The system of measurement in both New Zealand and Australia is that of the chain—66 feet. A chain wide, two chains, two-and-a-half chains long, are the terms used.
Prohibition has a considerable hold on the people, as most of the smaller cities are "dry."
Double fare may be charged by cab drivers on holidays only, but in other countries cabbies collect excess fares any time patrons will pay them.
Theaters, bioscopes, amusements and sports of all sorts are found in the city, being freely patronized.
The kea bird of New Zealand is destructive to sheep, and for that reason the government pays a bounty of $5 for every dead kea. This bird is of the parrot species, dark green in color, with a bill an inch and a half in length, curved like a parrot's beak. It will alight on a sheep's back, and at once attack the animal in the section of the kidneys with its sharp bill, as the only part the kea cares for is the fat growing about the kidneys. The animal naturally bleeds to death in a short time, when the bird gratifies its appetite at leisure. The desire for this food is an acquired one, as the kea first got its taste for sheep fat from skins hung on fences and other places to dry.
The islands of New Zealand are divided by Cook's Straits, which are 40 miles wide. One section, lying south of Cook's Straits, is known as South Island, and the land north of the straits is termed North Island. We have been traveling in South Island, which is far richer.
Port Lyttleton, the port for Christchurch, is located nine miles from the metropolis. Boats run to Wellington daily, the sailing time being ten hours.
One man one vote, and one woman one vote, is the scope of franchise New Zealand offers. Parliament is composed of 70 members, elected for three years. Several political parties exist in the Dominion, and the one in power chooses from among the Assembly a successor for the Premiership. Although the Premier is the responsible head of the government, over him is an imperial official, a governor-general, from the British Isles, who is appointed by the King of England. New Zealand, in common with other colonies of the British Empire, pays the governor-general's salary. The Cook group of islands, located 1,800 miles northeast of Wellington in the Southern Pacific Ocean, is a dependency of New Zealand, and its affairs are administered by the Dominion Parliament.
Previous mention has been made of a good railway station in Dunedin, and that nearly completed the substantial government buildings seen when that country was visited. We also commented on the poor accommodation furnished second-class passengers on railway trains, though paying two cents a mile. A wooden building—if it has not since been replaced—"the largest wooden office building in the world," is pointed out to visitors to Wellington. A government office building in the capital of a country—built of wood! The worst public building in the splendid city of Christchurch was the government railway station; the station at Wellington would not make a decent sheep shed. With passenger and freight rates sufficient, and a heavy import duty collected on most commodities entering the country, together with an annual tax on incomes of $1,500 and over, the dearth of creditable public buildings, and the inferior railway accommodation afforded second-class passengers, would seem to suggest that government management did not bear the mark of striking efficiency. On the other hand, the people are thrifty, courteous, kind, congenial and mostly in good circumstances.
The business portion of Wellington is built at the bottom of a chain of high hills, with a splendid harbor front. These hills are so steep that stairways and cable lines figure largely as utilities by which residents reach their homes. One misses the convenient squares and parks found in other centers in that part of the world, but the absence of these here is accounted for by lack of room, as the space between the butts of the hills and the docks is limited even for business purposes. Some distance from the business center, however, is a good botanical garden, and in another direction are creditable parks, with sports grounds included, which enable the capital to make a fair showing in this particular.