A Letter From Melbourne.

Manawatu Herald, Volume III, Issue III, 4 December 1890, Page 2

A Letter From Melbourne.

A correspondent, who knows New Zealand well, thns gives his views on the ••Queen of the South " :— I like Melbourne very much, the only drawback being the climate, which is very changeable. The other day we had it Q\h degrees at half-past two in the afternoon, and the next morning at ten it was down to 00 degrees, and blowing quite cold. I went to see the Melbourne Cup run, it was a grand sight and no mistake. Carbine is a wonderful horse, he did it all in the last few yards and walked away from the others. Everybody seemed pleased at his success, but the ring were struck very heavily. I never saw a better course, everybody can see, there is every accommodation you can think of, and everything is so well arranged and well carried out. There was no crushing for seats in the train, for just as one filled another came up. The lowest cost you can go on to the course for, is haf-a-crown, and on to the Hill, four shi lings and six pence, and there most of the people assemble. I noticed a lot of New Zealand people whose faces I knew. Trade here is terribly dull, and a great number of people have to be content with small wages. If the New Zealand flax mills were over here you would get plenty of men for 25s a week and " tucker " themselves. There are a great number of unemployed, men here won't go up country to work, and from what I can hear about up-country life, it is by no means so good as in New Zealand. I noticed about 100 ba'es of manilla ou one of the wharves the other week, and, on examining it, I found it no better scutched or freer from straws than plenty of New Zealand fibre, although I must say the colour was better, and it seemed more uniform in the fibre.