THE LIBRARY

OF

THE UNIVERSITY
OF CALIFORNIA

LOS ANGELES

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND

BY

W E SWANTON

LONDON

EDEN, REMINGTON & CO PUBLISHERS
15 KING STREET, CO VENT GARDEN

1892
[4/1 Rights Reserved]

PEEFACE.

THESE notes are intended to embody, in the
smallest possible compass, a description of some
of the more important features of the country,
trade, and productions of New Zealand. I have
also ventured to express some of the conclusions
at which I have arrived after several years of
varied experience in the Colonies, conclusions
which, it will be observed, are generally favour-
able to New Zealand as a field of enterprise and

48943O

LIB SETS

11 PREFACE.

emigration in preference to the other divisions
of Australasia.

I am fully sensible that this work, brief as it
is, is not without its shortcomings and defects,
but the main object of its pages will be accom-
plished if it succeeds in correcting some of the
mistaken impressions brought home and dis-
seminated by tourists, and in conveying to the
intending emigrant some useful hints concern-
ing one of Great Britain's most valuable
possessions.

W. E. S.

Cheltenham, December, 1891.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND,

CHAPTER I.

THE COUNTRY, THE CLIMATE, AND

THE NATURAL PRODUCTIONS OF

NEW ZEALAND.

CHAPTER I.

THE COUNTRY, THE CLIMATE, AND THE
NATURAL PRODUCTIONS OF NEW ZEALAND.

ADVANTAGES OF SITUATION.

IN these days, when the prosperity of
a country is so largely reckoned by
the extent of its trade, the facili-
ties afforded for commerce by its
geographical situation and natural forma-
tion are of the utmost importance. To the

4 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

A

unique advantages which she possesses in
these respects the future greatness of New
Zealand will be largely due. We rightly
attribute a great deal of England's vast
naval and mercantile superiority over all
other nations to the fact that she is an
island ; and in proportion as the means of
navigating the ocean become more and
more extended, so will the power of island
nations become more and more pre-
dominant.

New Zealand consists of two large, long
islands, and a smaller one in the south,
which lie almost entirely between latitudes
35° and 46°.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 5

Here at the outset she has the same
advantages, from a mercantile point of
view, over the colonies on the continent of
Australia as the islands of Great Britain
have over the other countries of Europe.
She has an isolated and independent posi-
tion, and the ocean, the high road of
commerce, surrounds her on every side.

The two main islands of New Zealand
are separated from one another by a narrow
channel called Cook's Straits, which rivals
the British Channel for the roughness and
uncertainty of weather experienced by
those who cross it.

If we take an imaginary voyage in one of

0 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the Union Company's steamers round the
islands we can best form an idea of their
coast line and harbour accommodation.
We commence with the North Island and
start from Wellington, the capital of New
Zealand and the seat of government.

THE NORTH ISLAND.

Wellington Harbour is one of great
size, beauty, and usefulness. The largest
South Pacific mail steamer may be
brought up alongside the wharves. This
harbour contains several smaller bays and
inlets, upon which are built settlements,
which should in time develop into pros-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 7

perous towns, and which at present add
greatly to the beauty of the harbour. A
better site might have been selected by the
early settlers for the City of Wellington,
which is now somewhat cramped by the
encircling hills, and little space is left for
its extension. On visiting Wellington
recently, after four years' absence, I found
that, in order to build another street, the
sea in front had been filled up and a site
had thus been provided at an immense
expense. The harbour is naturally so con-
structed as to afford perfectly safe
anchorage to craft of every description,
and its entrance is strongly fortified.

8 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Leaving Wellington and steaming out of
the harbour through The Heads, we take
at first a S.E. direction until the Bay and
Cape of Palliser are rounded, when we
change to the N.N.E. and pass Cape Turn-
again, Black Head, and Kidnapper Point,
but come to no place of present importance
till, after entering Hawke's Bay, we anchor
outside Napier. Here we are obliged to go
ashore in surf boats, as no wharves have as
yet been completed, but a breakwater is in
course of construction. The province of
Hawke's Bay owes its name to Admiral
Hawke, who founded the settlement. The
town of Napier is of some importance,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 9

though not of great extent at present, and
is situated in a very rich and fertile
district. Until Messrs Nelson and
Brothers opened their celebrated freezing
factory in this town the demand for sheep
was so small and the supply of these
animals so plentiful that, it is said, the
early settlers, in laying down their orchards,
planted the carcass of a sheep under each
tree for purposes of manure.

This district in common with the greater
part of the North Island is largely inhabited
by the Maori natives.

Leaving Napier we pass Terakako
Peninsula, and are out of Hawke's Bay.

10 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

We soon arrive at Poverty Bay, on which
lies the town of Gisborne. Contrary to
what we might be led to expect from the
name, the country around Poverty Bay
consists of exceedingly rich pasture land.
The Bay itself is of great size and beauti-
fully situated for affording accommodation
to vessels. Gisborne is a small but pretty
and well-to-do town. Near here, a very short
time ago, the Maori Chief, Te-Kooti, and his
tribe attempted a rising on account of sup-
posed encroachments on their land, but the
mounted police promptly sallied forth, and
the Chief having been arrested, the insur-
rection was suppressed without bloodshed.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. II

We now proceed northward, and passing
on our way several bays and capes of
minor importance, we round East Cape
and Cape Runaway and find ourselves in
the Bay of Plenty. This bay contains
Taranga Harbour, on which stands
Taranga town, principally a Maori settle-
ment. It was to this town that the
inhabitants of the Terawera district had to
flee on the occasion of the remarkable and
fatal convulsion of nature that took place
there on the loth of June, 1886, and des-
troyed the famous pink and white terraces,
thereby depriving the world of one of the
most wonderful pieces of scenery ever dis-

12 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

covered, and completely devastating the
principal hot lake district of New Zealand.
Taranga Harbour, in keeping with those
already described, is admirably adapted
for the commerce of the future.

From Taranga we go northwards past
Mercury Bay, the settlement of Coro-
mandel, and Cape Colville, through the
Gulf of Hauraki, and past Wai-heki
Island till we find ourselves in Auckland
Harbour. This harbour is very large and
contains the Government Docks ; its
scenery is famous, and it is a great resort
for yachts. Aquatic sports are kept up
the whole year round. The ferry from

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 13

Auckland across the bay, some three
miles distance, is extensively patronized on
Sunday afternoons. I might mention in
this connection that the Sunday three
mile limit is the law in New Zealand ; in
some parts of Australia a fifty mile limit
is the rule.

The city is beautifully situated at the
foot of Mount Eden, from the summit of
which a magnificent view can be obtained.

The warmth of this northern district is

i

not conducive to great business activity.
Pleasure seems to be predominant in the
minds of the inhabitants, and a great
amount of money is invested in sports of

14 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

every description. Auckland is only some
nineteen or twenty days' run by steamer
from San Francisco ; this is the shortest
postal route between the mother country
and her colonies. A letter can iidto be
conveyed from Auckland to Liverpool in
thirty-three days, and efforts are being
made by the Honourable George M' Clean,
the indefatigable chairman of the Union
Steamship Company, to reduce this time
still further.

Going north from Auckland we pass
several fine bays and harbours, but these
are of no commercial importance at pre-
sent, for this is the " native " country,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 15

exclusively possessed by the Maoris, and
to parts of which, it is said, no white man
has ever penetrated ; but the present

Governor of New Zealand, Lord Onslow,

»
has bfcerf invited by the native chiefs * to

pay a visit to their country, in a private
and family capacity of course. We will
not discuss the motives of the native
chiefs in issuing this invitation, but the
last white man who returned after a visit
to the " King country," as it is called, was
so loaded with honours and insignia by
these potentates, that he possessed no

* Lord Onslow has since returned safely after a
very successful visit.

16 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

available space on his body for the
reception of any more, in fact they
insisted upon tattooing him all over. By
virtue of this circumstance he was enabled
to escape through their borders, being
mistaken for a Maori.

There have been fabulous reports
circulated of the gold to be found in this
district, which, indeed, are to some extent
borne out by the wealth of the very few
adventurers who have returned thence
safely.

We now round the extreme north of the
island, and, changing our course to a
southerly direction, we commence our

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 17

journey down the west coast. We pass
Hokianga and Kaipara Harbours, both
very extensive and possessed apparently
of excellent accommodation for ships, but
as they are also situated in the Maori
country, they have not as yet been made
use of for commercial purposes. If this
peninsula is as rich as reports lead us to
believe, it will probably become, when
opened up to Europeans, on account of its
favourable situation, one of the most
important mining districts in the world.

We proceed further down the coast till
we reach Manukau Harbour, another

of the remarkable enclosed seas for which

C

1 8 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the coast of New Zealand is famous. We
enter and arrive at the town of Onehunga.
Here we are only seven miles by land
from Auckland, on the opposite coast,
although we have come some 240 miles
by sea since leaving there. Indeed One-
hunga is but a suburb of Auckland. The
narrow belt of land separating the two
towns will certainly in the near future be
traversed by a canal, and the native
country will thereby be artificially trans-
formed into a separate island. Manukau
Harbour, though large, does not afford
good anchorage for craft on account of
sandbanks. We sail further south, past

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 19

the mouth of the Waikato River, which has
its origin in Lake Taupo, referred to later
on. This river, one of the largest in New
Zealand, flows through a fairly fertile
country, and is remarkable for its scenery.
We pass Wangaroa and Kawai Harbours,
both of considerable size, and continue our
southerly course till we come to New
Plymouth, the chief town in the Taranaki
province. This town is situated at the
foot of the cone-shaped, snow-capped,
Egmont Mountain, 8,270 feet high, form-
ing a most impressive spectacle from the
sea. New Plymouth is a town of fair im-
portance, but of no great population as yet.

20 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

We round Cape Egmont and make for
Wanganui, on the Wanganui River, up
which we can steam as far as the town.
This is a very prosperous district, famous
for the breeding of useful horses. A
tourist wishing for excitement, sport, and
beautiful scenery cannot do better than
obtain a boat or a large Maori canoe and
proceed up this magnificent river as far as
he can go, or as far as the natives will let
him. Here he can visit the Maoris at
home, and find infinite amusement by
mingling in their sports. By the offer of
some tobacco to the chief of a tribe and
a blanket to his favourite wife, this/

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 21

monarch can be induced to proclaim &fefe
or gala day throughout his dominions in
honour of his visitor, and the festivities
which then ensue are of a most interesting
and diversified nature.

We come to no further place of import-
ance, but, rounding Cape Terawiti and
crossing Cook's Straits, we leave the
Northern Island behind us and commence
our voyage round the Southern.

THE SOUTH ISLAND.

We proceed down the east coast, in
sight of Cape Campbell, and, further on,
the Kaikoura Peninsula, on which is

22 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

situated Kaikoura town, a small port for
the district of the same name.

Next we arrive off the town of Kaipoi,
on the Waimakariri River, which flows
into Pegasus Bay. Here are the well-
known Kaipoi woollen factories. The
town lies rather low, and is subject to the
occasional disadvantage of being flooded
in the spring by the overflowing of
the river above mentioned, due to the
melting of the snow on the Southern
Alps.

We next reach Lyttleton Harbour,
which somewhat resembles Wellington.
We pass in through The Heads, and,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 23

rounding a promontory on the right, are in
full view of Lyttleton town, situated at the
foot and on the side of a steep hill. In
front are the breakwaters, and inside them
the wharves, alongside which large ships
can come. The harbour, however, is
somewhat dangerous for small sailing
craft, on account of the sudden squalls
which come down from the encircling
hills. The town is small, but is of con-
siderable importance through being the
port for Christchurch, from which it is a
journey of twenty minutes by train, five
minutes of which are spent in passing
through the Lyttleton tunnel, cut through

24 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

some of the hills which form the Bank's
Peninsula.

Leaving Lyttleton, we steam round
Bank's Peninsula, passing several minor
bays, the great resorts of excursionists
from Christchurch, and put into Akaroa
Harbour, on the other side of the Penin-
sula. This harbour is very beautiful, and
here the French commenced the first
white settlement on the South Island.
This is a great fruit growing district, and
many ancient Maori relics and caves are to
be found along the coast, which is a favourite
resort in summer. The Peninsula is com-
posed almost entirely of hills, ranging

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 25

about 2,000 feet high. On these hills the
cocksfoot grass is grown and harvested,
as the seed commands a good price in
local markets.

We now sail for Port Chalmers, calling
at Oamaru on the way. Oamaru is famous
for its beds of freestone, of which the
town is entirely built, and from which it
earns its name of the " White City."
The stone is most excellent for architec-
tural purposes, and is easily carved. Here
are situated the flour mills belonging to
Messrs. Meek, perhaps the largest in the
Colony. The harbour, the outlet for one
of the richest tracts of country, was not

26 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

naturally good, but has been vastly im-
proved by artificial means.

Further south we enter Otago Harbour,
and, passing Port Chalmers on the right,
we arrive at Dunedin. Port Chalmers was
originally the port for the larger vessels,
which now, however, are enabled to pro-
ceed up as far as Dunedin itself. Dunedin
is a Scotch settlement, and still retains, in
a marked manner, the national charac-
teristics of its founders. The City, the
capital of the Otago province, is of great
importance, and is nicely situated at the
inner extremity of the Harbour, which is
formed by a long arm of the sea, and is

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 27

not so remarkable for beauty of scenery
as many others in New Zealand.

Rounding Cape Saunders and going
south, we pass the mouth of the Molyneux
River and the town of Newhaven, and enter
the Foveaux Straits, between the main
island and Stewart. We safely weather
The Bluff, so-called from its summary
manner of dealing with vessels which
approach too near its rugged shores, and
put into Invercargill Harbour. This is a
fine harbour and well sheltered, and the
town of Invercargill has the reputation of
being the best laid out town in the Colony,
but this is of small importance since there

28 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

are no inhabitants. It should, however, in
time, and with the arrival of population,
become one of the principal ports.

We now sail westward, passing Riverton,
a gold mining settlement, and Tewywy
Bay, then veering round to the north, pass
Preservation Inlet, Chalky Inlet, Dusky
Bay, Breaksea Sound, Doubtful Inlet,
George Sound, and Milford Sound, up all
of which there is delightful and rugged
scenery. On the last-named is Mitre
Peak, famed for its peculiar beauty ; at
the head Sunderland Falls, 550 feet high.
Of this coast Captain Cook says : — " A
prospect more rude and craggy is rarely

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 29

to be met with. Far inland appeared
nothing but the summits of mountains of a
stupendous height, and consisting of rocks
that are totally barren and naked, except
when they are covered with snow."

The part of the coast just passed is
greatly indented, a remarkable fact to be
observed in connection with the south-west
coast of nearly every country.

We continue to steer N.N.E. till we
reach Hokitika. The harbour is not so
fine as those already described, but the
town is the most important at present on
the west coast. We are now lying off the
famous Gold Coast of New Zealand, con-

30 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

earning which so many remarkable stories
are related. The district is largely popu-
lated with Chinamen. On the beach, and
even for some distance out to sea, gold is
sought and found.

We next reach Greymouth, on the Grey
River, famous for its coal, and, at one time,
also for gold. Brunnerton, further up the
river, is also important on account of its
coal mines.

Continuing northward, we round Cape
Foulwind and arrive off Westport, on the
Duller River. This place is also famous
for its coal, of which the engineers on the
Ocean liners testify that for getting up

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 31

steam it has no superior, though the heat
which it creates is liable to burn through
the fire boxes. All these towns do a large
trade in minerals of various descriptions.

We sail northward until we round Cape
Farewell, then changing our course to the
south, we skirt the bay, known either as
Golden or Massacre, and anchor off the
City of Nelson. We are now in the large
open bay of Tasman or Blind Bay. Nel-
son is regarded as one of the prettiest
towns in New Zealand in more senses than
one, as a curious circumstance in connec-
tion with its population is the reported
proportion of thirteen women to each man.

32 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

The beauty of the situation evidently in-
duced numerous emigrants to settle there ;
the scarcity of work and business has
since compelled the male population to
leave it. The town is built on the summit
of the magnificent cliffs surrounding the
bay. It is a health resort and possesses a
fine college for youths.

We steer north once more in order to
leave the bay, round D'Urville Island and
Admiralty Bay, and enter Queen Char-
lotte's Sound, up which we steam to
Picton. This is a small town, owing its
principal importance, at present, to its
connection by rail with Blenheim, for

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 33

which it is the port. Blenheim is the
chief town in the Marlborough province,
and lies in a rich agricultural district.
Queen Charlotte's Sound is long, narrow,
and irregular in shape, and contains some
small islands. Leaving the Sound, we
cross Cook's Straits again, and arrive
once more at Wellington. Here our
voyage ceases and we disemhark, bearing
in mind that we have not been following
the regular routes of the Union Steamers,
which would often have taken us out of
sight of land, but that we have been
following a course of our own, and the one
best suited to the objects we had in view.

D

34 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

We now turn our attention to some of the
principal inland features of the country.

INLAND FEATURES.— CHARACTER
OF THE COUNTRY.

The greater part of the North Island is
at a considerable elevation above the sea,
and the country may be described as of an
undulating character. These highlands are
chiefly covered with heavy bush, or what
would in England be called forest. The
trees are, as a rule, of immense size, and
their description varies with the character
and elevation of the soil. Much of the
timber would be of great value for a variety

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 35

of purposes, but it is unfortunately scarcely
utilized for anything except firewood and
fencing by the bush settlers, who clear
their lands by felling and burning the
forests. A man well acquainted with the
New Zealand bush can tell to a very great
extent the nature and quality of the soil by
the kind of trees which grow upon it ; for
instance, the Kauri pine (Demarara
Australis), the timber of which is con-
sidered very valuable for ship and house
building, and the average height of which
is 120 feet, with a diameter of 10 feet,
grows upon land of very little use for
pasture or grain ; and again, where the

36 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Manukau scrub grows the land is not of
much value. The various classes of trees
of which the bush is composed are gener-
ally confined to separate latitudes and
altitudes. The Kauri above mentioned is
not found south of latitude 38deg. The
bush is in some parts as impassable on
account of its heavy undergrowth as the
forests described by Stanley in " Darkest
Africa."

The following is a list of the principal
trees indigenous to the country, with their
average heights, etc. : —

The Rata, or iron wood ; an extremely
hard wood.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 37

The Rimu, or red pine (130 feet by six
feet) ; the timber is both useful and orna-
mental.

The Monoa, or yellow pine (80 feet) ;
timber light and durable.

The Matai, or black pine (80 feet by
four feet) ; a heavy timber used for piles,
etc.

The Miro, or bastard black pine (60
feet by two feet) ; not so useful as black
pine.

The New Zealand Cypress ; the timber
is reddish and fine grained ; excellent for
planks and spars.

The Totara (120 feet by 10 feet) ; very

38 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

durable ; one of the most useful timbers
known.

The Kakikatea, or white pine (150 feet
by four feet) ; a white soft timber like deal.

The Puriri ; a very hard wood ; indes-
tructible under water.

The Ake Ake ; a hard, close grained
wood.

The Rewa Rewa, or New Zealand
Honeysuckle (100 feet) ; used for cabinet
making.

The red and black birches.

The Cabbage Tree (20 feet) ; peculiar to
New Zealand, something like a palm with
the stalk of a cabbage.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 39

In addition to the foregoing list there
are, of course, several trees of minor im-
portance and value.

The hills upon which this bush grows
average from 1,000 to 1,500 feet in height,
and are intersected by deep and picturesque
gorges, through some of which, near
Wellington, the railway runs.

When the land has been cleared of bush,
seed is sown and stock grazed, but the
stumps of the trees cannot be got rid of
for several years. Near the coast of
Hawke's Bay, however, and in various
other districts throughout the North
Island, there is some splendid land free

40 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

from bush. Bush land is generally good
pasture land when cleared.

Many of the mountains in New Zealand
are volcanoes; in fact, the North Island is a
volcanic country, and subject to frequent
though slight earthquakes. The highest
mountain in the North Island, Raupehu
(9,193 feet), is not a volcano. Tongariro
(6,500 feet) is the principal volcano.

Tauranga, on the Bay of Plenty, is the
neighbourhood most addicted to volcanic
displays. Here were the lakes Rotorua
and Terawera, destroyed by eruptions in
1886. Throughout this district hot springs
abound, very beneficial to persons suffer-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 41

ing from a variety of afflictions, though
not greatly resorted to, as they lie in a
district chiefly inhabited by natives and
earthquakes.

The North Island is well watered, the
snow-capped mountains keeping well sup-
plied the numerous rivers which flow
through the fertile districts to the coast.
The centre of the island being chiefly at a
higher elevation than the land lying near
the sea, it forms one large watershed for all
the surrounding country. A traveller might
complain of want of inhabitants, but he
could not complain of want of water. This
is another all important advantage which

42 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the Islands of New Zealand owe to their
situation and natural formation ; they have
not to fear the terrible devastating effects
of the prolonged droughts so common on
the neighbouring continent of Australia.

The largest lake in New Zealand is
Lake Taupo, in the centre of the North
Island.

Turning to the South Island we find that
some of the principal points in which it
differs from the North Island are that it is
more mountainous, though not given to
earthquakes ; minerals, as far as is known
at present, are more abundant ; the moun-
tains are not generally covered with bush,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 43

though in some parts the sides are bushed
to a certain height, above which the rocks
show out ; the mountains are less fertile,
especially further south, on account of the
colder climate ; they are also higher; there
are no volcanoes, though there are glaciers
on some of the higher mountains, namely,
Mount Cook and Mount Tasman.

The Southern Alps form a kind of
gigantic backbone to the South Island.
They run from Nelson Province in the
north to Otago in the south, dividing West-
land from Canterbury, and provide another
huge watershed for this island.

The Province of Canterbury is chiefly

44 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

composed of plains originally covered with
native tussock grass, but now nearly all
under cultivation. This is the only part of
the island which is not well watered by
nature ; but the wants of nature have been
supplied here, as elsewhere, by man, and
water races have been taken all over the
plains. A curious circumstance in con-
nection with the rivers which are to be
found in Canterbury deserves to be men-
tioned— they are all above the level of the
plains.

The bush of the South Island, generally
speaking, does not comprise such a variety
of trees as that of the North Island,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 45

nor is the timber of such a valuable
description. Black birch is the principal
tree. .

On the Hanmer plains of North Canter-
bury are to be found the hot springs,
greatly resorted to by invalids, as they are
more accessible than those of the North
Island. Here a great earthquake took
place in 1888, the most severe that has
ever been felt in the South Island.
Scientists could not account for this un-
usual phenomenon.

The principal lakes are to be found in
Otago, where there is some of the most
beautiful scenery in the world.

46 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

NATIVE ANIMALS, BIRDS, REP-
TILES, FISHES, etc.

New Zealand may be said to have no
native animals or reptiles with the sole and
insignificant exceptions of the Maori rat,
and a small, red- backed, venomous spider,
which exists in the bush near the sea. The
famous wild pig of New Zealand was
originally introduced by Captain Cook, and
affords exciting hunting. The goats which
run wild near Hawke's Bay were also
imported, and so were hares and the rabbits
of which so much is heard. These, which
I have mentioned, may be said to be the

only wild animals in New Zealand, unless,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 47

perhaps, I include under this category the
merino sheep. One man attempted to
introduce the English fox, and let two of
these sportive creatures loose in Auckland,
but the inhabitants, becoming aware of this
circumstance, sent out an expedition to
destroy them, an object which the expedi-
tion successfully accomplished after con-
siderable toil and trouble. Another man
wanted to introduce snakes from Australia,
but as the inhabitants on this occasion
formed an expedition to destroy him, he left
the country without executing his purpose.
An Acclimatization Society, however, has
been formed and legalized, and the right to

48 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

import other than domestic animals is now
confined to it alone. I may here remark in
passing that there is no such thing as
hydrophobia or rabies in dogs in New
Zealand, and a person wishing to import a
dog has to let it remain in quarantine for
six months.

Native birds are, however, more numer-
ous than animals, and there are several
different species. Some of these are very
beautiful and have melodious notes, the
Bell bird, for example, and the Toi, the
destruction of which is a punishable offence.
The Weka, a bird of the ostrich species,
only about the size of a fowl, is also pre-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 49

served, as it kills young rabbits and devours
slugs. English duck and teal are plenti-
ful, also wild swans and geese. Pheasants
are numerous in some parts, also jack
snipe. Game of this kind is abundant.
Sparrows were imported from England to
destroy the caterpillars, slugs and other
insects, which do so much damage to field
and garden produce ; but these birds have
multiplied so extensively since their intro-
duction that it is a question if the cure is
not worse than the disease. The starling
would have been a much more useful im-
portation for the purposes required, and
would have proved harmless to the grain

E

50 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

crops. I have seen many crops simply
threshed out while standing by sparrows.

English trout have been placed in the
rivers, and grow to a size never seen in the
country whence they came, but they have
a less delicate flavour on this account.
Salmon are not as yet found in the rivers,
but the Acclimatization Society are culti-
vating the spawn in their ponds.

All animals, birds, and fishes seem to
thrive in New Zealand, and generally grow
to a larger size than in England.

Domestic animals, such as horses, sheep,
dogs, etc., were all, of course, originally
imported. Sheep were in some cases

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 51

brought from England, and the different
breeds have been kept up ; but the merino
sheep, which at present constitute the
largest flocks, were originally the Spanish
merino imported to Australia and thence
to New Zealand. The same careful atten-
tion is not given to domestic animals and
cattle of every description in New Zealand
as in England ; they are allowed to look
after themselves to a greater extent, and
are stronger and hardier.

The native inhabitants of New Zealand,
the Maoris, are a fine race of men, intelli-
gent and physically well developed ; but
unfortunately they are now deteriorating,

52 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

having imbibed an undue proportion of the
vices of civilization. The half-caste has a
very poor constitution, though muscularly
powerful.

THE CLIMATE.

A few words upon the climate of New
Zealand — one of the principal causes of
the health, strength, and fine development
of all its animal and vegetable produc-
tions— remain to be said.

The climate throughout the whole length
of New Zealand, from north to south,
varies considerably, according to the lati-
tude. Speaking generally, it is warm and

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 53

genial ; in summer the heat is not exces-
sive, as in Australia, nor yet is the cold at all
severe in winter. The seasons are evenly
divided, as in England, into spring, summer,
autumn, and winter, the New Zealand
summer, of course, corresponding to the
European winter, and vice versa. In Auck-
land, the northernmost province, the
summer is rather hot, but the atmosphere
is always tempered by the sea breezes.
Owing to the long and narrow shape of the
islands, neither heat nor cold can ever be
excessive in any part. Thus in Otago,
the southernmost province, the cold is not
so great as might be expected from its

54 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

latitude. The moderating effect of the
surrounding ocean upon the climate is thus
fully enjoyed by the inhabitants of New
Zealand, an advantage which they possess
over the Australian colonists, who have to
endure the unmitigated harshness of their
continental siroccos. There are not those
" dry and rainy seasons " of which many
people talk in connection with the colonies
generally. Frosts, of course, come and go
in winter time, but they only occur, as a
rule, in the south of the South Island, and
are almost unknown further north. Snow
is seldom seen in the North Island, except
on the higher mountains, and if it does

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 55

happen to fall it never remains on the
ground. In the South Island, however,
snow does fall at times, but will never last
throughout the day, except in the more
southern provinces.

December and January are the hottest
months, June and July the coldest.
October corresponds with May in Eng-
land.

The northerly winds are, of course, the
warm winds of the Southern Hemisphere.
The warm winds of New Zealand are from
the north-west ; they have their origin in
Australia, and cross the ocean to New
Zealand. These winds in the South Island

56 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

blow with considerable violence at times,
and their fury is. an occasional cause of
complaint against certain parts of the
country, more especially the Canterbury
Plains, where they come whirling out of
the gorges of the Southern Alps, causing
havoc among the grain crops, while build-
ings and trees are levelled before their
blasts. At one place where I was staying
in Canterbury the iron roof of an out-
building was blown away, and on the same
day a small wooden railway station was
carried bodily down the line ; but damage
like this is seldom done, and these winds
never continue more than a very few days.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. £7

They occur mostly in November and
February, and their duration is unfavour-
able to work of most descriptions, as they
create thirst and languor. There are what

are called " nor'-west days," when hardly

•
any wind is perceptible, so named on

account of the close, dry heat ; this
weather is of great service in ripening the
crops.

The quarter from which most of the
rain comes is the south-west, and the
winds which blow thence are generally
cold, and at times come in what is called
a " sou'-west buster," that is to say, they
come suddenly and with force, and pass

58 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

over quickly — perhaps in half-an-hour.
The east \vinds are not frequent, but are
the really cold and keen winds, as in Eng-
land, and are not accompanied by rain.

The atmosphere of New Zealand,

•
generally speaking, is far purer and more

invigorating than that of England, and such
a thing as a foggy day is unknown. There
is an occasional morning mist, but the
sun and vvind soon disperse it.

It is not all sunshine, of course, for in
the south there are many cloudy days, but
the exhilarating effect of the climate is
evidently responsible for the increased
activity and liveliness displayed by those

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 59

who find their way from other countries to
New Zealand.

New Zealand, moreover, is free from all
those plagues which the possession of a
vast, uninhabitable and desert interior
entails upon the Australians, as it did
upon the Egyptians of old and still does
upon their successors of to-day. The dry,
arid wastes of immense extent lying behind
the colonies of Australia, form what I may
call the Sahara of the Southern Hemis-
phere, and from these deserts all manner
of evil things come forth. Clouds of
locusts, covering the sky from one horizon
to the other at certain seasons of the year,

60 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

spread themselves over the doomed land,
and dropping like rain in myriads upon the
fields and pastures and cultivated tracts,
utterly consume everything with which
they come in contact. Tribes of grass-
hoppers, moreover, closely resembling
locusts in many respects, commit similar
devastation. The locust and grasshopper
plagues in Australia, in fact, assume very
serious proportions, and it is questionable
whether they or the rabbits inflict the
greater injury upon the farmers. It is
true that in one or two districts of New
Zealand also the rabbits have to be
reckoned with, but in the latter country

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 6l

they are more manageable, and for various
reasons their invasion has been much more
successfully resisted.

In view of such remarkable commercial
and climatic advantages as New Zealand
has thus been shown to possess, the com-
parative smallness of her population at the
present date may excite surprise. This
circumstance, however, may be said to be
due, partly to the fact that the islands were
discovered at a later date than Australia,
and partly to the fact that they were not,
like the latter country, made the depot
for numbers of convicts from the Old
World.

C H AFTER II
AGRICULTURE.

CHAPTER I I.

AGRICULTURE.

MINING and agriculture, in the broad
sense of the word, have been and are still
the two great sources of wealth of the
Australasian colonies, and New Zealand
forms no exception to this rule. In point
of importance, gold-mining, perhaps, at
one time, occupied the first place, but
agriculture now holds that position. Under
the heading of the latter, therefore, I will

F

66 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

now briefly treat of crops, cattle, wool-
growing, horses, etc., and will endeavour
to give some idea of how these various
branches of the subject are pursued in
New Zealand.

MISTAKES OF BEGINNERS.

Before doing so, however, I am of
opinion that a few remarks upon the
obstacles and dangers which generally
beset the intending agriculturist are neces-
sary. It is in the nature of a farmer to
grumble, and this circumstance probably
explains why we hear more of the misfor-
tunes and reverses incident to this occupa-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 67

tion than of any other. The man who
engages in farming in New Zealand meets
from time to time with various difficulties,
but few of these would ever prove insur-
mountable were it not for his own ill-
advised action at the start. The course
which is so often pursued with disastrous
results by the " new chum," and too
frequently also by the man who ought
to know better, is to commence by invest-
ing the whole or by far the greater portion
of his capital in the purchase of land, and
then to fondly imagine that his fortune
is made. He soon finds that, on the
contrary, his difficulties are only just

68 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

beginning. His land must be stocked,
and he has no money left to stock it with,
so the farm is mortgaged to obtain it, and
is thus ever afterwards subject to a heavy
charge in the shape of the interest exacted
by the lenders.

Then the " new chum " hardly knows
what to do next. He has probably had
little to do with farming before, but, like
many others, is under the impression that
anyone can farm, especially in the
Colonies ; and his mistake begins to dawn
upon him. Then comes a bad year, and
further expenses are incurred, while the
mortgage company presses for the interest,.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 69

probably overdue. He is unable to pay ;
the mortgage is foreclosed, and the un-
happy immigrant finds that verily he has
come to a strange land and is among
strangers.

The intending settler must not imagine
that, because he has a knowledge of Eng-
lish farming, he is therefore competent to
commence farming " right away " in New
Zealand. Doubtless his knowledge will be
of great importance and usefulness, but
not until after he has learnt the way in
which farms are conducted in the Colony.
If he has capital, he had better put it in
the bank and draw only what is necessary

70 .NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

for his expenses. Then let him go about
the country and see how things are done,
visit various stations, and be willing to re-
ceive information. He will find farmers
and station holders most hospitable, and
ready to assist him. If he has not the
means, however, to adopt this course, let
him find work on a good farm of the kind
that he thinks will suit him best, but he
must not expect high wages at first. Let
me warn all against the pernicious custom
of paying premiums as " cadets," and
against being swindled by so-called
" labour offices."

I might here mention that at Lincoln,

• NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 71

in Canterbury, about 14 miles from Christ-
church, there is situated a School of
Agriculture, affiliated to the Canterbury
University and governed by the same
Board. Mr. W. E. Ivey, M.R.A.C.,
F.C.S., F.I.C., is the managing director.
The farm attached covers about 660 acres.
The school is a very fine building, and
has accommodation for some 50 students.
The course covers two years, at the end
of which time the student receives a final
certificate provided he has passed his
examinations, practical and theoretical,
satisfactorily.

72 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

METHOD O'P FARMING.

The best plan, in my opinion, for a small
capitalist to adopt is to rent his farm.
The rent is, as a rule, a far less vexatious
charge than the interest on a heavy mort-
gage. Rents, of course, differ widely, not
only according to the quality of the land,
but also according to the facility of
market, railway freight being high.

The capitalist having rented a small or
average-sized farm, of some 500 acres or
upwards, according to his means, will find
it pay him best to employ as little daily or
weekly labour as possible, but to have his

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 73

ploughing, harrowing, drilling, etc., done
by contract. Thus he will avoid the
necessity of keeping a number of horses,
which, at certain times in the year, he has
no work for. On 500 acres a three- horse
team and a spare horse are usually suffi-
cient, together with a useful hack.
Draught horses cost about £22 each,
which may seem, as indeed it is, a low
price.

On a farm of this description, it is the
general rule to make wheat the main crop,
but, of course, in respect to this, the
farmer is, or ought to be, guided by the
market and the character of his land

74 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Oats are largely grown, but in 1890 the
price was only is. 6d. per bushel, so that
it did not pay the farmers to sell, and
many cut their oats into chaff without
threshing, and fed their sheep and cattle
on them. Barley generally commands a
fair price, although it is not greatly grown,,
and turnips form another of the principal
crops.

In growing grain the New Zealand
farmer does not manure, as I understand
the English farmer does. It is a mistake
not to do so, for the land will not hold out
for ever ; but in manuring the high rate of
wages, etc., has to be taken into consider-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 75

ation. It would be quite unnecessary,
however, to manure to the same extent as
in England.

The principle of the rotation of crops
is adopted by a great number of the
better class fanners, and this saves
the land very much. At one time in
Canterbury there were people who took
up land for about four or five years at a
time and simply grew nothing but wheat.
Of course this ruined the land for some
time to come. When they had finished
one patch they took up another, and
repeated the operation. From this they
obtained the title of " skinners."

70 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

As regards labour I may say that
although it is very expensive, and wages
are very high, yet, from what I can see of
English methods, one man in New
Zealand gets through the work of two
men and a boy in the old country. The
implements in common use are also of a
more labour-saving kind. On level land
double furrow ploughs are generally
employed, sometimes treble furrow. In
the double furrows there are either three
or four horses ; in the latter case they are
yoked by means of block and tackle. In
the treble furrows five horses are used.
The chief implement makers are Messrs.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 77

P. and D. Duncan, of Christchurch, and
Messrs. Reid and Gray, of Dunedin.
The horses in the plough are put in
abreast, and one man drives them and also
looks after the plough. There are no
boys required to lead the horses.

CROPS.

I will now, having given this brief out-
line of the subject, take the various crops
as they come.

Wheat, as I have already stated, is the
main grain crop. It is mostly grown in
the South Island j in fact, comparatively
little grain is grown in the North Island.

78 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND,

The richer land is, of course, best suited
to this crop. The principal wheat grow-
ing districts are as follows : — Around
Blenheim, the capital of the Marlborough
Province ; around Kaipoi and Christ-
church in Canterbury ; and throughout the
Ashburton district, where we find Mr.
John Grig's large estate, at one time a
swamp, but reclaimed through the energy
of its owner ; in South Canterbury and
the Methven district, where is situated
Messrs. Gould and Cameron's estate ;
further south in the VVaimate district,
where Mr. Studholme possesses a large
tract of splendid country ; in the Timaru

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 79

and Oamaru districts, where there is some
magnificent land for grain, extremely rich
and fertile, the yield sometimes reaching
60 bushels an. acre; further south, around
Dunedin, where the land is more moun-
tainous, thence on towards Invercargill
and Southland, a country where the
yields are very good.

Throughout all these districts a farmer
must be guided by the surroundings
and climate, as to when to sow, when
to reap, and when to prepare his land,
the times for performing these opera-
tions to the best advantage being, of
course, ascertained by experience. Both

8o NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

spring and winter wheat are grown, but
the latter is considered the better crop if
the weather be comparatively dry.

Prices vary from 2s. 6d. to 35. 6d. a
bushel, and greatly depend upon the
season in other parts of the world.

Oats are grown everywhere and any-
where, the varieties best suited to the
soil and climate of New Zealand being
Sparrowbills, Tartarians, Duns, and Cana-
dians. Sparrowbills are chiefly grown on
account of their large yield and short but
sweet straw. The straw is used for chaff ;
in fact, in some instances the farmer
never threshes his oats at all, but simply

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 8l

takes them out of the stacks and cuts
them into chaff as he may require. The
double-bagger chaff cutter made by
Andrews and Bevan, of Christchurch, is a
perfect machine for this purpose, and is
even imported to Australia by farmers
there.

Oats, as I have already stated, were not
in 1890 a paying crop, beyond what were
grown by the farmers for their own con-
sumption. The want of a market was
principally due to the lack of foresight of
the farmers generally, who, because a
particular crop has fetched remarkably
good prices for one year, must needs all

G

82 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

take to growing that crop next year, with
the natural result of a supply far in excess
of the demand.

Oats may be sown, according to the
kind, any time from May to the end
of September. They are often taken
before turnips as a " catch crop," and in
this case they are mixed with vetches.

Barley is grown in both islands ; cape
or six-rowed barley anywhere, malting or
two-rowed barley principally in the South
Island, on the lighter and drier lands.
Cape barley is sown in April and May, and
stock are fed on it during the winter, after
which the paddock is closed, and the crop

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 83

allowed to come to ear. The grain is
chiefly used for feeding pigs.

Good malting barley generally com-
mands a profitable price. The yield on
fair lands is some thirty bushels an acre.
The crop is generally taken after peas, and
sown in August and September.

Mangolds and turnips are the principal
root crops. The former are grown for
feeding cattle ; they are cultivated in
much the same manner as turnips, but are
not of such importance in New Zealand as
the latter.

Turnips afford the chief food for sheep
during the winter in the South Island.

84 NOTES ON NE\V ZEALAND.

This crop is generally taken after wheat.
In some parts turnips are sown broadcast,
and this work is usually performed by a
machine and not, by hand, but " drilling "
is considered a far superior method,
especially when the water-drill is used and
manure put . in to the extent of about two
hundredweights per acre. Turnips are
sown in November and December, and the
yield on good land is generally from 25 to
35 tons per acre. Sheep are fed on
turnips during June, July, and August, and
are given hay and chaff to pull at in
racks.

Peas are generally grown as a prepara-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 85

tory crop for both wheat and barley, and
are often taken after oats. The yield is
usually good, and the kinds chiefly grown
are Prussian Blues, Early Emperors,
Black-Eyed Susans, and Duns. They
are cut with a hay-mower and raked
into wind-rows, and either stacked or
threshed at once ; the latter, when con-
venient, is the best method, as the peas
shell out greatly when in stacks.

Peas may be sown in June or July, and
are harvested in the beginning of January.

Beans are not greatly grown, as they
are not considered a paying crop.

There is a fodder crop which I have not

86 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

yet mentioned, and one which in England
is regarded as of the greatest importance,
namely, the hay crop. In the making of
his hay, there is more risk incurred by the
English than by the New Zealand farmer,
on account of the extremely unsettled
weather which the former has generally to
put up with, and which compels him to
expend far more labour in the saving of his
crop.

In New Zealand the grass is cut when in
flower, and allowed to lie for a few days
until dry ; it is then raked into wind-rows,
after which it is stacked, usually in a field
intended for turnips during the coming

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 87

winter, so that it may be handy to feed the
sheep when on the turnips, the stack itself
being fenced round. Hay is generally cut
in the early part of December, and it is
advisable to close up the paddocks in-
tended for it in June or July. Hay varies
in value according to the crop and the
weather in which it was saved.

Although some farmers make ensilage,
yet, in a climate like that of New Zealand,
there is not much advantage in doing so ;
the risk of spoiling the crop is as great as
in making hay of it, and machines or a
silo are, of course, very expensive.

Potatoes, of course, are largely grown

88 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

by many farmers, both for their own con-
sumption and for the Australian market ;
this market, however, is very precarious,
and depends greatly on the season.
Potatoes are comparatively free from
blight in New Zealand. But the manner of
cultivation is the same as everywhere else.

SHEEP AND WOOL GROWING.

Having thus dealt with the various
crops, I will now turn to the live stock ;
and, commencing with the most important,
will endeavour to give some idea of the
way in which sheep are farmed and looked
after in New Zealand.

• NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 89

Here, again, we find different methods
in vogue.

There is, first of all, the farm upon
which, as in England, both sheep and
cattle are carried and also crops are
grown. This is what is generally called a
" mixed farm," and, in my opinion, it is a
very mixed farm indeed — mixed, in every
sense of the word. Cattle and sheep
should never be stocked on the same farm,
although sheep are of considerable use
upon a farm where crops are grown. Be-
yond condemning it, there is very little to
say about this method of farming, except
to remark that the men who go in for it in

90 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand are called " cockatoos," so I
will now proceed to what is called a
" sheep farm."

Upon this farm the main thing is the
rearing of sheep for wool and mutton, and
now that the frozen meat trade has in-
creased so much, this kind of farming has
become very profitable indeed. The class
of sheep usually carried is what is called
the " half-bred," a cross between a Merino
ewe and a Leicester ram. These sheep
are reared on account of the fine quality
and plentiful quantity of their wool, and
the superiority of their mutton for freezing
purposes.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 9!

This line of farming is not gone in for
as much as it might be. It is a species of
farming that might be carried on very
profitably anywhere, provided a market
were within any accessible distance.

Of course crops are grown to some
extent on such a farm, especially the
turnip and hay crops.

A man farming on this principle, if
situated in a suitable district, can always
supplement his income by becoming a
dealer also. Dealing is a business that
pays well, provided the dealer understands
it and carefully watches both the New
Zealand and foreign markets.

92 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

There is an ever increasing demand for
wool and mutton. The frozen mutton
trade, however, I would here remark,
requires to be better looked after, and
English buyers need to be shown that
none but good samples will be sent over.
Last year (1890) 1,531,901 carcasses were
sent to England, amounting to about
39,366 tons of mutton. The process of
freezing also leaves room for improvement,
and I am of opinion that if the retailers of
frozen mutton would give their customers
careful instructions how to treat the meat
before cooking, they would help to make
this excellent article of food more popular.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 93

It is advisable to hang the mutton for
a day or two in a cool place before
cooking.

We now leave the smaller class of sheep
farms and come to the large " runs " or
"stations," as they are called. On some
of these, as many as 60,000 sheep are
carried, but 20,000 to 30,000 is the more
usual number.

Here we find the far-famed merino in all
its glory and wildness. It is unnecessary
for me to describe a sheep station further
than to say that it is an immense tract of
open country either in the bush, among
the mountains, or upon the plains. Of

94 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

course, the boundaries are known, and
generally fenced at the expense of the
owners of the adjoining stations. There
are also fenced paddocks, mostly near the
homestead, woolsheds, or sheep yards.
The term woolshed may not be understood
by everyone ; it is an immense shed in
which the shearing takes place, the wool
is baled up and stowed, and the sheep are
left over-night for the shearers to start on
early in the morning.

The merino sheep is kept entirely for its
wool upon these stations. The wool is of
-first quality and commands the best price
in the market. This sheep is also far

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 95

better suited to these large " runs " and
mountain fastnesses than the more domes-
ticated half-bred or any of the English
breeds. The general impression is that
the merino is essentially a small sheep,
but this is not correct, as anyone who has
received a butt from a wether can testify.
The ewes are rather on the small side.
They have not, technically speaking, the
" body " on them which the English
butcher's sheep have. The same differ-
ence exists between them and the butcher's
sheep as exists between a dairy cow and a
bullock bred for beef.

A man requires, in order to take up a

96 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

station of this sort, a thorough knowledge
of wool and sheep breeding.

Of course, the work attached to a station
is inconsiderable compared to the large
tract of country which it covers, as there
is very little to be done during the greater
portion of the year. The busy time is the
shearing season. There are on a big
station generally from twenty to thirty
shearers ; besides these, there are the boys
to pick up the fleeces, one fleece picker
to every four or five shearers ; then there
is the wool classer with his assistant
rollers, who number .five or six, and the
wool presser and his mate to bale up the

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 97

wool. Then there is the " shed boss,"
who looks after everything, sees the sheep
are shorn properly, takes the tally, looks
after pressing, etc. Outside there are
shepherds who bring up the sheep and
take away the shorn ones.

Thus, at shearing time, there is plenty
to see to interest the stranger who pays
the station a visit. Previous to the shear-
ing, there is the general muster, which
means the rounding up and bringing in of
all the sheep, good and bad, on the " run."
To accomplish this, all the shepherds go
out with their dogs, and, on large " runs,"
additional hands called " musterers " have

H

98 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

to be engaged. This general muster
sometimes occupies three weeks, and the
work is hard and the hours long while it
lasts, but the pay is good, the musterer
receiving ten shillings a day, and all found,
all the time he is engaged on the " run,"
even should he be compelled to remain idle
on account of rain or mist. This work re-
quires good and trustworthy men ; men
who will not sit down when out of sight,
and come in at night with no sheep.
The wages of the shearers vary from
i6s. 6d. to 2os. per hundred sheep
shorn, according to the remoteness of
the station, and as many men do from

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 99

120 to 140 sheep per day, they are able
to make out a good cheque in a short
time.

The shearing is the only important
expense I might say attached to a " run "
besides the rent of the land. Very little
money has to be laid out in other ways
once it is stocked, with the exception of
buying new sheep occasionally to improve
the breed.

After the shearing is over all old " weeds,"
badly woolled, and otherwise defective
sheep are culled out and sent to the nearest
market to be sold for whatever they will
fetch, and the ewes are generally purchased

100 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

by the " cockatoos " before mentioned for
lambing purposes.

On the whole a sheep station is a very
paying concern if properly managed, and,
as I have pointed out already, after the first
cost, there is very little further expense.

Of course, on all the various farms in-
the Colony on which sheep are kept the
lambing season is really the most trying in
the year. But the lambing in New Zealand
is not attended to as on English farms. In
England I believe 120 lambs to 100 ewes is
what is expected on most farms. In New
Zealand we consider on smaller farms above
90 lambs to the 100 ewes good, and over

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. IOI

100 per cent, very good indeed. On the
larger " runs " over 80 per cent, is con-
sidered good. From this fact it will be
seen that the New Zealand farmer does not
pay the same attention to his sheep that
the English farmer does. For, in the first
place, the former has to consider the cost
of labour, which is considerable, being at
the rate of 203. to 253. a week per man,
and everything found. Then there is to
be taken into account the comparatively
low value of sheep per head in the
Colonies.

A lamb is never fostered ; if it has lost
its mother it is generally killed. The sheep

102 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

are never housed at night, so that in severe
weather some of the weaker lambs are
generally carried off. Of course, on a
" run " it would be simply impossible to
look after the ewes in the same way as on
small farms, nor do the merino sheep,
which are chiefly kept on the large
stations, require any looking after or
assistance.

The "tailing" of the lambs is done in
the Colonies in the same way as elsewhere,
but the same care is seldom taken over
the operation, though there are very rarely
any casualties as the result.

In short, it will be gathered from what 1

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 103

have said that everything being on so much
larger a scale, labour so much dearer, and
the value of stock per head so much lower,
it would not pay to be so particular and
careful in these matters of detail in New
Zealand as in England.

Having now endeavoured to describe the
ways in which sheep are managed on the
various kinds of farms in New Zealand, I
cannot take upon myself to give advice to
any intending sheep farmer as to which of
the different lines he should take up with-
out knowing the means at his disposal. I
can only say if properly managed and
understood by a man with a large or small

104 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

capital, sheep raising, for whatever pur-
pose, wool, mutton, or stud, is a very pay-
ing business in New Zealand.

CATTLE.

Next to sheep in order of importance we
must place cattle. Beef is frozen in New
Zealand, but not to the same extent as
mutton. The exportation of beef in 1890
showed an increase of 12,937 pieces °ver
that of the previous year. Notwithstand-
ing this increase, however, the price in the
live market in September, 1890, was very
low, beef selling at i8s. per cwt., whereas,
in order to be really profitable to the

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 105

farmer, it should sell at 2 is. and upwards.
This fact I can only account for by the
increase of stock in a proportion even
greater than that of the demand. Cattle
in New Zealand cannot be said at present
to pay as well as sheep, for, in the first
place, they produce no wool, and, in the
second place, they will not fetch as good
prices proportionately. Thus a lamb some
five or six months old, according to prices
in the spring of 1890, brings 8s. to ios.,
and a fat bullock at three or four years £8
to^io. A calculation based upon these
prices will show that the percentage of
profit to the farmer upon the sale of the lamb

106 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

is about three times as great as that upon
the sale of the bullock.

Cattle, however, are bred to a consider-
able extent in New Zealand, more espe-
cially shorthorns ; Herefords are reared in
Auckland. John Dean, of Christchurch, is
a noted shorthorn breeder, also Menlove, of
Oamaru. There is as good stock in New
Zealand as is to be found in England.
Stock was, of course, originally imported,
and new blood is being continually brought
into the country by the breeders, and it
follows naturally that when a man takes
stock across 16,000 miles of water he brings
nothing but the best that money can buy.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 107

The two breeds I have mentioned are
essentially beef producers and not milkers,
and they have been crossed with other
breeds for various purposes. For dairy
cattle we have in New Zealand Ayrshires
and Jerseys ; in fact, there is no lack of
variety, quality, or quantity.

Cattle are kept on many of the large
stations such as I have already described,
and are let out loose on the " runs." On
the small farms also cows are always kept
for milk, etc. Sheep are able to thrive
well upon the native grass, but cattle will
not fatten upon it. The heavier lands
about Oamaru and Timaru, and those in

108 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Taranaki and about Gisborne are more
suited to cattle than those surrounding
Christchurch.

Cattle are reared to a great extent in
Otago, the climate and the soil being
especially suited to them.

New Zealand beef, fed entirely upon
grass, hay, and mangolds, is, generally
speaking, very good, and far less greasy
than that fed by English farmers in stables
and upon oil cake.

Cattle are scarcely ever housed at night,
except in the case of prize or stud stock.
Mangolds and hay are given them during
winter, in the fields, when the grass is

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 109

short. They need very little attention,
and are not liable to so many diseases as
prevail amongst them in England, the
climate being very well suited to their
healthy growth.

Cattle may pay well where a man has
made his name in regard to his breed, and
can always ask a certain price and get it ;
for instance, a gentleman in Christchurch
asks ten guineas for his Ayrshire heifers,
and always gets it ; but for the ordinary
farmer, cattle grazing or dealing is rather
a risky line to take up. Of course with
increased population and export we shall
soon be able to work off this dulness in

1 10 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the cattle trade. Australia at present pro-
duces sufficient beef of her own, but
England will be in a few years our great
market. Perhaps when the Chinese be-
come Christians and give up their rice and
chop-sticks we may also find a very large
market amongst them, although at present
the feelings of the colonial labourer to-
wards theT" heathen Chinee" are the re-
verse of friendly ; but time works wonders,
and so does Christianity.

DAIRIES AND BUTTER FACTORIES.

In connection with the subject of cattle,
we have dairying and butter making. Up

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. Ill

to the present I am of opinion that
sufficient importance has not been attached
to this branch of farming in New Zealand.
A great deal more might be done in the
direction of the manufacture of butter and
cheese with a view to exportation. Such
manufacture might be carried on in any
part of the Colony within easy reach of a
port. We can now send butter to England
from New Zealand fresh and in good con-
dition by means of the chilling process
lately brought out, which, in the opinion of
men in the trade, is superior to the freezing
process. There is a great quantity of
Danish butter brought to England and

112 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

sold at a comparatively low price ; but
since we find that butter can be bought
retail in New Zealand at fivepence to
eightpence a pound, according to the time
of year, there can be no reason why it
should not be exported to England and
sold at a lower price even than the Danish,
to which it is equal, if not superior.

Of course, to make it marketable the
samples and the supply should be regular,
which at present cannot be the case to any
very large extent, as the butter exported is
chiefly what has been made by various
farmers who have nearly all a different
process of making it, are probably on

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 113

altogether different land, and keep all
classes of cows.

It should be so arranged that all butter

O

for exportation be factory made, then the
samples would always be the same and the
supply regular.

A dairy factory, now that the cream
separators have been so perfected, is no
very formidable undertaking for a man in a
good district and with a small capital; he
can keep cows of his own and arrange with
his neighbours to have their milk sent in
every day at so much per gallon, as is the
custom in the cheese factories in England.

o

If a factory were started solely with the

I

I 14 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

idea of exporting the butter, and competent,
skilful men and women were employed, it
should in a very short time make a good
market for itself in London or other large
cities.

New Zealand butter is not, I regret to
say, greatly sought after at present, chiefly
on account of its very varying quality ; but
when a brand becomes known it is always
bought regardless of the other samples on
the market.

A factory, moreover, opens up a large
and profitable business in pigs, a class
of stock which is comparatively highly
valued in New Zealand. When kept in

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 115

connection with a dairy, pigs pay far
better than on an ordinary farm, as all
the skimmed milk, etc., is consumed by
them.

The manufacture of cheese might also
become a profitable undertaking. It would
be necessary to obtain first-class men,
however,, from England or the Continent
to superintend the work, but with a little
enterprise and foresight at the start in the
setting up of the engines and machinery,
cheese might at any time be added to the
productions of a dairy factory already in
•existence.

fl6 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

PIGS.

We will now turn our attention for a
moment to the " gintleman that pays the
rint," He is to be found in New Zealand
in all stages of life and society. We have
first the wild pigs originally introduced by
Captain Cook. These are to be found in
the bush upon the hills, and the old boars
among them are called " Captain Cooks,"
after the esteemed founder of their order.

The wild pig is of no use for domestic
purposes, even when caught young and
stye-fed, as he takes twice as much to
keep him as the well-bred pig, and then

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 117

does not give the same weight when
killed.

The wild boar is a great nuisance to the
station holders and farmers in the hills
and back country, as he disregards all
boundaries and takes a delight in making
gaps so that the sheep of adjoining owners
may make neighbourly calls upon each
other. He also roots a great deal ; I
have seen land simply turned over by these
boars as if it had been done by a plough.

For these reasons as well as for the
sport it affords he is often hunted with
knife, spear, and rifle. These hunts
usually take place on days when it is too

Il8 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

wet to do ordinary work on the stations or
farms.

The wild pigs are generally long nosed,
lob eared, yellowy red coloured animals,
the boars wielding tusks of no small
dimensions and strength.

But the domestic pig is an animal of
considerable value and importance. We
have, as in sheep and cattle, all or nearly
all the different kinds of English breeds.
The Berkshire, however, is the one most
generally reared, as it is considered the
best paying and most adapted to New
Zealand. Mr. James Rowe, of Canter-
bury, and Mr. Clarkson, of the same place,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 119

are well-known Berkshire breeders, and
their stock is often imported to various
parts of Australia for the purpose of
improving the breed there.

Pigs always command a good price in
New Zealand, and as bacon is dearer than
mutton they are valuable stock for the
farmer to keep. On grain farms they are
the consumers of all the " thirds J> of
wheat, oats, etc., which, otherwise, would
be useless. If the Berkshire be kept and
good stock obtained at first by a breeder
situated in the back districts, he can
generally ask his own price for his young
pigs, say IDS. for a " weaner barrow" for

120 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

bacon, and 2os. to 255. for a boar eight or
nine weeks old, and as they are hardly any
expense to him to rear he makes a very
excellent profit indeed.

Bacon factories have now been started,
and this will eventually raise the price of
pigs still further, and the market will be
far more reliable. These factories are
carried on in connection with freezing
works, so that bacon can be cured at any
time of the year without risk. They will
also have the effect of improving the
quality of the bacon, as the farmers of
New Zealand vary greatly in their methods
of curing it and fail to keep the quality up

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 121

to a proper standard. In this respect
they differ from the English farmers, who
have fixed and well proved rules to go by,
and whose home cured bacon is con-
sequently reliable and universally preferred
to any manufactured elsewhere.

The general weight at which pigs are
killed for bacon in New Zealand is from
1 20 to i4olbs. In England, I believe,
considerably heavier bacon than this is
preferred.

HORSES.

Horses, as I have before mentioned, are
in most cases far cheaper in New Zealand

122 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

than in England. Where a farmer in the
latter country would pay £40 to £60 for
a draught horse, we, in New Zealand,
would pay £20 to ^30. This fact is
chiefly owing to the ease with which they
are reared and bred, and the cheapness of
oats and other fodder in New Zealand.
But, notwithstanding these seemingly low
prices, horse breeding pays very well, and
nearly all farmers, who are in a position to
do so, go in for it to a certain extent and
get remunerative prices when the foals
come to maturity.

Our chief breed in draught horses is the
Clydesdale ; it is considered the most

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 123

serviceable, and when a lighter horse is
required it is crossed with a strong hack.
New sires are imported every year by the
stud breeders, and the breed is thus well
kept up. Although there are light
draught horses in New Zealand, yet I
have never seen a pure Suffolk Punch in
the colony, and I am of opinion myself
that, if this breed were imported, it would
be of great service and come into large
demand.

Hack and saddle horses are to be found
in great numbers, and there are some
splendid sires of this class in the colony.
They are bred, to a great extent, on the

124 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

large stations where the brood-mares,
together with one or two stallions, are
allowed to run wild. They are mustered
once a year, when the three and four-year-
old foals are kept in, and the rest turned
loose again. These foals are either roughly
broken in at the station or else driven
down in a mob to the town, and there sold
at current prices. The breaking in on
most stations is conducted in a very
rough-and-ready fashion. The horses are
put in a stockyard, and there roped or
driven into a crush, the headstalls and
breaking rollers are put on, and the bits
placed in their mouths. After a couple of

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 125

days of such treatment, they are saddled
and mounted by rough-riders, who let
them have their fling till they are tired,
and then take them for a good gallop of
an hour or two, by the end of which time
they are considered fit for anyone to ride.
The smaller farmer, however, takes a good
deal more pains with his horses, and
handles them more before mounting,
which makes them far more reliable after-
wards.

The horse muster and breaking on a
station is considered one of the most
attractive sports of the year, as it is
always attended with the greatest excite-

126 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

merit. Galloping over rough country at
top speed after wild horses, and using a
stock whip, requires good riders and sure-
footed animals, as a false move means a
bad accident. Then there is immense fun,
to say nothing of danger, to be found in a
stockyard amongst a mob of young horses.

Of course, the horses, after being sold
in town, are very often carefully broken to
saddle and harness again when required
for town work, by the same means as are
generally employed in England.

The Wanganui hacks are famed through-
out the colony, and large numbers of good
horses are bred in that district.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 127

The New Zealand saddle horses are not,
I think, so large as the English, nor do
the Colonials want a horse to mount which
it is necessary to have a ladder, but one
which they can jump on in a moment.

Carriage and coach horses are also
plentiful, and of a very fine description, as
a rule.

The thoroughbreds of New Zealand are
of the first-class order, and are admitted
to be superior to those of any other
Colony. For this New Zealand is indebted
partly to her climate and other natural
advantages, and partly to her having ob-
tained that splendid sire Musket, who had

128 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

a full strain of the good old Touchstone
blood in him. I learned recently that the
Auckland Sylvia Park Stud Company had
sold out and wound up, and I should
imagine that, from a racing point of view,
this will be a considerable loss to New
Zealand. At the sale 5,600 guineas were
given for Nordenfeldt, a son of Musket,
and brother to Carbine, who won the Mel-
bourne Cup of 1890 in the shortest time
and carrying the biggest weight on record.
However, the loss of this stud may prove
more beneficial than otherwise to the
Colony, as horse-racing cannot be re-
garded as amongst the desirable amuse-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 129

ments for a new country ; it is a sport,
nevertheless, of which Colonials are very
fond, every little township having its
yearly race meeting, even if it has to take
place in a ploughed paddock.

Trotting horses are in request through-
out the Colonies, and people are really
beginning to admit that, after all is said
and done, trotting is the most serviceable
pace. A good fast trotter that will go
either in saddle or harness will always
fetch a large price, and I believe that to
breed this class of horses would prove
very remunerative. Hunters are likewise
to be found, and hunters that will jump

K

130 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

bare wire, the terror of many English
riders. Of course, in many respects, they
are not up to the Irish hunters, which are
famed all over the world. These latter
are sometimes imported, but as there are
only hares to follow and no foxes, although
foxhounds, not harriers, are generally used,
first-class goers are not so much needed
as in England.

New Zealand horses of all descriptions
have splendid staying powers, and
thoroughly sound hearts and lungs.

Finally, I may repeat that a little
horse - breeding, combined with other
agricultural pursuits, tends to swell the

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 131

income of the intelligent farmer in New
Zealand.

BABBTT8.

I must not conclude the subject of agri-
culture before alluding to an important
item in connection with it — namely,
rabbits. These pestiferous little animals
are cordially detested and feared all over
the Colonies. They infest various parts of
New Zealand as they do Australia, but in
the former country they are not so un-
manageable, partly because the islands are
so much smaller, and it is consequently
more easy to confine them to certain

132 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

corners, surrounded, perhaps, by the sea
on one side and a wire fence on the other j
and, partly, because the efforts to exter-
minate them were begun before they had
obtained such a hold on the country as
they were allowed to obtain in Australia,
Then, again, the laws concerning them are
very strict in New Zealand, and the
penalties severe, on account of which their
depredations have not increased to any
great extent of late years, though some
land has been greatly reduced in value by
their presence.

In those parts of the islands where
rabbits exist or are even suspected of

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 133

existing, inspectors are appointed, whose
duty it is to journey through the districts
under their supervision and compel the
settlers to take stringent measures to clear
their land at once. When an estate is
discovered on which there are rabbits, no
matter how few, the inspector informs the
owner that he must, during the coming
winter, put on so many men, according to
the size of his place and the number of the
rabbits, to exterminate them by poisoning,
shooting, snaring, dogs, or any other con-
ceivable method. The men so employed
are called " rabbiters ; " they provide their
own weapons of destruction, and the estate

134 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

owner has to pay them each 203. to 303. a
week, besides which they receive from the
Government a premium of three-halfpence
to threepence a skin, so that there is a
fine opening in this direction to men of
sporting tendencies, and the dogs used for
this purpose are free from any tax. If,
upon the return of the inspector, his orders
have not been carried out, the owner is
fined and the men are put on by the
inspector, the owner, of course, having to
pay all the original and extra expense.
By these means the rabbits are kept under,
but I am afraid that they will not be
rendered harmless until New Zealand is

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 135

more thickly inhabited, for they do not
molest the populous districts.

There is, in the South Island, a rabbit
proof fence, made of small meshed wire
netting, sunk into the ground to about
eight inches, below which the rabbits do
not burrow ; its height is about three feet.
This fence is between the infected parts of
South Canterbury and the clear parts of
North Canterbury. At various distances
are placed men, whose sole duty it is to
see that the fence is kept in proper order,
and inspectors likewise go along at different
times of the year.

So far, all attempts at total extermination

136 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

have failed, though numberless experiments
have been tried. Large rewards have been
offered by the different Governments, for
which even M. Pasteur has competed
without success, as his proposed remedy
was considered unsuitable on account of
the danger it involved to stock. Weasels
and other natural foes of the rabbit have
been imported to no purpose ; indeed, they
have only added to the misfortunes of the
farmer, for they have turned their attention
to the young lambs, evidently a more easy
prey in their opinion.

Let us hope, for his own sake and for
the sake of the Colonies of the Antipodes,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 137

that the man who can invent a perfect
remedy will soon appear. His fortune will
be made, again and again, by the rewards
of Governments and the gifts of a grateful
people, and his name will be handed down
from generation to generation, as that of
one of the greatest benefactors Australasia
has ever known.

CHAPTER III.
MINING AND MINERALS.

CHAPTER III.
MINING AND MINERALS.

AGRICULTURE by no means covers the
extent of the productiveness of New
Zealand. Vast mineral wealth of almost
every description lies beneath the surface,
and in this direction, perhaps, less after all
has been done towards developing the
resources of the country than in others.

Gold was found at a comparatively early
period ; coal and other minerals have since

142 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

been discovered in great abundance, but
no adequate idea of their extent can be at
present obtained. It is perfectly clear,
however, that all that has so far been done
in the way of mining of any sort in New
Zealand has gone to show the very re-
munerative nature of this industry, and
how wide the fields for its development
are throughout the islands. Here again,
by reason of her healthy climate, New
Zealand possesses great advantages over
most other mining countries. Mining of
every description, in comparatively un-
known countries, is generally associated in
the minds of most of us with untold hard-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 143

ships, fevers and agues, hunger and thirst,
extremes of heat and cold, but, when
compared with the conditions to be met
with in South Africa and the greater por-
tion of Australia, difficulties of this descrip-
tion interfere but little with the miner in
New Zealand.

GOLD.

In discussing the subject of the minerals
of New Zealand in detail let us begin with
gold, the most interesting, the most fascinat-
ing, and, from a certain point of view, the
most important of all.

The histories of the separate gold dis-

144 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

tricts or fields are, of necessity,, very-
similar. A few adventurous emigrants, or
perhaps one by himself, would stumble
across a pocket or a reef of gold. Con-
siderable wealth became theirs almost in a
moment, and they seldom concealed it for
long. But this success, too easily earned,
raised the wildest expectations in the minds
of all who heard of it, fatal to a reasonable
appreciation of the most apparent ob-
stacles. The man who became infected
with the gold fever allowed no considera-
tions of prudence or fitness to stand in his
way. Such men came from all quarters of
the globe and joined in the mad rush for

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 145

gold, and disappointment was the fate of
nearly all. The misdirected enthusiasm of
the crowd soon exhausted the few pockets
already discovered, and then spent itself
aimlessly in prodding the earth in various
directions until its means of subsistence
were exhausted. The inevitable reaction
set in, and, for a time, numbers of these
would-be diggers hung around the seaport
settlements disconsolate. But soon neces-
sity started them on other pursuits, and,
as farm labourers, and in some cases as
land proprietors on their own account,
the majority of them found employment
more steady and remunerative, though per-

L

146 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

haps less romantic and exciting than what
they had originally sought. Thus it was
that agriculture became the primary occu-
.pation of the Colonist, and the epidemic
of the gold mania gradually died out, to
recur, however, again and again in less
violent forms up to the present day.

It must be borne in mind, however, that
the decay of this original enthusiasm by
no means implied the non-existence of the
precious object which had evoked it. It
was on the contrary wholly due, firstly, to
the unfitness and want of preparation of
the motley crowd of those who started out
in the wild pursuit and to the disgust in-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 147

spired by the failure to realize the exag-
gerated hopes of which they had dreamed,
a failure brought about by this unfitness ;
and, secondly, to the disasters which befell
so many of those who actually had met
with success in the subsequent follies which
success too often induced. But the gold
is there still, only the search for it is con-
ducted, except on the occasions of the wild
rushes which still occur, in less extrava-
gant fashion, and, indeed, in most cases
on fixed and well-considered principles.

By far the greater part of the gold min-
ing of New Zealand at the present day is
carried on by companies.

148 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

In order to pave the way to a proper
comprehension of the subject it will be
necessary first to give a brief explanation
of a few of the technical terms in use
amongst the diggers, and also of some of
the most important laws affecting gold
mining.

Before anyone is allowed to dig for gold,.
or rather before he can exercise the exclu-
sive right to dig in any piece of land in
which he has reason to believe gold may
be found and to take legal possession of
the gold so obtained, he must first procure
a " miner's right." This is a concession
granted by the agent of the Government

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 149

on payment of a small fee, and gives the
digger the necessary powers over any piece
of land, forty feet square, that he may
select to " peg out." Pegging out means
planting pegs at the four corners of the
piece of ground.

The Government reserves to itself this
power of granting licenses to dig over all
the land in New Zealand ; not only over
what belongs to itself, but also over what
belongs to private owners ; thus the owner
of a sheep farm who discovers gold upon his
land is not allowed to dig for it and take pos-
session of it without first coming to certain
special arrangements with the Government.

150 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Without entering too far into the techni-
calities of the question it will suffice to
say that the obtaining of a miner's right
or simple license to dig is the method in
vogue amongst the ordinary miners work-
ing on their own account. Having obtained
this license the digger will proceed to peg
out his claim in any spot he may select.
He must then commence at once to work
it, and must work it for a certain time- each
day. If he neglects working it for a single
week day it is open to any other man in
possession of a miner's right to come and
" jump " it ; that is to say if A. pegs out a
claim, but neglects to work it in the pre-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 151

scribed manner, B., possessing a miner's
right, comes and usurps his place, evicts
A., and proceeds to work it on his own
account. If A. possesses a bad claim he is
pretty safe ; if a good one he has to be
" mighty sharp." Any number of claims
can be pegged out by the possessor of a
miner's right, but if he or his representa-
tives fail to work any one of them it is
forfeited to the first comer in the manner
above described. A frequent method is
for a number of miners to become partners,
and make common property of their
claims ; they are thus in a better position
to defend them, and should some lots turn

152 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

out unfortunate they are probably compen-
sated for by others.

A gold field upon which a number of
miners are working, each on his own
account, or in partnership with others,
is a small community governed by a com-
missioner, who is supported by a body of
mounted police. The post of commis-
sioner is no sinecure. He who holds it
must be a man cast in a stern mould.
Every new find is the signal for a series of
desperate disputes, and the commissioner
is called on to decide between the rival
claims of a crowd of clamorous diggers
upon evidence which is often apparently

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 153

equally strong in support of several
different sides.

Such gold fields, however, are now com-
paratively rare. With the introduction of
capital into the country their place has
been largely taken by the system of
mining carried on by companies, and
although, when a new gold district is first
discovered, the rush which immediately
takes place creates a mining camp of the
old sort, yet a company is speedily formed
which buys up the land, enters into special
arrangements with the Government, and
sets to work in an orderly and regular
manner.

154 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Before leaving the question of the laws
affecting ordinary diggers I may as well
mention that no miner's rights are allowed
to Chinamen. At one time, however.
Chinamen had these rights, but they flocked
in such numbers to the gold fields as to
threaten to swamp the European popula-
tion, and their manners also proved so
objectionable to the latter that fatal riots
frequently took place, the Ballarat stock-
ade and the Turon stockade in Australia
being the most serious, and laws were
passed against granting to Chinamen
licenses to dig for gold, Chinamen, how-
ever, are to be found on disused and

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 155

worked-out gold fields, where they turn
over and pick amongst the wash dirt and
earth heaps which have already been
panned out and abandoned by the legiti-
mate diggers. They do over again all that
the diggers have done already, and often
make good finds in this way. Chinamen
are to be seen hanging around the gold
fields ostensibly for the purpose of culti-
vating vegetables, doing washing, etc., for
the diggers, but in reality they are waiting
until the latter depart, and they can gather
up their leavings.

The practice, however, of re-working an
abandoned gold claim is not always con-

156 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

fined to the "heathen Chinee." The
theory in regard to gold deposits is that
the places where they are found were
formerly portions of some river bed. The
digger who has a claim, and finds the
wash dirt, supposed to have been originally
deposited by some river, works it so long
as it lasts. Very often, however, he comes
to a rock, and, believing this to have been
the absolute bottom of the original river,
abandons the claim. Another digger, how-
ever, comes along, and, sounding this rock,
finds he can partially remove it or get
beneath it, and sometimes discovers below
a fresh deposit of wash dirt even more

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 157

valuable than what had been found
above. .

The steps which usually lead to the
formation of a genuine Company are as
follows : Gold is discovered in a certain
district. As soon as the fact becomes
known all sorts of people — clerks, store-
keepers, farmers, business men, loafers and
idlers of every description — join in a rush
to the spot where it has been found, and
these very soon exhaust the supply of
nuggets and surface gold. Prospectors
arrive upon the scene and examine the
ground, and, if they discover quartz gold
in addition to the alluvial gold, of which

158 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the ordinary diggers are in search, proceed
to form a company for working it. Quartz
gold cannot be properly worked by ordinary
diggers; it requires complicated machinery
for crushing, etc., and has to be subjected to
various processes for extracting the gold.
The Company obtains a special lease of
the land from the Government, and takes
out special licenses, allots its shares, con-
vevs and erects its machinery, employs its
labourers, proceeds to work its mine, and
to pay its dividends. These are the lines
upon which a Company is generally floated
and worked, but, of course, Companies do
not always commence in the same way, or

.NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 159

work in the same fashion. There is, for
instance, the Gillespie Beach Gold Dredg-
ing Company. Its object is to dredge the
sea at the mouth of the Grey River and
bring up the sand and mud, which contain
large quantities of gold-dust washed down
by the stream.

Bogus Companies are by no means rare.
The various devices, however, which have
been resorted to with more or less success
for entrapping investors would take too
long to describe ; in the main they consist
of false or exaggerated descriptions of the
capacity of a newly-discovered mine, sup-
ported by ingenious reports from head-

l6o .NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

quarters and samples of rich quartz alleged
to have been procured from the mine in
question. The inexperienced or ignorant
investor who commences dabbling in gold
speculations is almost certain to fall a prey
to a Company of this sort ; but even
experienced men, in their haste to get
rich, often make mistakes as well. Gold
mining and speculation, in fact, is a pursuit
like most others, in which skill, experience,
and knowledge of the subject are essential
to success. It is true that solitary in-
stances are recorded of fresh and inex-
perienced gold-seekers finding on their
first venture and upon their first claim

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND^ 161

nuggets of exceptional vatue which:men who
have been working upon the diggings for
years have never found ; but these instances
are upon the whole no more frequent than
similar instances of chance success in other
walks of life. When they occur • the
diggers, who are intensely superstitious
and great believers in luck, follow the
fortunate miner everywhere he goes, and
whenever he pegs out his claim there is a
rush to secure the claims nearest his.
Again, it sometimes happens that a man,
totally unacquainted with the business,
buys shares in a new Company, and a few
days afterwards finds they have risen to a

M

162 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

premium ; but for any inexperienced man
to go mining or speculating in the hope of
meeting with such chances as these is
simple folly. As a rule the great majority
of those who join in a gold rush are men
who, up to that time, have been following
widely different pursuits, and the man who
invariably comes best out of the enterprise
is he who does not abandon his original
calling in order to engage in an occupa-
tion which he knows nothing about, but
who succeeds in setting up the first store
or grog shanty upon the gold field. He it
is into whose pocket eventually flows the
greater portion of all the gold that is

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 163

found. Before long, if the field prove a
rich one, the grog shanty becomes an hotel,
and several more are opened, but it is the
first which gathers in the dust.

These gold rushes, however, now occur
but seldom, and, indeed, the word u gold "
seems to have lost much of its old power
to awaken the enthusiasm of the Colonist.
Three main causes have been and are still
in operation to produce this result.

Firstly, gold fields are bought up and
monopolized by Companies which, with
their machinery and improved methods of
working, have taken the place of the
private digger with his pickaxe, and the

164 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

private digger has become the employe
of the Company. Secondly, the gold
seeker arriving from abroad with the inten-
tion of commencing the search on his own
account finds in New Zealand towns
civilization and society much resembling
what he has already been used to, and not
a comparatively wild country such as he
probably expected. These attractions tend
to divert him from his original intention. If
he be a labourer he soon finds employ-
ment in his old line ; if he has any money
he soon loses it, for sharpers abound, and
" townies " (so-called because they intro-
duce themselves as having: come from the

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 165

same town in the old country) are always
on the look out for " new chums." Thus
the intending digger drifts into other
channels, and unless there should happen
to be a " rush " just about the time of his
arrival he probably never reaches the gold
fields. Thirdly, the demand for labour in
other spheres is now so great and the pros-
pect of earning good wages in other direc-
tions so certain, that the number of those
whom want of employment sends to the
diggings is now exceedingly small.

The districts in New Zealand in which
gold has so far been discovered are some-
what scattered ; but mining operations are

1 66 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

•

at present principally carried on in the
South Island. On the eastern side of the
Southern Alps, which form, as it were, the
backbone of this island, no trace of gold
has been as yet discovered, but immediately
on crossing over to the western side of
this ridge of mountains the " colour " of
the precious metal is visible. The prin-
cipal mining districts are Reefton, north
of the Grey River ; the Green-Stone
diggings on the Taramakau River, and the
Otago gold fields on the .Clutha or Moly-
neux River south of Dunedin.

In the North Island mining is carried on
in the district around the Thames River in

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 167

Auckland. Wonderful reports have also
come of gold to be found in the " King
Country," or Maori district north of
Auckland.

There are considerable tracts of moun-
tainous country on the west coast of New
Zealand in which there is every reason for
believing that gold exists in abundance,
but which have not as yet been prospected.

Many failures have been recorded of
those who have embarked upon the search
for gold in the Colonies ; many stories of
their acts of follv are told. From their
experience certain suggestions may be de-
rived which I will here take the opportunity,

l68 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

once for all, of offering to those, who,
attracted by the prospects of adventure
and wealth, may desire to seek their
fortunes in a new country. It matters
little whether their fancy prompts them to
visit New Zealand or some other colony, or
whether they propose to obtain their gold
by digging or by other methods, the few
words of advice which I now venture to
proffer to the inexperienced explorer will be
equally applicable.

We will suppose that a man is about to
set out from England or some other country
for the Colonies who has little or no
practical acquaintance with the pursuit he

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 169

hopes to follow when he gets there. Such
is frequently the case, for men are con-
tinually arriving, who, having failed at
home, hope in a vague and indefinite way
to make their fortunes abroad ; nor does
this hope by any means prove a delusion
to a man who follows a wise and patient
course. In the first place let him economize
in every particular, in his outfit, in his
passage and travelling expenses, in the
luxuries which he allows himself on the
journey, let him endeavour, in short, to
have as much money in hand as he possibly
can on his arrival in the Colony. In regard
to the outfit the temptation is, for those

170 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

who have any money, to encumber them-
selves with a number of articles which are
only in the way in travelling and of very
little use on arrival. Clothes of a strong
texture and an easy fit, good flannel shirts,
and high water tight boots are what are
necessary, the last especially being expen-
sive in the Colonies. On the voyage
out the emigrant may pick up a good
deal, but, on the other hand, by inju-
dicious openness he may lose quite as
much. If he has money he had better
not mention it even to the most com-
panionable fellow voyager. Let him hear
impartially the advice which he receives,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 171

which will generally be of a conflicting
character.

On his arrival in the Colony let him place
what capital he possesses in one of the
principal banks, reserving only what is
necessary for his daily expenditure for a
few weeks, which expenditure can be con-
ducted, at any rate in New Zealand, on
very economical lines, provided only he
avoids drink and keeps clear of bar
rooms.

His next step must depend upon his own
capacities and disposition. If he possesses
technical skill in any branch of trade or
manufactures he will have very little

172 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

difficulty in finding remunerative employ-
ment at once in New Zealand, and from
that point onwards he will only require
steadiness, perseverance and a wise use of
his money to speedily place him in a
prosperous and even affluent position. If,
however, he has had no particular technical
training, or his abilities are of the literary
or journalistic, or some equally valueless
description, from a monetary point of view
in the Colonies, his plan must be to acquire
and to employ as quickly as possible some
training which will be of value to him, and
this brings us back, after an apparent
digression, to the subject of gold mining.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 173

We will suppose that he selects gold mining
under these circumstances. Let him set
out for the mines of the nearest gold com-
pany and ask for employment. He must
take what wages he can get as a new hand.
If an industrious worker he will very soon
be in receipt of good earnings. He will
probably get employment at the first mines,
if not, let him go on to the next. Let him
work as an employe therefore on different
gold mines for at least twelve months, gain-
ing experience, becoming acquainted with
the details of mining, learning how to
prospect for gold, and lending a discrimin-
ating ear to all that is said, and observing

174 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

a.11 that is done. At the end of this time
he will understand the business, how and
where to look for gold, and how to recognize
.and work it when he sees it, and will also
have been earning money and adding to
his original capital. He can then, if he
choose, take up an independent line, pro-
cure the necessary outfit and start prospect-
ing and even company floating on his own
account; but whatever course he may
adopt in connection with gold mining, pro-
vided he has energy, foresight, and sobriety,
1 will not attempt to suggest any limit to
his success.

.
NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 175

COAL.

Upon the subject of coal mining there is
no need for me to tender advice to persons
going out to New Zealand ; it is a subject
at least as well understood in England as
in the Colonies. To briefly indicate, how-
ever, the principal localities in New Zea-
land in which this mineral is found, and to
describe its various qualities, may be
useful.

New Zealand resembles England in
regard to the abundance of coal to be
found there. The seams which are at
present worked are very large, in fact, the

1)6 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

companies do not see the use of working
small ones when larger ones are to be met
with. The chief Centres for coal are on
the West coast, namely, Westport and
Greymouth. The coal from the former
district I have already referred to as being
a very good burning, black coal, but so
extremely hot that it is generally mixed
with Greymouth or some other for common
use. Greymouth is also 'a black coal, and
very useful for ordinary purposes, and of
late 'years the Brunner coal from the same
district has come into the market, and is
mixed with Westport for steam produc-
-tion, etc. jGpod black coal is also found

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 177

in the Bay of Islands, north of Auckland,
where the Union steamships generally coal
when in those latitudes.

These black coals are generally from
1 8s. to 2os. per ton, according to the dis-
tance of transport. There are in the
Malvern Hills, about forty miles from
Ghristchurch, large quantities of brown
coal, or lignite, which, though it cannot
compare with the black coal already
mentioned, either for steam production or
general usefulness, is found to be very good
for household purposes when mixed with a
better quality ; it will keep alight for a con-
siderable time, but if used for engines it is

N

178 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

rather dangerous, on account of the sparks
which fly from it, caused by the strong
draught. It costs from I2s. to 145. per ton.
Anthracite coal has also been found in
the Rakia Gorge, and probably exists else-
where, but as there has been no necessity
so far to increase the output to any great
extent, the coal companies have been satis-
fied with the mines which they are at pre-
sent working. It has been calculated,
however, that the amount of coal in New
Zealand will be quite sufficient for all her
wants in the unlimited future, even should
her population become as great as that of
England.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 179

During the recent great strike through-
out the Australasian Colonies coal was
brought from Japan. One of the principal
tactical mistakes for which the leaders of
this strike were responsible was the "call-
ing out " of the colliers.

The colliers have always been in receipt
of a much higher rate of wages than is
paid in England ; they did not even pre-
tend to have a grievance themselves — they
were called out to join in the general strike,
as it was hoped that thereby the power of
the shipownersj the freezing and other
companies would be crushed. The effect
of this step, however — depriving the com-

l8o NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

munity, themselves included, of one
of the principal necessaries of life, and
largely increasing the number of men
out of employment — served only to
weaken the powers of the strikers and
to bring about the collapse of their move-
ment.

8IL VER.

Silver has been found in New Zealand,
principally in Stewart Island, but has not
been worked to any great extent, partly
because of the usual reason, lack of
capital, and partly, since gold is to be
obtained, and the gold-fields are more

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. l8l

advanced, comparatively little attention
has been paid to the less precious metal.
There are so many branches of industry to
be taken up that this one has been some-
what neglected.

COPPER, LEAD AND IRON.

Copper and lead are said by prospectors
and geologists to exist in this colony,
and in no small quantities, but on
account of the reasons just mentioned,
and of the comparatively small demand
so far these metals have not been
sought after or worked. Magnesium has
also been found. On the coast near New

1 82 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

Plymouth iron sand is obtained and
worked, and the finest steel is manu-
factured from it.

PETROLEUM.

To the minerals already mentioned to
be found in New Zealand there has lately
been added another, by the discovery of
petroleum oil springs in the North Island.
The value of this discovery will be evident
to those who have heard of the similar
springs of America, and the proverbial
wealth of their proprietors. But as yet
these springs have not been utilized in
New Zealand to bring the wealth and

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 183

prosperity in question to the country or to
the individual.

How far New Zealand may be rich in
other mineral possessions is still a matter
of conjecture.

CHAPTER IV.

MANUFACTURES AND MINOR
INDUSTRIES.

CHAPTER IV.

MANUFACTURES AND MINOR INDUSTRIES.

THE industries of New Zealand, the trades
and manufactures, are as yet confined and
undeveloped ; they suffer from lack of capital
and lack of labour. Where capital, how-
ever, is forthcoming and labour is to be
found, there is still the absence of skilled
management and technical knowledge to
contend with. In some cases, where a
trade is started for the first time in the

l88 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

country, it is started by persons who have
really very little acquaintance with the
work they are about to undertake. They
are only emboldened to undertake it at all
under these circumstances by the know-
ledge that there is practically no one else
engaged in the same occupation within a
wide radius, and, consequently, no com-
petition to be feared. The industry is
commenced, and, however defective its
productions may be, however inferior in
manufacture the goods which it turns out,
it nevertheless generally pays its pro-
moters— for it saves the necessity for
importation, and the cost of transport to a

, NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 189

remote country like New Zealand, added
to duty and to the original cost of the
article, makes the purchase of imported
goods very expensive.

I will give a short description of some
of the principal industries, such as they
are, of New Zealand, at the present time,
enough to show that very promising suc-
cess has attended efforts which have been
already made, and alluding more particu-
larly to those branches which seem
peculiarly suited to the country and likely
to thrive there. Jn speaking of a new
country so thinly populated as New Zea-
land, cut-and-dried statistics and figures

190 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

are of very little use. Any calculation
based upon them might very easily be
upset to-morrow by a new discovery, the
introduction of additional capital, or the
landing of a few shiploads of emigrants.
In fact, the whole position of affairs in
New Zealand might be transformed in a
very short time, and the situation very
much improved, from a commercial point
of view, by the landing of a small body of
capitalists and a few thousand skilled
workmen, together with a number of ex-
perts in various trades. I will confine
myself, therefore, to general statements.
The lines upon which improvement and

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 191

extension might take place will be gathered
from the following description.

WOOL.

Perhaps the most important of all New
Zealand trades is that in wool. I have
already spoken of wool-growing under the
head of sheep farming. I refer to the
subject here only to comment upon the
fact that the manufacture of this most
extensive home product into cloth and
other fabrics is very insufficiently carried
on in New Zealand. The raw material is
exported to England and--^other countries,
and is returned to New Zealand in the

192 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

shape of manufactured goods, with a duty
to pay upon re-importation. That this
should be the case for any length of time
in a healthy and civilized country, with a
rapidly increasing population, composed
principally of active and enterprising Eng-
lishmen, seems impossible, but so it is.
There is every facility for cloth manufac-
ture, and the material, when manufactured,
would most certainly he well patronized,
both on account of its cheapness and the
prevailing desire to support a local in-
dustry. New Zealand should, in this
respect, import only the very fine
fabrics which are made in special places

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 193

on the Continent, and these only for a
time.

There most certainly appears to be an
excellent investment awaiting the capitalist
in New Zealand in the direction of creating
more cloth factories to meet the require-
ments of the people of the country.

NEW ZEALAND FLAX.

There is an important industry peculiar
to the country in connection with New
Zealand flax. This flax (Phonnium tenax]
does not belong to the same botanical
order as English flax (Linum utilissimum},
and the plant itself grows in an altogether

O

194 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

different manner. In appearance the
leaves somewhat resemble those of the
bulrush, only they are broader and more
shiny ; they are of a very fibrous nature,
the fibres running longitudinally up the
leaf. This flax grows on the banks of
rivers, in swamps, and damp places, but
comes to perfection on well-drained swamp
land. It is to be found all over New Zea-
land, both on hills and on plains, and has
never yet been cultivated, although, if a
swamp containing it were well drained
and preserved, it would thrive splendidly.
The flax industry cannot be said to
be at present in a very flourishing

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 195

condition, although, some two years
ago, the flax that is now sold in the
London markets at about £22 a ton, when
dressed was then fetching ^35 to ^37,
and paid the exporters exceedingly well.
It generally brings from 2S. 6d. to 55. a
ton as it grows on the land, and there are
about ten tons to an acre. It has then to
be cut at a cost of 53. a ton ; after that it
is taken to the flax mills, where it goes
through the scraping machine, which
removes all the green coating ; it is then
" retted " of spread out for some ten days
upon grass for the purpose of allowing
the damp to separate the fibres by decom-

196 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

position ; after that it is " scutched " to
remove rough fibres, etc., and then baled
and is ready for the market.

The cause of the great fall in price
before mentioned in the London market
was owing a great deal to the folly of the
exporters, who did not keep the quality of
their stuff up to the samples originally
sent ; thus buyers lost faith and regarded
the commodity with suspicion.

The flax is ready to be cut from the
same root every three years, and thus it
will go on growing for any length of time
at the rate of about eighteen inches in the
year.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 197

The flax when dressed produces a
strong, coarse fibre, which is used for the
manufacture of mats, carpets, ropes, etc.

There are flax mills all over the colony,
but since the fall in prices a number have
stopped working. Some millers combine
this trade with flour milling.

The supply of flax is plentiful, although
it is being gradually cleared from the land
by the settlers, but it would undoubtedly
pay to cultivate, dress, and manufacture it
into the various articles before mentioned.
On account of this flax New Zealand is
independent of Manilla or Russian hemp,
but it will not make fine fabrics, such as

198 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

linen, which are produced from English
flax.

KAURI GUM.

Another New Zealand speciality is the
Kauri gum trade. This is confined to
Auckland province, as it is only to be
found where the Kauri pine grows or has
grown. It is the product of this tree,
being the gum which it exudes. It is
generally found below the surface of the
ground from about six inches to three feet
down, and is discovered by means of
prodding the earth with steel-headed
spears about four feet long. It is

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 199

found in blocks of all sizes up to I5olbs.
each.

At one time gum digging was greatly
looked down upon, and called a " new
chum's game ; " but now that the trade
has been opened up with America, it is a
very remunerative business.

The gum is used in the manufacture of
varnish by New York and London firms,
which have branches in Auckland. It is
also used for ornaments and pipe mouth-
pieces, which are often sold to the inno-
cent as amber. It fetches from ^35 to
£50 per ton.

200 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

LEATHER.

Leather is, of course, manufactured,
the bark of a New Zealand tree, the
wattle, being substituted for the oak bark
in the tanning process. The leather is
made into Colonial boots and shoes,
machinery belting, and other articles. But
English boots seem to have the preference
extended to them among fashionable
circles of New Zealand society, apparently
on account of their more elegant shapes.

The leather trade is hardly in a very
prosperous condition, though why it
should not be prosperous I am unable to

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 2OI

say, since leather should be made and
sold in New Zealand at a cheaper rate
than it could be imported, but I imagine
that in many cases the manufacturers do
not understand their business, and have
only made a speculation of it, a practice
very common in the colonies.

TIMBER.

A very extensive trade which New
Zealand carries on is that in timber. I
mentioned in the first chapter the chief
trees which compose the forests of New
Zealand ; the most important of all for
timber is Kauri. This timber is exported

202 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

to a great extent both to America and
Australia, and, sad to relate, the supply is
gradually diminishing, as the trees take
centuries to grow.

The New Zealanders have no need to
import timber from other lands, for,
although they do not possess many of the
same trees as are found elsewhere, they
have substitutes, and in some cases the
substitute is the superior.

The saw mills are generally situated in
the bush, where the timber is being felled,
and there the logs are cut up and sent to
the various markets.

Beautiful woods for cabinets and orna-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 203

mental purposes are plentiful throughout
New Zealand, and wonderful effects can
be produced with them.

FURNITURE.

Furniture, of course, is made and sold,
and is generally of good, solid, wearable
quality, although fancy articles are also to
be had, and no doubt, in time, when the
skilled inlayer of woods and cabinet-
maker finds he can get better remunera-
tion for his work in New Zealand than
elsewhere, he will emigrate, and fancy up-
holstering will become as common in New
Zealand as in England. Some of the

204 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

most expensive articles in furniture are at
present imported.

IRON FOUNDRIES.

Iron foundries exist in New Zealand
chiefly for the manufacture of agricultural
implements. Cutlery, however, and articles
of that description are mostly imported
from abroad, and in this line Sheffield
and American wares command the market.
Colonial made implements are generally
preferred to English on account of being
better suited to the work for which they are
required.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 205

MILLS.

Milling is carried on all over the country ;
indeed, it would be remarkable if it were
not so, considering the large extent of New
Zealand devoted to grain growing. Mills
are both roller and stone. Some of the
largest are at Oamaru and Ashburton.

BREAD AND BAKERIES.

In spite of the fact, however, that mills
are so numerous, bread is by no means
cheap ; in fact, it is one of the most ex-
pensive articles of ordinary diet, especially
when compared with the cheapness of

206 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

animal food. The quartern loaf costs six-
pence.

Bakeries exist in all the towns and cities,
and in the more populated districts, but on
the back stations the bread is home-made,
and when camping out " damper" — a kind
of cake made of plain flour and water — is
usually eaten. Yeast is procurable from
the brewers, but in the (( back country" is
made from potatoes, etc.

Bread is dear, not because of rhe price of
grain and flour, but because of the high
rate of wages paid to the men employed in
the mills and the bakeries. In fact, this
high rate of wages accounts in a great

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 207

measure for the clearness of all New Zea-
land manufactured goods.

BREWERIES.

In regard to breweries New Zealand can-
not be reproached with being behind hand.

This trade does not suffer from lack of
enterprise or want of support. Neverthe-
less, I believe many English people in the
Colonies drink only bottled Bass and
Burton ales, which are largely imported.
.This, I suppose, is due to prejudice alone,
for at the Melbourne Exhibition, 1888,
Manning and Co.'s (Christchurch) beer
took first prize against all-comers.

208 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand beer is of various qualities,
and is made all over the country — at Dur.e-
din, Christchurch, Auckland, Hastings,
Napier, and elsewhere ; indeed, compara-
tively speaking, it appears to be quite as
extensive and paying a trade in New Zea-
land as in the old countrv. New Zealand

J

beer is regarded as being superior to that
manufactured in any other part of the
Australasian Colonies.

BRICKS AND POTTERIES.

Brick works and potteries, of course,
exist, as might naturally be supposed. The
former do not require much skilled labour,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 209

and the bricks used for building are of
excellent quality. Potteries, however, are
not in a very advanced state, although
very good articles in the shape of common
crockery are turned out. But, as in various
places the fine clay necessary for the
manufacture of porcelain and china is
found, there is no reason why these wares
should not be produced on the spot, except
the absence of skilled workmen. Imported
wares bring large prices. But, doubtless,
when New Zealand is really inhabited she
will no longer be dependent upon out-
siders for her teacups.

210 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

FRUIT GROWING.

From the latest indications fruit growing
promises to become one of the most profit-
able occupations of the New Zealand
Colonists. Tropical fruits are, of course,
chiefly grown in Auckland, where they
thrive well.

Olives, peaches, grapes, pears, apples
are amongst the principal fruit productions
of the country. During the last few-
months cargoes of apples have arrived in
England from New Zealand, and the extra-
ordinarily large prices they have brought
at Covent Garden show what their quality

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 211

must have been, and will, doubtless, serve
to give a considerable impetus to fruit
cultivation. Dunedin is one of the prin-
cipal apple growing districts at present.

RAILWAYS.

The great railway industry in New Zea-
land is entirely in the hands of the Govern-
ment, with the exception of one line. Here
we have an example of the reckless ex-
penditure of the Legislature. As yet the
traffic of the country is by no means
capable of engaging the extensive system
of railway communication which has been
laid down and paid for with borrowed

212 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

money. The manner in which the lines
are managed is, moreover, very defective
in some parts, and furnishes much ground
for complaint, the service being irregular,
and the rate of travelling distinctly slow.
The faults of the railways of New Zealand,
however, are such as time and increased
population will undoubtedly remove.

CHAPTER V.
SOCIAL AND POLITICAL.

CHAPTER V.
SOCIAL AND POLITICAL.

LIFE AND SOCIETY.

WE live very well in New Zealand. Food
is plentiful, so is fresh air, and health and
strength follow as a matter of course.
Society is unconventional ; hospitality is
the general rule. It is true that in the
towns certain people endeavour to fashion
their lives after the customs of the aris-

2l6 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

tocracy of other countries, but their pre-
tensions are not very successful. I must
not be understood to imply, however, that
New Zealand is a sort of bear garden,
where roughness and rudeness are the
rule. No ; true politeness extensively
exists, and refinement of manners is
sought after and cultivated, but the spirit
of the inhabitants is opposed to the social
predominance of any sect or caste. Rank
is not much regarded, and wealth, while
undoubtedly conferring upon its holder
great powers of purchase, confers in the
eyes of New Zealanders no right and no
power to despise or insult those who do

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 21 7

not possess it. Social equality, in short,
is something of a reality, and genuine
merit has a genuine chance. Another
marked trait in the colonial character is
sociability. On land and on sea, on the
road and in the railway carriage strangers
manifest towards one another a cordiality
conspicuously absent, as a rule, from the
behaviour of unintroduced persons in the
Mother Country. These characteristics,
however — hospitality, equality, and socia-
bility— are so well known to belong to a
marked extent to almost all Colonists, and
the reasons for their development are so
obvious that it is unnecessary for me to

2l8 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

dwell further upon them, or to advance
evidence in detail of their abundant exis-
tence among New Zealanders. One re-
mark, nevertheless, in connection with this
subject remains to be made, and it is this.
The fresh arrival in New Zealand has need
to discriminate. Different people are apt
to look at things in different lights. Some
would be inclined to resent what they would
regard as the impertinent familiarity of a
total stranger, others, looking at the
behaviour towards themselves of the same
individual from another standpoint, might
be carried away by his apparent open-
heartedness and flattering attentions, and

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 219

be led into divulging their affairs and con-
fiding their interests to a person whose
intentions were the reverse of honourable.
The former course of conduct would be
very badly received in the Colonies, and
would be quite unnecessary to the main-
tenance of proper dignity and caution ;
the latter, I need hardly say, would be
extremely injudicious, and certain sooner or
later to end in difficulties, for there is no
lack of the "unscrupulous" in New
Zealand. The "new chum" should avoid
a too delicate susceptibility and a stand-off
demeanour, but, on the other hand, should
preserve a careful reticence both of his

220 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

confidence and his cash. He should seek
information and advice, but only from
responsible parties, nor should he jump to
the conclusion that the first which he
receives is by any means correct.

The magnificent climate of New Zealand,
and the attractive character of the country,
together with the qualities I have just
mentioned possessed by its inhabitants,
make life in this Colony something more
than a mere existence, a dreary round of
unremunerative toil, or a painful struggle
with misfortune or ill-health, which it so
often becomes in lands less gifted and less
free.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 221

The two main ingredients in the compo-
sition of English society are lacking in
New Zealand — rank and pauperism are
conspicuous by their absence. Titles are
bestowed, however, on certain individuals
who are held to have earned them, namely,
members of the Upper Legislative body,
who become " Honourables " for life, and
Premiers, who are generally knighted
during or after office. There are no work-
houses ; for the aged and infirm poor there
are almshouses. But when a man, strong,
well, and able to work, is found loafing
about or bf gging he is " run in," and gets
seven days' hard labour for having no visible

222 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

means of support. Thus does the law deal
with the loafer in New Zealand, and it
cannot be denied that this method of treat-
ment is eminently productive of advantage
to society in general, nor can it be described
as unjustly harsh, since there is work and
enough for each and all.

THE QUESTION OF EMPLOYMENT.

I have stated that there is work for all,
and this statement will doubtless be dis-
puted, and, in support of the opposite con-
tention, will be urged the fact that in spite
of the law just quoted against loafing, and
in spite of the asserted abundance of

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 223

employment, there are, nevertheless, to be
found numbers of men hanging around the
principal towns and complaining that they
can find no work to do. This fact brings
us face to face with one of the principal
difficulties which will have to be overcome
before the great labour question can be
satisfactorily settled, either at home or in
the Colonies, namely, the tendency of the
inhabitants to flock from the country to
the towns, and of mankind in general to
congregate together. In England, this
tendency has been shown to be one of the
principal causes of low wages, bad dwellings,
and scarcity of employment, and, on the

224 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

occasion of a great strike, it has been the
means of supplying the employers with an
unlimited number of new hands in place of
those who have struck work. The strike
leaders have not failed to perceive the
damaging effects of this circumstance
upon their plans, and have consequently
organized a crusade amongst the agricul-
tural labourers and the dwellers in the
country districts, to induce them to remain
at home and stick to the village and the
plough. Whether this crusade will be
successful or not remains to be seen, but
the English peasantry have certainly this
fact to plead in favour of their migration,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 225

namely, that the wages which they receive
as tillers of the soil are frequently so
miserably inadequate that they are abso-
lutely forced to endeavour to improve their
condition by seeking employment elsewhere,
to say nothing of the circumstance that
many of them complain of what is called
the " tyranny" of the parson and the squire,
which latter, however, is a question upon
which I am not in a position to pronounce
an opinion.

In New Zealand, however, the case is
reversed ; the unemployed in the towns
have no such excuse for being found there.
On the contrary, I should say that one of

Q

226 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the principal attractions appears to be
the plenitude of public-houses, and the
opportunities for meeting and drinking
with old acquaintances. The Government
appears to be of a similar opinion, for in
certain of its largest undertakings in the
shape of laying down railway lines, etc., it
stipulated that no men should be employed
on the works within a distance of 20 miles
of the town in which they were accustomed
to dwell. The men employed upon the
farms, the sheep runs, and the mines of
New Zealand have no cause to seek for
better wages in the towns ; they make their
own terms with their employers, nor has

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 227

" tyranny " in any shape or form any fears
for them.

THE VARIOUS GLASSES OF
SOCIETY.

: -

Wealthy men of business and the profes-
sional classes constitute the leaders of
society in New Zealand ; clerks and cadets
are the young men of fashion. The position
of a cadet is a peculiar, though a common
one. He is generally a young man or youth
from England, whose parents or guardians
have sent him out for his health or bad
conduct, and have placed him on a farm or
station after paying the owner a premium of

228 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

from ^75 to £100. This places him in
some respects in the position of a labourer
on the farm without the privilege of re-
ceiving wages. He lives with the owner or
manager, a circumstance, however, which,
in New Zealand does not imply much
special advantage, as the men on the farm
fare as well as the " Boss."

From the rapidity with which fortunes
were made in the early days of the Colony
the men of wealth, and consequently those
who take a leading position in society, are
frequently those who have commenced in
what we are accustomed to call the humbler
walks of life. For an example of this

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 229

fact there was the sailor, who, landing in
New Zealand, invested a few pounds of his
wages in some land where Christchurch
now stands, and returning, several years
afterwards, found a handsome building in
course of erection on his plot. He entered,
but was roughly ordered out by the fore-
man. Next day, however, he returned
with his solicitor and the title deeds,
and this time he met with a different
reception, and obtained from the Banking
Company, who were the owners of the
building, a very considerable sum in
return for his permission to go on.
Numberless instances of a similar nature

230 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

are to be met with throughout the
Colony.

On the other hand there are to be found
in every grade of society, amongst shearers,
farm labourers, railway servants, and miners,
men belonging to some of the oldest and
highest families in the United Kingdom,
who, on account of their altered fortunes*
have preferred to seek in New Zealand a
life of healthy activity free from the endless
embarrassments and difficulties created by
the struggle to keep up former appear-
ances at home.

From these circumstances it can easily
be inferred that to be actively engaged in

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 231

any business or employment whatever, so
long as it is of an honest description, is by
no means a social disadvantage in New
Zealand. Remarks derogatory to an in-
dividual on account of his or her occupation
are seldom, if ever heard, for all persons have
at some time or other worked for a living
with their own hands, and there are to be
found few men, no matter what their wealth,
who are not actively engaged in business
of some kind. One man being considered
every bit as good as another, business is
carried on in a more simple and satisfactory
manner than in older countries, for equal
attention is given to all clients and cus-

232 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

tomers, and principals deal directly with
their employes.

AMUSEMENTS.

Although, as I have said, New Zealanders,
as a rule, enjoy being actively engaged in
work or business, yet they thoroughly un-
derstand and appreciate the art of recrea-
tion. Their amusements are, in many
respects, similar to those which find favour
in the Mother Country. They are enabled,
however, by their superior climate to enjoy
to a greater extent the delights of picnics
and camping out. Lawn tennis is the
favourite game indulged in by both sexes,

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 233

while cricket and football are most
actively pursued by the young men of all
classes.

New Zealanders take great delight in
music and in dancing, and they take every
opportunity of indulging their tastes in
this direction. Concerts and assemblies
of every description are frequent, and are
most popular and well attended, whilst, on
the country stations, the shearers hold
similar levees after their day's work is over,
and, in music of no mean order, dances,
songs and stories, they while away their
evenings.

234 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

RELIGIOUS CONDITION.

The position of New Zealand, from a
religious point of view, is, I daresay, on a
par with that of other English-speaking
countries. Churches of all denominations
are numerous. Christchurch was originally
the Church of England, and Dunediri the
Scotch Church settlement ; but since there
is no State Church these distinctions are
rapidly passing away. The Salvation Army
is in considerable force in many of the
towns.

A difficulty arose in connection with the
Church of England in New Zealand which

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 235

created considerable stir shortly before my
departure. The Archbishop had resigned,
and his successor, according to rule and
custom, was the Bishop who had been
ordained for the longest period. But each
of the Bishops claimed this distinction,
and for some considerable time the post
remained vacant while the matter was
under discussion. How it was settled I
have not heard.

There are many people of wealth in New
Zealand, and all, or nearly all, belong to
one or other of the various religious denomi-
nations. The old settlers are extremely
liberal and advance money towards the

236 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

cause in a generous but sometimes indis-
criminating fashion ; and though excellent
men of business, they are frequently duped
by alien adventurers in the guise of pro-
fessors of religion. A man stating that he
was the brother of a famous American
pugilist, and that he had been a Professor
of Athletics, until he was converted,
arrived in Christchurch and there hired the
theatre, in which he preached every Sunday
afternoon and evening. He had a fine
presence and a splendid voice, and con-
sequently attracted large audiences, but
never forgot to pass the hat round at the
close of his services. Soon he was invited

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 237

to preach at various churches, which he did
with great unction, and his sermons created
a most favourable and edifying impression.
Moreover, he conducted oratorios, and
would vary his performance by singing a
piece from some opera. All went well,
and he began to be looked upon as a per-
manent and welcome institution, when at
length a lady recognized him as a man
whom she had formerly come across under
different circumstances. But he stoutly
denied the imputation, and carried himself
more boldly than ever, and when the
Bishop and some clergymen called upon
him to examine him touching certain

238 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

matters whereof he had been accused, he
said, " I give you two minutes to leave the
room by the door. Were it not for the
grace of God you would go out by the
window." Whereupon they left the pre-
sence of the converted prizefighter. His
next proceeding was to hold a farewell
meeting in a public hall, after having given
out that he was about to leave Christ-
church. A purse of about ^100 was
collected for him, and when it was in his
pocket he announced that he thought he
would stay in Christchurch after all. That
night he went " on the spree," and left for
Auckland the next day. Having arrived

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 239

there he made an announcement to the
effect that he had got ^2,000 out of the
Christchurch people, and now intended to
return to his old faith, which was that of a
Roman Catholic.

Incidents such as the foregoing are not
at all uncommon, and even old Colonists,
who ought to have learnt wisdom, are con-
tinually being gulled by adventurers from
all parts of the world, especially America.

THE LEGAL PROFESSION.

The law, of course, is present in its full
majesty in New Zealand, and exists, as in
other countries, primarily for the benefit of

240 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

its professors, and, in a secondary and
subordinate sense, for that of the public.
Barristers, solicitors, and other hangers-on
of Justice form a large and influential por-
tion of society. I believe that as regards
this profession New Zealand is as much
overcrowded as England, and that unless
a man is unusually clever and persevering,
and has influence and connections, his
legal career will be no more successful in
the Colonies than at home.

THE MEDICAL PROFESSION.

The medical profession is fairly well
represented in New Zealand. The life of

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 24!

a doctor up country is, I should think, a
delightful one. He is generally guaranteed
a good income of a fixed amount per annum
by the district he is in, and which has
selected and invited him. In addition to
this, of course, he receives the customary
fees from the patients whom he attends.
He is also usually the appointed physician
to various lodges and societies, from which
he receives a yearly stipend. Besides all
this, if he be of a sociable disposition he
has the run of all the houses in the neigh-
bourhood, and is always regarded as a
welcome guest when he does not come in
his professional capacity. Such a position

R

242 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

is best suited to a young and active man,
as the distances which he sometimes has
to ride or drive are considerable. There
are plenty of vacant places for more of these
doctors to fill up, and if a qualified man
desires an active and country life, with a
good position, he can find both in this
direction. Doctors in the towns occupy
much the same position as in England.
Specialists have, I believe, done well, for
as yet there are not too many of them.

Dentists also pursue the same tactics as
in other countries, and here the Americans
come in, as usual, where no diploma is
needed.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 243

But as I have never during the years
which I have spent in New Zealand had
occasion to seek the aid of either doctors
or dentists I am unable to advance any
testimony in their favour or the reverse
derived from personal experience.

POLICE AND MILITARY.

The military section of society so pro-
minent in England has no place in New
Zealand. The only substitute for it is the
police contingent, and a few permanent
artillerymen. The latter are employed to
garrison the forts and batteries. One of
them I know, who measures six feet nine

244 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

inches in his stockings, and is said to be
the tallest white man in New Zealand.

DOMESTIC SERVANTS AND WIVES.

Very high wages are demanded and
received by domestic servants in New
Zealand. For this reason many people
employ Chinamen in this capacity. China-
men are inexpensive, industrious, and will-
ing, and make excellent gardeners and
washermen, but, until accustomed to them,
they are apt to spoil one's appetite when
they wait at table.

Whilst on the subject of domestic
servants, a few words on the New Zea-

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 245

lander's requirements in a wife may fitly
be introduced. The New Zealand young
man, as a rule, wants a wife who is able
and ready to do all the housework, and so
avoid the necessity for obtaining assistance,
which is most expensive in the Colonies ;
moreover, one who can saddle and harness
a horse, assist in the management of a
farm, and, in short, make herself generally
useful. It may be said that there is nothing
remarkable about this, that such qualities
are always held up for admiration in a
woman, and that men of all countries are
accustomed to seek for wives of the
character described. To a certain extent

246 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

this is true, and, in theory, such women are
always at a premium, but the difference
lies in the fact that with Colonials it is not
merely a theory, but a confirmed practice,
to admire and seek for women of this
description as wives, to insist on having
them, and to see that they get no other.
The result is that the training of a New
Zealand girl is in the direction of cultivating
the qualities required, and of fitting her for
the part she will be expected to take.

A man often comes out who is engaged
to the proverbial " girl at home," but when
he returns home on a visit the girl is
generally married, much to the satisfaction

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 247

of the enlightened young man, who has
generally realized that she is not the one
to suit him best in the new life of a new
country.

THE LABOUR QUESTION.

What is known as the sweating system
at one time existed to a certain extent in
New Zealand, but it was speedily taken in
hand; inquiries were instituted and societies
formed to procure its abolition, and it is
now entirely done away with.

Labour of all kinds being very ex-
pensive on account of the high wages
which are paid throughout New Zealand

248 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

certain landowners and large farmers,
generally in the North Island, resort occa-
sionally to the employment of the Maori
natives. It may be doubted, however,
whether any advantage, pecuniary or
otherwise, is derived from adopting this
course, for, although the labour of the
individual Maori is decidedly cheap, yet
he is usually accompanied to the scene of
action by the whole of his tribe, men,
women and children, the old and infirm, as
well as the babies in arms, who have all to
be supported by the employer while the
work is in progress. One of the reasons
alleged why some of the old and wealthy

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 249

settlers continue to employ the Maoris
and thereby saddle themselves with the
necessity of providing for their families
and tribes is that they do it to ease their
consciences, which otherwise might be
somewhat troubled at times by the reflec-
tion that the land which they now occupy
and from which they derive their wealth
was not so very long ago the property of
these very Maoris, and that it has been
obtained from the latter by means which
would not always bear the closest investi-
gation.

While on the question of labour, the
great strike which so recently agitated all

250 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

the Australasian Colonies requires a word of
notice. The strike commenced in Australia,
and, after the wharf labourers had ceased
work, those in New Zealand also struck
out of sympathy, and not because they pro-
fessed to have or put forward any griev-
ances of their own. This placed the
employers in a most peculiar position.
Even had they been disposed to yield the
point, they could hardly be expected to do
so, since there was no point to yield. They
rose to the occasion, however, and with
the aid of volunteer labour in the shape of
clerks, members of the athletic clubs, and
of the Canterbury University, the work of

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 251

loading and unloading was carried on
successfully, and the strike in this quarter
collapsed chiefly through its own inherent
unreasonableness.

Although, as a matter of opinion, I am
bound to say that, taking this great recent
Colonial strike as a whole, I can hardly
see in what direction the men could
rationally expect to improve their position
by striking, or what real grounds of com-
plaint they possessed, yet, had their cam-
paign been properly conducted, and had
their leaders been other than interested
agitators, they might have succeeded in
making their own terms in the settlement,

252 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

instead of being compelled to ignominiously
surrender. As it is, the chances for strikers
have been considerably diminished for the
future on account of the strong employers'
associations which have been formed as a
result of the recent disturbances.

THE LEGISLATURE AND
POLITICS.

The Legislature of New Zealand consists
of a House of Representatives, an Upper
House, and a Governor appointed by the
Crown, all measures, of course, being
subject to the Imperial veto. The mem-
bers of the House of Representatives are

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 253

elected in much the same manner as the
members of the House of Commons, and
are entitled to place M.H.R. after their
names. The Upper House, or " Legisla-
tive Council," as it is called, consists of
those who are elected from the Lower
House by the members thereof. Members
of the Upper House take the title of
" Honourable " for life.

Party Government is the system in
New Zealand, as in Great Britain, but, as
it is conducted on a much smaller and
simpler scale, and is free from the many
confusing complications which surround it
in the latter country and elsewhere, its

254 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

absurdity and weakness as a method of
ruling and legislating for a people are more
strikingly apparent. The distinctive parties
are not known as Liberal and Conservative.
The principal points at issue are Free
Trade and Protection, the Education ques-
tion, and, of late, to a certain extent,
Woman's Suffrage. Sections of voters
follow individual leaders, and when one
man gets into power he brings in the
same bills that he opposed when out of
power. It is a perpetual scramble for
office, and legislation is initiated more for
the purpose of keeping a party in power
than for the good of the country.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 255

A better state of affairs, however, is, I
think, beginning to prevail. Signs are not
wanting to show that the public is awaking
to a due sense of its responsibilities and is
determined no longer to permit its repre-
sentatives to amuse themselves at its
expense. The course of policy which has
landed the country so heavily in debt has
been abandoned. The debt itself, un-
fortunately, cannot be got rid of so easily.
Various schemes for meeting the heavy
interest on the borrowed money are pro-
posed, and one which receives considerable
support is the imposition of a heavy land
tax. Into this question, however, I do not

256 NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND.

propose to enter, beyond. remarking that
opinion is still very unsettled as to what
course to pursue. A great deal of the land
of New Zealand -belongs to the Govern-
ment, and it is advocated by some that the
Government should retain this land and
endeavour to reclaim and nationalize the
remainder. Sooner or later a definite line
of policy must be adopted, and there is no
doubt but that such policy will be in
accordance with the spirit of the times.
After all, the debt is no very formidable
burden when the magnificent resources of
(he country are taken into consideration, nor
is there any cause for alarm on its account.

NOTES ON NEW ZEALAND. 257

Over this and over every other obstacle
the people of New Zealand, aided by their
splendid climate, their advantageous geo-
graphical position, the fertility of their
soil, and their wonderful mineral resources
will triumph, and, proceeding along the
lines of enlightened enterprise and complete
freedom, will continue to excite more and
more the envy and admiration of the
world.

THE END.

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