Omaha daily bee., 1901-03-10

hell with the lid on" save that there are
a thousand and one holes in the cover from
wlich all sorts Of poisonous gases NAL
odorous smells boiling springs and other
devilish evidences are pouring forth. l am
in the Yellowstone park of New Zealand,
land of volcanoes geysers, earthquakes
and lakes of boiling mud, a land in which
old Mother Earth seems afflicted with per
petual collie and is ever vomiting forth hot
paint or belchng out steam loaded with
alum.
This region is situa ed III miles south
east OF Auckland near the center of the
North island. II covers almost 100000
acres. II Is about thirty miles wide and
100 miles long, and the crust upon 1t is so
thin that as you walk or ride over 1t you
seem to hear a thousand devils rumbling
apd raging below and feel that there is little
Sbre than a sheet of brown paper between
YOU and hades.
The face Of the earth changes from week
20 week. Great cracks open and new boil
ing pools burst forth. There are frequent
earthquakes and now and then a mountain
breaks forth into eruption. There are ac-
tive volcanoes, and no one knows when
those dormant may not spring into life, as
Mount Tarawera did in 1886. In that year,
on June TO- the towns about this mountain
were destroyed Several native villages
were covered to depth OF sixty feet by
deluge OF mud. Both houses and inhabit-
rhts we're destroyed almost as completely
as Pompeii and Herculaneum by Vesuvius
centuries ago. The bottom OF big lake
was blown out and in its place came roar
ing crater which sent up column OF steam
to height OF almost three miles. The
earth broke open. There was one crack
nine miles long. New lakes were formed,
clouds OF ashes and dust turned midday to
evening. and for miles around there was a
d(Tnpour Of water mud and stones.
$his eruption destroyed the famous pink
terraces OF New Zealand. These terraces
were In the form of basins. They were
made by the sediment from the mineral
waters OF a geyser 100 feet above the lake
The basins were filled with the clearest OF
hot water, boiling blue at the top and
changing In color to q lighter hue as II
fell from terrace to terrace They we're
surrounded by walls which seemed to be
made OF Jewels, some very pink, others
whte The water pattered over them II
Dcascades and when the sun shone the
hillsides seemed alive with falling did
monos, pearls, emeralds and rubies TIE
terraces are now being reformed and IN the
near future nature will probably have re.
putt them In an even more beautiful form
than they were in the past.
country Scenes I'm New Zealand.
| spent all day on the train going from
Auckland to the Hot Springs region Ro-
torua, the central town OF this Yellowston,
OF the south was my destination. Leavinl
auckland we shot out into a rich farmint
! 1strict' The fields were green with luAu
| hpt grass, or black where the soil wal
wing turned up for planting. Volcanic
| evidences were everywhere Chunks o
| lava were scattered over the fields and I,
many places there were fences OF lava.
| near Auckland the farms are small AM
me rarm houses especially So This I hav
observed In all parts Of Australia and Nov
zealand The frontier cabins are not s,
Dig az those OF the wooded regions OF IN,
united states. In many places there Is
Hscarcity OF lumber The average farm
mouse Is wooden cottage OF four Ave o
SIX rooms, rooted with galvanized iron
Ih> are no barns, no stables, no out
hu Ings, The stock feed off the fields al
'he'year round, for the grass Is alway
green.
NOW we go through plains covered wit
orush We ride for miles along the bank
ot me Waikato river, the largest in Ne,
zealand, and on again into country O
AIMS The holdings have now grow
anger We go through great estat
"ned by one Of the landed nabobs. 7