The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-02-13
NEW zEALAND GErSER.
The Wonderful Woioma haua-An Enormous
boiling Cauidr0n.


The state Of New York has its world
wide wondnrin NiIgr y us; the : ate Of Call
fornia has Us euu Nv marvellous and renowned
Yosemite Valley. and the Province nf New Ica-
land can boast Of lmost As great a natural Won
der in i's ltuiomthnua. or mighty Grysrr RMS
lies inland from raurauga, which may hr reach
eI hy steamer from Auckland, about ~iNy-ilve
miles. AT MairO the headquarters 81 me
Arnwa cOutin -cucv. nud tine res lienc' o. 'Nn'.
Matr is the old mission house, kcut bya frcnch-
man. aud surrounded by familiar trees on a
lovely site overlooking Lake iaraWcra. There l.
T'cuty or Iruit here, c-uccliliN thcrrl', -
In the mission house one pleasantly reposes
till four O'Clock in the morning, When he Is
aroused for breakfast, after which ne en- eis a
log canoe, thirty or forty feet IN lcngth, rropol-
led by four Maori men, and starts for nine
mile row w the pretty Iarawert Lake. Inc
time occupied to the mouth OF Little hlvor T.
two hours aud a half Here the water Is found
to be lukewarm, being supplied from the not
springs. The current Of this stream u very
swift, and 1t requires hard work TO iotce the
canoe up against 1t, but by padding ana pole
pushing aud sometimes jumping out into the
stream and pulling, the Maories manage To- re!ch
the haven OF our desires and the elimination
Of our hopes" The Mills all around the gevser
TEEN with hot springs aud hot mud IN liquid
state, constantly bubbling up and emitting a
horrible sulphuric smell which IL almost stifing.
The GROUND appears to he but nero crust over
boiling springs, and often SO Yields to the step
that one feels rs II he were about TO descend
Immediately into the earth. The great geyser
itself is up in the top OF "a lofty hill, which APP
pears to have been tho extinct crater " a vol
cano, now filled with light blue boiling water OF
an unknown deuth. The water Is forever seeth-
ing aud boiling as II all the fires OF perditlon
were ailame beneath 1t. IL IL constantly shoot
Ing up In columns from SIX to thirty feet In
height, which sOmetimes look very beautiful
when the sun converts the falling glObulos into
showers Of pearls aud silver.
The great eeyser is approached from below by
a series Of crescent-shapeJ terraces, bowed out
ward, a few feet In height each, and perhaps one
hundred wards IN width, all overlooking TIL you
come to the two principal terraces the TOP one
OF which Is always bJuing over into those be-
meath IT. The steam Is almost bliUdiBg aud sui
floating when the wind u blowing toward you.
In many Of the pools there are pie tsant bathing
places. The water l. hot ON the surface hut
cool beneath, the boiling water from the great
geVser above MT seeming % penetrate far below
the SUI lace of the more t'nt terraces whlch
" OVerlOws. There are two sets Of terraces, TIC
FIST OF watch are called tue Whte TER .ces;
| The RIM around the buiing cNldron Is FORMED
OF "A white Substance, like the most dclici III l.
| gree work, almost resembling Lace work, such Is
| It's regul rity and beauty. ltls white RIM
winch projects some distance over the boiling
| fountain, SHOWS to all the greater advantage
! because Of tbs Intense bIuc If the waters These
| beautiful terrace bri NJ are formed Nv depcsit-
Of sulphur and silica from the boiling springs OF
the TOP of the hill, which pour down the sides
| and crush the tea scrub aud other trees growing
| there. ANA fOru the iucrustation. For, strange
- IL may seem, there Is green grass and snruD
| berry to the very verge of the boiling fountains
| Many oil the basins appear % be made OF petrr
| aed tea scrub or ferns. These brim formati On
are very rough ana sharp-edged' ana very har1
| ON boots or Uare feet. The " ter in all the ter
races is beautifully clear and blue.
| n ar the eroat geyser there Is "A spring con
| stHutly boiling CUE OF a Il sure IN d rock. anC
| called the st.ampipe spunc The noise from
| this spring can ue heard long way of, AND {,
| sounds Just like "a vessel letting on steam. Th'
ground IS literally honey cOmOed with thes'
| boiling steam springs.
TroI the white terfnces one enters cano,
| and p iddles over to tho pink terraces, but
| mort distance from tho fufmer. Their iurml
| ton L. the sHne - the first, bat they are small
cr, aud, instead Of the pure, whlie hriin the
| nave a pink tinted border. whIcn j. exquisite
| beaufifui AMI 10 ~ qIts;ionanle whether the
are MOI the ureftier Of the two. The effect D.
| lovely aud out enchanting. For tins j. CERTAIN
! IS one of uat.tt * most wonderful phenomena
| IL yet the kptomahrua ., almost iuacces5il lee L
| travellers. owing 10 the rOh2huc.- OF Toe rOut
| thithcr. AMI To TIE miserable native accOmmO
lattQus on the way.