CANNIBAL BLACKS--MELBOURNE AND ITS PECULIARITIES.
"I have heard," said one of the youths, "that Australian blacks are
cannibals. I wonder if that is really so?"
"Perhaps all the tribes in the country are not cannibals, but it is
pretty certain that some of them are. They know that the white man is
prejudiced against eating human flesh, and consequently they conceal
very carefully their performances in this line. In former times they
were not so particular, and there was the most positive proof that they
devoured their enemies killed in battle, and also killed and devoured
some of their own people. They were not such epicures in cannibalism as
the inhabitants of the Feejee Islands formerly were, and did not make as
much ceremony as the Feejeeans over their feasts of human flesh. Some of
the tribes that indulged in the practise have given it up, but the
belief is that those in the interior still adhere to it."
"What do they live upon when they do not eat human flesh?" queried Ned.
"As to that," was the reply, "they live upon pretty nearly everything
they can lay their hands on. They hunt the kangaroo and are fond of its
flesh, and they are also fond of the flesh of cattle and sheep. In fact,
they commit a good many depredations upon the flocks and herds. They
eat snakes, lizards, toads, and, in fact, anything that lives and moves,
and they are not at all particular about the condition of the meat when
they eat it. It is all the same to them whether it is fresh or putrid. A
man would need have a very strong stomach to accept an invitation to
take dinner with a family of uncivilized blacks, or even with one that
had become civilized."
While this conversation was going on the train was speeding on its way,
and Harry observed that the houses were becoming more numerous, and the
country more densely occupied, as they came nearer to Melbourne.
Occasionally they caught sight of a house which looked like a
gentleman's residence rather than like an ordinary farmhouse, and he
called attention to the circumstance.
"We are approaching Melbourne," said their traveling companion, "and
from this point on you will find a good many country seats of gentlemen
who do business in the city. It is cooler here in summer than in
Melbourne, and a great many people have established their summer homes
in this region. It is so much the fashion, that it has become obligatory
for the well-to-do citizen to have a town residence and a country one,
and his establishment is considered incomplete unless he possesses both.
A good many people occupy their country homes for the greater part of
the year, going back and forth by railway according to the requirements
of their business. It is the same in New York, London, and other great
cities all over the world. Melbourne considers itself just as important
as any other city, and I believe it claims to be the tenth city of the
world in point of population."
Ned asked what the population of the city was.
To this the gentleman replied that he did not have the exact figures at
hand, but he believed the last census gave the number of inhabitants as
very nearly half a million. "Including the suburbs," said he, "I think
it is fully that, and if it had not been for the dullness of business
for the last two or three years, caused very largely by the labor
strikes and other disturbances of trade, I think we would now exceed the
half million figure."
While he was saying this, Ned called attention to a large house on a
little eminence about half a mile away, which resembled a palace more
than it did a private dwelling. As Ned pointed towards it and told Harry
to look in that direction, the gentleman said:--
"That house was built ten or twelve years ago by a millionaire merchant
of Melbourne. He spent a great deal of money upon it, being determined
to have the finest house in the country. About the time of its
completion he met with heavy losses in business, and was unable to carry
out his plans concerning the grounds around the building. It was his
original intention to have a park, in which he would enclose specimens
of all the animals of Australia, and an artificial lake, with specimens
of all the fishes of the country. He has never carried out this part of
the scheme, but declares that he will do so whenever his wealth returns
to him."
"A very good scheme, indeed," said one of the youths, "and I hope the
gentleman will be able to carry it out."
"Yes; and I hope so, too," was the reply. "The place would be made
interesting if he should do so, but, after all, you can see the same
thing in the parks of the principal cities of Australia. Each has, I
believe, collections of the animals of the country, together with many
animals of other countries, and any one is at full liberty to go and see
them."
Houses became more numerous, and towns and villages made their
appearance as the train went along. Harry observed that in some of the
towns which they passed through there were imposing buildings, which
seemed rather out of proportion to the number of dwelling-houses.
Their impromptu guide explained that this was the outgrowth of
Australian politics. "Every town in Australia," said he, "is desirous of
having some of the public money spent within its limits. It wants a
courthouse, jail, or some other public edifice, and in order to secure
his election to the legislature, a candidate is compelled to promise
that he will obtain the desired appropriation. These appropriations are
secured by what you call in America 'logrolling.' That is, Smith of one
town makes an arrangement with Brown, Jones, Robinson, and I don't know
how many others of as many other towns that he will vote for their
appropriations, provided they will vote for his. In this way a town of
five hundred inhabitants gets a courthouse and jail large enough for a
population of five thousand, or perhaps twice that number. A great deal
of government money has been wasted in this way, but there is no help
for it as long as human nature remains as it is."
This led to a little talk on Australian politics, in which the youths
learned that the people were divided into parties very much as in
England and the United States, and their quarrels were just as fierce.
The party in power is always bitterly denounced by the party out of
power, and the outs can always demonstrate how much better they could
manage public affairs than the ins are doing it. The great questions
usually before the people are the tariff and public improvements, and
the fiercest fights are usually those concerning the tariff.
Protectionists and free traders are just as skillful and just as earnest
as the same parties in the United States, and each can demonstrate
mathematically how much better its own system is than that of the other
side. The colonies are themselves divided on the subject of tariff, all
of them favoring protection with the exception of New South Wales, where
the free traders are in the majority.
There has been a great deal of talk about a federation of the colonies,
but the stumbling-block in the way of it is the difference in the
colonial tariff. Federation would have been brought about years ago had
it not been for New South Wales and its free trade policy.
Ned and Harry started to take some notes on the subject of the tariff,
but the doctor reminded them that they had better leave the subject
alone, as it was a dangerous one to touch. Consequently they have not
given us the benefit of their notes upon it, and we are unable to say
what conclusion they reached.
At its appointed time the train reached Melbourne, and our friends found
themselves in the spacious station of the railway company.
As soon as they could get their baggage, our friends proceeded to a
hotel which had been recommended to them, and which they found quite
satisfactory. After securing rooms they went out for a stroll, having
been advised to take a promenade along Collins Street. Harry said he was
sure that the street had been named after somebody who was prominent in
the early history of the colony, at least, he felt that such was the
case if Melbourne had followed the example of Adelaide.
"Melbourne was founded before Adelaide was," said Dr. Whitney, "as the
first settlement was made here in 1835, a year before the first
settlement was made in Adelaide; but, all the same, your theory is
correct. Collins Street was named after Colonel Collins, who established
a convict settlement in this vicinity as far back as 1803, but for some
reason he gave it up a year or two later, and transferred his convicts
and their guards to Tasmania."
"The next street parallel to this," said Ned, "is Bourke Street. I
wonder who Bourke was?"
"Bourke was the governor of the colony in 1836," the doctor replied,
"and that is why he was honored with a street."
"We know about Captain Flinders," said Harry, "after whom Flinders
Street was named. He was a daring explorer who accompanied Captain Bass
when the latter discovered Bass's Strait, that separates Australia from
Tasmania. There is also a range of mountains named after him."
"Captain Lonsdale, who was in command of some of the troops at the time
that the city was laid out," said the doctor, "was honored with a
street, and Swanston Street commemorates one of the early settlers. Then
there are King Street, Queen Street, William Street, Elizabeth Street,
which explain themselves, as they indicate the feelings of the early
settlers towards the royal family."
"This street is certainly as attractive to the eye as Broadway or Fifth
Avenue in New York," Ned remarked, as they strolled slowly along Collins
Street. "See these magnificent buildings. You have only to shut your
eyes and imagine yourself on Broadway, and when you open them again the
illusion does not require a great stretch of the imagination. And all
this has grown up since 1835. Just think of it!"
"Yes," replied the doctor; "it was about the middle of 1835 that one
John Batman came here with a small sailing vessel, and made a bargain
with the chief of the tribe of blacks then occupying this neighborhood,
by which he purchased about twelve hundred square miles of ground for a
quantity of goods worth, perhaps, one hundred dollars."
"That beats the purchase of Manhattan Island for twenty-four dollars,"
remarked Harry as the doctor paused.
"Yes, it does," was the reply; "the government afterwards repudiated
Batman's trade, and took possession of the ground he had purchased."
"A pretty mean piece of business, wasn't it?" queried Harry.
"As to that," said the doctor, "there are arguments on both sides of the
question. Batman felt that he had been unfairly dealt with, although the
government paid him about thirty-five thousand dollars for his claim. At
the time they paid the money to him the land was worth very much more
than that amount."
"Did he stay here and go to building a city at once?" queried one of
the youths.
"No; he went back to Tasmania, whence he had come, in order to get a
fresh supply of provisions, and while he was gone John Fawkner came here
with a schooner called the _Enterprise_, and made a settlement. His
party consisted, if we may include the quadrupeds, of five men, two
pigs, one cat, two horses, and three dogs. When Batman came back he was
very angry, and as long as both the men lived there was a bitter quarrel
between them which threatened several times to result in a shooting
affray. Batman died in 1839; his heirs and partners took up the quarrel,
and traces of it are said to exist to the present day. The people of
Melbourne have erected a monument to Batman's memory, but Fawkner is
generally regarded as the founder of Melbourne, as he made the first
permanent settlement, and the colony may properly be considered to have
begun on the date of his arrival."
When the conversation had reached this point, the party found themselves
at the corner of Elizabeth Street, which intersects Collins Street at
right angles.
"You observe," said the doctor, "that this street, Elizabeth, is the
dividing line of the city. That is to say, from it the streets are
called east and west just as they are so called in New York. At Fifth
Avenue, East Forty-second Street and West Forty-second Street begin. In
the same way we have here Collins Street, East, and Collins Street,
West; Bourke Street, East, and Bourke Street, West; and so on through
the whole list. They put the word designating the point of compass after
the name of the street, while in New York we do just the opposite."
"Oh, yes, I see," Harry remarked, with a twinkle in his eye. "Melbourne
is on the other side of the world from New York, and so they name the
streets in the reverse manner. So, then, there is another proof that
Australia is a land of contradictions."
Ned laughed, and made no reply other than to ask if the great number of
deaths that occurred here during the gold excitement had any allusion to
the name of the city. Harry looked at him with a puzzled expression, and
asked what he meant.
"Why, I was thinking," said Ned, "that possibly Melbourne might have
been 'the bourne whence no traveler returns,' mentioned by Shakespeare."
"Oh, that is old," said the doctor; "and while you are on this subject,
I will inform you that the city obtained its name from Lord Melbourne,
who was Prime Minister of Great Britain at the time that the place was
laid out."
"The surveyor who laid out the city," remarked Harry, "had a 'level'
head, as well as a leveling one. See what wide streets he gave it."
"Yes, that is so," replied Ned. "They must be one hundred feet wide, at
least that is what I would guess."
"You guessed very closely," said the doctor, "as they are ninety-nine
feet (one chain and a half) wide, and the tradition is that Melbourne
was laid out by an American surveyor. The city, as originally planned,
was one mile square, but it has received numerous additions, so that it
now covers a great deal more than a square mile. It really occupies,
with its suburbs, an area of nearly one hundred square miles, and every
year sees a new suburb added. Of course, when population is mentioned,
the whole of the suburbs should be included, and the inhabitants claim,
with a great deal of reason, that within a radius of ten miles from the
city hall, there are fully four hundred thousand people residing."
"That is certainly a very rapid growth," said one of the youths. "All
that population since 1835! It is the most rapid growth of any city that
I know of, is it not?"
"Yes, I think it is," replied the doctor. "Neither San Francisco nor
Chicago can show a growth equal to that of Melbourne in the first fifty
years of its existence. Chicago is now a much larger city, but fifty
years from its foundation it could not boast of as many inhabitants as
could Melbourne when it was half a century old."
To the eyes of our young friends Melbourne presented a very busy
appearance. Cabs and carriages were rushing hither and thither. Crowds
of people were on the sidewalks, and other crowds filled the tram-cars
and omnibuses. Harry observed that Melbourne was sufficiently up with
the times to be provided with electric cars, and that she also had cable
lines, as well as the more primitive street cars. It was near the close
of the afternoon, when the great majority of the population are seeking
their homes, and the scene of busy life reminded the youths of lower
Broadway, near the end of the day in New York.
The doctor explained that a very large part of the working population
resembled the well-to-do portion, by having their homes in the suburbs,
and, consequently, that a great many people required transportation.
Hence the rush for the tram-cars and other public means of travel on the
part of the great mass of the public, while those with better-lined
purses patronized the cabs and carriages. Cab fares are high, being
about one third more than in London, but not so high as in New York. In
the days of the gold rush the most ordinary carriages could not be hired
for less than fifteen dollars a day, and five dollars was the price for
an hour or two.
There is a story in circulation that a gold miner was once bargaining
for a carriage for which the driver demanded twelve pounds (sixty
dollars) for a day's hire. The miner said he would not pay it: he handed
a ten-pound note to the driver, and said he must be satisfied with that.
The driver assented, and there was no further discussion on the subject.
Prices of all sorts of things throughout Melbourne are somewhat above
London figures, but they have been established a long time and nobody
complains of them.
Our friends continued their walk to the Yarra River, up whose waters
Batman and Fawkner sailed when they came here to found the city. Its
native name is Yarra-Yarra, but the double word is rarely used by the
inhabitants of Melbourne in speaking of the stream. Of itself, it is not
a river of much consequence, as originally all but very small vessels
had difficulty in ascending it. It has been dredged and deepened, so
that craft drawing not more than sixteen feet of water can ascend it to
Prince's Bridge, the spot where our friends reached the stream. Vessels
requiring more water than that must remain at Fort Melbourne, about
three miles further down. There are several other bridges crossing the
river at different points. Near Prince's Bridge our friends saw several
passenger steamers crowded with people, on their way to their homes down
the bay.
On their return towards the hotel our friends loitered among the shops,
and especially among those in what are called the Arcades, of which
there are four, modeled after the Arcades of London and the "Passages"
of Paris. They are delightful places to lounge in, whether one is in
search of purchases or not, and the three strangers were in no hurry to
get through them.
One of the arcades is known as the Book Arcade, and the shops inside of
it are almost wholly devoted to the sale of books. Harry remarked that
he judged the Melbourne people to be a reading one, otherwise there
would not be so much space devoted to the sale of books. The youths had
a brief conversation with one of the proprietors, who told them that it
was one of the largest book stores in the world, in fact, he did not
know of any other as large as that. "We can give you anything you want,"
said he; "everything is so arranged that we know just where to lay our
hands on any book that a customer wants."
Melbourne is a great source of supply for all the interior of Victoria.
In the wholesale shops there were great quantities of goods intended for
up-country use. "There were," said Harry, "tons and tons of clothing
destined for the mines or for sheep and cattle runs, and great
quantities of tea, sugar, and other provisions, together with saddlery,
harnesses, and ironmongery in great quantity and variety."
"We observed," wrote Ned, "that between every two wide streets there is
a narrow street running in the same direction. I believe you will find
the same arrangement in many parts of Philadelphia, and also in the new
part of Boston. The original intention of the surveyor was that these
small streets should be used as back entrances for the buildings on the
larger ones, but this intention has not been carried out in the
development of the city. Formerly these narrow streets took the name of
the wide ones, with the prefix 'Little'; for example, the one between
Collins and Bourke Street being known as Little Collins Street. Most of
them are now called lanes, and are spoken of as Collins Lane, Latrobe
Lane, and the like, and many of them are devoted to special lines of
trade. Flinders Lane, between Flinders and Collins Streets, is the
principal locality of the wholesale dealers in clothing, and Bourke Lane
is largely occupied by Chinese. We are told that the renting prices of
stores along these lanes are very high, probably greater than either
Batman or Fawkner ever dreamed they could be in their wildest moments.
"When we returned to the hotel we found an invitation for us to dine at
one of the clubs, the gentleman who gave the invitation having called
during our absence. We dressed as quickly as possible, and went at once
to the club house, where we dined on the best that the city afforded.
Melbourne is a great place for clubs, quite as much so as London or New
York. Nearly everybody belongs to a club, and many gentleman have two,
three, or more clubs on their lists. Nearly all of the clubs have
lodging rooms for bachelor members, and the popularity of the
institution is shown by the fact that most of these rooms are constantly
occupied.
"Life at a club is somewhat expensive, though less so than at a
first-class hotel. One gentleman probably stated the case very clearly
when he said that life in a club house is pretty much as each individual
chooses to make it. He could live economically or expensively, according
to his preference. He could dine on the choicest or on the plainest
food, and could entertain liberally or frugally. 'There is no
necessity,' he added, 'for a man to waste his money because he lives at
a club, but there is no denying the fact that a club affords temptation
and opportunity to do so.'
"During dinner the subject of horse racing came up, and our host said
that he did not believe there was any city in the world where so large a
proportion of the population was interested in equine sports as
Melbourne. 'On Cup Day,' said he, 'that is, on the day of the annual
race for the cup which is given by the city of Melbourne, people come
here from all parts of Australia.'
"'Everybody who can afford the time and expense is reasonably sure to
visit Melbourne, and a great many come here who can hardly afford to do
so. Hotels and lodging houses are crowded to their fullest capacities
for several days before the great event. When Cup Day comes, it is like
the Derby Day in England. Half the population of Melbourne goes to
Flemington, when the race is run, and nearly all the scenes of the great
Derby Day in England are repeated. The winner of the Melbourne cup is
greeted with the heartiest cheers at the close of the race, and if he
is put up for sale on the spot, he is sure to bring an enormous price.'
"'I asked if the horses competing for the cup were limited to those
raised in the colony of Victoria?'
"'Oh, not by any means,' the gentleman answered; 'horses from any of the
colonies can be entered for the great race. They come from New South
Wales, South and West Australia, and also from Queensland, and sometimes
we have them from New Zealand or Tasmania. In some years it has happened
that not one of the racers was bred in the colony of Victoria. There is
never any lack of competitors, their number being usually quite equal to
that in the race for the Derby. The race track is a little more than a
mile from the center of the city, so that the public has not far to go.
Vehicles of every kind command high prices on Cup Day, and many
thousands of people go to the race on foot. For weeks before the event
little else is talked of, and the great question on every tongue is,
"What horse will win the cup?"'
"Melbourne is very fond of athletic sports, and there are numerous clubs
devoted to baseball, football, cricket, golf, and the like. There are
also rowing clubs, and their favorite rowing place is along the part of
the Yarra above Prince's Bridge. The course is somewhat crooked, but
there is a good view of it from the banks, and a rowing match between
two of the crack clubs is sure to attract a large crowd."