other faiths. The design of the founders of the Canterbury colony has not been strictly carried out, but on the whole has been quite successful. There is an excellent museum, which is especially rich in New Zealand matters; and there are parks, gardens, cricket-grounds, and other places of amusement and exercise. With its suburbs it has a population of nearly thirty thousand, and therefore is entitled to dignified respect as a city.
"It would not have been difficult for us to imagine ourselves in England," said Frank in his journal, after describing their arrival at Christchurch. "Here are English shade-trees along the streets, and in the gardens and parks; the houses are English in their mode of construction and furnishing, and the little river that runs through the town is called the Avon. There are tram-ways, or horse railways, along the broad and well-made streets, the lawns are velvety with English grasses, and along the banks of the winding river the weeping-willow droops almost to the surface of the water.
"We have been riding in all directions and in the suburbs, and everywhere we have seen signs of prosperity and comfort. As we went out on the principal road we were very soon in the midst of some fine farms, and were not at all surprised to learn that the country around Christchurch is very fertile and well adapted to farming. The fields have English grasses, and are surrounded by English hedges; and many of the farms looked for all the world as though they had been picked up in England and dropped down here. The city has its watering-place at Sumner, nine miles away, and there the inhabitants go to get rid of the summer's heat as New Yorkers go to Coney Island or Long Branch.
"A gentleman to whom we had letters of introduction invited us to dine at his house the day we arrived, but an hour before the time for us to start he came to the hotel and evidently had something serious on his mind. After a few preliminary words he came straight to the point, and said he was obliged to ask us to consider the engagement 'off' for the present.
"'The fact is,' said he, 'my wife's cook has just left to get married, and our other girl left last week, and we've not been able to fill her place. There's nobody in the house to cook the dinner; my wife can take care of the household, but we would hardly like to try to entertain visitors under such circumstances.'
"Of course we excused him, and tried to make his mortification as slight as possible. The incident led to a conversation about the 'serv-
