ALL BLACKS HAD FINE HOLIDAY.

Star (Christchurch), Issue 18548, 23 August 1928, Page 6

ALL BLACKS HAD FINE HOLIDAY.

RHODESIAN SCENERY IMPRESSES PARTY.

(Written for the “Star” by GRAHAM E. BEAMISH.)

VICTORIA FALLS, July 12. “Oh, ’twas an unimaginable sight! Clouds, mists, streams, watery rocks and emerald turf.” —W ordsworth.

Rhodesia’s charms, the call of the Victoria Falls, the rare beauty of the Matopo Hills, and a week away from the hustle and bustles of a city—a holiday such as the All Blacks will never forget, has almost come to an end, for tomorrow the team leaves the thunder of the falls behind for the crescendo of a cheering Rugby crowd again.

Visits to the hills where lie the remains of -Cecil John Rhodes and to the Victoria Falls, one of the wonders of the world, have been two experiences that have been painted on the canvas of the mind in indelible colours. They were wonderfully impressive jaunts. After getting off the train from Kimberley at Bulawayo the All Blacks were surprised to learn that it had been arranged for them to drive immediately to the Matopos, but grimy as they felt after their journey of thirty-eight hours, they soon forgot the monotonous jolting of a railway carriage, and revelled in the charming scenery of the motor drive to World s View. Weird kopje scenery is seen all along the road. Then, rounding a bend the party found themselves in a huge amphitheatre of rock,. in which lies the spot chosen for Rhodes Matopo Park. Through the park they motored, and as they drove monkeys came down from the trees, and peered at the cars from precarious rocks. Out of the park, and then to the foot of.- a steep hill, which leads to the burial ground of Cecil Rhodes, and the twenty-eight-mile drive was over. A Sylvan Scene. In a nook shaded by native trees and ferns (a spot which seemed that it had been made for the purpose), the All Blacks ate their lunch, and as they ate “a sylvan scene with various greens was drawn.” In that wooded spot the party ate a lunch that was fit to set before a King. As far as the “table” was concerned, one would have thought that he was dining ;in the Winter Garden in any fashionable hotel. It was a delightful change, this al fresco style, and it was all the more enjoyable, for the food was homecooked and very different from the food which has been eaten by the All Blacks since they left their homes. For a time after lunch the All Blacks lay lazily in the shade for the heat, although in winter time, was like an Auckland summer’s day. Then the pilgrimage to the grave of Rhodes start ed. Up, up, up the steep grade the party climbed to the huge bouldercrowned hill. There, amid a scene of rugged and solitary grandeur, the remains of Rhodesia’s founder lie beneath a plain brass plate bearing the simple inscription: “Here Lie the Remains of Cecil John Rhodes.”

With Bared Heads. With bared heads in the sweltering heat of a Rhodesian afternoon, the All Blacks paid tribute to that great man while they looked across ,the Matopo Hills at that magnificent “View of the World.” It is a ruggedly majestic sight. Not far away from the grave is a huge granite monument raised as a memorial to, and containing the remains of Major Alan Wilson, and the little band of early Rhodesian settlers who lost their lives in that memorable fight with the Matabele hordes at Shangani in 1893. Grecian in style, the monument is built of blocks of granite quarried out of a nearby kopje. On each side of the monument is a bronze panel with life-size figures in high relief of the men who lost their lives. There is a short explanatory inscription let into one of the steps at the base. There is a full list of names, ending with the following impressive line from one of Kipling’s poems: “There was no survivor.” It is a remarkable piece of work, thi? Shangani Memorial. Each of the four bronze panels cost £II,OOO. About half a mile from the Outspan there is View Cave, which contains a number of grotesque rock paintings, the w r ork of dead primitive bushmen—very interesting, but very crude.

Marvels of Victoria Falls. From a place of rugged beauty to a paradise in the Rhodesian wilderness. One day a sight wonderful, the next, a view magnificent. It is a wonderfully restful place, the Victoria Falls, where skies are always blue, where trees are an emerald green, where grass is verdant and where birds of multi-coloured plumage sing their songs. Six miles away in the train the spray from that avalanche of water can be seen rising 600 feet like the smoke-from a huge bush fire. Another twenty minutes and the AII Blacks were walking the mile or so to the falls. There, stretching for a mile and a quarter, are 100,000,000 gallons of water cascading down a 400 ft prec.pice in a minute. It is an amazing spectacle. The water crashes and thunders downwards, and at one point lashes itself into a maelstrom. That sight was inspiring enough, but the best was yet to come. In the afternoon, the party, regaled in oilskins and sou’-westers, did the jaunt through the famous Rain Forest. Here was luxuriant tropical vegetation, a place of rare beauty. Birds of brilliant plumage fitted through the trees, monkeys swung on branches and chattered and screeched in their weird way. Then, coming to the edge of this precipice, the party was enchanted by the magic of that soul-stirring spectacle.

The Blind Boy. A little further on a woman stood with a tall, fair, well-built, good-looking boy. She was describing to him in simple words the wonders of the falls. A butterfly flew past. “Oh, there is a beautiful butterfly. It is as big as my hand and, oh, its wings are a deep red and black.” The boy said, “That’s great, isn’t it?” He was blind. It was a pathetic sight. One of a dozen miniature rainbows encircled the pair like a halo. The blind boy, the rainbows, the butterfly, the falls—all the work of the Creator! Standing on a little promontory, with the spray from the falls beating in their faces like a blizzard,' the All Blacks watched the crashing avalanche. Far down the huge ravine were two perfect rainbows of a myriad hues. Through the mud and slush of the Rain Forest the party roamed, forgetting their discomforts and the soaking they were getting, and revelling in the beauty pf the sight before them. There is majesty in these gigantic gorges, these foaming torrents, these wonderful atmospheric effects, these clouds of spray and these masses of rock and rich ravines of foliage. There are a dozen beautiful havens which are riots of tropical growth. The Beautiful Zambesi.

A huge expanse of deep blue water with beautiful islands rich with vegetation dotted here and there makes a trip up the Zambesi another delightful experience. That jaunt was done by

the All Blacks on the second day of their visit. The whole scene is extremely beautiful. The banks and the islands dotted over the river are adorned with vegetation of great variety of colour and form. Several of the trees were spangled with blossoms, and there, standing over all, stands the great, burly baobab. There are groups of graceful palms, with their featheryshaped leaves rustling in the slight breeze. A paradise, the Victoria Falls and the slow-moving Zambesi. Every member of the All Black party is sorry that his “holiday” is almost over, and that to-morrow this glorious spot will be left behind. Every man has been greatly impressed with this never-to-be-forgotten experience, and the whole party will go away refreshed. Not a football has been touched, hardly a word of Rugby spoken, since the match at Kimberley last Saturday, so that the complete spell should do the All Blacks a world of good. “ THE TORNADO.” RHODESIA ROUTED. (By GRAHAM E. BEAMISH.) BULAWAYO, July 14. Only mere “babies” in the game, Rhodesia could not stand up to the New Zealand tornado at Bulawayo to-day when the All Blacks romped home to the extent of 44 points to 8. There were ten tries scored in the game, seven of which were converted and three unconverted. Thirty-one points were scored by the All Blacks in the first half, largely because of incompetence on the part of the Rhodesians, who had meagre knowledge of the finer points of the game.

There was a big slowing up on the part of the All Blacks in the second spell, and the Rhodesians scored eight points against New Zealand’s thirteen. The football was poor in the second session, the All Blacks appearing to be more or less indolent in the face of their big lead. But in the first forty minutes the New Zealanders threw the ball about in the open, telling way, and they were seen in many brilliant and spectacular movements in which both backs and forwards took part. Quite often the New Zeland back play was artistic, attractive and subtle. The first spell was full of kaleidoscopic changes, and in this session the match sparkled with lively incident. "Always on Their Toes.” As soon as the All Blacks saw that they could put up something of a big score, they showed an eagerness to jump into the game, and they were always on their toes. The trenchant service of the New Zealand five-eighths line sent the New Zealand three-quarter line in full cry with bewildering pace. The backs romped and roved will-o’-the-wisp fashion, the backing-up being outstanding. It was a very different story in the second spell. Rhodesia, beating the All Blacks for the ball from scrums, started to play football according to the New Zealand style. Their handling was fairly accurate, but they could not finish off their movements, in spite of the half-hearted defence of the New Zealand backs. Rhodesia’s reign was a short one, for the All Blacks soon had their opponents in a hopeless tangle again. There was one outstanding piece of play on the part of the Rhodesian backs. M’lntosh, the centre three-quarter, who played fairly well throughout, made two breaks from interceptions when Lilburne was passing to Lucas. From one of these he broke clean away and, short-punting accurately over Lindsay’s head, recovered the ball and went on to score under the posts. It was a pretty piece of work. One of the main reasons for the overwhelming win by the All Blacks was the appallingly poor defence and tackling of the Rhodesians. They certainly tackled better In the second half and managed to smash quite a few New Zealand movements. Easily the most thrilling and spectacular movement by the All Blacks was the one which led to Finlayson’s try. In his own twentyfive Snow threw the ball halfway across the field to Lucas. He sent to Robilliard, who passed infield to Lucas, who sent to Swain, to Finlayson, who beat two men and scored a great try.

Beaten in Scrums and Line-outs. It was surprising to find that even up against a side as weak as Rhodesia New Zealand was beaten for the ball In the scrums. And, above all, it was amazing to find that they were beaten for the ball in the department of the game for which they are noted—lineout worfe. Rhodesia hooked the ball from twenty-four scrums against New Zealand’s twenty, and fourteen lineouts went in their favour against the All Blacks’ thirteen. It was perfectly obvious why New Zealand was beaten in the scrums. To a big extent it was the same trouble as has been the case in previous matches—little weight in the scrums. To-day it was flagrant. The side row men, Maurice Brownlie and Finlayson, were far too eager to break away, and had left the side of the scrum before the ball was out, and the back-rankers, Hazlett and Snow, did not seem to worry very much whether they pushed or not. But what they lacked in the 6crums they made up for, and doubly so, in the loose. At the same time, weight is essential in the scrums, and until solid weight goes into the All Black pack they will continue to be beaten in scrums.

There was a crowd at the match numbering almost 4000, which is a record for Bulawayo. They came from remote parts of Rhodesia to see the All Blacks, many of them travelling hundreds of miles in as long as four days. The crowd was delighted at the display of the New Zealanders, and all keen Rugbyites admitted that they had learned a great deal. The All Blacks gave their haka before the match, this being only the second time that they have given it since they have been in South Africa.