DESCRIPTION OF THE HARBOURS, &c., OF NEW ZEALAND.

Daily Southern Cross, Volume 1, Issue 9, 17 June 1843, Page 4

DESCRIPTION OF THE HARBOURS, &c., OF NEW ZEALAND.

We have been kindly favoured with the following Sailing Directions and Descriptions by Mr. — G-ili,, Master of the R.Y.S. Albatross. Captain Gill lias been for a long time on the coast of New Zealand, nv.d i? not only perfectly acquainted with the subject he treats of, but is also an able and experienced navigator and practical seaman, we therefore recommend with confidence the following observations to all masters of vessels coming to this coast. IST© island, or tract of country in the whole world affords better harbours than New Zealand. A survey of the coast is however much required to render them serviceable to commerce. Although several ports have been carefully surveyed by some of H. M. Ships that have recently visited these shores, as also by other navigators, and those taken by Commodore D'Urvillo in the French ship LlAstrolabe,L 1 Astrolabe, the soundings, appearance of the coast, and positioiis are very good, but indclincating a place like the French Pass, the rate and tide should be always mentioned, which is too frequently as in this case unnoticed ; although we may , expect to find the tides pretty strong in all narrow or contracted places, for in. a passage like the French Pass, between D'Urvillo's island and the main, although it offers navigation for a large vessel, still it can only be used at dead slack-water, as the passage is narrow and the rate of tide about 6 knots, which every ship-master may nq£ be prepared to encounter, and by coming into a passage of the kind, merely from the circumstance of his having a chart of the place upon an extended scale., many lives and much valuable property might be sacrificed. Of the charts of New Zealand that are now extant, none are minutely correct, but the best, which is of tolerable good information, is that published by the Admiralty, (perhaps Cook's chart,) it however leaves out some excellent harbours, and in some places it denotes harbours where there are none, for instance, a few miles southward of Cape Egmont, Cook's Straits, there is marked a very nice looking bay, called Teranaka, a place from the appearance on the chart likely to tempt strangers to run for in stress of weather, and viewing this spot from the northward, or south-western direction, the coast, from being rather low, has much the appearance of a harbour when at an offing of six or eight leagues, but when close in with the land, nothing is to be seen but nearly a straight line of iron-bound shore. flThe line of coast and principal headlands, as delineated by Captain Cook, are mostly correct, although sufficient copies are not now extant to answer the present de-

mands of merchant vessels employed in the trade between England, New Zealand, and the Colonies. To the testimony of Cook's survey the following passage may be quoted from a recent French navigator, M. Croyet, "I compared with care the chart which I had drawn of the portion which we ran along of the coast of New Zealand,which was taken by Captain Cook and his Officers, I found it to possess an exactness and minuteness which astonished me beyond all expression. I doubt whether our own coast of France has been delineated with more precision." Although such is the exactness of Cook's survey of New Zealand, there is much yet to be done for the furtherance of commerce in its extending scale. It has already been observed that many of the ports have been recently surveyed both by English and French navigators, those of the latter on the western shores of j Cook's Straits, Stewarts Island,andFoveaux Straits are very exact, but, except Hokianga, none of the harbours on the west coast have been properly surveyed, although copies are now extant of the harbour of Kiapara, they cannot be depended on, and its position, on the general chart is not within thirty miles of its true position, being laid down that many miles too far to the northward. Between the headlands laid down on the charts and the position assigned them in Norie's Epitome ; thei*e is also a difference, the position given to Cape Farewell at the entrance of Cook's Straits in Norie's Epitome 173 ° 30' (a hundred and sevonty-threo degrees thirty minutes east), is forty-five miles too far to the eastward. Several other headlands differ a few miles from the position on the chart, and the places assigned them in the epitome ; differing also from their true position, but the above is the most egregious error. (To be continued.)