Volltext Seite (XML)
by going into the bush and catching a few wild pigs, for which he will readily receive, in barter, the required arti cles from any of the English traders. We were surprised by the number and size of the buildings of Waimate. The houses, consisting of wood, are of a commodious size and pleasing architecture, each having its verandah, with a lawn and a garden plot in front. They form a row about a mile in length, and are inclosed within a strong wooden fence, which, being tastefully in terwoven with rose-bushes and creepers, constitutes a pleasing ornament. Within the limits of this inclosure, the ground unoccupied by buildings is laid out in gardens and rich clover paddocks. Besides the houses occupied by the missionaries and their families, there are numerous cottages belonging to sawyers, tradesmen, and agricul tural labourers, attached to the mission, with their wives and children, and also a large but scattered native village. At one extremity of the settlement is the flour-mill, driven by water; and at the other the church, a small-sized building with a spire. The whole white population num bers about one hundred and fifty souls, an unusually large proportion of which consists of robust, healthy children, who are very carefully and religiously educated under the superintendence of Mr. and Mrs. Taylor. Surrounded by an open and undulating country, and by cultivated fields to the extent of three hundred acres, the settlement of Waimate presents the neat, secure, and comfortable aspect of an English village. It was not without emotion that I beheld this focus of Christian civilization in the heart of New Zealand. Its very existence spoke strongly in favour of the native cha racter, when its better principles are cultivated in a spirit m 3
