Centuries ago
there must have been a great landslip here, for the side of the mountain
is quite hollowed out, and Nature has gradually covered the ugly brown
rent with the thickest tapestry of her most delicate handiwork. I
noticed two varieties of the maiden-hair, its slender black stem making
the most exquisite tracery among the vivid greens. There was no tint
of colour except green when once we passed the red-fringed curtain of
rata-branches, only the white and shining fairy beach and the gleaming
threads of water. As we sat there, perfectly still, and entranced,
a sort of delicious mesmeric feeling stole over me; I thought of the
lotus-eater's chant, "There is no joy but calm," with, for, the first
time in my life, a dim perception of what they meant, perhaps; but
it was over all too quickly: prosaic words of direction to back water
called us from shade to light, and in a moment more we were in front of
the rata-trees, admiring their splendid colouring, and our little boat
was dancing away over the bright waves, with her white wings set and her
bows pointed towards the little toy island in the middle of the lake; it
was no question now of rowing, a nice fresh breeze from the south (the
_cold_ point here) sent us swiftly and steadily through the water. What
a morning it was! The air was positively intoxicating, making you feel
that the mere fact of being a living creature with lungs to inhale such
an atmosphere was a great boon. We have a good deal of disagreeable
weather, and a small proportion of bad weather, but in no other part of
the world, I believe, does Nature so thoroughly understand how to make a
fine day as in New Zealand.

A little after mid-day we ran our boat to the lee of the island, and:
whilst she was steadied by the same primitive method of holding on to
branches of manuka and other scrub, I scrambled out and up a little
cliff, where a goat could hardly have found footing, till I reached
a spot big enough to stand on, from whence I anxiously watched the
disembarkation of some of the provisions, and of the gridiron and
kettle. In a few moments we were all safely ashore, and busy collecting
dry fern and brushwood for a fire; it was rather a trial of patience to
wait till the great blaze had subsided before we attempted to cook our
chops, which were all neatly prepared ready for us. Some large potatoes
were put to bake in the ashes; the tin plates were warmed (it is a great
art not to overheat them wh