ON A THROUGH TICKET.

Oamaru Mail, Volume XXXVI, Issue 10063, 3 February 1909, Page 4

ON A THROUGH TICKET.

\ HOLIDAY MORE OR LESS CO>'VEXTIOXAL. (Written for the Oamaru Mail.) It is not always possible to avoid the obvious and the conventional, and this is especially true regarding holiday-making. One cannot get off the beaten track every vear. and is at times obliged to follow the crowd —to visit places well known to one's friends. This course has its disadvantages, naturally. One is prevented. thereby, from posing as the superior person who has acquired knowledge difficult of attainment: and is compelled to see sights which have- already come within the ken of those whom Lytton loftily designated " the common herd." But there are compensations. To the thoughtful mind. coupled with the seeing eye, a city possesses attractions peculiarly its own : and spots may he visited whose beauty cannot be spoiled even by the advent of the cheac tripper. It was in a frame of mind somev. hat akin to that indicated in the fore-coins that I purchased a through ticket "for "Queenstown : my intention being to visit the two southern centres of population, on route for tiie lake. " All in a Winter Garden."

Dunediu pos.-.«-ses many points of interest for the visitor, and among them may be classed its winter garden. The public gardens have been vastly improved since I last saw them some years ago, and the winter card en therein is not the least conspicuous in this direction. On entering the huge conservatory by the wing door the eye is at once delighted by a mass of color and a variety of form only to be seen in vegetation nurtured under class. The central pa'mery, too, with its wonderful growth of fantastic stalk and feathery frond makes a picture of beauty not roridi'y erased from the memory. In the enjoyment of the moment facts and furores are forgotten. One troubles not as to tin dimensions of the building, the area covered by the glass roof, or oven the names of the various flowers and plants, (me joins oneself to the spirit of the place: the i-ye is satisfied; the mind is hilled to a peaceful ■ repose; and the awakening is as from a pleasant dream, during which one's other self has visited the realm of fairy-laud.

Pictures and Fossils. Those laving the least strain of the antiquarian in" their composition should not "fail to visit the Roman Catholic Cathedral in Dtmedin, for the purpose of seeing the stained glass windows. These, even "apart from any religious aspect, appeal to one's sense of the beautiful. Two that especially arrested my attention are on the left-hand* side on entering, "St. Anne and the Virgin" and "The Annunciation." These subjects are studies. One can for long sit gazing on them, while the various" incidents in the "Story that transformed the world" flit through the memory: and tiie quiet meditation thereby imposed is a wholesome corrective to the bustle and rush consequent upon a flvinir holiday. A third window, that I

was particularly struck with, contains the figure of St. Domini, singular in its comparative austerity. Tiie whole series make ;i vi.-i; to the- Cathedral productive of a refined pleasure, well understood b\- those capable of its appreciation. A subjectakin to the- foregoing is the Art Gallery. Here is exhibited the original of a picture often re-produced, "The meeting of Scott, and Burns.'" which together with the accompanying explanation, repays a visit- on the "part of those who admire the work ot the two great Scotchmen. The third public building I entered in Dunediu was trie Museum. "About this I can only say that, despite its fine collection of birds, bone's, minerals, and other natural wonders, the whole place is, to use Carlyle"s term. "Dry-as-dust." It is, compared with the Chrisiermreh Museum, a perfect example of Tlow-not-to-do-it. Perhaps, when the' new win:: is opened a much-needed brightness wfli be imparted to the institution. At present tiie Dunediu -Museum has oniv one other below it—that of \\ eliingion." I vi.-ited the latter a year or two since—making one of a party of three. There were many tilings worthy of notice, but the most noticeable of all was the fact that wherever one went the Man-in-Charge always put- in an unexpected appearance. Cpon remarking on this to some Wellington friends. I was informed that visitors to the Museum were so scarce that the bonafides of any who did happen to go was suspected. Hence- the supervision. I hope this was a mild jo'»e for the benefit of a new chum. Before- leaving Dunediu I wish to placeit- on record" that I experienced there three perfect'v tine days : the fourth was cloudv but <l"rv. On the morning of the fifth "1 looked" from the hotel windows iii-oi! :• ■ ity. wet and dismal, whose ap-pe-araiic . .:m only I*.- described by the word "ilotii-."' 1 gathered up my skirts—-melaphc-iL-.liy. of" course—and fled incuiitinei.tiy to tiie South. The City of the Southern Plain.

Invei-uigiH is proud, and particularly =o ■>'" ; ts w»t"r-tower. In regard to the latter', the City of the Southern Phi in pat* its-if on the back, and repeats sottiy the words of Little Jack Horner. TheSvdnevite s'ivs "ila-.'e you seen our harbor':": the ".lamaruvian, "Have you inspected our public gardens:" but the Invercargiliite blandly inquiries "Have you ascended our water-tower':" To a height .'.:" GO feet rises the tower. The ascent is easv and s.ife. even 'or the most timid, and the view from the balcony at tiie ton en- of the finest of it.-, kind iu Xew Zealand. Then Invercargill i:> proud of its Volunteer Fire Brigade. It makes an eh.'-orate provision fur the extinguishing of fires, in which telephone communication ph'.vs an important part. The Fire Brigade Station has accommodation for 11 firemen, who sleep on the premises, and are therefore ready at a moment's warning to proceed where their services are reouired. The accommodation for '.he men is verv complete, and includes a sittingroom with a billiard tabic, kitchen fully equipped, and a bathroom. The rules provide that- one of the 11 men, who are detailed in turn, shall remain behind while Ids companions are away at a fire, and among his various duties is thai of having the- blliv iwiling iu readiness for the returning" hremenr who are thus enabled to refresh themselves after their arduous labors. The Fire Brigade is an institution in" Invercargill. and the enthusiastic member thereof who escorted me over the station waxed eloquent as he enumerated the ir.anv points of interest to a northern visitor ' The firemen have all passed through a course of first-aid, and a large first-aid kit forms an important feature of the Brigade's equipment. A visitor from Oamaru is naturally curious to see Invercargiil's Municpal Offices and Theatre. I was fortunate in securing the services of an exceedingly intelligent official, who acted the role'of guide to perfection. For the sum of £23.000 an imposing building has been erected, and besides convenientoffices and a splendid theatre, the Southern Municipality is possessed of a convenientconcert hall, capable of seating 500 people. The hall is used for concerts, meetings, bails, and socials: and for the purpose of the latter there are appropriate side rooms and an up-to-date kitchen. I made enquiries regarding the matter of over-crowding at the theatre, and learned that after some trouble with one or two managers of popular travelling companies, the authorities now insist- upon all passages and aisles being kept clear, and no infringement of tiie rule is allowed. Every provision"that careful thought can suggest seems to have been made to meet-, am outbreak of tire, not the least of which being special exit doors that open of their own" accord upon pressure from within. Another provision made, to prevent a panic daring a fire, is the burning of .candles in various parts of the theatre all through a performance. -As my guide pointed out, one of the first tilings likely to occur in the event of a fire is the putting out of the electric lights through the fusing of the wires. Should such happen, the candies, whose light is too dim to affect a performance, are sufficient to prevent a panic ensuing upon a large audience being suddenly plunged into darkness. As"l have already said, Invercargill is proud of itself. It intends to grow, and looks forward to the near future when a Greater Invercargill will be formed by the inclusion of its suburbs, which wi'i be connected with the parentcity by an up-to-date system of trolly cars.

Oaniaru can assert itself against the southern city in the matter of a public garden. Invereargill has no public garden, in the sense that Oamaru understands the term. There are a collection of beauty spots along the banks_ of the creek, such as our own Beautifying Society no doubt intend to call into existence when they have finished with the cultivation of "barbed-wire fences. But for a "garden" such as Oamaru possesses: ,i place where the meditative soul can enjoy the beauties of flower and tree apart from tho commonplace surroundings of every-day life, the visitor searches in vain. The "beaut v snots of Invereargill are truly

beautiful; in their way. The walks are well kept, the borders neatly trimmed, and the flowers many and brilliant. But the svlvan peace such as the Oamamvian possesses—often, perhaps, unknowingly—is not to be found anywhere in connection with the Invercargill Public Gardens. Such, at least, is the impression made by them upon a northern visitor. The No-license Experiment.

I was on holiday bent, with no mind for statistics, afid no inclination to hunt up the sly-grogger or follow in the wake of those who, in an apparently legitimate manner, circumvent the law. I could not, however, leave Invercargill without making some inquiries as to the no-license experiment now being carried out there. My informants were three; each represented a distinct section of the community ; and each bore testimony to the good "effect wrought by no-license. The evidences of prosperity in the city were pointed out to" me, particularly in regard to the erection of substantial business premises—one of them supplanting a former hotel. Taking the evidence of my eyes and ears, no-license lias come to stay in the South. The most interesting opinion I obtained was from a shearer. I met him on the train between Invercargill and Kingston. Said he: "I knock about among working men of all kinds, and I am not above drinking a glass of beer myself ; but I can assure you that the working-men of Invercargill and district are much better off under Xo-lieense than License, and I speak as one who ought to know." I referred to the beer depots on the boundary, and my shearer friend explained the" working of the system, which is simplicity itself. ''A party of fellows club together their money; obtain an empty beer keg; and get into a bus which takes them over the river dividing the "dry" from the "wet" district. The beer is "bought, drunk on the spot, and the drinkers return as best they can—by bus or otherwise." My informant added that- the depots were greatly to be deplored. "But," said lie, "there is a good deal more made of the harm they do than is borne out by facts. It is to the interest of some persons, particularly those interested in the Trade, to make the depot business much blacker than it really is." From what I gathered in other quarters, there will soon be strong force applied to remedy this undoubted evil; and with the beer depots removed from the boundary, Invercargill will have a much better chance of proving the efficiency of the new experiment in social legislation than it lias at the present moment.