MAJOR DANE ON "NEW ZEALAND, THE WONDERLAND OF OCEANA."

Te Aroha News, Volume VI, Issue 286, 1 August 1888, Page 5

MAJOR DANE ON "NEW ZEALAND, THE WONDERLAND OF OCEANA. "

Major Dane gave a lecture ab Die V.M.C.A. Hall,' Sydney, upon "New Zealand, the Wonderland of Oceana." There was a large attendance. The lecturer tirst presented a picture of the country as seen by him in a year's journeying ironi North Cape to Southland, and irom coa&t to ooa&t. He saw at once that lie wa& entering a scene ot great beauty. In all his journeymgs he had never been more amazed. Some ot the people delighted to call Auckland the Naples of New Zealand. It haa no resemblance to Naples, but there was a striking resemblance to Corinth. He extended his journey carefully and slowly, and examined every bh ing for himself. New Zealand wad unique in everything- — in soil and in climate. The great evil was that the people did not know what they had ; they hardly knew what riches there were to develop. To sail up some of the rivers in the north portion, one could almost think one was sailing on Italian lakes. There weie at lea&t 100 "foreign ports" in New Zealand, but they would ultimately have only one, and that would be Auckland. Australia would have one, and that would be Sydney. Commerce only knew one thing — its. own advautage — and you could not turn it away. (Applause. ) They had tried to do this in hie own country and had spent millions in doing it, but had always failed. To Sydney and to Aucklind as the natural ports, the shipping of fifty years would come. They heard that New Zealand was ruined ; but he had &een his own country ruined three times — absolutely wived out. Yet they were in a fairly healthy condition to-day. New Zealand ruined — they might as well tell him that the sun was ruined because a cloud was across hih face. (Applause.) All she had to do was to develop a country that could carry 15 millions of people. With her climate, and soil, and mines, how could she be ruined ? Why, one, could can as much fruit as California, and the world's market was waiting for it. But it was> said that she had not got the manufactories thao America had. Neither had America in his boyhood ; bub it was not the manufactories that made the country what it was, but the agriculture behind it. Everything was in New Zealand to please the eye, and charm the soul, and all that the land was crying for was for men and women to come and posse&s it.