NEW CALEDONIA.

Tuapeka Times, Volume II, Issue 95, 4 December 1869, Page 5

NEW CALEDONIA.

The following description of New Caledonia lias been kindly furnished us by a gentleman who has recently returned from that place, and is now residing in Tuapeka ;W Being favourably impressed with the which from time to time I read in the newspapers, I determined to visit New Caledonia, and see for myself whether a person with a small capital might lease or purchase a few lnmdred acres of land there, and settle upon it with more advantage to himself than he could in .Australia or New Zealand. Happening at that time to 1)3 in Sydney, from which place vessels frequency sail for New Caledonia, I embarked on board the Young Australian on the 27th of February last, and made the coast, spine forty or fifty miles north of thY : Caledonian Lighthouse. The lighthouse is situated at one of the inlets, and was built by some of th,e French pris.on.erf. It; can be seen from a. gpeat* distance at sea, and when approached shows all the appearance of a substantial stone building. There is a coral reef extends all round the island, and in this respect it bears a close resemblance fa the Fijis. About twenty miles up the harbour £rom the Lighthouse is. situated the township of Noumea, anil in sailing' to it several islands, covered with beautiful green grass and bush, are passed. We cast anchor about a quarter of a mile from the township, voyage having occupied seventeen days. From eight to twelve days is an, average passage, but we had a head-wind the greater part of the way, which accounts for the protracted voyage. The Young Australian was the first vessel, which had been taken alongside the jetty. This jetty, which' is the only one at Noumea, like all the public buildings, was constructed by convict labour. The township is situated on the ri3& of a hill. An esplanade faces the harbour, on which are several hotels and a large store ; to the right are the soldiers', barracks, and to the left the port office and the post office. The hotels and public buildings are chiefly built of wood, although there are several built of brick and stone. Limestone is abundant in the island, and is of excellent quality. The Governor's hpuse, though, itself' rather a mean building, is surrounded with palatial grounds, in which the cocpanut, orange, and plantain trees flourish in their indigenous soil Many other tropical fruits grow there in equal luxuriance. In Noumea, and in fact all over the island, the English language is pretty generally spoken, as well as tie French. 1 stayed at the Sebastapol Hotel, kept by Mrs. Marshall, an old ' Irish lady. The hotel was managed by her two (daughters, and the general work was done by natives. One thing which especially attracted my attention on arriving was that the streets in some places were nearly covered with large brown insects, which the people called sauterelles, and which I afterwards learned were locusts in their primitive | state ; they leaped about on the ! ground like grasshoppers. The French appear to have no object in retaining New Caledonia other than that of having a secure place for their con-, victs. Large gangs of these prisoners were employed on various public works about the town, such as reclaiming ground from the harbour and forming the streets. I was informed that upwards of 2000 of these prisoners are kept on an island about a mile from the town, on the opposite side of the harbour, from which place they are brought over in the morning on large punts, which carry three or four hundred aj a time, and taken back in, the evening by the same means, under a sufficient guard of soldiers. My object in paying a visit to New Caledonia was to acquire a piece of land, and settle there, as la,nd can be had on very favourable terms, and is extremely productive — so much so that two or three crops of maize, can be grown in one year. On enquiring at the land ofiice as to what land was open for occupation, I was informed that there was a considerable district named Boulogne Paris open for occupation. The chief surveyor was very obliging in giving me every information as to the quality of the land, and the terms under which it could be held. The usual way in which it is granted is in leases of five years, at the rate of 1£ franc per hectare, which is equal to 2£ English acres, or 6d. per acre per ' annum — the lessee having the preemptiye right to purchase during his term of lease at 25 francs per hectare, equal to Bs. per acre. There are j numerous other districts unoccupied, but as I had several acquaintance* in this district, I thought I would give it the preference. On making enquiry, Itfound the best mode of getting to Boulogne Paris, which was about 50 miles distant from Noumea, was by Jamie the Chinaman's Boat, a vessel of from four to five tons burthen. There is, however, a goflsl r t oad overland to Boulogne Paris for saddle horses. After waiting a day or two at Mrs. Marshall's, I. saw Jamie the Ghinaxnan, with whom I arranged for a passage by big vessel to and from Boulogne faris, for the sum of 20s. I started at seven in the .morning, and stayed at Jamie's farm, where he. landed a portion of his cargo *for settlers in the neighbourhood. . In passing, I may mention that Jamie has been settled there upwardi of ten yearg^ him &-

(Canaque) native wife' and three children, two of who,m are boarded with the French schoolmaster at Patea, some eight or ten miles from his home, and nearer Noumea. I spent the day and night at his house. He employs a man named Smith, who keeps his accounts and acts as overseer ; he also has a bullock driver. Jamie is also the proprietor of two small islands, on one of which he has sheep, and on the other goats. On the following morning I embarked again, after having performed the half of my journey, and reached Boulogne Paris about midday, where a river empties itself into the sea by two branches. On entering the river, the heavens assumed a forboding appearance, and I thought a thunder storm was pending, and was surprised beyond measure to find that I the cause was attributable to a cloud of locusts, each about the size of a large butterfly ; they rose from the bushes as we approached. On landing and proceeding on the tract to Mr. Walker's, the nearest settler, the ground was literally covered with locusts in several stages of development. Mr. Walker received me with the greatest hospitality; and what first struck me in his house was ail old nail tin filled with dried cow-dung, and burning, which, on making enquiry, I ..was informed was used for the purpose of smoking the mosquitoes out. It is feept constantly burning whilst sitting in the room, but has only a partial effect in keeping these vermin away. After waiting a short time at Mr. Walker's, one of the natives from Mr. Grilles' plantation, who happened to be at Mr. Walker's, showed me the way to Mr. Gillies' residence ; and on arriving at his place, I found him in bed, protected by his mosquito curtain, suffering from a swelling of the thumb, winch afterwards turned out to be whitlow. Shortly after my arrival there, one of his convict servants brought in three wild ducks which he had shot. Mr. Grillies, who had been about two years in Boulogne Paris, lias with great enterprise tried cotton growing, and has about fifty acres planted. He was just beginning to pick it on my visit, and for that purpose he employed about a dozen Canaques, who work at a merely nominal wage of £5 or £6 per annum, and their rations,, which consist of cumeroes, or sweet potatoes, twice a day, and rjce once a day. Eeferring to the natives, I may state that I was amused to see them carrying small twiggs of young trees ; these they use for keeping away mosquitoes, which seemed to be the plague of the natives as well as of the Europeans. While dilating on the discomfort of both native and European, I may as well, inform you of tfie frightful annoyance to which I myself was subjected during my visit. In Noumea I was slightly troubled with these vermin during the day, they being scaccely visible ; but in the country I was infested with them at all times, and the only way in whjeh I could get nid of them was by a plunge in the river. I was surprisedto see the settlers in the country wearing long knee-boots ; but" on being infqrmed that it was to protect the legs from the mosquitoes, I saw the force of it — I may say I felt the force of it, as my legs were severely bitten, and looked like raw flesh. These insects sting through trousers and everything, and there is no escaping them. Being dosirous of viewing the land open for occupation, Mr. Grillies, to whom I had a letter of introduction from the chief surveyor, kindly accompanied me to the camp of the gens d'arme, and the Marshal de Loger, the officer- in charge qf the gens d'armes, went with me to show me the ground, and I saw a piece of about 500 or 600 acres, with a river running by one side of it, which I thought would suit me. The ground is inter-: spersed with bush ; but the latter is so thinly scattered that it does not interfere with cultivation. Eeturning to Mr. Grillies, where I remained for a few days, I found the locusts were just settling on a field of maize, which had been planted some six or seven weeks previously, and was at the time about sk^ feet high, and was likely to be completely destroyed in a day or two The other settlers, with the exception of Mr. Grillies, have hitherto | been growing maize, which the locusts have devoured. Mr. G-illies is, however* the only one who has, attempted to grow, cotton, and this fortunately the locusts do not touch. With the fever caused by the continued irritation from the musquitoes, and the dismal prospect of raising crops in the face of plague No. 2, namely, the locusts, I was extremely dubious of making a venture in New Caledonia ; and I was informed by parties who had been resident there for some yeacs that they could not sit down to read a.book or write a letter without retiring to bed inside their musquito-curtain ; and ladies, when they require to do needlework, must resort to the same meal sure. I might mention that IVench [ settlers appear, to. make little or no progress there ; if- they have a good garden and all the means at hand of a plain subsistence, they seem to have no ambition to make further .progress, and consequently the (3-ovenunenfc are very desirous of introducing English settlers, and furnishing them,, with seeds and plants, as also books of instruction for.the growing of the. variour products suitable for the . climate, such as sugar, cotton, coffee, &c, of which I saw copies of each. v They have a model farm about twelve milea

from Noumea, where every information is given as to growing suitable articles that can be produced in the place. Agricultural implements may be borrowed of the Government for a time, if not in use. The Canaques, although to be had at such a low rate of wages, are not to be depended upon, as they are apt to leave at a time when most required ; but the Government get natives from the island of Tanna, of the New Hebrides group, who are hired out for periods of from three to five years, at a rate a little higher than the natives. Convicts can also be had from the Government, at a rate about double that of the natives — say £12 yearly, besides rations ; and some of them are very useful, and, from all appearances, good and useful on a plantation. There is only one butcher in Noumea, who contracts with the Government in supplying the convicts and troops with meat, and then sells to the inhabitants at the rate of lOd. per lb. This is occasioned from the climate being such that a, beast killed in the morning must be consumed the same day. The price of bread is very triga — lOd. for a 2flb. loaf, and of inferior quality. There are no Customs duty or taxes of any description. After returning to Noumea, I had fully made up my mind, notwithstanding the marjy advantages offered by New Caledonia, and the many inducements held out by my friends, that I would not settle there; and I therefore took passage by the Colonist and returned to. Sydney, after a passage of eight days. I may mention that there are frequently vessels going to and from Auckland and New Caledonia, and that one of them arrived during my stay, after a passage of twelve days.

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