First Edition (1966), hardback. Dust jacket in poor condition, but the book itself is in very good condition. Some pencil pricing on frontpages.
 
The "EMPTY QUARTER" of New Zealand's South Island is down in the south-west - a rugged, inhospitable country of high rainfall, inaccessible peaks and valleys, deep forest-and, of surpassing grandeur and beauty.
No rich farmlands here for pioneers to cultivate. But men have come here for gold and sealskins to harvest succulent whitebait, to hunt wapiti and red deer, to re-discover birds long believed extinct, to revel in superb scenery, and, latterly to harness lakes and rivers for hydro-electric power.
Among these men have been many a rare character: Wildlife guardians, explorers, hermits, fishermen. And many notable events that have happened aling the lonely coasts and in its empty hinderland-shipwrecks, mysterious disappearances, settlements that failed and are forgotten; and queer stories, still persistent, of a "lost tribe" of Maoris, is still living furtively in the forests.
Of all these things Jack Mcclenaghan writes, and writes vividly. Journalist and novelist, he has for years spent all his leisure in deep Fiordland, hunting, fishing, and exploring. A true man of Southland, he has an unequalled knowledge of Fiordland's history, legend, and tradition, and he presents a complete conspectus of this fascinating, little-known, unspoiled, tract of New Zealand.
From a wealth of historic and scenic material he has selected a magnificient range of illustrations, a worthy supplement to a lively, accurate text.