of mountainous country, with chains branching off in various directions, but running in a direction more or less parallel with the coast, and at varying distances from it.

14. We may divide the country according to its great water slopes. The first of these is the eastern, or coast district, whose rivers run into the Pacific. This district is the most varied, the most fertile, and in every way the most important. It has a good climate, a fine coast-line, an l boasts of some of the highest mountains.

15. The second district is the south-west watershed, drained by the Upper Darling and its tributaries. This is a pastoral country, well suited for sheep-runs, but it is subject to droughts. The third district-the basin of the Gulf of Carpentaria-is a tropical country of plains and rivers. The fourth district is the western watershed, drained by the Cooper river and its tributary streams. This region is but little known. It is excessively dry, and its rivers lose themselves in the sandy deserts, or flow into the inland salt lakes.

16. The climate is hot, but the country is free from the hot winds of the interior, from which the other Australian colonies suffer. The chief agricultural products are sugar-cane, cotton, and maize; but wool is the chief article of export. Gold is also found in many parts, and there are some coal and copper mines.

17. Brisbane, the capital, built on the river of the same name, is a city with about 30,000 inhabitants. Rockhampton, Ipswich, Maryborough, and Cooktown, are the other chief towns.

s 2

1. To the south of Victoria, and separated from it by Bass's Strait, is the island of Tasmania, formerly called Van Diemen's Land. Its greatest length from north to south is 240 miles, and its greatest width about 200 miles. Including the neighbouring island, it has an area of 26,300 square miles, that is, about four-fifths the size of Ireland.

2. Its coast has many bays and inlets, and some good harbours. On the west coast there are the fine harbour of Macquarie, once a penal settlement, and Port Davey. On the north coast the estuary of the Tamar is the chief opening, and on the east and south-east coasts are Oyster Bay, Storm Bay, the estuary of the Derwent, and many other bays and harbours.

3. The surface of the country is very mountainous. There are no regular mountain chains, but high tablelands, mountains and valleys, peaks and glens, make up the island. The highest peaks are Cradle Mount and Ben Lomond, each just over 5,000 feet in height.

4. Tasmania abounds in rivers, but they are mostly rapids and torrents, navigable only in their estuaries. Many of them rise in beautiful lakes embosomed among the mountains; some flow amid fine scenery and magnificent forests, and are adorned with picturesque waterfalls. The chief rivers are the Derwent and Tamar. The largest lakes are Great Lake, St. Clair, Echo, and Arthur's Lake.

5. The climate of Tasmania is superior to most parts of Australia. The summer temperature of the valleys and plains is high in the day, but the nights are always cool and refreshing. Snow lies on the mountains for several months in the year. The rainfall is not great, but the rainy days are many, and there are no long droughts.

6. The vegetable productions are numerous. Wheat, barley, oats, and potatoes, are grown, but agriculture is in a backward state. There is also much good pasture land, but only about two million sheep in the colony. Fruitgrowing is an important industry. The climate is admirably suited to this, and English fruits grow even better than in England. Gold and tin are found, and coal is worked to some extent. The giant blue gum is the chief of the forest trees.

7. The animals and birds are much the same as those of Australia; but there are two remarkable mammals, the "tiger-wolf" and the "native devil," only to be found in Tasmania. The former is nearly as large as a wolf, and is handsomely striped across the back; the latter is black, with white patches. It resembles an ugly bear-like cat. Both are very savage, and commit great havoc among the flocks of the settlers whose farms lie near the wooded mountains where they dwell.

8. Tasmania was first used as a penal settlement, and the first convict establishment was at Hobart Town in 1804. Shortly after, in 1806, a colony from Sydney made a settlement on the northern coast, at Launceston. In 1853 transportation to Van Diemen's Land ceased, and the colony commenced a new existence as Tasmania. It has never been a very prosperous colony; and its total population at the present time is not much over 100,000.

9. Hobart Town, the capital, on the Derwent, has a population of about 20,000. "It is as pleasant a town of the size of any I know. Nature has done much for it, very much indeed; and money has done much too. It is beautifully situated, just at the point where the river becomes sea. It is surrounded by hills and mountains, from which views can be had which would make the fortune of any district in Europe. And the air of Hobart Town is perfect air. I found the summer weather to be delicious. All fruits which are not tropical grow to perfection at Hobart Town and in the neighbourhood. Its cherries and mulberries are the finest I ever saw. Its strawberries, raspberries, apples, and pears are, at