A TRAMP ABROAD.

Taranaki Daily News, Volume XXXXII, Issue 94, 27 April 1900, Page 2

A TRAMP ABROAD.

[By W.G.] Melbourne.—Here we are in real Old Country, late autumn weather. Rain and gales; and sleet actually fell as we entered the Heads. And yet they say they have great heat in Victoria! I shall have to take their word for it, for I can't realise it at present. But the weather has been something awful since we left the Britain of the South. I was curious the day before leaving to see wbat Captain Edwin had to say on the subject. Here it is: —" Northerly gale after sixteen hours from now; glass fall; tides high ; sea heavy." A pleasing prospect for a bilious sailor, to be sure! But, fortunately, it did not come on our way to Auckland. We were a day late leaving Auckland, and somewhat naturally concluded that the " gale " would have passed. And so it j had, so far as New Zealand was concerned; but when we were some 301 hours from your beautiful shores we ran into one of Wragge's most violent predictions. The Mararoa is not a bad sea boat, but not 10 per cent, of her passengers appeared at table during the next 24 hours. Your poor contributor never turned up in the dining-room again. A steamer arriving in Sydney a little before us had encountered a tremendous waterspout, and generally had had a bad time.

Sydney.—Sydney Harbour is certainly beautiful to look upon (though I don't consider it superior to Auckland), but I was reminded of the saying, " See Naples and die" beifig changed into " Smell Naples and die!" You can certainly smell Sydney and die actually. Passing the Darling wharves, Sydney seemed a dead city—no boats, no life of any kind, to be seen. They landed us at the Government wharf, which is supposed to be clean. I drove into the city, and the cabby took us past the quarantined area. It was positively sickening to see the heaps of burning filth. Heaven only knows how long the stuff had been accumulating! I am told it is the old story over again: private property! The city authorities had not backbone enough to insist upon their by-laws being carried out. The result is an expenditure of £IOOO a day, and up to the present a fruitless effort to stay the spread of the plague. Let the local authorities in New Zealand take heed in time. I was walking in the Domain next day, and stopped to listen to one of the many orators. He happened to be speaking on the plague, and the first remedy he recommended was the hanging of the whole City Council. A drastic beginning, certainly, but there was at least method in his madness! But enough of plagues. I was so ill after my sea-sickness that I felt a'l the time I was in Sydney as if I was going to have the very plague myself, and I was profoundly thankful to get on board the s.s. Omrah and leave the place. Before leaving, I again looked up the weather report. Imagine what your poor scribe suffered on reading the following by Wragge: "Very unsettled, squally, under disturbance, ' Crispus,' north-westerlies, shifting south-westerlies, in heavy blows, with a tendency to circular storms, monsoon showers and electric disturbance under ' Grobler.' Shipping specially warned." If it had been any other city than •Sydney I should most certainly have waited until tho " clouds rolled by." But it was totally unsafe to stay 'here, for no one knew how soon the hotel Ik; was staying in might be quarantined, and so we sailed away. The wind blew from the west until we got clear of the New South Wales coast. We felt very little of its power, but when once in the open district it pive us " gip "! First we had a steady blow and then, I think, it was the " disturbance under Crispus" that struck us. After wo got through that we seemed to come in contact with one of the "tendencies to circular storms," with a monsoon shower thrown iD. I know about the monsoon, for I have a deck cabin, and the tremendous rush of water that came against my cabin door was enough to flood half-a-dozen small boats. A little later " the electric disturbance under Grobler " took the ship in hand and shook it until every bone in its poor body creaked. The Omrah is a splendid sea boat, but men who were never sick before had a bad time that night, and a'l breathed freely when we got under the friendly shelter of the Tasmanian coast. Hobart received us with a smile of welcome. It was a lovely day. Excitement ran high on the ques'ion of whether we should be allowed to land. Sundry officials came on board, and had tho butchers, bakers, and candlestick makers all stand in line for examination. Then all tho passengers did likewise, and finally, having shown a clean bill of health, we were allowed ashore. Mr. and Mrs. Handy, of New Plymouth, who are staying some time here, came to the ship to meet Mr. and Mrs. Kendall, and I was itvited to join the paity. We went to Sandy Bay, tho (Jastadep, and to Newtown, where the Bush Contingent in drilling, and saw the sights of the town. Hobart is an ideal place far retired people. It is boautiful to look upon. It is quiut, and !>viug ia not dear I was gieatly charmed with the glorious autumn tint of the English trees. The pile yellow of the poplars and the crimson of the plane-tree were glorious sights after the evergreens of New Zealand. But if you want to sea Hobart at its best, see it in the springtime, as I did some two and a-half years ago, after a three weeks' sail from the Cape. With the roses in blojm and the real mayblossom smelling sweetly in the hedgerows, aad lust and most beautiful of all, buttercups and dsi-iea in the green fields—those are sights to remind one of tho Old Houioland left lieLiuJ. We wero sorry to lesivc Hobart, but it couldn't be; helped, end .so again w.j took shipping and find'.y [arrived here iu Melbourne on Easter (Monday. And what an Easter! Jgh! the cold reminds ouo oi I a November day at Homo. "Wo don't sail until 1 p.m. to-morrow, so perhaps \v'e -hall liavo a fine morning, wliou wo can see tho city and post this. J Jwe often grumbled at the weather!

and other tilings in New Zealand, but have now come to the conclusion that " you may go farther and faro worse " April 17.