Omaha daily bee., 1902-10-05

things as interesting and re-
- markallc as its labor laws that
IE&HXE1 compel shopkoepers to close on
- every legal holiday and either
Wednesday or Saturday afternoon, and fix
the lowest wages that can be paid any
one at $1.25 per week. For example,
oysters grow on trees in New Zealand.
Tree oysters thrive all along the coast,
but the biggest bed is just outside of Auck-
land. Here the sea coast Is low and COW
cred with thousands of squat trees, which
are submerged by every tide. At these
times the oysters fasten themselves to the
branches, where they wax big and fat, and
from which they are picked in proper
season by the men who ply their trade
when the tide is out, The two owners of
this bed are being made rich by 1t.
Then everybody is extremely polite, al
most painfully polite, down New Zealand
way. Alphonse and CASTOR of the comic sup
plement realms are real characters here. A
train steams into the cOmmodious depot
at Wellington, the Islands capital. "Wel-
lington, please" the conductor gently an
nounces to his passengers. After thanking
the conductor for getting them safely 10
their destination, the travellers disembark.
This way to dinner, please the depot
attendants politely sing. The train makes
ready to start. Seats, please; but don't
hurry is the trainmen's admonition. And
the conductor waits Ave minutes after the
gates are closed for everybody to get COM
fortably seated before whistling to the
driver to get his engine in motion!
Even law-breakers are treated with unc-
, tuous consideration. The policeman carries
QsSther club nor hrearm with which to hurt
shfpS-ene's mental or physical feelings.
Whenever he finds himself compelled to
make an arrest the bluecoat almost begs
the prisoners pafdsn and invariably takes
him to Jail In a cab! There is no rough
handling; even the prisoner is courteous.
It's all very strange to a Yankee who
has been brought up on stern commands OF
A aboard" "Step lively, or you'll get
left!" and Here, no monkey business;
you're a prisoner" as a rude hand OF the
law grabs you by the coat collar and un-
tremendously hustles you to the nearest
patrol box.
The time lost in being ceremonious Is
made up by the New Zealander by word
trimming. No one says, "Pil make-a memo
randum Of it," it's always, III memo
zone pound sterling" is universally boiled
down to "quid," and even Premier Seldom
calls a shilling a bob" The lower classes
in England use these terms frequently, but
in New Zealand the highest as well as the
lowest seorn anything else, This cutting
Of words Is carried to such an extreme that
a stranger really needs the service Of an in
terpreter the first week or two he is on the
island.
The right and only man for the traveller
In trouble over the language or anything
else to seek out is the postmaster. New
Zealand's postmasters come pretty near
being "the whole thing" They are regis
trars of births and deaths. They collect
all taxes, municipal and governmental, and
all customs and internal revenues. They
insure their fellow citizens in the govern
ment's life insurance company and receive
heir deposits in the Postofhce Savings bank
n New Zealand, also a governmental insti-
tuition. This bank has PIP ,436 depositors
and the money deposited by them aggre-
gates Ss2, OOO, 900. over one-fourth OF the
islands population keeps its money in this
institution.
y But It is as a performer OF wedding eere-
l Monies that the New Zealand postmaster
lost fondly regarded and most famous
here is neither fuss nor furry In the
emony that the postmaster performs;