Like many other people in the world, I have occasionally built castles
in the air, and equally of course they have invariably tumbled down in
due time with a crash This particular castle however, not only attained
to a great elevation in the visionary builder's eyes, but it covered so
vast an area of land, that the story of its rise and fall deserves to
be placed on record, as a warning to aerial architects and also as a
beacon-light to young colonists.
This was exactly the way it all happened. The new year of 186-found us
living very quietly and happily on a small compact sheep-farm, at the
foot of the Malvern Hills, in the province of Canterbury, New Zealand.
As runs went, its dimensions were small indeed; for we only measured
it at 12,000 acres, all told. The great tidal wave of prosperity, which
sets once in a while towards the shores of all colonies, had that year
swelled and risen to its full force; but this we did not know. Borne
aloft upon its unsubstantial crest we could not, from that giddy height,
discern any water-valleys of adversity or clouds of change and
storm along the shining horizon of the new world around us. All our
calculations were based on the assumption that the existing prices for
sheep, wool, cattle, and all farm-produce, would rule for many a long
day; and the delightful part of this royal road to wealth was, that its
travellers need not exert themselves in any way: they had only to sit
still with folded hands whilst their sheep increased, and it was well
known that a flock doubled itself in three short years. The obvious
deduction from this agreeable numerical fact was, that in an equally
short period your agent's payments to your bank account would also be
doubled. In the meantime the drays were busy carting the wool to the
seaports as fast as they could be loaded, whilst speculative drovers
rode all about the country buying up the fat cattle and wethers from
every run. These were wanted to supply the West Coast Diggings which had
just "broken out" (as the curious phrase goes there), and so was every
description of grain and dairy produce.
We squatters were not the only inhabitants of this fool's paradise. The
local Government began planning extensive works: railways were laid
out in every direction, bridges planned across rivers, which proved
the despair of engineers; whilst a tunnel, the wonder of the Southern
Hemisphere, was commenced through a range of hills lying between Port
Lyttleton and Christchurch. All this work was undertaken on a scale of
pay which made the poor immigrants who thronged to the place by every
ship, rub their eyes and believe they must be dreaming, and that they
would presently wake up and find themselves back again in the old
country, at the old starvation rate of wages. Small capitalists, with
perhaps only one or two hundred pounds in the world, bid against each
other as purchasers of quarter-acre sections in the fast-springing
townships, or of fifty-acre lots of arable land in the projected
suburbs. Subscriptions were raised for building a Cathedral in
Christchurch; but so dear was both labour and material, that 7,000
pounds barely sufficed to lay its foundations.
The paramount anxiety in men's minds seemed to be to secure land.
Sheep-runs in sheltered accessible parts of the country commanded
enormous prices, and were bought in the most complicated way. The first
comers had taken up vast tracts of land in all directions from the
Government, at an almost nominal rental. This had happened quite in
the dark and remote ages of the history of the colony, at least ten
or twelve years before the date of which I write. As speculators with
plenty of hard cash came down from Australia, these original tenants
sold, as it were, the good-will and stock of their run at enormous
prices; but what always seemed to me so hard was, that after you had
paid any number of thousand pounds for your run, you might have to buy
it all, or at any rate, some portion of it, over again. Land could only
be purchased freehold from the Government, for 2 pounds an acre; and if
a "cockatoo" (i.e., a small farmer), or a speculator in mines, fancied
any part of your property, he had only to go to the land office, and
challenge your pre-emptive rights. The officials gave you notice of the
challenge, and six weeks' grace in which to raise the money, and buy it
freehold yourself; but few sheep-farmers could afford to pay a good
many hundred pounds unexpectedly to secure even their best "flats" or
vallies. Hence it often happened that large runs in the most favourable
situations were cut up by small investors, "free selectors" as they are
called in Australia, and it used to be rather absurd the way one grew
to distrust any stranger who was descried riding about the run. The poor
man might be looking for a stray horse, or have lost his way, but we
always fancied he must be "prospecting" for either gold or coals, or
else be a "cockatoo" disguised as a traveller.
Such was the state of things when my story opens. Shearing was just
over, and we knew to a lamb how rapidly our flocks and herds were
increasing. A succession of mild winters and early genial springs had
got the flock into capital order. The wool had all been sent off to
Christchurch by drays, the sheep were turned out on the beautiful green
hills for ten months of perfect rest and peace; whilst the dogs, who
had barked themselves quite hoarse, were enabled to desist from their
labours in mustering and watching the yet unshorn mobs on the vallies.
Although our run was as well grassed and watered as any in the province,
still it could not possibly carry more than a certain number of sheep,
and to that total our returns showed that we were rapidly approaching.
The most careful calculations warned us that by next shearing we should
hardly know what to do with our sheep. It is always better to be under
than overstocked, for the merino gets out of condition immediately, and
even the staple of the wool deteriorates if its wearer be at all crowded
on his feeding-grounds.
"You must take up more country directly," was the invariable formula of
the advice we, comparatively "new chums," received on all sides. This
was easier to say than to do. Turn which ever way we would, far back
beyond our own lovely vallies and green hills, back up to the bleak
region of glaciers, where miles of bush and hundreds of acres of steep
hill-side, formed the _back-est_ of "back country," every inch of land
was taken up. No fear had those distant Squatters of "cockatoos," or
even of miners; for no one came their way who could possibly help it.
Still we should have been comparatively glad to buy such a run fifty or
sixty miles further back,--at the foot, in fact of the great Southern
Alps,--just as a summer feeding-ground for the least valuable portion
of our flock. But no one was inclined to part with a single acre, and we
were forced to turn our eyes in a totally different direction.
If my readers will refer to the accompanying map of New Zealand, and
look at the Middle or South Island, they will notice a long seaboard
on the eastern side of the island, stretching SS.W. for many hundred
leagues. It extends beyond the Province of Canterbury to that of
Otago, and embraces some of the most magnificent pastoral land in the
settlement. Not only is the soil rich and productive, but the climate
is rather less windy than with us in the northern portion of the island;
and the capital of Otago (Dunedin) had risen into comparative position
and importance before Christchurch,--was in short an elder sister of
that pretty little town. Most of the settlers in Otago were Scotchmen,
and as there are no better colonists anywhere, its prosperity had
attained to a very flourishing height. Gold-digging had also broken out
at the foot of the Dunstan range, so that Otago held her head quite as
high, if not higher, than her neighbour Canterbury. Of course all the
first-class pasture-land "down south," as it was called, had been taken
up long before; but we heard rumours of splendid sheep country, yet
unappropriated, far back towards the west coast of Otago, just where its
boundary joined Canterbury.
With our minds in this state of desire for what poor Mazzini used
to denounce as "territorial aggrandisement," we paid our usual
post-shearing visit to Christchurch. F---- had his agent's accounts to
examine, a nice little surplus of wool-money to receive, and many other
squatting interests to attend to; whilst I had to lay in chests of
tea, barrels of sugar and rice, hundreds of yards of candle-wick,
flower-seeds, reels of cotton, and many other miscellaneous articles.
But through all our pleasant, happy little bustle ran the constant
thought: "What shall we do for more country?" A day or two before
the expiration of the week's leave of absence which we always gave
ourselves, F---- came into my sitting-room at the hotel, flung down his
hat on the table with an air of triumph, and cried, "I've heard of such
a splendid run! One hundred thousand acres of beautiful sheep-country,
and going for a mere song!" Now I had lived long enough in the world
to discover that one sometimes danced on the wrong foot to the tune
of these "mere songs," so I cautiously inquired, "Where is it?" F----
seemed a little dashed that the only question which he could not answer
favourably should be the first I asked, and he replied vaguely, "Well,
it is rather a long way off, but I am sure we can manage it." A
little more sifting elicited the fact that this "desirable investment"
stretched along the shores of Lake Wanaka, famous for its beautiful
scenery, and was to be had for what certainly seemed a ridiculously
small sum;--only a few hundred pounds. "Of course it has no sheep on
it," added F----; "but that is all the better. I'll burn it this year,
and then turn some cattle on it, and after next shearing we'll have a
good mob of sheep to draft out and stock it." He further added, that
he had invited his man of business and the individual who owned this
magnificent property to dine with us that evening, and that then I
should hear all about it And I may truly say that I _did_ hear about
it, for my brain reeled with figures and calculations. By bedtime I was
wondering if we could possibly spend the enormous fortune which would
be quite certain to accrue to us in a few years if only we could make up
our minds to invest the modest balance at our bankers in this tempting
bargain. I remember well that I found myself wishing we were not going
to be _quite_ so rich; half our promised income would have been ample, I
thought. My anxieties on that score turned out to have been, to say the
least, premature.
Not to make my story too long, I may briefly say that after making due
allowance for the natural exaggeration of the owner, the run on Lake
Wanaka's shores seemed certainly to offer many attractions. Besides
thousands of acres of beautiful sheltered sheep country, it was said to
possess a magnificent bush, in which sawyers were already hard at work.
Of course all this timber would become our own, and we were to make
so much a year by selling it. "How about the carriage?" inquired F----
cautiously, having visions of costly bullock-drays, and teams and
drivers at fabulous wages. "Oh, the lake is your highway," replied the
would-be seller, airily; "you have nothing to do but lash your felled
trees together, as they do in the mahogany-growing countries, and set
them afloat on the lake, they will thus form a natural raft, and cost
you little or nothing to get down to a good market. You know the Dunstan
diggings are just at the foot of the lake, and they haven't a stick
there; timber is very badly wanted in those parts, not only for fuel and
building, but also for slabbing the shafts which the miners sink."
By the time the coffee was served F---- had made up his mind to buy the
Lake Wanaka run; his business agent urging him strongly not to hesitate
for a moment in securing such a chance. The negotiations reached thus
far without the least hitch, but at this point F----said, "Well, I'll
tell you what I'll do: we will start in a day or two and go straight up
to this run and look round it, and if I find it anything like so good as
you both make it out, I'll buy it on the spot."
Never did that sociable little word "we" sound so delightful to my ears!
"Then I am to come too," I thought to myself, but I prudently concealed
from the company that I had ever had any misgivings on that point.
However, the company did not concern themselves with my doubts
and fears, for our two guests seemed much taken aback at this very
matter-of-fact proposal of F----'s. "That won't do at all, my dear
fellow," said the owner of the run; "I am going to England by the
next mail steamer, which you know sails next week, and the reason I am
literally giving away my property is that I don't want any suspense or
bother. Take it or leave it, just as you like. There's Wilkinson and
Fairwright and a lot of others all clamouring for the refusal of it,
and I've only waited to see if you really wanted it before closing with
Fairwright. He is walking about with a cheque all ready filled up in his
pocket, and only begging and praying me to let him have the run on my
own terms. Why you might be weather-bound or kept there for a month,
and what shall I do then? No, its all just as I've told you, and you can
call it your own to-morrow, but I can't possibly wait for you to go and
look at it." No words of mine can give any idea of the tone of scorn in
which our guest pronounced these last three words; as if looking at an
intended purchase was at once the meanest and most absurd thing in-the
world. F---- seemed half ashamed of himself for his proposal, but still
he urged that he never liked to take a leap in the dark, backing up his
opinion by several world-revered adages. "That's all very fine," chimed
in our precious business adviser," but this transaction can hardly be
said to be in the dark; here are the plans and the Government lease and
the transfer deeds, all regular and ready." With this he produced the
plans, and then it was all up with us. Who does not know the peculiar
_smell_ of tracing-paper, with its suggestions of ownership? When
these fresh and crackling drawings were opened before us they resembled
nothing so much as a veritable paradise. There shone the lake--a
brilliant patch of cobalt blue, bordered by outlines of vivid green
pasture and belts of timber. Here and there, on the outskirts, we read
the words, "proposed township," "building lots," "probable gold fields,"
"saw mills." F---- laid his hand down over a large wash of light green
paint and asked," Now what sort of country is this; really and truly,
you know?" "First class sheep country, I give you my word," replied the
owner eagerly, "only wants to be stocked for a year or two."
Why need I go on? It was the old, old story of misplaced confidence.
Neither F---- nor I could believe that our friends would wilfully
over-reach us, so it was settled that the first thing next morning the
money should be handed over and the Government lease transferred to us.
We decided that as we were so far on the way to our new property, we
would go and look at it before returning to the Malvern Hills, and
the next few days were very busy ones, as we had to arrange our small
domestic affairs, send up the dray, etc., etc. I felt rather anxious at
the postponement of our return home, for I had left several "clutches"
of eggs on the point of being hatched, and I had grave misgivings as to
the care my expected ducklings and chickens would receive at the lands
of my scatter-brained maid servants, to say nothing of the dangers
besetting them from hawks and rats. However, small interests must give
way to great ones, and F---- and I were already tasting the cares of
proprietorship. Our friend, the former owner of our new property, sailed
for England in the mail steamer, in high spirits, saying cordially as he
shook F----'s hand at parting, "Well you _have_ got your fortune cut out
for you, and no mistake; I feel half sorry already to think that I've
parted with that run." About two days after his departure, F---- who had
registered his name at the land office as the present tenant of 100,000
acres in the Lake Wanaka district, received a polite request from
official quarters to pay up the annual rent, just due, amounting to 100
pounds or so. We had effected our brilliant negotiations about a week
too soon it seemed, but that was our own fault, so we had nothing to
do but pay the money with as good a grace as possible. I am "free to
confess" that this second cheque ran our banker's account very fine
indeed, but still in those palmy days of the past this was no subject of
uneasiness to a squatter. His credit was almost unlimited, and he could
always raise as much money as he liked on an hypothecation of
next year's wool. But we had not come to that yet. The weather was
delightful; the customary week of heavy rain just after our midsummer
Christmas, had cooled the air and laid the dust, besides bringing out a
fresh spring-like green tint over the willows and poplars, and causing
even the leaves of the gums to lose their leather-like look for a few
days.
After much consultation we decided to go by coach as far as Timaru, and
then trust to circumstances to decide our future means of transport. Not
only were we obliged to pay a large sum for our places but our luggage
was charged for by the pound, so we found it necessary to reduce our
kit to the most modest dimensions, and only to take what was absolutely
necessary. The journey was a long and weary one, the only variety being
caused by a strong spice of danger at each river. At some streams we
were transferred bodily to a large raft-like ferry boat, and so taken
across. At others the passengers and luggage only were put into the
boat, the lumbering coach with its leathern springs left behind, whilst
the horses swam in our wake across the wide and rushing river, to
be re-harnessed to another coach on the opposite shore. The Rakaia,
Ashburton, and Rangitata had been crossed in this way, and we had
reached the Otaio, a smaller river, when we found a new mode of
transport awaiting us. A large dray with a couple of powerful horses was
in readiness, and into this springless vehicle we were unceremoniously
bundled. The empty coach and horses was driven over at another part of
the stream. I shall never forget the jolting: the river must have been
at least a quarter of a mile wide at that reach, and over its bed of
boulders and rocks we bumped In the middle stretched a long strip of
shingle, which seemed as smooth as turf by contrast with the first
half of the river-bed. When we charged into the water again our driver
removed his pipe from his mouth, looked over his shoulder and remarked,
"River's come down since mornin'; best tuck up your feet, marms all." I
can answer for this "marm" tucking up her feet with great agility, and
not a moment too soon either, for as a light wind was blowing, a playful
wave came rippling over and through the planked floor of the dray,
floating all the smaller parcels about. But no one could speak, we were
so jolted: it literally seemed as if our spines _must_ come through the
crown of our heads, and I expected all my teeth to tumble out.
In the midst of my fright and suffering, a laugh was jolted out of me
by the absurd behaviour of one of our fellow-passengers. He was what is
called a bush carpenter: i.e., a wandering carpenter, who travels from
station to station, doing any little odd rough jobs wanted. This man had
been working for us some time before, and had often amused me with his
quaint ways. On this occasion he was on his oppressively good behaviour,
and sat quite silent and solemn on the opposite ledge of the dray.
But when for the second time the water came swirling through our rude
conveyance with a force which threatened to upset it altogether, Dale
fumbled in his pocket, as if he were seeking for a life-belt, produced
an enormous pair of green goggle spectacles, which might have made part
of Moses Primrose's purchases at the fair, and adjusting them on his
nose as steadily as he could, said gravely, "This must be looked to!"
He continued to stare at the wash of water during the remainder of our
perilous and rough transit without vouchsafing any explanation of his
meaning, but after we had safely landed he replaced his spectacles,
first in their huge shagreen case, and next in his pocket, with an air
which seemed to say, "The danger is now over: thanks to my precautions."
Timaru was reached very late, and the best accommodation at the inn
placed at our disposal. Still, in those distant days there was no such
thing as a private sitting room, and we had all to eat our supper in the
same rough-boarded little apartment. But in all my varied wanderings in
different parts of the world, when the accidents of travel have thrown
me for a time among the class whom we foolishly speak of as the lower
orders, I have never yet had to complain of the slightest inconvenience
or disagreeableness from my fellow-travellers. On the contrary, I have
always received the most chivalrous politeness at their hands, and have
noticed how ready they were to forego their usual tastes and habits lest
they should cause me any annoyance. I wonder whether fine gentlemen in
their splendid clubs would be quite so willing to spoil the pleasure of
their evening if any accident were to throw an unwelcome lady amongst
them? At all events, they could not be _more_ self-sacrificing than my
friends in fustian jackets have always proved themselves, and on this
particular evening the landlord of the inn was so amazed at the orders
for tea and coffee instead of the usual "nips" of spirits, that he was
constrained to inquire the reason. A stalwart drover who was sitting
opposite to me at the rude table, murmured from the depths of his
great beard, in an oracular whisper, "The smell of speerits might'nt be
agreeble like to the lady." In vain I protested that I did not mind it
in the least; tea and coffee was the order of the evening, and solemn
silence and good behaviour. No smoking, no songs, no conviviality of
any sort. I would fain have shown my appreciation of their courtesy by
talking to them; but alas, I was one vast ache all over! Although the
road had been a dead level, sixteen hours of jolting and bumping had
reduced me to a limp, black-and-blue creature, with out a word or a
smile. Of course I retired to what was literally a pallet, and a very
hard pallet too, as early as possible, but even after I had vanished
behind the thin wooden partition which formed my bedroom, the greatest
silence and decorum continued to reign among my fellow-travellers.