New-York tribune., 1908-08-16
THE GENERAL POSToFFlcE AT SYDNEY.

of many sizes-ishers ferries, coasters. GOLFERS
several British men-of-war-ancbored of the
Botanical Gardens, IN the middle Of the citys
waterfront and hundreds of small sailing craft,
most Of which are pleasure boats. besides tramp
and passenger steamers from all the world
great seaports.
The city is to the south. On the north rises
tier upon tier Of villas. The vessel goes to the
world-famous Circular Quay, huge semi-c1rcle
at one end of Pitt street. one of the great busi-
ness streets Of the Australian metropolis Oio
Sydney is to the east and the magnificent gar
dens are not far away. Foliage. the soft and
delicate foliage of spring, may be seen round
about, bordering the many smaller bays that
like the fingers of hand, reach inland from
the main water of the harbor.
Jacks eyes widest open now. Being on
a rnan-of-war, he is likely not made fast to the
quay. but anchored at courtesy distance from
his English friends off the Botanical Gardens
AS he looks about he realizes that he has gone
back a season While he crossing the line
in what was summer in the Northern Hemis-
phere the Australians had been having their
winter and making ready such welcome for
him only spring can give. Jack left San
Francisco the Golden Gate Mount Tamalpais
and the hills of California a dry, parched, seal
brown burned up under a dust laden atmos-
phere He remembers il we'll But here in
sydney and the country round about all is verd-
ure and the air is clear. 1t looks good to Jack
AS Jack came in he may have noticed Cut
Island and the sharks sporting in its ne:ghbor-
hood. The sharks were not always there They
imported colony, brought for particular
purpose by government officials Of the early
penal days. Gut Island used to be a prisoners
home large Jail there. from which
the men who had been sent out from England
for England's advantage sought frequently to
escape. If they could get outside of the Jail
and could swim 1t easy to make the main
land from the island Altogether too easy the
government officials decided, so they started a
colony of sharks and baited them sufficiently
to keep them in the nearby waters, but not
enough to satisfy their hunger altogether. The
sharks were consequently always on the lookout
for more, and soon the escaping prisoner dis
covered this to his chagrn. Still Gut Island
SO far from his ideal of what a home should
be that often he took chances with the man
eaters. To make himself as unattractive as pos
sble to the persistent appettes of these sub
marine sentines of the British government the
prisoner wont to wrap himself in seaweed
and float out with as little motion as was pos
sble until the batting ground passed and
he could venture to swim for shore
Now the prisoners are gone. Australia is no
longer penal colony and has hourished greatly
since transportation abolished, but the
sharks remain. They annoyance, but
not as dangerous as might think they would
be in a bay where squalls sudden and up
sets not infrequent. Squalls are known as
''bondibusters' in Sydney. Bond is OF the
beaches, a famous resort outside the harbor
on the Pacific and "bondibuster' is a gust Of
eager air that begins to move somewhere out
on the ocean, comes in rapidly to the cliff, jumps