A SPRING IN CANTERBURY.

Lyttelton Times, Volume III, Issue 145, 15 October 1853, Page 7

A SPRING IN CANTERBURY.

Under the above title a smartly bound book of some hundred pages has issued from the London Press. It purports to be an account of a spring spent in this settlement, in 1851, and is the production of a Mr. Adams, who undertook a voyage to New Zealand for the benefit of his health, and arrived by the " Canterbury" in October of that year. As people generallylike to know what strangers think of them and their proceedings, we will extract for our readers' gratification a few passages from the work, it having been kindly placed in our hands for a few hours. ■- After a somewhat prosy description of the voyage, in nowise different from some thousand similar ones, the author thus announces his approach to the promised land : — "It was on a magnificent spring morning I that we rounded Banks' Peninsula. After a. weary four months' voyage, with no relief to the undying monotony of sea and sky, the country we were now passing seemed like a scene from fairyland. Richly wooded hills presenting an endless variety of form and colouring—lovely bays running deep into the shore, and sheltered from every wind (?), —rich pictures dotted with ! sheep and cuttle, —canoes and iishing boats gliding along the shore, —whilst the bright sun poured its rich flood of light over wood, and hill, and valley, and lighted up the deep blue sea with myriads of glittering stars, which danced and sparkled with every motion of our majestic ship. Slowly the vessel glided on before the gentle breeze that scarcely filled her canvass, and the sun was setting as we ncared the month of the harbour. On our left lay the richly wooded Peninsula, the scenery o? which resembles in many respects that of the back of the Isle of Wight, but on a larger and grander scale ; on our right were the Canterbury Plains, extending to the hilly region which stretched far away beyond the snow-capped Kaikoras, to the distant mountains of the Northern Island."' Our author arrived in the very thick of what our readers may remember as the "Midlothian panic:" when, appalled by the severity of a " sou-wester," and other

little inconveniences attendant on immigration, the dejected passengers of that vessel were contemplating a departure for Nelson, or some other favoured spot, which might in some measure realise that " South of France climate" they had fondly and credulously looked forward to. Mr. Adams vividly describes their woe and panic :—

''Our anchor was scarcely down, when we received a visit from the Captain and Officers of the " Midlothian." They were instantly surrounded by a crowd of anxious immigrants, eager for authentic accounts of their future home. Even to myself,, though only a visitor to the colony, the accounts ..they gave were truly depressing. But to my fellow-passengers, who had embarked their whole substance in the venture, they were of the most disheartening character, and my poor friends began sadly to anticipate their utter misery and ruin. It seems that the passengers by the "Midlothian" had been seized with a panic which at that moment had reached its height. They had been greeted on their arrival with a " Sou-wester," a wind which is invariably accompanied with rainy, miserable weather! This species of welcome had not tended to raise the spirits of the new arrivals; and when, upon their-landing, they found provisions dear and house-room,almost unattainable ; and were, moreover, encountered by some of those facetious individuals who take delight in exercising their invention by frightening "new chums," as they term them, with all kinds of disheartening accounts of the colony, their consternation degenerated into a complete panic. Up to the time of our arrival one only of the passengers had penetrated as far as Christohurch, though a Few had mustered courage to ascend the hills at the back of Lyttelton to gain a view of the plains. Nor did their hardihood, such as it was, lessen in any degree the despair of their less venturous companions. So thoroughly were they frightened, that not even the return of warm and beautiful weather had reassured them; and the unfortunate adventurers had determined upon proceeding to try their fortunes at Nelson."

Mr. Adams-alludes to the fact that almost every vessel had been greeted soon after its arrival with a " sou-wester." The " Canterbury" proved no exception to the rule, and on the morning following, when the passengers arose early to view the promised land, —

•; Ail the,warmth aud softness of the air was gone : the cold, damp wind bowled dismally through the ringing, whilst every few minutes a shower of hail compelled us to retreat precipitously into the cuddy. In the intervals between the squalls, we managed to get an occasional glimpse oltlie shore ; and auy thing more (iesolate it would be difficult to conceive. Small was the consumption of breakfast that morning: and when three gentlemeu came on board from the town, our eyes mechanically turned towards their boots to ascertain the correctness" of the terrible stories we had heard, the preceding night, of the Lyttelton mud. They were covered to the knee with thick yellow clay : and this sad sight put the finishing stroke to the consternation of our colonists. Fortunately, however, the ■'Canterbury" immigrants were stouter-hearted than those of the '• Midlothian.'*' Our author, tired of the ship, lands, and thus describes his first impressions of Lyttelton ; — '■'After the dismal accounts of our visitors, it may well be supposed that we did not expect to be enchanted witii our first view of the town. What then was our astonishment at the panorama that opened before us, as we pulled slowly round the little point ! Wide streets, neat houses, shops, stores, hotels, coffee-rooms, immigration barracks, a neat sea-wall, and an excellent and convenient jetty, met our view. There are few prettier towns than Lyttelton as seen from the se;*. Situated in a small, but picturesque bay, it is, as it were, framed in the bold and rugged hills, by which it is, on three sides, surrounded, and whose wild and uncultivated aspect contrasts very effectively with the neat houses and busy streets of the town." After describing the public buildings of the town, and ascending the bridle-path to view the Plains, Mr. Adams returns to Lyttelton, and draws a picture of the sleeping apartment of the house of enterlaimneat he put up at:—

" Hitherto we bad not seen many of the discomforts of a new colony,but our accommodations for the night were amusingly characteristic of colonial life. Our room was a small loft in the roof of the house, barely six feet high in the centre. Eight wooden beds were ranged along the sides of the room, and-adorned with gay blankets of red and blue. ■At the head of each bedstead hung a towel,-whilst at each end of the room was a rickety wash-hand stand and cracked looking-glass for public accommodation. At one end of the apartment was a small window which refused to close, aud at the other was one which objected to open. There was no want of ventilation, as the roof was merely shingled, and by no means air-tight, so that the wind blew in in all directions." Christcliurch is described and dismissed in a sentence :— " Christcliurch is by no means so pretty a town as Lyttelton ;in fact, it is decidedly ugly-" It will afford some relief to our friends in that town, after the above unkind hit, to learn that they enjoy a good situation in point of utility! It will, however, surprise them to learn that the river Heathcote "runs diagonally" through it. Perhaps Mr. Adams mistook Christcliurch Quay for the Capital! Chapter the fourth is devoted to "the bush ;" our author having lost his way on the Peninsnla, owing to a boatman having imposed upon him by landing him and. a companion on a spot which he described to be a " short cut" to Port Levy. Hence they lost their way, and had to pass the night in the bush. The trials and privations he underwent in consequence may draw tears of sympathy from his friends in England : here they can only be regarded as an every day occurrence. Mr. Adams evidently gave himself up for lost, but after struggling through fern, and " the long and clinging bramble, called by colonists the bush laiv~ yer, " they at last discovered Mr. Keele's whare, where " We were received with that warm hospitality which is amongst the most amiable characteristics of these colonies. It is true he had only potatoes to offer us, the fare on which he had for some time himself subsisted ; but, in our famished condition, we held them to be luxuries, and took advantage of the temporary absence of our host to devour them before they were half cooked." Mr. Adams seems to have made good use of the- few weeks he spent in Canterbury, and describes all that came within his reach in a clear and intelligible manner. His views and opinions are necessarily crude and imperfect on many subjects he treats of. But. altogether, he entertains a favourable view of the capabilities of the colony ; and does full justice to the energy and perseverance of the settlers. He devotes a chapter to the Maories, and entertains opinions respecting them which a longer knowledge of their character would have considerably modified. He tells a very pretty anecdote of their affectionate attachment, which- he had from an old settler. We never heard of it before, and are somewhat curious to learn who the interesting young lady is, who was called by them the " White Rose." We give the anecdote as described by him : — " I obtained an interesting anecdote of their affectionate attachment to those who treat them kindly from an old colonist at Christcliurch. His daughter had been in the habit of performing little kindnesses to them, had won greatly on their affection, aud was called by them the ' White Hose.' In the depth of a severe winter she was attacked by illness, and serious apprehensions were entertained for her life. The faithful Maories were constant in their enquiries after her; and at length heard that she had expressed a wish for some fish. The fishing season was long passed, and an attempt to reach, the fishing ground was a matter of difficulty and danger. A boat was, nevertheless, imrnedi<itely manned and sent out; and having, with much difficulty, obtained a small supply of iish, iheyset out on their return home. They had scarcely left the fishing ground " when a

heavy gale of wind blew them out to sea- -,«,? it was not till after fighting for three'daw against the storm that they reached Lyttelton in a state of complete exhaustion and lm no . ei . Yet the fish, though to their appetites fit^fov food in its uncooked state, had remained u n touched, throughout the whole of the storm It had been procured ior the ' White Rose,' and for her use it was preserved. Unfortunately before the arrival in port the fish became tain-' ted ; but, undaunted by this failure, they { ' niC e more proceeded to the fishing-ground, and this time succeeded in reaching home with their affectionate offering."

Fancy the thunders of applause the narration of the above would draw down in Exeter Hall! The narrator would be r e . garded with tender interest by the middleaged spinsters who throng that abode of humbug during the month of May, and might count upon invitations to tea, at Clnpham, for six months at least afterwards. Mr. Adams inclines to the opinion that cannibalism has ceased to exist in New Zealand, and adds :—

"In the Canterbury Settlement it is of course entirely at an end, though it is said that an old Chief is still living- i v Pigeon Bay, who fondly hopes again to indulge his youthful taste in this respect, though there is little chance in the present state of society of his epicurism being gratified." Mr. Adams accepted the invitation of Mr. Caverhill, " one of the oldest and most experienced settlers, to spend a few weeks at his remote and interesting1 station," at Motunau. He informs us of the difficulty of procuring a horse, "as these useful anu mals are scarce, and not natives of the country, and are consequently imported from Australia ;" —a rather irrelative sequence, as we believe they are to be found elsewhere. For the journey he equipped himself in this wise : — "My costume consisted of a pair of white duck trousers, checked shirt, stout boots, large cabbage-tree hat, and a sort of blue flannel frock confined at the waist by a leathern belt. Unfortunately, I had been betrayed into an unlucky piece of vanity, and had donned a new pair of patent leather spatter-dashes, which though useful in the mud of London, were ill adapted for swimming rivers in New Zealand." He gives us some rather origin al information respecting sheep farms, and, in describing the shearing season, says,— " The clip being completed, the wool-packs are conveyed to the Port, when they are again compressed by powerful hydraulic presses, ami ultimately packed by steam power into the hold of the vessel awaiting their reception !" We have reserved his opinion of the prospects of the Settlement, and the description of its climate, to the last. Few will be found to gainsay his conclusions :— " Looking to the future, there can be no doubt that Canterbury must ultimately become a large and flourishing colony. In despite of the disadvantages under'which some of the early adventurers laboured, the colony has progressed with a rapidity quite unparalleled, and has every indication of' internal strength. The climate alone presents a temptation to the emigrant of no ordinary character. It is difficult to describe its peculiarity and charm. It resembles, in many respects, the best parts of the climate ol England. Indeed, the colonists speak of it as the" English climate with all 'the bad parts taken out.' The air is always pure, fresh, aim bracing, resembling the-air of our Englisli Downs on a bright clear summer morning; amalthough the climate is changeable, the air always (ree from the heavy oppressive qualities which the invalid in England so bitterly ieels.

The book, is illustrated with several views ofM/yttelton and the Plains, from sketches taken by Mr. Holmes. They are very faitnful and correct, but wanting in a dueknowledge.of perspective. We can detect every house and public building in Ly ttelton. i a frontispiece, there is a view of Mr.lveele whare at Port Levy, where that gentletnai subsisted for some time on a potatoe a» ■» and of whose hospitality the author g* such a touching description.