Show M a ae 4 ab aa q all va als VA i land worth a my v i 8 i t I 1 1 n man W special correspondence to no country in the world has na ture lure been so prodigal of scenic gifts to the island colony of new zea land where man has done so much to enhance the enjoyment of prod gal igal natural bounties the south island boasts of a magnificent alpine range which includes the largest glacier outside the arctic regions fjords fiords more wonderful than those of norway normay the unrivaled otera and bul le ler gorges the highest waterfall in the world and magnificent ice cold lakes while the north island prides itself on the largest geyser in tho the uni verse marvelous boil ng springs hot fakes lakes extinct and active volcanoes all in the taupo zone wh which ilch gli gives e its name to still another wonder lake taupo the island great inland sea moana it is called by the maoris who have their principal strongholds close to its picturesque A ia I 1 N I 1 1 I 1 I 1 1 14 I 1 A 41 4 1 IV 11 maori warrior borders and there are few locales so rich in general attractions as this particular lake which is situated at an altitude of 13 feet above sea level it is twenty five miles long by sixteen and a half wide and when a stiff northwester blows across its depths of ninety fathoms the surface assumes the aspect ct of an angry and turbulent sea splendid views from taupo the township of taupo lies on the north ebore of the lake and for its chief attraction has the old maori redoubt situated on a high bank of the broad waikato river and rich in me memories morics of stirring doings in the day das s that are gone close by one fre sees a maori canoe paddled across the river which here emerges from the clear lal e and shapes its course in a rapid rush through rugged geiges and broad plains to th the e s sea e a the waikato serves as a d dividing avid g line between the european set settlement t lement ol 01 taupo town and tile native village of haruru haruro on the heights above bich in the period of 0 11 70 k A I 1 t a 9 I 1 I 1 e I 1 0 I 1 aw N 4 A 1 I kp 11 1 N 4 1 1 Z A 1 4 j k N 4 1 1 0 r A V W 0 R X 4 v A A W I 1 P natives with canoe was a fortified and memora ble rampart looking across the lake lahe toward the south the traveler can see at the back of Roto aira the magnificent snow clad volcanoes of tongariro I 1 and these splendid peaks are invested with a massive drapery of 0 perpetual ice and snow and from their summit there Is a constant issue of sulphurous steam and smoke in va grant clouis and spires until quite recently these remarkable mountains were mere held as sacred by the maoris and on the eerie altars of their snow capped craters and glacial recesses they offered homage and propitiation to their deified ancestors the gods of their race region of cave dwellers caves abound in Karanga hape and all of them at one time or served as living places for the taupo natives who were cave dwellers to very great extent just twenty years ago when giving evidence at the na tive land court of taupo the old war bior hitiris to paerata said I 1 was born in a cave at kawakawa karakawa Kaw akawa at walhalla there is a cave called orua belonging to two to tribes the chief and his father are burled buried there at Karanga hape point there is a cave which was used as a pa for tress and called there are many other interesting records of the same character showing that these caves served as birth and death places and the fortified abodes of the maoris who distinguished them by names as they do houses and even trees in their customs of today to day close to Karanga hape cliffs Is a na tive settlement which numbers among its residents the old chief hitiris lust just quoted is a warrior of proud ancestry the hero of many valiant battles led the defense of krakau in 1864 he ie lei I 1 ta tie 0 breve but I 1 lope ope less ess dolente of oral p i 1 ia a whick fell to an nn c p i r ir rt t ah sh korep un der gen cameron Car neron s father and other relatives were killed but be he and his sister ahumad who was badly wounded escaped these sole survia ors of 0 the disastrous fight still enter tain travelers with the account of 0 how they held the fort against tremendous odds and finally succeeded in break ing through the line of military in their daring bid for life ahumad who is now a doubled up old decrepit Is known to have shot two soldiers on that occasion for the maori women frequently bore arms with the men delightful scenery in summer time the stately branches of the christmas areg tree wave I 1 their gorgeous crimson blossoms above the clear blue waters of the I 1 lake along the eastern shore there is also a perfect feast of flowers all peculiar per ullar to the place groves of na tive evergreens are here festooned with delicate lianas and in season beautified with the blossoming floss of the wild clematis then there thre Is the wonderful yellow kowhai iv which showers the lake and banks with a shawl of golden petals and which won the enthusiastic notice of rud yard kirlin in the poem which recorded his visit to new zealand according to geological data he iko lake of taupo was once an immense volcano and a final touch of variety varlet Is lent to its remarkable surroundings by the stretches of pumice deposit which at intervals coat many miles of the surrounding anding country I 1 |