TO HANMER HOT SPRINGS.

Temuka Leader, Issue 1857, 23 February 1889, Page 2

TO HANMER HOT SPRINGS.

CULVERDEtT has a verj good hotel, with a dining-room which is a cross between a nursery garden ' and a primeval forest. Up the centre of the table runs a row of over-giown flowers and under-grown trees, and if given a I five-pound note a person on ono side could not see anyone on the other side. I never saw such a monstrous display of greenery on a table in my life. 1 could not conceive what it was for, but as 1 was determined to trace everything from effect to cause, I hit upon the following conjecture : Squatters of course form an important element in the patrons of the table, aud they, as a general rule, are disposed to be exclusive. From these facts I came to the conclusion that the greenery is put on the table so as to hide squatters from the vulgar gaze while gastronomising. The hotel is really much better than one could expect in such a place, and 1 am inclined to think it does a good business. There are also a store, a forge, and about half-a-dozan other buildings in the place, one being the office of the Rabbit Board, of which Mr Gunn, erstwhile manager of the Orari station, is secretary. Mr Seager, once stationmaster at the Rangitata, is in charge of the Railway station here, so even in this far off quarter of the globe I fell in with old friends'. Would you believe it? The rinking fever penetrated to this place, and one of the rinkists broke his leg there. There is a large area of very fine country all round here, but most of it in the vicinity belongs to Mr Cracroft Wilson. There will be u town here some day, but I shall not travel by train to visit it. I shall reach it from the other side of Jordan, by boat may be, or probably desceud, on azure wings, tipped with gold, i to it from my ethereal home—a bright, gentle little cherub. THE COACH. But I must not forget that I must take this " too, too solid flesh " to the springs in this chapter, or perish in the attempt. The train arrives at Culverden at 25 minutes to 1 o'clock, and the traveller is glad enough to reach the hotel at last. There is no place along the whole line where one could " wet his whislle," and even Sir William Fox himself, had he been a traveller by that train, would not turn up his nose at the sight of a place of entertainment. The time you get to refresh yourself is; however, very short. Tho coachman warns you that he will leave at 1 o'clock, but his father keeps the hotel, and he is consequently indulgent. At about 20 minutes past 1 o'clock he whips his f»ur-horse coach up to the hotel door, aud sings out " All aboard," knowing full well at the same time that no one is yet aboard. The coachman is a youth of about 20 summers, very civil and obliging, and a very good whip. He I answers to the name of Cooper, and has a I rival coachman glorying in tho cognomen of Derrit. Our party consisted of seven, two of whom were ladies and five of them "unprotected males." Derrit secured (he two ladies and the husband of one of them, and tha remaining four took seats in Mr Cooper's coach. I would rather ride on a bare-backed bucking donkey than in a leather-epringed Oobb and Co. coach. It is a bucking, bumping, heaving, rolling conveyance, that shakes you from the sole of your boots to the top of your hat. Mr Cooper's coach is a very good specimen of the kind, and I do not refer to it for any other reason than that I wish to record my constitutional objection to all coaches. To intending visitors I will here give a wrinkle. Make up a party, of, Bay, three or four at the most, write a few days in advance to Mr Cooper, and he will have a two-horse buggy placed at your disposal, and your journey thence to the springs will be most enjoyable. We start, and shortly after pass the Red Post, where one road branches off to the township of Waiau and on to Kaikoura. On we bump across water-races lately made for irrigation purposes, and an extensive plain of rathor poor looking land. At the end of some few miles the township of Rotherham—not whera they make watches, mind—is on the right, and we drop down by a gentle and short descent into the Vf AIATJ VALLEY. This valley, most of which might be more appropriataly designated a gorge, is some fourteen miles long, and bears a strong family likeness to the Weka Pass. It has the same yallow-chd mountains, albeit much steeper, and the same kind of rocks, but it has not the oyster-bed ; the valley is much wider, and the river, though then low, is large and w&ll kept within bounds by its rocky banks. I cannot for the life of me admire this sort of scenery. Others may go into hysterics over it, if they like, but they shall not have my company ; no, not to be made the heir of Moore of Glenmark. Give me a clear luke, dotted with islets, and bordered by gently sloping hills, which show whita-wnlled houses, well-grown plauta- ' tions, green lawns, and fruitful gardens ; give me a lowing river with an extensive view of wood and lea ; give me a wooded glen made musical by the songs of birds, and 1 shall drink in the beauty of the scene with anyone. Bat miy I be shut up in a hotel, with tho bar of it locked and the cook drunk if sterile, shapeless, yellowverdured hills and barren calcined-lookiog rocks are to excite my admiration, oven though it were fashionable to admire them. Tho Leslie Hills are on the right, aad some other hills are on the left, and both hills belong to the Rutherfords. I believe the Rutherfords own, or rather lease from the Crown, almost all tho land in sight, and the view sometimes is extensive. One of them lives on either side of tl>e rivor, and just beside the road is a racecourse laid out, where the Rutherford horses are trained. A small area is UDder crop, ooly, I suppose, sufficient to keep the station horses in oats. The road the valley is tolerably good, the river is always within a shoit distance of us, sod we amused ourselves by cracking jokes at the expense of the coach, and by speculating as to how soon we shall reach the famous WAIAU" BRIDGE. We grow impatient, and insist on the driver giving us a glimpse of tho bridge, but he regards oar injunctions with stolid iodifiarence, and bumps along until about 3 o'clock, when Hanmer Plains, Waiau Bridg», and the Ferry Hotel suddenly and simultaneously appear in view. At the Ferry Hotel we see the first and only sign of tho earthquake. Part of the hotel is built of earthen—well, mud—and the top of the w<tll, just under the e»V6s, gave unmistakeable judications of having uxperionood a nasty shock. While waiting for tho coacb, which makes a few minutes' 1

delay here, one of tny follow-passtngers and myself decided on wolkiog ovn' the bridge. It in built between two rock?, at a height of about 130 ft or bo above the lfvtl (if the river which flows beneath. All the under-part in made of iron, and the superstructure is of wood. I frit a little nervous while on it, and, fearing my weight would be too much for it, Istepped as gently and as lightly over it as a cut would over hot bricks. I forgot that almost every day 8-horse loaded waggons pass over it; bat even if I knew that it would bear the Leslie Hills I should still keep the middle of the road, and get over the ground as quickly aa possible. The bridge is undoubtedly one of the sights on the journey, and a creditab'e as well as useful work. The coach overtook ua at the end of the bridge, and we go through a very deep cutting, carved out of the rock, which almost overhangs tho river, and the length and breadth of the

HANMER PLAINS lay before up. The plains are about seven or eight miles long by four or five miles wide. From the west end the Waiau River flows through it, and from the east the Hanmer Eiver, till both of them, with some lesser streams, mingle their waters almost under the bridge. Tho plain is oval-shaped, and my unscientific opinion ia that it is the crater of an extinct volcano, The hills all round it rise up precipitonsly, and are shaped just as if some mighty giant had shovelled them up out of the plains. To give a simple illustration of what they look like, their general outline would remind one of the hillocks one would make by shovelling fine sand out of pit. This und other things mad« me think that the giant Volcano worked hard here onca upon a time till he fell sick and died, or perhaps toik a fresh contract up in the North Island. The oolur of the vegetation on the hills is more sombre than that which I have already described, the faces of the steepest places have falle,n down and present the appearance of a gravel pit, few lumps of Biaow remain still unmelted in one spot, d clump or two of bush is to be seen, and the whole make up such a wierd, lonely, desolate scene that 1 almost expected to meet a host of ghosts, ghouls, and goblins kicking up their heels about the place. Straight before us is St. Helen's Station, the residence of Mr Low, a brother of Mrs A. M. Clark, of Arowhenua ; further on still we see something like a snake winding up the face of a hill. It is the Jolly's Pass dray road, and at the foot of it is the Jolly's Pass Hotel. More to the left the buildings at the baths are to be seen, and bv looking over your shoulder Mr Atkinson's Woodbank Station exposes itself to view. You have then seen all the habitations in the glen, with >he exc-piion of the Jack's Prtss Boarding-house, wh ch ia not within the raDge of ordinary visual organs'. We reached THE HOT SPRINGS at about 4 o'clock, but commenced to smell them at about half-past three. They smell vigorously the smell of unhealthy eggs, sicklied over with the perfumes of ancient stable manure. That is about as near as I could go to it, but it isn't it exactly, as sonae other odors give it a lone peculiar to itself. The smell makes a violent attack on your olfactory organs at first, but on better acquaintance you take no notice of it—in fact, you rather like it, Four or five acres of land, perhaps more, around the springs are fenced in, a well-gravelled carriage drive leads up to the bath-house, and grave! walks lead to other placec. The grounds are splendidly kept, and there are several beds of flowers and shrubs there. Inside the gate is a substantial four-roomed cottage, in which the custodian lives. It is also a postofiice. and Mr Stowart, the custodian, is the postmaster, lam glad to have an opportunity of bearing testimony to the civility, courtesy, and kindness of Mr Stewart. He is a thorough gentleman of extremely pleasant manner, and always desirous of doing what he can to make things agreeable and pleasant for the visitors. The place is beautifully kept by him, and I believe that if the Government tried the whole colony they could not find anyone more suitable for the place. I have also to record my thorough appreciation of his man John, wbo assists him at the baths. He is a very pleasant aod agreeable youog man, and is always willing to oblige visitors to the uttermost extent. The sanatorium is in the hands of the Government, and both are paid by the Minister of lands' department, and I hope for the sake of yisitor3, as well as for thair own sakes, they will both continue in their respective positions for a long time. Previous to the Government taking the place under its paternal wiog there were several mud pools there in which people used to bathe. Two of tho pools are surrounded by a high corrugated iron fence, and set apart as swimming baths, and the others are covered over with boards, and pipes take the water from them a distance of about 100 yards or so to a cottage in which are four bath rooms. There are two large pools of hot water, and about half way between them is a pool of cold water, and this enables hot and cold water to be got within the baths. The bath-room cottage is built on a level with the plain around, but the baths (which are like ordinary wooden baths, but much larger) are sunk five or six feet below the surface of the floor, and you go into them by a staircase of a few steps. The place is nearly deud level, and in order to get a fall of water it became necessary to sink into the ground. The bath-room is fitted up with pegs to hang your clothes on, a looking-glass, a comb, aud seats, and when you enter you get a pair of towels from John, who at the same time enters your name in a book and charges you one shilling for a bath, or four shillings for half a dozen of them. A swim ia the open air pool is half price. Once inside the door you can turn the key in the look, and no one will interfere with you for half an hour, which is the limit allowed for bathing. John has already turned on the hot water, and a splendid stream of it is flowing into the bath. Sometimes the water is hotter than ut other times, but if you find it uncomfortably warm you have only to turn on the osld water. The water in the bath is never hot enough to scald you, and it is alleged that no water at the springs will do it. I may say, however, that I am rather doubtful about thai, and would not care to risk it in the largest of the pools that are covered over, The water in this pool boils viciously, and the surface of it ia so hot that you do not care to keep your hand in it longer than a few seconds, Your knowledge of the swimming pool loads you to conclude that it ia bu.iliug hot at tlw bottom of tho pool, h\ the bath, however, you can loguluto the ji

tore (o your liking, and you have only to 'i'3 down in it, ranting your head on a strap placed Rcross it for that purpose and dream. On en Wing the baths ut first you get a shock as you would on entering c< Id water, but after getting inured to it the feding is pleasant, (ill a sensation of oppression comes over you. Steam 13 rising up arouDd you, the smell is strong, the ventilation is very bad, and you begin to count iho seconds ticked by your watch, which is hanging on a nail by your side. After ten minutes you would like to get out, but you know you ought not, and so to kill time you amase yourself by diving your head under water, by trying to float or swim, or by indulging in some other innocent pastime of the kind. means of recreation are rather limited, tijtit if you find yourself getting weak you have only to stand up, turn a cock, and down on you comes a spl'endid Bhower of cold water from a shower bath over head The water which supplies the shower bath is brought down from the side of the mountain through a tunnel into a reservoir, which is about a quarter of a mile away. From this it is brought through pipes into the bathe. The shower bath reiovigorates you, and you can live your time out comfortably. When you decide on leaving the bath pull the plug and let got the water, then take a cold shower, and I'll take my solemu " davy " that after you are dressed, and are breathing the fresh air again, you will feel 20 years younger. The sensation is extremely plensint, and a joyous feeling steals over you that puts you in good temper with yourself and the whota world. When I reached there only four baths were available, but men were employed iu building another cottage of eight rooms. These are about ready by this time, and so henceforth the accommodation wi'l bo excel'ent. Only one of the swimming baths is in use, and this is, shut in by a corrugated iron fence, withT open dressing-rooms inside of it, It is a round poo), having a diameter of about 27 feet, and a rope runs across it, to which one can hold. In nearly the centre of it the water is boiling up violently, and here it is about 7 feet deep, but the greater part of it is only from 3 to 5 feet. When you enter the door it presents to you the appearance of a dirty bluish cesspool, fit only for pigs to wallow in it, and it is not easy to make you beliove that you can coree out of it , clean. Only actual experience can briDg you to beliere that it is really most I cleansifying in its effect, and that you come out of it without a slain on your ! skin. Once you bathe in this it is much against your will that you go into the other baths, but thara is a question which you would like decided concerning the matter. The water in the pool is not hot; it is only warm, and the question is : Is bathing in this as effectual as bathing :in the hotter water 1 ? Some say it is, others say it is not, and as I could not get the matter satisfactorily Bettled I just took a hot bath in the morning and a swim !in the afternoon. With two or tlree companions the half-hour here is the pleasantest time spent during the 24 hours, Swimming, diving, throwing somersaults over the rope, playing tricks on each other, going down to the bottom where the water breaks up, and tho mud would almost scald you, hanging on to the rope with the hot water crawling up on yon, , till you almost fancy myriads of yonofi/ eels are creeping along your skin, the timm, passes quick'y. It is also a nice sensation to be hanging on to the rope, over the deepest part till your michevious companion steals oyer and lets go the rope, and drops you down into the hot mud. All thssa make bathing in the pool most enjoyable, and it is with regret you get out of it when the time is up. The bottom of the pcol is composed of gritty mud, which you can litt up in handsful, but if twenty were in there it would not make the water dirty. jolly's pass hotel. We made only a few minutes delay at the springs, and then continued our journey along the Plains to Mrs Fry's Jolly's Pass Hotel, which we reached at a quarter to 5 o'clock. Intending dsitors will doubtless feel as much interest in the hotel accommodation they are likely to get as in anything ehe, and therefore I shall give a full description of it. The hotel is situated at the foot of a steep hill, and a never failing creek sweeps down by it, rendering tta sanitary position all that could be desired. As you approach it, and it shows itself to you out of the foliage of trees which grow in its vicinity, it makes a very pretty picture, and I can undertake to say you will be better pleased with its internal arrangements, after having became acquainted with them. Part of it is two storeys high, and hai been recently built, and the remainder is one ■torey. Along the whole front runs 36 yards of a verandah—- " With seats beneath the shade For talking ago and whispering lovers made.' 1.

In the new part there ia a spacious well-furnished drawing-room, good enough for the best house in Christchurch, here there is a piano and harmonium!; There is also a comfortable smoking-roora, and a nondescript sanctum, which is chiefly monopolised by the ladies, but is not exclusively theirs. Ac the back is a dining-room capable of seating between. 20 and 30 persons, and for these there are beds, single and double, some down stairs, and some up stairs. All these rooms are completely and entirely at the disposal of the visitors, and the only persons seen about them are the servants who attend to household works. As for the bar it is not to bs seen. One gentleman who had been there a month had never saen the bar, and no one could find it without the assistance of a guide. At the back of the place described there is a long straggling cob building, and hidden ixvrayjn this istbe bar, the most extraordinary placa of the kiod I have ever aeon. The most thorough-going Good Templar can stay at this hotel without ever seeing a bar, or the affects of drink. Mrs Fry is most particular in this respect, and never gives drink to a man who is in any way under it a influence already. A couple of ucjes ; a front of the hotel is enclosed by a S fc\- OD2 fence, and this is nicely kept, AH kinds of fruit are growing there in abundance, and the visitors can go and. help themselves to their heart* content, together with having fruit picked for them and B l aC od for their use on the tables in the various !rT S ; iP 1 ,? hotel i 8 rea "r * kina of Jjjbertj Hal), wuere there. j B not the slightest restrictions placed on the actiono of the visitors, and a pl.easaoter place jk would bo difficult to fi»d. Invariably " very peasant company assemble there.- « IB there the best classes of visitors stay], "and all of thorn i^ A ka themselves quite at

home. It is most extraordinary how readily the most exclusive and frigid thaw under" the influence of the genial and agreeable air which pervades everything there, and pick up acquaintance with those aroncd them. There aro always jokes and fun going on, but pking stops just where there is danger ef unpleasantness beginning, and consequently days »nd wefeks pass by without the slightest jar. It is the nearest approach to bsiog aboard a ship that one can imagine. You see a certain number daily, and no more, unless visitors arrive, and thes;) resort to all manner of means to amuse themselves. There is music and singing, card-playing, > draught-playing, and other ganns, but no gittbling ; "jokes, and repartee go round, and the time passes as merry aa a marriage bell. The baths are over three miles away from the hotel, but Mrs Fry places her horses and buggies at the disposal of the visitors, and they can either drive or ride aa they deem fit. Generally speaking they go in parties. The buggy ia brought to the gate by an ostler at certain hours, and you have only to jump in and drive sway. One baggy leaves at 6.30 a.m., and is back for breakfast at 8.30; another buggy leayes at 10 o'clock, and another at 11 o'clock, all taking passengers to the springs, and no extra charge is nude for these conveyances. Indeed the charges at this hotel are extremely reasonable, being only 6s per day, or £2 2s per week, and this iccludes the use of the homes and buggies, as vrell as first-class hotel accommodation. It is really surprising how readily people form friendships there, and how regretfully they part when the time for parting arrives, All gather to see the departing one off ; there is great haod-shakiag and fervent wishes for a safe journey, end eo

fortb, fall from every lip. On these occasions the Commodore does the bonois—but bought first of all introduce this gentleman. He dresses in white raiment, because the color is a non-conductor of heat, and it keeps the heat of the sun out. Nature, it is said, has supplied the polar bear with a white coat so as to keep the heat in. The Commodore wants to keep the heat out, and the bear to keep the heat in, nnd so the white cont comes in haody in both cases. The Commodore got his title from a party who had left before I arrived there. Thete appointed several state officers for their own good government, including a commissioner ot customs, whose duties were to sit at the middle of the dining table, and not allow certain things' to be passed without paying a heavy duty, for instance, there wete two cruetstandaortthe table, and the commissioner would on no account allow both of theso to g;o to one end of the table at tbe same time without satisfactory reasons being given. Them was also a Chaplain, %md other officers, and the Commodore who presided at the table, and did the honors generally. Genial amiable, kind, and courteous, jocose without boisterously so, and witty without being bitter, the Commode re was the beau ideal of a jolly old bachelor, the darling of the ladies, and the best beloved of all the men. He was an institution in the place, being then running his second month there, and it was with sincere pleasure his friends noticed that h& had completely recovered the use of his limbs, &nd had become >hale and hearty.. I may as well say a word here as regards the curative properties of the baths. There can be no doubt but they will cure rheumatism, skin diseases, and other ailments, but not in a few days. A month at least is necessary, and it is no use for anyone suffering from rheumatism to go there unless he is prepared to stay that length of time. I must now regretfully bid farewell to the Hanmer hot springs and the friends I mot there, and my most fervent desire is to ba able to visit the plac» on some future occasion, and find this hotel tenanted by the same genial, pleasant, and agreeable company. John at the bath owes me half a bath yet, and if ever I can spare the tims I shall take it out. „ J.M.T.