there (and which quieted my nerves very much) was called an oil bath, because the water was so fat and came from natural sources. It must have been something very particular. It was very heavy and naturally very hot. I think it some 85 or even more degrees. “Our guide was a Maori girl bearing the poetic name of Maggie Papakura. She was quite a lady—well-educated. She married, afterwards, some English lord.” (Not true: Paderewski was misinformed. Maggie Papakura married twice, and her second marriage was to a Mr Staples-Brown. She died in England and was buried there.) “She was recognised chieftainess of that little tribe and she always offered, most graciously, her services as guide to that delightful land. She published an interesting book later about the district of Whakarewarewa. She guided us most carefully. She would take my wife by the hand, and then to me, following, she would say, “Now be careful, very careful. Don't go to the right. Just follow me exactly.' I asked why. ‘Because there is an abyss here which you cannot see. It is boiling mud—it is on your right, only a yard away. So be very careful.’ And then she threw in, by way of warning, ‘A few years ago my aunt made a mis-step and sank into that abyss, and disappeared for ever.’ Well, I can assure you that I followed her advice! I was very careful. “On one occasion she showed me a Maori fishing with a line in fresh and very cold water for trout. He caught one, and without moving from the place where he stood, he threw that trout right into a little pond only two yards away from him. Then drew in the line, took off the fish, put a little salt on it, and ate it! It was thoroughly cooked. “At that time, some of the geysers were playing, but not at their greatest height and splendour, not high enough for their guests of honour, as we were considered by the Maoris. They were extremely proud to have us staying with them. So one day they decided to give us a ‘soap of honour’ as they call it. In other words, a treat. What was it? You can never guess. Well, they bought twenty pounds of soap, put it into the hole of one of the geysers, and the geyser immediately jumped about 150 feet in the air because the soap increased the gas. It was a thrilling sight and we watched in amazement. “We saw the interesting lake of Rotorua. The lake is of icy cold water, but right in the centre of it there are a few small islands containing geysers of boiling water jumping very high into the air. Another lake, still farther away, had a temperature of 140 degrees. Amazing. “The country was not strictly beautiful, but so uncanny and so interesting, and full of constant surprises. “One day, we expressed a desire to go to a Paderewski and Madame Paderewska in Maori dress on the New Zealand tour, 1904.