OTAGO IMMIGRATION AGENT.

Thames Star, Volume VI, Issue 1797, 6 October 1874, Page 3

OTAGO IMMIGRATION AGENT.

The following is ; aii;extract from a letter in the Bruce Herald from Mr. James Adam, the special immigration officer for the' Province of Otago in the old country :—. .

. The day I left Laing, I went to Tongu# (Lord Eae'i house long ago, but who sold his estate to the the Duke's father, for £360,000). On the road the coach stopped and picked up an elderly gentleman, who had been angling. On seeing him, I said to him, "Come up beside me, I want some, talk to." The pi* gentleman smiled, and said, "Well, I will do so;" and as we were the only passengers, we talked away about .twenty things during the three hours we were on the coach. Once or twice I wondered at some things and, people he seemed to know; and as he had previously said, " I see you are a public man," I was so persuaded he must be a public man'himself, that I said,'" What is your name please?" "John Bright." "What, I said, the great parliamentarist P " I said that I was glad I did not know him at first, as I should not hare been so free and easy with him; but that I was proud to have been with him on the journey to Tongue, and arranged with him to come down to my lodgings, and I would show him a large number of beautiful photographs of Otago scenery and public buildings. After dinner Mr. Crawford (the factor), and I went up to meet him, and he came and spent the evening with us. I gave him one of my pamphlets, and he said he would come' to Betty hill and hear me lecture, and that he was half afraid I would induce him "to emigrate to New Zealand. He did not think there was any fear of the factor emigrating. We went to the Established Church next day, and Mr. Bright and I sat together, but my ambitious wife and sister occupied Lord Eae's seat with the factor's family, and, as his'lordship is buried below the seat, I could ntit help' thinking that if he had risen for a little and found the ladies' in his pew, he would have turned them out with very little ceremony. Next day, Monday, I got a number of papers, and amongst others a Bruce Herald, with Mr. Bright's speech o^ what: the Liberals had done during the last forty years; I pointed it out to him, and said,.'; You see, sir, the prestige of your name extends to the remote corner of New Zealand, where my family lives;" and his answer was, " Well, New Zealand is a fin* country., and I wonder more people don't go there." On, parting with the great man, he promised to send mo his photo, and hoped I would call on him when I was in LcndoiL I asked him if his health was keeping better, but he admitted that: he i s not what he used to be. He seemed to know well about the public men of Sydney and Melbourne, but I had to give him some idea of Mr. Vogel and others. On showing him a^>hotograph of.tht runs and stations of Mr. Stafford and Sir D..-F. Bell, he asked me'very playfaily " How those gentlemen looked after being knighted?" .-.,.."