TALK ON NEW ZEALAND

Greymouth Evening Star, 9 August 1930, Page 4

TALK ON NEW ZEALAND

“BY ONE WHO HAS NOT SEEN IT.”

During the New Zealand farmers’ touring party’s visit to Austialia, Mi. C. D. Mclntosh, of the staff of the New South Wales “Railway Journal” gave an amusing address on New Zealand from the point of view of ‘ one who has never seen it.” This talk was as follows: — New Zealand consists of three islands discovered by Captain Cook, sometime between the year 1728 in which he was born, and 1779, when he died. This was prior to the formation of the New Zealand Farmers Touring Party. The islands are entirely surrounded by water consequently people going to and from the Dominion generally travel by boat. It is expected that, after seeing the Sydney Harbour Bridge, the Farmers’ Touring Party will commence an agitation for the Tasman, or at least Cook Strait, to be similarly spanned. The North Island is so called because it is nearer to the North Pole than the South Island. Stewart Island owes its name to the fact that it produces large quantities of oysters and the people subsist mainly on oyster stew. Hence the name Stewart. New Zealand is owned by the landlords and run by the politicians. The nopulation consists mostly of Maoris and Presbyterians. The chief industries are football, horse racing, the manufacture’ of waterproof clothing and goloshes and kiwi farming. So much land is occupied by racecourses, sports grounds, picture shows and garages that very little is available for agricultural purposes, consequently farming is on the intensive or closeup system. The territory is so narrow that a proposal to have broad-gauge railways had to be abandoned, and the 3ft 6in gauge was adopted. The practice of dehorning cattle is general —this gives the animals more room. Immediately after shearing, the wool is exported so as to make room for the tourists who come in the summer.

Architecture is mostly on the terrace plan. Owing to static in the wireless service it was believed in Australia that when the pink terraces were destroyed by an earthquake last year all the people living in them perished, and that New Zealand had to be re-stocked by importing some more Scotsmen.* New Zealand has what would be considered in Australia a wet climate. Fortunately, there are some exceptionally high mountains, and in very wet seasons sheep are driven to the.tops. This gives the peaks of Mt. Cook, Mt. Egmont and others a , white appearance,. often mistaken by visitors for snow. Other parts, such as Invercargill, are exceedingly dry, so dry, in fact, that proud fathers have to travel long distances to wet their children’s heads, and the Presbyterians have to see the old year out and the new year in over cups of strong tea. Scientific farming methods are follow'ed in New Zealand. The soil is scratched with an implement called a plough—a gadget resembling a wheelbarrow with a bad attack of D. T’s. The principal part of a plough is the share, of which it may have one or more. This is called share-farming. No sugar is produced in New Zealand, but in the early days the Maoris often raised Cain when their land was filched by the British. The configuration of the capital city makes its streets very draughty, and it is colloquially known as windy Wellington. This happy and easily-remem-bered way of naming towns has been adopted throughout the Dominion. Other well-known places are lively Lyttelton, rumbling Rotorua, charming Christchurch, orthodox Otago, gorsey Gore; awful Auckland, canny Canterbury, dismal Dunedin, ’appay Ashburton, terrible Taranaki, sunny Southland, and insufferable Invercargill. A small Maori settlement is called a pah; a large one is a grandpah.

Most New Zealanders like to pretend that they can speak the native tongue. On important occasions, such as commencing a football battle, or farewelling a town, the Maori warcry is given. It is like “Auld Lang Syne”—nobody ever knows the second verse.

At Rotorua and other places there arc hot springs. The Railway Department runs cheap excursions to these, and the people go there every summer to do their washing. Bad language is seldom used in New Zealand, except when speaking of taxes or some of the imported pests such as communists, gorse, rabbits and big deer. The last-named are distinct from the little dears who serve in the saloon bars in the wet areas.

The trend of political thought is' towards Conversatism. It is due to this that so much fodder is conserved. Much of the land is exceedingly fertile. Some of the richest racecourse fiats carry as many as nineteen bookmakers to the acre.

The inhabitants of New Zealand arc very even-tempered. The only time an Aucklander gets really wild is when asked if he conies from the South Island. In like manner, an Otago man gets mad when mistaken for ■ a North Islander. The easiest way to insult a Maori is to offer him money; hence the Maori expression, since adopted by the Prebyterians, “Hoot, awa’ mon.” ' New. Zealanders are very hospitable at home and very tolerant, in their views when they travel abroad. Some who have visited Australia have been heard to speak in quite complimentary terms about it. Which is further evidence of their high standard of culture.