Sir William Macgregor, the Administrator of British New Guinea, has
been sending home accounts of his successful attempt to scale the Owen Stanley range, the loftiest chain of mountains in his dominions. The highest crest of the ridge, found to be 13,121 ft. above the sea, was named after the Queen, and Mount Victoria can now claim with certainty to be the highest peak in British Australasia. Up to a height of about 8,000 ft., the climate proved foggy and unpleasant. Above that altitude, however, it is pronounced to be " one of the finest in the world." The exploring party lived for ten days over 10,000 ft. above the sea, and never saw a cloud. The mountains, though steep towards the sea, slope more gradually towards the north, and can easily be traversed. On the summit, the eyes of Sir W. Macgregor were gladdened with the sight of daisies, buttercups, forget-me-nots, and white heather. Larks, too, like those of England were also constantly met with. The discovery of a highland region within the tropics, where Europeans will be able to live in a temperate and invigorating climate, is a matter of no small importance. Sir William Macgregor has proved that, after all, mountain-climbing is not so useless a pastime as it is often declared to be.
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