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superior to any that we had ever heard of the same kind; it seemed to be like small bells, exquisitely tuned; and perhaps the distance and the water between might be no small advantage to the sound.” Upon inquiry, they were informed that the birds here always begin to sing about two hours after midnight, and, continuing their music till sunrise, were silent the rest of the day.* One of the chief sources of natural wealth which New Zealand possesses consists in the abundance and variety of the fish which frequent its coasts. Wherever he went, Cook, in his different visits to the two islands, was amply supplied with this description of food, of which he says that six or eight men, with hooks and lines, would in some places catch daily enough to serve the whole ship’s company. Among the different species which are described as being found, we may mention mackerel, crayfish, a sort called by the sailors colefish, which Cook says was both larger and finer than any he had seen before, and was, in the opinion of most on board, the highest luxury the sea afforded them; the herring, the flounder, and a fish resembling the salmon. To these may be added, besides, many other species of shell-fish, mussels, cockles, and oysters. *Largc numbers of New Zealand birds unite in the spring in singing a magnificent Song of Dawn, which generally ceases when the sun has fairly risen, nut individuals sing at intervals through the day.