The High School Endowment.

Thames Star, Volume XI, Issue 3720, 26 November 1880, Page 2

The High School Endowment.

The following description of the High School Endowment is extracted from Mr AUom's phampfet, " A holiday trip to Maungatautari" :—

Our track leads us round the foot of the Aroha for about four miles, at an elevation of 109 to 150 feet above the Waihou, over a fertile country sloping down toward the river on/our right. Between us and the river there is a con* siderable extent of rich boggy land, with splendid feed for cattle and hones. Upon these slopes the soil is magnificent being comf osrd partly of the decomposed trachytic rocks and partly of decayed vegetable matter constantly being washed down from the mountain. The vegetation is most luxuriant, principally consisting of fern, phormium tenax, fiupakihi, (coriaria sarmentosa, korrmiko, (veronica), convolrolus, and clematis, growing high above our heads, and which our guide informed us was not of more than two or three month's growth. Here and there we had to cross some black boggy places, which, even in this dry weather was dangerous for horses. In such amphibi* bious places theraupo (typkaangustifolia), toe-toe (arundo excelsaj, and the cabbage or " ti " of the natives (cordyline australis), are growing in perfection. There is also a rich growth of clover and trefoil, with a' mixture of native grasses. We^then entered upon a more open terrace country covered with fern, grass, and clover. Our progress has hitherto been slow, but we now leave the base of the Aroha aad strike away at a gallop across the plains, in a direction a little west of south, to the Wairakan stream, near the junction with the Waihou, distance about 6£ miles from Waipuia. The clover and grass being here very high and gotxl, we unsaddled our horses and let them feed for a while. Distant from tie base of the Aroha about two miles, the general bearing of its peaks from our present position is about; north west by, north, half north.. The summitl of Firongia can be dimly seen, bearing south west, by half south about 43 miles and the Patetere plateau, south-east by south, 38 miles. The view of Te Aroha from here, with its sharp rugged peaks, and its sides clothed with forest to the very top, rising from the plain is very fine. ■. /■■ ■„. .-... ■.: : ■■■:■■. :'■ „'■,.■:■