NEW CALEDONIA.

Hawke's Bay Herald, Volume 13, Issue 1114, 31 December 1869, Page 3

NEW CALEDONIA.

The following description of New Caledonia has been furnished the Tuapeka Times by a gentleman who has recently returned from that place, and is now residing in the district :— Being favourably impressed with the accounts which from^time to time I read in the newspapers, I determined to visit New Caledonia, and see for myself whether a person with a small capital might lease or purchase a few hundred acres of land there, and settle upon it with more advantage to himself than he could in Australia or New Zealand. Happening at that time to be in Sydney, from which place vessels frequently sail for New Caledonia, I embarked on board the Young Australian on the 27th of February last, and made the coast some fprty pr fifty miles north of the Caledonian Lighthouse. The lighthouse is situated at one of the inlets, and was built by some of the French prisoners. It can be seen from a great distance at sea, send when approached shows all the appearance of a substantial stone building. There is a coral reef extends all round the island, and in this respect it bears v close resemblance to the Fijis. About twenty .miles up the harbour fiom.the Lighthouse is.situated the.township of Noumea, and in sailing to it several islands, covered with beautiful green grass and bush, are passed. -vuJWe 1 cast anchor ; abput a quarter tp£ vla;m3|j^rom ;tho ■'• tdwn«i average passage," but wnacTa headwind the greater part of the wkp : which , aceb'unts for the prptracted vpya'ge.'"Th'e. Young Australian was the first vessel which had been taken alongside r the jetty. This jetty, which is the only- one at Noumea, like all the public buildings, was constructed by convict labour. The township is situated on the rise of a hill. An esplanade faces the harbour, on which are several hotels and a large store; to the right are the soldiers' barracks, and to the left the port office and the post office. The hotels and public buildings are chiefly built of wood, although there are several built of brick and stone. Limestone is abundant in the island, and is of excellent quality. The Governor's house, though itself rather a mean building, is surrounded with palatial grounds, in which the cocoanut, orange, and plantain trees flourish in their indigenous soil. Many other tropical fruits grow there in equal luxuriance. In Npumea, and in fact all over the island, the English language *is pretty generally spoken, as well as the ; French. I stayed at the Sebastnpol jHotely kept by Mrs. Marshall, an old Irish ' lady. The hotel was managed by her two daughters, and the general work was done by natives. One thing which especially attracted my attentipn on arriving was that the streets in some places were nearly covered with large brown insects, which the people called sauterelles, and which I afterwards learned were locusts in their primitive state ; they leaped about on the ground like grasshoppers. The French appear to have no object in retaining New Caledonia other than that of having secure place for their convicts. Large gangs of these prisoners were employed on various public works about the town, such as reclaiming ground from the harbour and forming the streets. . I was informed that upwards of 2000 of these prisoners are kept on an island about a mile from the town, on the opposite side of the harbour, from which place they are brought over ..in, the s , morning on large punts, which carry three or four hundred at a time, and taken back in the evening by the same means, under a sufficient guard of soldiers. My object in paying a visit to Xew Caledonia was to acquire a piece of land, and settle there, as land can be had on very favourable terms, and is extremely productive— so much so that two or three crops of maize can be grown in one yedr. On enquiring at the land office as to what land was open for occupation,- I was informed that there was a considerable district named Boulogne Paris open for occupation. The chief surveyor was very obliging in giving me every information as to the quality of the land, and the terms under which it could be held. The usual way in which it is granted is in leases of five years, at the rate of 1^ franc per hectare, which is equal to 2g- English acres, or 6d. per acre per annum — the lessee having the preemptive right to purchase during his term of lease at 25 francs per hectare, equal to Bs. per acre. There are numerous other districts unoccupied, but as I had several acquaintances in this district, I thought I would give it the preference. On making enquiry, I found the best mode of getting to Boulogne Paris, which was about 50 miles distant from Noumea, was by Jamie the Chinaman's boat, a vessel of from four to five tons burthen. There is, however, a good road overland to Boulogne Paris for saddle horses. After waiting a day or two at Mrs. Marshall's, I saw Jamie the Chinaman, with whom I arranged for a passage by his vessel to and from Boulogne Paris, for the sum of 20s. I started at seven in the morning, and stayed at Jamie's farm, where he landed a portion of his cargo for settlers in the neighborhood. In passing, I may mention that Jamie has been, settled, there, over ten years; has a (Canaque) native wife and three children, two of whom are boarded with the French schoolmaster at Patea, some eight or ten miles from his home, and nearer Noumea. • I spent the day-'--and night at Ms house. He"- "employs atonqn ' J&iried ..Smith.; 1 who! :'kMpJjsi!il^buntfs^^ Jie alsd has a bulloolfc : di?>yer. V^ Jamie is also the. proprietor of two small islands, b^ one of which ho lias -sheep*; and ok the other goats. On the following morning X embarked again, after having performed the half of my journey, and reached Boulogne Paris about midday, where a river empties itself into the sea by two branches. On entering the river, the heavens assumed a foreboding appearance, and I thought a thunder storm was pending, aud was surprised beyond measure to find that the cause was attributable to a cloud of locusts, each about the size of a large butterfly ; they rose from the bushes as we approached. On landing and proceeding on tho track to Mr. Walker's, the nearest settler, the ground was literally covered with locusts in several stages of development. Mr. Walker received me with the greatest hospitality ; and what first struck me in his house was an old nail tin filled with dried cow-dung, and burning, which, on making enquiry, I was informed was used for the purpose of smoking the mosquitoes out. It is kept constantly burning whilst sitting in the room, but has only a partial effect in keeping these vermin away . After waiting a short time afc Mr. Walker's, one of tho natives from Mr. Gillies' plautation, who hnppened to be afc Mr. Walker's, showed me the way to Mr. Gillies' residence ; and on arriving at his place, I found him in bed, protected by his mosquito curtain, suffering from a swelling of the thumb, which afterwards turned oufc to be whitlow. Shortly after my arrival there, one of his convict servants brought in three wild ducks which he had shot. Mr* Gillies, who had been about two years in Boulogne Paris, has wit!i- r greafc enterprise tried cotton growing, arid has about fifty acres planted. He was just beginning

to pick it on my visit, and for that p": pose lie employed about a tlosi-n Cant ques, who work at a merely nominal wage of £5 or £6 per annum, and their rations, which consist of kumeras, or sweet potatoes, twice a day, and rice once a day. Referring to the natives, I may state that J was amused to see them carrying small twigs of young trees; these they use for keeping away mosquitoes, which seemed to bethe^plagueofthe natives as well as of thejlEuropeans. While dilating on the discpim^t; .of both native and European, I'inli||^: ttell i n" form you ot the frightful •^MCtyance to which I myself was subjept^^iiEing my visit. In JSTouraea I was sligSfy troubled with these vermin during 4he day, they being scarcely visible; but in the country I was infested with them at all times, and the only way in which I could get rid of them was by a plunge iv the river. I was surprised to see the settlers ifi the country wearing long knee-boots Jbut on being informed that it was to protect the legs from the mosquitoes,, I saw the force of it —I may say I felt the force of it, as my legs were severely "bitten, and looked like raw flesh. • These insects sting through trousers-. ••;]pi4. every-, thing, and there is no' esc^mng them. Being desirous of viewing the^lknd open for occupation, Mr. Gillies, to.tfhomlnad a letter of introduction from the chief surveyor, kindly accompanied me.to,the camp of the gens d'arme, 'and the Marshal de Loger, the officer, litharge of jthe gens d'armes, went yAShpYJ 1 me the, !600:acres,:#i^^^^^W|by one side of it, which,J tnOTigfif: suit me. The ground is interspersedMim. bush; but the latter is so thinlyJscattered that it does not interfere with cultivation.: [Returning to Mr. Gillies', where I remained for a few days, I found the locusts were just settling on a field of maize, which had been planted some six or seven weeks previously, and was at the time about six feet high, and was likely to be completely destroyed in a day or two. The other settlers, with the exception of Mr. Gillies, have hitherto been growing maize,. which the locusts have devoured. Mr. Gillies is, howevev, the only one who has attempted to grow cotton, and this fortunately the locusts do not touch. With the fever caused by the continued irritation from the mosquitoes, and the dismal prospect of raising corps in the face of plague .No. 2, namely, the locusts, I was extremely dubious of making a venture in in New. Caledonia; and I was informed by parties who had been residjn.t there for some years that they could^qt sit down to read a book or write a letter without retiring to bed inside their mosquito-cur-tain ; and ladies, when'they require to do needle-work, must resort to the same measure. I might mention that Freuch settlers appear to make little or no progress there; if they have a good garden and all the means at hand of a plain subsistence, they seem to have no ambition to make further progress, and consequently the Government are very desirous of introducing English settlers, and furnishing them with seeds and plants, as also books of instruction for the growing of the various products suitable for the climate, such as sugar, cotton, coffee, &c, of which I saw copies of each. They have a model farm about twelve miles from Noumea, where every information is given as to growing suitably articles that can be produced in the place. Agricultural implements may be borrowed of the Government for a time, if not in use. The.Canaquea, although to be had at such a low rate of wages, are not to be depended upon, as they are apt to leave at a time when most required; but the Government get natives from the island of Tanua, of the New Hebrides group, who ai*e hired out for periods of from three to five years, at a rate a little higher than the natives. Convicts can also be had from the Government, at a rate about double that of the natives —say £12 yearly, besides rations; and some of them are very useful, and, from all appearances, good and useful on a plantation. There is only one butcher in Noumea, who contracts with the Government in supplying the convicts and troops with meat, and then sells to the inhabitants at the rate of lOd. per lb. This is occasioned from the climate being such that a beast killed in the morning must be consumed the same day. The price of bread is very high — lOd. for a 2£lb. loaf, and of inferior quality. There are no Customs duty or taxes of any description. After returning to Noumea, I had fully made up my mind, notwithstanding the many advantages offered by New Caledonia, £nd> the many inducements held put by my;friends, that I would not settle there; and I therefore took passage by the Colonist and returned to Sydney, after a passage of eight days. I may mention that there are frequently vessels going to and from Auckland and New Caledonia, and that one of them arrived during my stay, after a passage of twelve days.