 20 degrees.

The climate on the west coast of both islands is more equable than on the east, the difference between the average summer and winter temperature being nearly four degrees greater on the south-east portion of the North Island, and seven degrees on that of the Middle Island, than on the north-west, on which the equatorial winds impinge. This constant wind is the most important feature in the meteorology of New Zealand, and is rendered more striking by comparing the annual fluctuation of temperature on the opposite seaboards of the South Inland, which have a greater range of temperature by eighteen degrees at Christchurch on the east, than at Hokitika on the west.

The observations that have been taken show that the northern part of New Zealand is within the influence of the subtropical winter rainfall, the probability of rainfall in winter in that part of the colony being twice as large as in summer.

In the south, however, the rainfall, though irregular, is distributed more equally over the year. The chief difference to be observed is, that on the west coast spring rains prevail, and; summer rains on the east coast; while in the middle of the Colony the driest season is autumn, and in the south it is the winter and spring.

The contrast between the rainfalls on the east and west coasts, as with the temperature, is most striking. Thus, in the North Island, Napier on the east has only half the amount of rain that I falls in Taranaki on the west. But the Middle Island, with its I longitudinal range of lofty mountains, exhibits this feature in a I still more marked manner, for the rainfall on the west is nearly page xii five times greater than that on the cast. The excess of precipitation on the coast is clearly illustrated by the distribution of the glaciers on the opposite sides of the range. Those on the west slope have an excessive supply of snow, and descend to a line where the mean annual temperature is 50° Fahr., while on the cast slope they descend only to the mean annual temperature of 37°. The winter snow-line on the Southern Alps on the east side is 3000 feet, and that on the west side is 3700 feet.

The indigenous forest of New Zealand is evergreen, and contains a large variety of valuable woods; many are very durable, and manuka, totara, kauri, black birch, kowhai, and matai appear to be the most highly esteemed. Amongst the smaller plants the Phormium tenax, or New Zealand flax, is of special value; whilst large tracts of country are covered with nutritious indigenous grasses, which support millions of sheep, and have thus been productive of great wealth to the colony. Many of the more valuable trees of Europe, America, and Australia have been introduced, and now flourish with a vigour scarcely ever attained in their natural habitats. In many parts of the colony the hop grows with unexampled luxuriance; whilst all the European grasses and other useful plants produce returns equal to those of the most favoured localities at home. Fruit, too, is abundant all over New Zealand. The bays and seas surrounding teem with fish, a hundred and forty species of which are known, of which thirty-three have been found of great value as articles of food. Fisheries have been but partially established, but afford a good field for enterprise. The rivers are being stocked with salmon and trout from England and America, while perch, carp, tench, and various other fish have been acclimatised. The Acclimatisation Societies have also successfully introduced large numbers of English birds. Pheasants now abound, also quails, grouse, partridge, blackbirds, thrushes, &c., and the lark is to be heard as commonly as in England.

The pursuit of farming has been one of the most steadily page xiii prosperous industries of the Colony. The number of holdings of one acre and upwards of cultivated land (exclusive of gardens attached to residences and native holdings) enumerated in March, 1878, was 20,519, an increase of 1,769 on the year previous; in February, 1879, the number of holdings had increased to 21,048; in February, 1882, it had further increased to 26,298, and in February, 1883, to 27,352. The exports of agricultural and farm produce increased from £262,930 in 1875 to £763,635 in 1879, £1,114,253 in 1881, and £1,140,839 in 1882.

The extent of land under wheat in the early part of 1885 was 270,043 acres. The aggregate produce of the wheat crop was estimated at 6,866,777 bushels. The estimated produce averaged 25-43 bushels per acre in 1884, against 22.69 bushels in 1882.

A crop grown in 1885-86 in Canterbury produced oats weighing 53 lbs. to the bushel, and a bushel of the same oats, specially cleaned, weighed 57 lbs.

The English cultivated grasses grow exceedingly well in New Zealand, more especially that valuable grass the Cocksfoot, which produces seed of a very superior quality already in great request on the continent of Europe.

The mildness of the winter season, and the general suitability of the country for grazing purposes, caused the settlers from an early date to devote much of their attention to the production of a superior class of wool, and, commencing with the importation of the Australian merino sheep, large portions of the country were soon stocked, resulting in the exportation of increasing page xiv quantities of wool to the English market. The extent to which pastoral pursuits have been followed may be estimated by the quantity of stock in the Colony, the numbers being as follows :—

Horses (when the census in 1881 was last taken)	16,173
Cattle (when the census in 1881 was last taken)	698,637
Sheep (on 31st May, 1885)	14,546,801

The value of wool exported in 1885, notwithstanding the low rate of prices, amounted to £3,205,275.

Gold.—The value of gold exported during the year ended 31st December, 1885, was £890,056. The total value of gold exported to 31st December, 1885, was £42,327,907.

Coal.—The output of coal in 1878 was 162,218 tons. During the year ended 31st December, 1884, the quantity of coal raised in New Zealand was 480,831 tons. The total output of coal in New Zealand up to the 31st December, 1884, was 3,007,198 tons. The imports of coal into New Zealand were: in 1878, 174,148 tons; for the year ended the 31st March, 1885, 148,444 tons; and during the same period 6,354 tons were exported.

Manufactories have grown rapidly. In 1881 there were 35 iron foundries, 49 carriage works, twenty-six ship-and boatbuilding yards, 4 woollen factories, 119 tanning and fell, mongery establishments, 40 boiling-down and meat-preserving works, 223 saw-mills, 127 brick, tile and pottery works, 54 clothing factories, &c.; while there are woodware factories for extent and efficiency rivalling those of the largest cities in the world. The commerce of the Colony is shown in the imports being, in 1885, of the value of £7,479,921, and the exports £6,819,939, the principal portion of the imports coming from the United Kingdom and British Colonics. Farming implements of the newest and page xv most improved kinds are manufactured in the Colony, or imported, and, as well as all other requisites of daily life, are on sale at reasonable prices in the shops and stores of all the towns and cities, many of the shops being as extensive and complete as those in the best towns in the British Isles. There are over 1,450 miles of railway in the two islands.

The population on 3rd April, 1881, the date of the last census, consisted of 489,933 persons, being made up of 121,187 born in England or Wales; 52,753 from Scotland; 49,363 from Ireland; 17,277 from Australia; 223,404 born in New Zealand of British parents; 4,014 born in other British possessions; 19,777 foreigners; and 2,158 of origin unstated. Of these 201,000 are of the Church of England; 113,000 Presbyterians; 68,500 Roman Catholics; 46,200 Methodists; the rest being of the other religious denominations known at home. All these various religious organizations are in a sound and flourishing condition, with clergymen and church buildings that compare favourably with those of any town or country district in the British Isles. Freemasons, Oddfellows, Good Templars, &c., have their several organizations in full activity. On 30th September, 1885, the population was estimated to be 576,234 (exclusive of the Maoris). The following is the population of the principal cities and towns of New Zealand :—Wellington and suburbs (the capital), 23,152; Auckland and suburbs, 37,551; Dunedin and suburbs, 47,550; Christchurch and suburbs, 33,293; Nelson, 6,764; Napier, 5,756; Oamaru, 5,791; Invercargill, 6,974; Timaru, 3,967; Hokitika, 2,600; Greymouth, 2,921; New Plymouth, 3,310.

There are, it is estimated, about 44,000 Maoris or aboriginal inhabitants. A great part of these are given to the same peaceful pursuits as the European settlers—growing wheat, potatoes, &c., and keeping cattle. Every year is increasing this. Schools are everywhere established for the Maori children; they have their own churches and Christian ministers, and the possibility of any disturbance with the Maoris has passed away, and life and property are as safe in New Zealand as in England.

There are 967 Post Offices, delivering and receiving twenty-five million letters, fourteen million newspapers, one million postcards, and over three million book-packets a year. The postal rate for letters is a penny within town delivery, twopence within the colony or Australia, and sixpence to England. There are 10,474 miles of Telegraph wire in operation. The charge for telegrams is a shilling for ten words within the colony, sixpence for "delayed" or posted telegrams. Money can be transmitted throughout the Colony, also to and from the Australian Colonies and the United Kingdom, by post-office order. New Zealand is connected by telegraph cable with England, Ireland, and Scotland. There are thirty-three public hospitals, eight lunatic asylums, four industrial and reformatory schools; but no workhouses or poor rates. There are six Banks with branches in every town and village. The currency is the same as at home—local banknotes, sovereigns, florins, shillings, and pence. Every Post Office is a Government Savings' Bank and a Government Life Assurance Office.

Within the last few years the means of communication with New Zealand have been largely increased by the establishment of two direct lines of large and powerful ocean steamers by the New Zealand Shipping Company, and the Shaw, Savill and Albion Company respectively. These steamers are despatched every fortnight, and the passage to the Colony is from 40 to 45 days. There is also the route viâ New York, San Francisco and Honolulu, and sailing vessels conveying passengers and cargo are frequently despatched from London and Glasgow to all the New Zealand ports.

Assisted passages to New Zealand are granted at the present time by the New Zealand Government, to persons nominated by their friends in the Colony, and also to farmers and agriculturists possessing small capital.

From the foregoing brief summary of the climate, resources, and institutions of New Zealand, and from the exhibits, particulars of which are given in the following Catalogue, it will be page xvii seen that that country possesses all the elements of national life and prosperity. With a climate particularly suitable for all those born and bred in the United Kingdom, with an area almost equal to that of England, Ireland, and Scotland put together, with a large amount of fertile soil, not a tithe of which has yet been brought into cultivation, with large natural deposits of coal, gold, and other minerals, and with a population of only 600,000 souls, the question of whether there is room for more of those whose experience and tastes render them suitable for colonial life, is one which is not likely to require much consideration, at all events for many years to come. New Zealand cannot help progressing, and its population cannot fail to increase; for it is a country which, in every respect, is exceptionally well fitted for the habitation of the many thousands who must necessarily go out from amongst the crowded nations of the temperate zone of the northern hemisphere, and seek fresh and congenial homes elsewhere.

Table showing Total Values of Imports and Exports, Amount of Customs Revenue collected, and Number and Tonnage of Vessels entered inwards and cleared outwards, from the Foundation of the Colony in 1841 to 1884 inclusive.