IMMIGRATION.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 1890, 24 March 1874, Page 3

IMMIGRATION.

•» Under the head of "F.-ee Emigration to Canterbury," the Gloucester Standard of January 3 contains the following : An interesting lecture on the important < question of free emigration to Canterbury, < New Zealand, was delivered at the Corn Ex- i change, in this city, on Monday evening last, - by Andrew Duncan, Esq. (Special Emigration ' Agent, from Canterbury, N.Z.) Mr J. Sessions presided. There was a very large attend- i ance, consisting chiefly of the working classes. ' After a few introductory remarks by the < chairman, the lecturer proceeded to explain < the principle upon which free passages were granted, and gave some very valuable statis- 1 tics, &c, connected with the colony. He stated ' that he waa at present on a visit to this coun-. ' try, and that prior to his leaving Canterbury, ' N.Z., the Government there had requested him < to bring before the people of England, as ' far as possible, the advantages of their • provinco as a field for the British J emigrant;. Although this entailed a great < amount of labour, as well as an immense < responsibility iv trying to induce a good class ] of emigrants to seek their home in Canter- 1 bury, still it was a source of pleasure to point i out its advantages, which, in the opinion of ' the lecturer, were far superior to those offered < by any of the other English-speaking colonies. ] Mr Duncan gave a clear and succinct account < of the geography of the colony, showing by a 1 map that the two large islands and tho small 1 islands contained 70,000,000 acres aa against < 76,000,000 acres in Great Britain and Ireland, i and that the population of New Zealand was < les3 than Birmingham, thus affording plenty of scope for any who chose to make their i home there. As regards climate it was like 1 the southern counties of England, and might i be said to be the finest in the world for the Anglo-Saxon race. The lecturer passed in review < the constitution of the colony and of the pro- < I vinces, the land aud other laws of Canterbury and its institutions, contrasting them with i i those in England, and proving to the satis- : faction of fche audience (which was shown by their applause) that in educational matters, as in tho vexed question of the licensing ■ laws, Canterbury was much ahead of the i mother country. The quality of the soil, as instanced by the growth of all crops that are grown by JEnglisli farmers, was shown by i many instances cited. Wheat, oata, barley, i turnips, grasses, and clovers gave larger yields i than could be got in this country, and as re- i garded fruits, all tha. were grown in England * could be grown fco great perfection there, i Alluding to the labour question, ho said, for i a day's work, consisting of eight hours, the I wages were most liberal, and the priceß of i provisions much lower than here, and that i any person could, by a few years of care and i patient industry, lay aside sufficient to buy a ] farm of their own, and thus become independent. In proof of this Mr Duncan read letters from people thero, giving an account of their i experiences in the colony, and further stated i that he brought over 300 letterß from settlers i to their friends and acquaintances in this i country, urging upon them to take advantage i of this visit for the purjoose of securing free passages to Canterbury if they were eligible. In conclusion Mr Duncan stated thafc he would i on no account give free passages to any given to drink ; he did not mean by that that all were to be teetotallers or Good Templars, but simply that ho would have no drunkards. At the close a hearty vote of thanks was accorded to the lecturer and also to the chairman. After the business of the meeting was over a good number of very suitable persons offered to go out to the colony. The Glasgow News of December 26, 1873, under the head of " Emigration to Canterbury, New Zealand," contains the following : — ■ On Wednesday, Springfield Shed, on the north I side of the river, furnished an exciting apectaj ele. Fully two hundred and thirty emigrants for Canterbury, Hew Zealand, were to {drop down the river to the Tail of the Bank with the City of Glasgow, at two in the afternoon. The shed was crowded with many hundreds of , their friends and acquaintances, anxious to : ccc them start on their new venture. There was much leave-taking, but little ostensible I grief, both the emigrants and their friends | being in high glee. Some of the bolder spirits had been indulging in a parting dram, and : there was a considerable display of humour. : One old fellow got so enthusiastic that he forced himself into the ship in spite of all opposition, bound for the Antipodes though not a passenger. On the other hand, there was a : " bit " from the " Rape of the Sabines " — a sturdy young fellow, half-seas-over, and of no | pleasant temper, literally carried his young . wife aboard, in spite of her tears and expostulations, and then prepared himself for a savage onslaught on her mother, who was aiding and abetting her daughter in her determination to abide in Scotland. As the vessel proceeded in tow of a tug there waa a multitudinous hurrah from the wharf, answered with interest by the passengers, and this was continued for a considerable distance, the crowd running along the wharf pari passu with the ship. The agent had invited us to accompany the veaael to ita moorings, and we found the inspector appointed by the New Zealand Shipping Company to examine the fittings a most courteous and, we need nofc say, a most intelligent guide. The first thing that struck us was tho generally very superior class of tho emigrants, a class in no wise resembling that which one sees embarking for America, and, in fact, superior to many of thafc confessedly better clasß that elect the Antipodes for their home. This _2_eaks well for the discrimination and judgment of the agent. Carpenters were employed , her 6 and there getting the fittings completed, and : these fittings, we understand, are : superior in their intention and suitableness to those of any emigrant vessel that has : ever loft the Clyde. There is a superior condensing engine, supplied by Graveley, 164 East India Road, London, very efficient, and occupying comparatively little space. At the request of the inspector, the engineer put his ; apparatus in gear, and furnished us im a few : .vsaiifi

minutes with a glasß of clear, cool, fresh water j but our satisfaction was diminished when we reflected that it was condensed from Glasgow sewage, the vessel not having then reached Renfrew. On deck, but entirely separated from each other, are excellently fitted conveniences for males and females respectively, with water as carefully laid on as in any private dwelling-house ; and there are two leaded troughs for washing purposes — one for married and fche other for unmarried females, with perfect appliances for running on and running off the water. Those engaged in washing will be protected from the weather as much as possible. Mr Johnson, the inspector, conducted us below, to exhibit and 'explain his arrangements. But we should first mention that both above and below the after part of the vessel is appropriated to unmarried females, the forepart to unmarried males, and thafc amidships to married people and families. The most stringent measures will be adopted and carried oufc by the help of what may be called a "passenger constabulary" to 'keep these various classes in their own locales— a. provision necessary as an aid to decorum and propriety. The principle of all the arrangements is to secure and preserve health and decorum; hence, everything else ia subordinated to tho having as much light, air, and privacy as possible. Contrary to the common, custom, the bertha aro not athwart-ship, but fore and aft, which will conduce mnch to the comfort of the passengers at.all times, bufc especially in rough weather. It also tendß to secure privacy. The divisions contain eight or sixteen berths, and the messes correspond. The mess-tables can bo securely fixed in a moment, and they can be unfixed and slid up to form shelves. Forms also are made suitable to these. The berths of families are carefully screened off from each other, and the appliances for decency in so limited a space might furnish many hints for our overcrowded houses on shore. In the married people's division thers is a very fine promenade up tho centre. The ventilation has been studiously cared for, much to tlie surprise and perhaps indignation of the votaries of the old school j for the solid deck has in several places been cut open with what to them seems needless and too punctilious regard for comfort. Skylights are also introduced into the deck every here and there; and at tbo corners of the large interior spaces, where fche carbonised air might hang and lurk with deleterious effect, mushroom ventilators are inserted, which Bupplyat once air and light. These two, with water, form, as everyone who has studied sanitary questions knows, the great constituents of health-pre-serving conditions, and all three are here in abundance, for the condensing engine sends a copious supply of fresh water in pipes to all parts of the ship. The single females are presided over by a matron, who sees that her compartment is securely locked every night at a certain hour ; and so perfect are the arrangements that there is no necessity that it should ever be unlocked at such times, except in a case of sickness to admit the surgeon. The lighting is admirable. A sufficient number of lamps, bo arranged as to distribute their light to every corner, is suspended from the ceiling. Each contains fuel to last exactly four hours, and then goes out. None of them can be tampered with, as they are all locked. A watch-lamp is kept burning in each compartment all night. On the wholo, the steerage of the City of Glasgow ia better lighted up at night than many firat-claaa carriages on our railways. We must not forget the hospital arrangements, which are on a most liberal scale, there being no fewer than five separate hospitals. One of these, the fever or quarantine hospital — which we hope will not be required — deserves especial notice. In case of an epidemic, generally very destructive in emigrant ships from overcrowding and defective sanitary arrangements, the patients can be isolated, and the risks of infection minimised. In fact, everything evinces the moat careful adaptation of appliancea by persons of the largest experience, working with the moat enlightened and philanthropic intent to s.cure tho comfort of a humble class of our fellow-citizens, who may prove ultimately a mighty strength to the empire. No parent may dread much for the health or morality of hia son or daughter as long as they are under such enlightened and humane supervision.