First sight of Brisbane-Coolies on the Plantations-Adapt themselves to circumstances-Divine Service-Burial of a Native-I leave, with mutual good wishes.

I SHALL pass over all the little incidents of our run home round Walpole Island for Brisbane, till we sighted Moreton light, all well, and sent a telegram

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from the lighthouse station for the inspecting and health officer of the immigration department. steam-tug came for us the same evening, and the Kanakas soon had cause for wonder and jabbering in what must have appeared to them a horrible monster, as seen in the dark, with its tall funnel sending out smoke and flame, and its paddles dashing up the foam, as it made fast, puffing and snorting, and took us up the Brisbane river. The inspecting officer's duty is to look over the list of the new immigrants, and to compare it with the papers furnished him by the master of the vessel, of the number on board; to see that they are not afflicted with any disease, and are neither 'maimed, halt, blind, deaf, dumb, idiotic, or insane;' and to give a certificate to that effect. All these formalities being got through, we dropped anchor in the middle of the town on Saturday night, and, late as it was, were glad to go on shore to a comfortable civilised bed with sheets, and slept none the worse for the knowledge that the difficulties and dangers of our South Sea cruise were over.

So far I have told the tale of my trip to the New Hebrides for labourers, and it only remains for me to give an account of what they were wanted for in Queensland, and how they fulfilled their duties in

their new life. Who shall describe the astonishment of these children of nature, at our houses, streets, horses, and women? For hours they would sit motionless, gazing at the stream of life hurrying past them on the wharves, and too much afraid of losing themselves to venture from the ship till taken away by their masters. Within two or three days the employers of all these men had come for them, had signed their agreements in presence of the immigration agent; and I said good-bye to most of my late friends, and saw them off with their various bundles en route for their different scenes of work, not without a sincere feeling of liking for the patient, docile fellows, who had put up with all the discomforts of a sea voyage, and the beginning of a life so totally unlike anything they could have imagined, with a good deal more philosophy than I have seen displayed by the same number of English emigrants; and who, even when the storm was at its highest, and cooking and sleeping by no means easy matters, only wanted a little chaff or two or three kind words to light up their faces with a grin.

The South Sea coolies have now been inhabitants of Queensland for several years, but I have scarcely ever heard of a single instance of bad behaviour on their part.

They are provided with barracks or huts on

DILIGENT WORKERS.

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the plantations or sheep stations on which they are employed, and turn out every morning at six o'clock and work the customary hours with great cheerfulness. Most of them, certainly, never get beyond hoeing or corn-picking; but some turn into capital horse-drivers, ploughmen, or sugar-boilers, and will, in the press of work in the sugar season, cheerfully toil on late at night over the steaming tache, getting a little extra tea, bread and butter, or tobacco served out to them for doing so, and presenting a marked contrast to the white men who are grumbling and growling all round them.

I quote from Mr. E. B. Kennedy's 'Four Years in Queensland' a few of the remarks of Mr. Spiller, a well-known sugar grower in the north of the colony, à propos of this:

The work of these plantations is carried on with the mixed labour of Europeans and Polynesians, the latter in every case working well. To this fact I would earnestly draw the especial attention of some of the numerous letter-writers on the slavery question. I have had twenty of these labourers since May 1867. In the first onset I made it my study to learn their language, so that I can make them understand me; and I began putting them to their work. It required all the patience I could

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muster at first, but they gradually got acquainted with the use of different tools before unknown to them; and now I am reaping the benefit, and proud to see every morning turning out for the field four good ploughmen, with their six bullocks each and drivers; others with their horse-teams that can mark out a drill as straight as I can. Not only do they do their work well, but they are contented. not put them on rations; they get all they require of beef, sweet potatoes, yams, corn-meal, green corn, arrowroot, sugar, molasses, milk, and one plug of tobacco per week. Tea they do not much care about, but when they want tea they are not afraid to ask for it. I find a great advantage in being able to talk to them, and I think it has helped to make them fond of me. They also like this country very much and often ask me to keep them, and get their wives over, and let them have a bit of land. They are far from being so ignorant as is often supposed; they know well when the term of agreement expires, but they would much prefer having their wives over here, to returning to their native islands; and in this I will certainly assist them, if the government will allow me to do so.'

All the above is entirely corroborated by my own experience. A few months is quite sufficient to make