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DESCRIPTION OP SOME PLEASANT SPOTS IN TARANAKI. Ms. J. F. Firth reports as follows : — " In the Rawhitiroa Block there is some very pretty scenery, especially along the banks of the Waitotara River. I think the best along this river should be preserved, especially as the land covered by the same is of very little value. " There is a pretty waterfall (Te-rere-o-haupa) about ten chains above the mouth of the Omaru River; and near the mouth of this river is an old Maori burial-ground, in which there is a Maori figure carved about twenty years ago out of punga, in memory of Rangi-whaka-otu, an old chief who is reputed to have been buried there. " This figure, the waterfall, and several scenes along the Waitotara River, were photographed by Mr. Martin, of Wanganui, about six months ago." Mr. Percy Holt reports re the Whenuakura River, in his survey of the Whenuakura Special Settlement :— " There are some picturesque cascades on the main river, and on the north-east branches waterfalls of 15ft. to 30ft. in height are numerous; but they are more gruesome than beautiful, owing to their surroundings. " The cascades, however, and several of the best of the waterfalls are within the reserves I am taking along the streams. One of the falls and some formidable precipices are close below the township site, and I propose to include them in a reserve for town endowment." Mr. Sladden reports some fine groves of timber on some of the ridges in the portion of the Taumatamahoe Block he is subdividing, which he is confident is Fagus fusca, and from the leaf specimens forwarded it seems to be so. He is well acquainted with Fagus fusca in the South Island, and states the present growth is the first he has observed in Taranaki. John Steauchon, Chief Surveyor.

THE WHITCOMBE PASS. I have the honour to inform you that I have travelled up the Hokitika and Whitcombe Rivers for the purpose of ascertaining the practicability of taking a road along this route into the Canterbury Provincial District. The proposed track starts at Mr. Diedrich's upper station, and follows the valley of the Hokitika and Whitcombe Bivers to the Whitcombe Pass, and thence down the Louper Stream to Rakaia River. From this it could be taken down this river to the road leading from Double Hill Station, and thence vid Lake Coleridge to Glentunnel, or by Lake Heron to Mount Somers Railway-station. In reference to the portion within this district from Mr. Diedrich's station upwards, the whole valley, to within two miles of the pass, is covered with bush; consequently the work of finding the best line of road will be a matter of some difficulty. With the limited time at my disposal I could only approximately arrive at the best route and cost of such an undertaking. , The difficulties throughout are, however, very great. Without particularising the various places, I may say that for considerable distances, and at several portions of the route, the river-bank will have to be left, and terraces at different levels, and in some cases several hundred feet high, will have to be reached. To do this not only requires a careful survey to determine where the road ought to be taken, but also means expensive and steep grading. Nearing the pass the rise of the river rapidly increases, and the grade of the track would not only increase with that of the valley, but would be made further difficult by deviations required to avoid the outlets of many of the side creeks, and also precipitous portions of the river-banks. After the bush is passed these side streams bring down great quantities of debris from the hillsides, and would periodically destroy in places any track which might be made. This remark also applies to the immediate vicinity of the pass, where apparently the spring melting of the snow brings the soft rock down in slides at the higher levels. The difficulties in laying out a line of track which might eventually be converted into a road available for dray-traffic are so considerable that it becomes a matter of doubt whether it should be attempted. lam of opinion that to lay out a main road through this pass would not only absorb all the amount available from the present vote for survey expenses, but would also have the effect of destroying the principal value the route now possesses —from a tourist point of view—that is, the line of road on practicable grades for wheel-traffic would require to be taken so far from the river that the magnificent views obtainable at the low levels would be completely lost. The scenery along this valley is the finest I have yet seen in New Zealand. The bush, river, snow, glacier, and mountain views make up a variety of views enough to satisfy artists both of brush and camera. With this scenery so near Hokitika it might be advisable to expend a small amount in making a rough track along and as near the river as possible, and this I would suggest should be done in the following way : A surveyor should be sent out with a large party. One or two of the men could accompany him in exploring the route and laying out the -best line of track, the remainder of the party of experienced bushmen could follow and clear a width of, say, 10ft. through the bush; and in places where walking would be difficult a narrow track could be trenched out along the steep sidling. In this way all the work necessary could be done in about three months. The expenses in connection with this would be somewhat as follows : Surveyor (twelve weeks at £5) £60; two men, at 10s. per day, £72 ; four men, at 9s. per day, £129 125.; tools, tents, and contingencies, £38 Bs.: total, £300. In addition to this it might be advisable to expend, say, £50 in improving the track made by Mr. Duncan from the Rakaia up the Louper Stream to the saddle. D. Baeeon, Chief Surveyor.