Donald, Contractor. A COLONIAL TYPE. (Written for the "Free Lance" Christmas Number.)

Free Lance, 15 December 1902, Page 4

Donald, Contractor. A COLONIAL TYPE. (Written for the "Free Lance" Christmas Number.)

(BY " TE NOrAKAKA. ')

IT has been said that a chief characteristic of Wellington, the capital city of New Zealand, is its commercialism. Like city, like men. The men of Wellington are absorbed in business pursuits, to which they are devoted whole-souledly. There is a briskness of walk and talk about a Welkngtonian which is in, sharp contrast to the easy gait and the leisured talk of the business man of the other centres of the colony. The business man of Auckland goes to bis office by a round-about walk , the Wellingtonian takes the shori>-out. In the summer season, the Waitemata has more attractiveness than the office lor the Auoklander ; the banks of the Avon are more seductive than tlhe desk to the Ohristohuroh man ; and the Club or Ocean Beacih offer irresistible temptations to the Dunedinite. But, "there is no place like The Office" in the opinion of the merchant of the Empire City. It has been said that this spirit ot commercialism cramps the heart, lust as the desk cramps the lungs — that thisi is why Auckland, Ohristchurch, and Lhinedin have had their public-spirited merchant®, who have bestowed rich endowments upon those cities for the benefit ot the people, whilst Wellington is sadly deficient in generous givers. Donald Tracey is a product ot Wellington. His parents were of the adventurous folks who came out from the Old Land on board those historic first Bhips " of which frequent mention is made in press references to the passing hence of old identities. Donalds father was a son of Erin, and a sturdy. skilful carpenter, his mother was a Scot, and a well-trained domestic servant. Thear courtehip began m We newly-formed township of Britannia (now Petone), and on th*sr marriage the" settled on Te Aro flat. As became the son of a father who had stood by "Sam" Paraell, the exCockney carpenter, whem he agitated for and obtained the first recognition of an eighl>hour working day on retone beach, in the first days of settlement, Donald was "a fame bhoy. ±*ut, unlike his sire, he had not a touch of the brogue, nor had his tongue any ot his mother's burr. There was a blend of toneues which became what has been termed the colonial twang. His speech was rather deliberate than quick but his tone was sharp, and, though slow to speak, there was decision behind his words. The course of young Traoey's boyhood was the course followed by the youngsters of early Wellington. A walk to the Heads did not daunt him, the harbour was his delight, and every game going was a means of recreation. His Christmas holidays were spent in camps in Gollans Valley, in the Pelorus Sounds, in the Rimutaka Ranges— wherever fishin"- shooting, boating, or bathing could be obtained in the sum-mer-tide. . , His school-days were not marked with brilliance, though his hands and Ins back were frequently brilliantly marked as a reward for his many shortcomings. To this day thou hits of those times are accompanied by a physical shrug and a squirm. And, who can tell the mental and physical strain which his schoolmaster — "Dicky" Holmes, of ancient memory — had to undergo on Donald Tracev's behalf in those days of thirty years ago, when one taught and the other was taught in St. Peter's Schoolroom ! Still, the progress of Donald was sure, if slow. "VThat he learned, he acquired for all time. He was no human sponge. He had no desires for "good boy" praise, nor for scholarship crammings. The open air was the school he hungered after, and the home lessons, which his mother insisted he should carefully con, were the bane of his young life. But, it stood to his credit that, when he gave his mind to learning, he obtained an understandable grasp of the subject before he had finished. Even his master admitted this, and sometimes dreaded Don's persistent efforts to to the root of an involved subject. This characteristic of getting at the whole root and matter, the why and the wherefore of things, marked his course after he left school. In his play-time hours the clang and clash of the for"-c, and the flying sparks from the anvil, rivetted his attention, and attracted him strongly. Being a sturdy youth, he had frequently spent his holidays with his father in building operations, and, by the time of tearing school, he could use the hammer and saw deftly, and had a natural bent in constructiveness. But, it was to the Lion Foundry he went when his father offered him a choice of occupation and never was he happier than in those days, when he horrified his mother with the duskiness of his countenance, and the dirtiness of

bis clothes when he came home irom work." From the Lion Foundry, Donald Tracer went to sea. It would be interesting to pause hare to make some extended reference to the by-no-means-sniall army or young men who have gone to sea after a more or less rough, passage through the foundries of Wellington. But, the temptation to digress must be put to one side, and we must go down to the sea in ships with DonFor his mother's sake, he kept to the coastal trade for some years; but, upon her death, he decided to follow his ambitions, and go further afield. During runs to Auckland, he struck u^ a close friendship with an Englishman a fellow engineer, who had been caught by various touches of gold fever, and who had formed a strong opinion that fortune lay underground in the waybaok of Auckland. In those days, young Trace-y was absolutely free from gold fever. The great desire for gold came to him later on His present mood was for experience. He proposed to Ernest Blacoin that they should make a trip round the world. His friend said this would suit him, provided they made for South America, which was a corner of the globe not struck by him during his trottings to and fro. The travels of the two friends are not to be recorded in this narrative, though their experiences gained during the tour went lar^elv to develop the latent powers of Donald Tracey. The adventurers were many days on their journeyings before they reached South America. The New Zealander dropped naturally into the ways of that land, for adaptability to circumstances and people was one of his traits. To the southerners he was Don Trac<"' — as all along he had been "Don" to his intimates— and it was the ready confidence in him, plus the natural promptings of his friend BLacoin, which first tempted Donald to follow a course of speculation that, in a very short time, made botih himself and his friend wealthy. The speculations took the form of contracts for public works upon a large scale. The two engineers devoted themselves heart and body to their new-found tasks, and great was their reward. But, a crash oame when* they struck the inevitable South American revolution. The crash caused the two friends to separate hurriedly. Blaeom was nndecided where he would make for. but Traoey determined to work his passage to London. Nevertheless neither tarried in their going. The Englishman urged the New Zealander to look v-> his people in England — and thus theiy r>arted after years of happy comradeship. * * * As ever is the case with him, Traoey in. time reached the place he had set out for. It was the end of the year when he reached London, and how different he found December in England from the same glorious month in far-away New Zealand 1 He had never seen so much snow in all his life before. The* Christmas season was spent with Ernest Blaooin's people. During his stay there, he was delighted to receive a letter from New Zealand, bearing the legend "Urgent." The letter conveyed the news that the Englishman had worked his way back to Auckland once more, and Blaeoin strongly urged his chum to come back. He added that Auckland was just the place for Donald and himself to "begin life in real earnest. This country has none of your South American volcanioability. This province is big with possibilities, and I am satisfied Auckland is built upon a veritable gold-mine. But, what will interest you most of all is the fact that the Government is going in for some big public works, and, with our experience, we should be able to pet back all we have lost. Come out at once, Donl" Donald came. There was a hearty, glad-to-see-you-again greeting when the two engineers met once more in the Queen City of the North. A long talk ensued, and Blaooin unfolded his schemes and ideas. One of the big contracts he had seen coming out was on the eve of announcement. It was a £60 000 railway affair — and the two engineers were the successful tenderers. Donald Tracey was the most venturesome, and, therefore, the leader in, the partnership. When it was announced that Tracey and Blaeoin had secured the contract, the Englishman was overcome with the enormity of the thing they had let themselves in for. "We've got no money, Don 1 How on earth are we ecoing to take it up ?" said he, in a name. •'That's all right!" replied his part-

ner. You just stand by, and watch me" The head of the firm of Tracey and Biacoan went to the most fashionable ot Auckland's tailors, and ordered an up-to-date outfit of clothing. When the clothes were finished, Donald proceeded to a hatter's, and bought a prey "tophat, around which he had a deep black band placed. "For," as he explained to his partner, when the latter became curious concerning that band, "a grey hat is impressive, but doubly impressive when banded deeply!" Dressed in the height of fashion, Donald Tracey waited upon the maniager of the Bank of New Zealand. His confident bearing, and his smart appearance, won him instant admission to the managerial sanctum, and his manner &« impressed the autocrat of the bank that he obtained all the financial support he desired. That contract uroved highly remunerative to Don and his partner, for they devoted themselves wholly to making it a success. The Englishman was a clever engineer, and the New Zealander had the power of making other men bend their backs and sweat their brains for his benefit. Other contracts in various parts of the colony followed, and the firm's banking; account grew with each venture. Their New Zealand experience concluded with a marine contract in which, through a mistake made by the public body for whom they carried out a bio: work, the two engineers made a clear profit of £62,000. Then, they crew tired of carrying out contracts, and dissolved partnership, with a division which gave each a big credit balance at the bank. •» * * Donald Tracey, Contractor, became DonaJd Tracey, Financier. "Money," said he, "is easier to make with money than by contracting. Borrowing is the true Philosopher's Stone. If you want to be in a hurry to maike money, use other people's. You can't get it? Rubbish, man! Why, it's one of the easiest things in the world to borrow money — if you know how to 0:0 about it'" Then, he would tell the story of how he made a fresh start "on nothing" in Auckland. At this time, Donald was- back in the city of his birth, and he was interested in a multitude of financial ventures in Wellington. He delighted in having what he called "serious, friendly, confidential talks" with ambitious young men to whoin\ he took a strong fancy. But, he never lost his deliberate methods. , "Look here!" he said, one day, to a clerk to whom he had shown some partd lality "I'm going to London again. This place is too small for me. I have a lot of money, and I'm going Home to use it. Let me give you a bit of valuable advice before I go. I've watched you, and noticed that you want to get on. "Use up all the money you have, and borrow more. Leave that old suit of clothes at home, and wear your Sunday best every day in the week. When you have had your lunch, walk along the Quay and past the banks with a cigar in your mouth. Then, you will be able to borrow as much money as you want. Borrow, and buy property. Land is scarce in Wellington ; therefore, acquire land. Buy on a low, and sell on a rising market. Never wear ser^e suits until you are as wealthy as you want to be or until you have no further need for borrowing other people's money. That's all, and keep it to yourself. ' Good-bye!" ♦ * * Donald Tracey has now lived in London for several years, and has operated successfully with the many thousands he gained in New Zealand. He has beflome a bold and skilled financier, is a "guinea pig" of tlie most gilded stamp, avoids all South American financial temptations, and has forgotten those old days when Donald Tracey, Contracfcor-eum-Financier, was in the nrooess of the making of a colonial tyx>e.