A YANKEE OPINION OF NEW ZEALAND.

Taranaki Herald, Volume XXXV, Issue 6990, 13 February 1886, Page 4

A YANKEE OPINION OF NEW ZEALAND.

GRAND FUTURE BEFORE THE ; • i "■',•; -• ::CG)LON(Y.- t - | ... , Mr.,. ,Dion BouqiCAULT, ,fthe-r, f the- r dramati^ autt'ior and acjor. ib. y'letteY to "• the Auckland'Sftar,'th'n'B describes a convjersation ; he" htfd with' a- Yankee visitor jo New Zealand on. boacd^the^.B. Mararoaj on hor last trip to' 'Frisco*:— - " \ , „/ '" Yeo, sir," ' 'Haiti a' l voice- beliind us. " That's so,ai*'t it a pity such a likely place bhould be Bxed Tiaht here on the wr'ong'side pf the Pacific?"' I , . ; ' I ttirried, and found a long figure clad in, j i a linen dusterstunxiing close to my shoulder. "Yes, sir," he continued in a j dreamy, way, as i£ pursuing a conversation,' of long r iisJaii'ding. 1 ' <» *iFv« ?been' ( 'throughN them .islands, from Duneilin to Russell; I've took ' / 'em; putty much^aUiu v (wlial ' there is of 'em) and— well! They'vo got the makings _- of a — quite a place." •• >. "- : " ■• J -recognised -the type. The United Statesman-stood revealed — as lean as the bird of f reedpm.-his small keen head on a ""gaunt 1 necki-eager'-i-'waV all fibre, 3 ije»?Ser J fion r ajid i mqsJ[lffe^ist^npe/', Hie •face', presented a netwark o£ c uiinute wrinkteß,': amidst; t-wo shrewd little 1 —rlrijikled pver-witlirlivtent humour,! and his f « Wou'ta'; draWn'dowti at the corners^, seemo,d -\ -,to repress a.chrpnio, srailer/ He il66ke'a?4i ' " cross bqtween leatheV stbekirigs and Abraham Lincoln. ' r\ \ " I presume you. have done the islands ?". 1 aaid I, wvitingjyoi , 1 { h* :>lo '' \ " Well, I guess I've looked 'em over,"., reducing hta'eyes to a focus as he swept the Jiofizion',: seopingly to regard New Zealand as if it were a parcel of goods ho , J .\vas : Jikelj'i to buy;. '" Natur, sir, jhas been , genlroua round here ! Imako noi account' • of 'their g'oWand sivbr', but here's! nigh' off 3,000 miles of coast, aud there's not a {}> .'■quarjer'-sectionfjin- the islands that Hea more tbun.""^ sixty miles from; a port. There's mountains o£ fair coal and useful, '■'"■ 'minerals.; There's as" rich a sile; as roan v needs to ttirft.p.yex ;• plenty o£ wood and: a' ! climlite' as "the white man thrives in. 'It is goin' to bo tbeimaritime ; boss of this -side 1 " of -creation — you may i bet your sweet life pn thatj jYe»j r ßir; that's what's the matter with Nevv Zealand. iELI'd ba Been' ifc.bef ore. I'd ha like. to hay© „ ,had.a hack a,t it .myself l.'^ J - . :■ ' I A-entured t6' : observe" 'that a general, impression prevailed <•' r abbiit'' otlie colony having-gonetoo-fast ahead^—and .'gcineral depression was the consequence 'of a too rapid development. ! ' lT! " Naturally, 'quite so," replied my fellow 5 .traveller. 4s'Hoopin'.cong;b|g[ieaßlef4 s 'Hoopin'.cong;b|g[ieaBlefa J "mumps^ f other t cqmplaintß;^rpW|n' l kids are bound to have. (Tlie States had 'era all — bad). "iris all along of growin'.- Now jest see. tliJß,craft.w.« are. f on— -tjhia sMary Soarer ! ' Wh'at 1^ fight- has- Ne\| .Zealand, with <a boat like this? What a j piece of extravagance ! Three thousand tons ! - JJuilfc of steel, dpujblef rcas,ed>~Bbje has'ail- " insideskiD7and"engine8 v a9-fine ap chronometers. ,She is lighted by electricity,-, furnished and fitted better than any of the ■ .Cunard or White Star vessels., jL've been ' through thejnall,- and there dinjt one of them that for finish and stylo is fit to lie in a dock along side, of her ! Wbat was She built, for? Why, for the 'coasting • -'trade ef New Zealand." j -; - " She does' seem to be out; of all proportion to" 1 the 'wants ofthe*colony." 1 " Proportion !" cried the American, " pro- ' portion, sir, be darned ! The j Company Trr^that built this boat has. thirty; : tivo vessels in their fleet, doing a coasting jand interT -jcolohial tradel-rT tQirt y4 Wo .iy ßßSels « figur5 v ing up~34,000 tons; Then 'thYrejis another company here fits out five ocean steamer? trading, direct with England — measuring ' 21,000 tons ! Then there is a third company with five more ocean steamers measuring 24,000 tons ; say 80,000 tons of steam' » -shipping to serve a popufotion bE 480,000 souls, all told — jest about one-half the population of my native city, Philadelphia. -Now jest figure on that awhile and do a sum in proportion. It is jest one ton for every six inhabitants. If Great Britain wanted to match with these islands she'd have to put up six millions of tons of steam shipping !" . ' And. to thinkjllr I suggested, "that . , fifty years ago this place produced nothing ".. .T>ut gavages." . 1 , ~" } "Thaffshow'to pntif, sir. IWild men, like other productions 00 ©! tbe wilderness, is very picturesque and sentimental, but they hey got to get when'weinake a clearing. „Wber e * ne white man sets his foot 1 the. red man an<jl the black man disappear." "Ton area disciple of the new philoso-; • •!- phyyl 6ee," "l/remarked;- ,\ s, j j ' ' "•* Is that so'? 1r said-he, 'cnrioUsly.; ■ - , .• " You believe ia the survival of the fittest?" j ' ' ; ix- nothing; r r riew it* Cthat. Natur' was the first that said : ' Let the best ma,n win'—"'.' , I Here the hideous Chinese- uproar of the gong announced breakfast . ' ' i