THE LATEST NEWS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XXIII, Issue 7658, 8 June 1886, Page 5

THE LATEST NEWS.

DESPATCH FROM THE BRITISH CONSUL AT NOUMEA. [recti's cablegram.] Sydney, June 7. Mr. Layard, British Consul, Noumea, has forwarded a despatch to his Excellency the Governor (Lord Oarrington), in which he informs His Excellency that the French war vessel Dives left Noumea in fighting trim, having taken on board three months' provisions. The Dives is bound for the New Hebrides, where it is intended to hoist the French flag. No vessel was allowed to leave Noumea within fortyeight hours from the time of the departure of the warship. Lord Oarrington has telegraphed the substance of the despatch to Earl Granville, Secretary for the Colonies. DESCRIPTION OF THE NEW HEBRIDES. This fine archipelago, which has just been annexed by Franco, was first discovered by Quiro*, who, however, saw only the northern and largest island of the group, which he named Australia del Espiritu Santo, and described as abounding in gold, silver, and pearls. He concluded that it was a portion of the long-imagined Southern Continent, but this vision was dispelled by Bougainville, who discovered that; there were several islands only, to which he gave the name of Oyclades. Caok was the discoverer of the southern islands, and he gave the name of New Hebrides to the whole group. Aneiteum, the southernmost of the islands, is surmounted by high mountains, which leave only a very narrow belt of low land on the shore; on this a few groups of cocoauut trees are scattered here and there, and a great number of trees with scanty foliage and bare trunks. The mountains have few large trees, though generally covered with verdure. The island is free from outlying reefs, and has on its 8. W, side a harbour of easy access. It is 10 miles long east and west and 6 miles broad from north to south. Severe shocks of earthquake are sometimes felt. Erronan or Fotuna is an isolated cone with steep sides, distant 45 miles from Aneiteum, and is only some 4 or 5 miles in circumfere nee.

Tanna is a very fertile island, well wooded, and containing abundance of coco trees. It has good harbour, named by Captain Cook Port Resolution, situated on the south point of the island. The scenery of Tanna is very beautiful; the country appears divided into farms, where meadows, orchards, arable patches, intersected by racecourses, avenues, and footpaths, seem to ape civilisation. It contains an autive volcano. On the east side of Tanna is a small, low island—-Immer, or Niua—covered with coco trees, and thickly populated. Erromunga is high and rocky, and produces nothing beyond what supplies the immediate wauts of its inhabitants. It has no harbour, but safe anchorage may be found in Cook's Bay on the east, and Dillon's Bay on the west. This island acquired a sad notoriety from the massacre of the indefatigable missionary John Williams, in 1839. Vate, or Sandwich Island, is moderately elevated, and of beautiful aspect. It is said to be the finest island of the group, and the best adapted tor colonisation. It produces many varieties of fine timber; the soil is good, and the vegetation luxuriant; yams and sweet potatoes of a superior quality are extensively cultivated by the natives. The island also produces breadfruit, oocoanuts, bananas, and sugar cane in abundanoe. The sandalwood tree grows on the island* There are several good harbours, the one on the west side being spacious, easy of ingress, l and sheltered from all winds. The island is some 30 miles in length. Mai, or Three Hills Island, lies to the South of Vate, and is about six miles long by two and a-half broad. Api, or Tasiko, is about 25 miles in length by from six to ten in bread ; it is of a very fertile character, well wooded, with a high range on the western yart; it is very thickly inhabited. About three miles from its N.W. extremity is a small island, Paama. Ambryn lies to the northward of Paama, and contains a numerous population. Divided from it by a channel of difficult navigation by night is Mallicollo, an island some 55 miles long by 24 in breadth. It was here that the late Bishop Selwyn nearly lost his life in 1851. The Bishop and his boat's orew were attacked by the natives while watering, and but for the courage of the Bishop, who bade all walk straight on through the crowd which had assembled on the beach to prevent their return to the boat, the whole party would have beon massacred. Pentevte (or Whitsun Island), thus named by Bougainville, is ten miles north of Ambryn, has moderately high ranges, and is well cultivated and watered. It is only separated by a channel four miles wide from Aurora or Maiwo Island. This also is well watered, but not so highly cultivated

as Pentecote. To the west of the south end of Aurora is Lepers Island, about sixt) miles in circumference. It contains i mountain rising to the height of 4000 feet Water is obtainable here, and an abundano of cocoanuts and yams are produced; but there is no harbour, and the heavy swell oe the beach renders access difficult. Espiritu Santo, the largest of the New Hebrides, is 66 miles in length, and about half that in breadth. The numerous islands clustered round its shores give it the ap« pearance of an archipelago rather than an single island. It contains many good harbours, and is thickly populated. The productions of the island are nearly the same as those of the rest of the •saisp, but the pearl oyster is very abundant. Not fat from Cape Cumberland, at the northern end, are to be seen remains of singular buildings of great size; pillars of regular shape, composed of large stones, detached portions of walls, and fragments of cemented masonry are scattered over a plain about three miles in extent. In a settlement north-east of Cape Cum* berland, and about five miles distant, are remains of another similar edifice. The natives are quite ignorant cf the nature of these ruins, and merely state that they are "Tapu." Besides the above, there are several small islands, the largest of which, named by Cook Bartholomew Island, is some 20 miles in circumference. The northernmost of the New Hebrides is Star Peak, Pic de l'Etoile, or Meralaba. It is merely a conical-shaped peak, steep all round except off the N.E. point. It is, however, thickly inhabited, and cultivated some distance up the mountain side. The islands all lie between latitude 14deg 27min 40aec and 20deg 15min 17aec south, and longitude 166deg 40min and 170deg llmin 12sec east. fi