's time (whatever that was) besides worshipping
the gods of Olympus, identified every ruin, mountain, or cape with
some superhuman person--whether demon, or hero, or nymph. So we read
(in Wakefield's adventures in New Zealand) that the chief Heu-Heu
appeals to his ancestor the great mountain Tongariro, "I am the
Heu-Heu, and rule over you all just as my ancestor, Tongariro, the
mountain of Snow, stands above all this land." Heu-Heu refused
permission to anyone to ascend the mountain, on the ground that it
was his _tipuna_ or ancestor,--"he constantly identified himself
with the mountain, and called it his sacred ancestor." The mountains
in New Zealand are accounted by the natives male and female.
Tarawera and Taranaki, two male mountains, once quarrelled about the
affections of a small volcanic female mountain in the neighbourhood.
A great deal about the transactions between the New Zealand
Government and the natives may be learnt from the recent interesting
libel action of _Bryce_ v. _Rusden_, in which the former, who has
been native minister in the Government, recovered L5000 damages
against the defendant, the author of a History of New Zealand. Up to
1876 the islands were divided into nine provinces, each of which had
a separate Council, subject to the central Government at Wellington,
but in that year the provincial Councils were abolished, and the
Government is now like that of the Australian Colonies, with a
governor and two houses of Parliament. The members of the Lower
House are paid. In "Greater Britain," Sir Charles Dilke, making a
contrast between New Zealand and Australia, suggests that New
Zealand is aristocratic and Australia democratic. To me they
appeared equally democratic. The payment of members is an advanced
step even in a democracy.

Auckland is by far the largest town in the North Island, with its
suburbs, now containing nearly 50,000 inhabitants. Up to 1864 it was
also the seat of Government, but that was then moved to Wellington
as being a more central town. There is much rivalry between Auckland
and Dunedin, the largest town in the South Island. Dunedin is the
capital of the pro-provincial district of Otago, which is chiefly
inhabited by Scotch, or people of Scotch descent. The Scotch have
the great merit of sticking to their friends. If there is anything
to be done or gained, a Scotchman naturally gets the preference. I
heard an amusing illustration of this on the way to New Zealand. At
one o