the rats may have induced this particular grass to grow and establish itself. I did not at that time consider these rats as anything out of the way, being fully prepared to find things upside down at the Antipodes. From recollection, they were reddish-brown, and perhaps white underneath, of a fair size, and not unlike the Norway Rat (Mus decumanus). Still I feel certain they could not be the Norway rat, but a distinct species of a more social disposition, for full-grown ones lived together to the number of eight to fourteen, and were not a family of young rats. The tradition at that time among the Canterbury settlers was that the Maori rat was of a red colour. I never remember any one noticing these rat-warrens or speaking of their occupants as the Maori rat. To show how little likely unscientific persons are to notice small peculiarities in rats, I may say that as a boy I was constantly killing rats in England adjoining a large piece of water, and never found out that the water-rat was in any way different from the other; yet I understand naturalists class them separately, though their colours must be similar. While living at the Warren there was not a mouse to be seen for a whole twelvemonth or more. Then some one reported seeing a mouse among the tussocks; in a few days more were noticed; then numbers all about, in the grass and in every corner of the house. After this I had nearly a year's experience at gold-digging on our first goldfields near Collingwood, Nelson. Here in the camps were both rats and mice, although the country was mostly covered by the virgin forest. On my return to Canterbury Province I found my way to the back of the first range of westward mountains previously mentioned, and started a small sheep-run, bounded by the rivers Waimakariri, Poulter, and Esk, there being other large mountains still to the westward, in fact all around. Here the rats acted differently, though I had no suspicion they were a different kind. These came in crowds around the dwelling, so much so that, having stored the flour—which was very precious owing to the difficulty of packing it in—on beams overhead, I made myself a lance by lashing a large packing-needle to a long stick, and, when lying in bed, having the light burning, would spear the rats as they frolicked about, scattering the flour-dust over me. One starlight night I went outside and was standing near a small native-birch tree. On looking towards the clear frosty sky the boughs of the tree were well defined; but the whole tree was thickly covered with apples. I rubbed my eyes and looked again: they still were there—quite a plentiful supply of fruit. I got a long pole which was near by and gently touched one of the apples, when it gave a squeak, and all the fruit