SCENE VII.

AUSTRALASIA DISCOVERED.

And they sent ships to distant lands, and brought gold, and copper, and fine wool, and the merchants made much gains.

At this juncture the loved and lost Leo Bergin notes a short intermission, for, as there is everywhere a limit to human endurance, Oseba had grown weary.

During the recess, the notes inform us, there were many whisperings, many doubtful shakes of the head, and many real fears expressed as to results regarding the conclusions of the report.

"We have gone over the globe," said a learned-looking matron, "and we have no encouragement."

"Better know the truth," said another.

"It is a matter of no small importance to Cavitorus," said a third.

The people stood, or sat, in groups and conversed earnestly, some consulting a small globe which stood on the edge of the rostrum. At the expiration of an hour, the people resumed their seats, Amoora Oseba took the platform, and the audience was all attention.

When he arose, he told the people that he understood their feelings, their hopes, their fears, and their anxieties. He had done his best, and his devoted comrades had been as solicitous as he for their beloved country and its cause. To err is human, but it were better to be over-cautious than over-anxious for a change. Not all changes mean progress, though this is not always understood, even by the world leaders.

He told his audience they were not finished--Oliffa had not yet been wholly reported upon, for they had made other discoveries. There were yet two countries to inspect, and he bid them be of good cheer. He said the countries to which he was now to call attention were quite "new" in the sense that they had been known, even to the Outeroos themselves, but a comparatively short time. He then turned on the light, exposed the full globe, and proceeded:--

"The earth has practically been circumnavigated, and, when you have seen all, I hope you will be satisfied with my efforts.

"We have visited all countries inhabited by man, and my discoveries have revealed many interesting facts, suggesting many conclusions.

"Mankind," argued Mr. Oseba, "is akin. All sorts and conditions of men emerged from a common ancestry. The vast differences in form, color, language, custom and mentality have been caused by the varied environing conditions slowly working throughout many ages. From common passions, common wants and common efforts for their gratification, has man slowly pressed forward, the pace varying as Nature invited or forbade the movement.

"But genius has annihilated time and space. The world is being brought in touch, and the race that improved the cunning of the hand, and aroused the inquiry of the brain, is destined to guide, unify, and dominate the world.

"The Anglo-Saxon is a peculiar compound of many mixed and sturdy tribes, and in the genius of race, there is the magic potion that is giving tone, language and inspiration to humanity.

"But the modern Briton is the finished product of Anglo-Saxon aims, and inherited aspiration. The Briton is a trinity composed of English, Irish and Scotch, a compound of the most stubborn vices and most sturdy virtues ever found in an organised society.

"Janus was not a Briton; the Briton has but one face, and it is always looking to the front. The Briton is sturdy, so he presses forward; he is weary, and he never runs; he is tenacious, and he appropriates everything having one loose end. Having more wants than industry, he invents that he may be satisfied. He adjusts himself to new conditions, so he hoists his flag over his new cabin and annexes all in sight. Being dull as a linguist, the people of all climes have to learn his speech, or abstain from the banquet of the present, and--the future.

"Yes, the British are of a sturdy race. They were developed in a fine climate. But people can't live on climate, and these people had appetites. No _thing_ can come from nothing. Thoughts and actions are 'products,' but the finished goods always reveal the character of the raw material. Strange," he argued, "but as a man eats, so is he. The Frenchman eats frog, and he dances; the Italian eats macaroni and he runs a hand organ; while the Briton as a regular diet takes beef-steak and lion, so he wanders about, and--paints the world red.

"In less time than it took the old nations to build a city, the inhabitants of the small British Isles had pre-empted more than one-fifth of the surface of the planet, and were masters of the affections of a fourth of the human race. But the noblest works accomplished by this resistless people are now to be revealed, for the admiration of my countrymen."

Here he turned on the great forty-foot sphere to an axial angle of twenty-three degrees, well exposing the Southern Hemisphere. After noticing the southern orifice--the back door of Symmes' Hole--and the difference in the distribution of land and water near the respective poles, he turned the globe so as to give a fair exposure of Australasia.

In Oseba's more cheerful demeanor, his more ready speech, and his radiant countenance, there was a gleam of joy, and when once the full import of this new scene was appreciated, there was a generous burst of applause--Leo notes, "almost enthusiasm."

"This," said the sage Oseba, "is the 'Austral climes,' the last dry dirt on the surface of Oliffa, wholly rescued from darkness and devoted to civilisation.

"Its color indicates its social condition--it is civilised and free, for on Oliffa, my children, 'red' is the emblem of hope. 'Painting the world red,' means turning on the light, and John Bull always carries a bucket of carmine--and he often has a 'brush.'"

Oseba said that in the whole inquiry he had endeavoured to follow an example set, many centuries ago, by a Personage whose advice is constantly quoted on Oliffa--and more constantly ignored--of keeping the best to the last.

Australia was of old called an island, but as in area it about equalled the United States of America, and almost that of Europe--having near 3,000,000 square miles--it was now regarded as a "continent," though it had less than 4,000,000 people.

"Room for a colony?" said the poetess Vauline, with something bordering emotion.

"Yes," said Oseba.

But let us proceed cautiously. I boil down.

He said there was plenty of "room," and for sometime there would be "room to let," but as a fact, while a lovely land, inhabited by a splendid people, it was not quite all it seemed on the map. On the borders of the "Australian continent," and reaching back long hundreds of miles, there was much beautiful country, but there was a vast interior, which, though red on the map, was almost too thin even to hold the paint.

As a fact, much of the surface of Australia was afflicted, like many of her people, with an insatiable thirst. To the uninformed, this "dry" and hot interior gave Australia a "bad name," as people are usually influenced by "sound," and they rarely stop to reflect how many grand empires might be carved out from these fertile borders and plains.

He described how Cook "found" Australia in 1770, and how, by the directions of Sydney, Colonial Secretary, it was first "colonised" in 1779. He recorded its struggles and growth during the silent years; how colonial authority was exercised; how self rule, or so-called "responsible government" was established; and how, to reach more remote portions of the country from convenient seats of authority, several autonomous colonies were formed.

Owing to the large expense of coming, immigrants were usually of the better class; and, owing to the distance from central authority, the colonist became self-reliant, and soon began to apply new ideas to new conditions.

He dwelt with evident pleasure upon the development of the cities of the continental colonies as splendid centres of wealth and population, and praised the spirit that was ready to cast tradition to the winds, and boldly experiment upon various expedients, that seemed a solution for some pressing problem.

In describing Australasian cities, he declared that Sydney was the most beautiful city on earth, having a society which, for culture and character, equalled that of any other country. He admired the competitive spirit as between the different or several political centres, and of the many departures from old notions.

The courage of the people in the adoption of new political methods, and their re-arrangement of the relations between governments and industrial forces, seemed to please him greatly.

He declared that "these self-governing autonomous colonies, aroused by inviting opportunities of a novel environment, inspired by a sphere of undefined liberty, with reckless readiness to resort to new expedients for the accomplishment of new purposes, had produced in Australasia, in all the essentials of true worth, the highest average type of man and womanhood on the surface of Oliffa--with the more isolated New Zealand probably leading."

Oseba said the Australasians enjoyed a higher average plane of living than any other people; they were better educated, better clothed, better fed, and better housed, and, with comparisons made on the same or like basis, they were the greatest commercial people on the globe, with proportionately much greater banking power than any other people. In proportion to population, these 4,500,000 Australasians had four times the capital of the people of other leading countries, and their commerce was four times larger.

He applauded the tendency towards holding the lands at nominal or low rents for the use of the people; the construction, ownership and management of the railways, telegraphs, telephones and other public utilities, by the government for the convenience and use of the governed, as the acme of political wisdom.

He claimed that the Australasians had confirmed every lesson of history, for all experience taught that only through colonial enterprise were experiments in legislation safe, and advanced ideas crystallised into law. Small communities might safely experiment, and when the people bore sway, the dangers possible from rapid changes were preferable to the mildew of stagnation.

In political and social progress, in material prosperity and moral worth, the people of Australasia were conspicuously at the head of the procession.

Only through the influence of colonial enterprise, had real liberty ever gained a substantial victory, and only through expedients suggested by colonial necessities, had great economic changes hurriedly come.

America, in her free and fearless youth, far excelled the motherland in liberal legislation and economic progress, but the millstone of aggregated wealth and "vested interests" weighed her down, and she retired from the leadership, while Australasia, with her novel surroundings and the experience of all the former ages to contemplate, proposed to sail a little further over the inviting seas of social progress, and her success had vindicated the wisdom of her determination. At a time when many other nations were almost madly pushing colonial experiments, she had written a new volume corroborating the evidence of the centuries, that Britain alone, of all modern nations, possessed the requisite qualities for successful colonisation.

"Australasia deserves well of the world," said Oseba, "for under the separate standards of her many colonial chiefs, she has moved the people on to a most advanced position.

"But in Australia proper there has recently come a change that must necessarily check the rapidity of Australian progress. Six of the Australasian colonies--New Zealand not joining--have left the skirmish-line, and formed into a less mobile mass. The light infantry have buckled on heavy knapsacks--the flying artillery have been re-cast into siege guns. The 'states' are now anchored to the past, and the 'Commonwealth' must be unwieldy. The members of this compact may chafe, but the chains are unyielding, and the ponderous hulk, in which all the luggage has been tossed, will be found cumbrously slow in its movements.

"As social groups, the Australians, in their 'free colonies,' were in their vigorous youth--they were buoyant and ambitious. They looked abroad, beheld what others had done, and said, 'Let us take another step,' and being free and self-ruling, they were able to hurriedly adjust their political machine to their local requirements.

"Inspired by novel environments, great opportunities and hard necessities, the Phoenicians and the Greeks, as colonisers, gave to Europe its commercial instincts; and, inspired by like opportunities and necessities, the British have not only made the dreams of the ancients a reality but they have created and firmly established modern civilisation. America is the Carthage of Phoenicia. Australasia is the _Magna Grecia_ of Greece. Australia has played well her part.

"But a new king has come, my children, 'who knew not Joseph,' and no Moses can lead the people rapidly out from the shadow of the 'Commonwealth.'

"Australia has a genial climate; she has broad, fertile acres enough to support a grand empire; she has a magnificent people, and she has advanced the standard of social progress many a league, but a 'tribal' exuberance has been hampered by allegiance to a central authority, so the leadership in social progress must be passed to less incumbered hands.

"The world stands in mute admiration at Australia's social achievements; but, to gratify the ambition of a few men who desired a broader field for the display of a splendid talent, she has lost her 'innings,' and 'New Zealand' has the bat.

"When the Commonwealth band struck up, it was whispered across 1,200 miles of sea to New Zealand, 'Will you walk into my parlor?' but the sturdy Seddon answered, 'No, thanks! we will go ahead, and turn on a little more light.'

"Then, while I love the Australians and shall ever hope for their future prosperity, we will 'ring off,' and review the last, the loveliest, and the most free and inviting field ever explored by man, for already the colors are in worthy hands, and the leaders have proposed to take another step."

Summing up for a conclusion, the sage Oseba said that China, even with "opportunities," presented no varieties; and while Japan had variety, she had no room. Europe was too strongly wedded to militarism for healthy mental growth; Britain has become a park for her nobles; Africa had the black plague; America was owned by the trusts, and was managed in their interests by the party bosses; and Australia, like a child crying for bracelets, had put on hand-cuffs.

"So, none of these answer the requirements of our commission," said the orator, "and I now invite you, my children, to another series of pictures in our elaborate gallery--'tis of my last 'discovery.'"

Here, pending the re-adjustment of the instruments, the audience indulged in a few moments of lively conversation, for the promises seemed to be more encouraging. But soon Mr. Oseba stepped to the front with a confident dignity, and in a pleasing voice said:--

"My learned colleagues, and you, my beloved countrymen and women, I have detained you long, and, that you might appreciate my conclusions, I have gone somewhat into details in my extensive review. I have shown you many of my discoveries, on the outer surface of our planet; I have explained the political systems of many peoples, and I have observed the play of your emotions as the conditions of men were portrayed; but I now promise you only pleasing revelations, for in beauty, in climate, in soil and social situation, I am going to show you the paradise of Oliffa, and this means a portion of Australasia that declined to join the federation of which I have spoken--it means New Zealand, on the map, 'Zealandia,' with the poets, but Zelania, as it would be called in our more musical speech, and by this euphonious title shall we speak of that charming land. This, my children, was my last discovery, and while many people on Oliffa don't care to be discovered at all, I hope the 'Zelanians' will never regret my having landed on their blissful shores."

_SCENE VIII.--Act I._

ZELANIA--MR. OSEBA'S LAST DISCOVERY.

Blue pencilling several eloquent pages, I am here constrained to use the discretion generously given me, by choosing for myself the methods of introducing the scenes of Mr. Oseba's last discovery.

It has been previously mentioned that Leo Bergin had "done newspaper work in New Zealand," and here seems a proper place to re-refer to this pleasing fact.

Leo notes that, pending a re-arrangement of the stage, there was a brief intermission, and later, that having become weary from strained attention, and drowsy from the soothing pleasures of the occasion, his thoughts flitted back over the silent years, and falling into a half-unconscious reverie, he seized the thread and wove from the thrilling scenes of the past the panorama of a pleasing dream. In his chant, we catch the echoes of a farewell to his native land, and, floating away into aimless realms, he follows the devious path of other days, where vaguely arise the fleeting phantoms of pleasures forever gone.

We know not the mystery of a dream, but in Leo Bergin's brain the hoary mountains rise, the restless seas moan, and the scenes of ever-enchanting Zelania unroll like a magic scroll. In modest phrase he sings the memories of early wanderings, and that through his mental gleams we may reach a higher appreciation of the unfolding views, I quote his rippling rhymes:--

LEO BERGIN'S REVERIE.

Sweet home, adieu! With vent'rous crew, I'm sailing o'er the ocean blue.

As on we leap, the eye doth sweep The curving borders of the deep.

The days glide by, I gaze and sigh, But nought appears, save sea and sky.

* * * * *

Behold! there rise, 'neath Southern skies, Green Isles that greet our glad surprise.

Oh! lovely Isles, where Nature smiles, And beckons to the "afterwhiles."

Here fancy drew, from old and new, To give the soul extended view.

With air so mild, and scenery wild, The Fates persuaded, led and smiled.

O! Craggy peak! O! Earthquakes freak, Had I but words of you to speak.

Our course we take, through broom and brake, To view the fern-embroidered lake.

Those lakes, so sweet, at mountain's feet, Where weary strangers, strangers meet.

The waters blue, with swift canoe, We skim, for glimpses weird and new.

We lift the eye to mountain high, To where the snow-peaks kiss the sky.

O'er gorges deep, where shadows creep, dark clouds cluster, pause and weep.

In dreamy mood, we pause and brood, 'Midst awe-inspiring solitude.

We list--a roar, that cometh o'er, From danger scenes we would explore.

For ah! the spell! the geyser's well, That hurls the sulphurous fumes from hell;

That flings on high, with thund'rous sigh, Huge rocks, that smite the cloud-flecked sky.

But list, ye bands from other lands, This monument of splendor stands,

In South Seas hurled, with flag unfurled, "The scenic wonder of the world."

* * * * *

As here we scan old Nature's plan, We seek her last, best work--a man.

Lo! he appears! nor hopes nor fears Have vexed his soul through all the years.

With haughty pride--nor priest nor guide-- He ruled the land, as warrior tried.

Here chieftain brave, here King and slave, Their lives to war and foray gave.

Here, dusky maid was ne'er afraid To join the fray, in copse or glade.

With waving hair, and beauty rare, Brave hearts these maidens did ensnare.

When beauty wild a chief beguiled, He gazed in liquid eyes, and smiled.

Love makes amends, and often blends, Wild warring factions into friends.

But strong the will, with tribesmen's skill, The Maori was unconquered still.

* * * * *

Where Nature, kind, unfolds the mind, Man is to nobler thoughts inclined.

Though brave, he's meek; he aids the weak, And high companionship doth seek.

In social train, by hand and brain, He wins and holds a vast domain.

He builds a State; 'tis weak or great, As based on love, or fosters hate.

If Wisdom's eyes survey the skies, Before their magic touch arise

Industrial arts, where loyal hearts May rear and fill commercial marts.

If strong and just, and true to trust, The coin of Truth can never rust;

And wise men see that none are free, Save where there's large equality--

Where Law commands, that sturdy hands, Shall freely cultivate the lands;

No coward slave, but free and brave, Shall ever ready be to save.

Thus honest worth, o'er all the earth, Conditions make, e'en more than birth.

* * * * *

'Twas said by Fate, these Isles must wait, The builders of an ideal State.

Then with the breeze, 'cross Southern seas, The Briton came, with high decrees.

New scenes arose, old wounds they close, And friendship reigns 'mong ancient foes.

For Maori hate, by skill and--"fate"-- Was merged into the British "State."

United, free, they now agree To dwell in peace,--"So mote it be."

* * * * *

Then of this man, and if we can, We'll follow out his mystic plan.

For wise it seems, e'en in our dreams, To build, with care, prophetic themes.

Then let us gauge the Seer and Sage, As pass they o'er Life's mystic stage.

First, of the dead, it may be said, While warm of heart and cool of head,

They saw the new, and though but few, They laid foundations, strong and true,

On which to rear, without a fear, This temple,--so imposing here.

By words sublime, in prose and rhyme, They taught, for all-enduring time.

* * * * *

Then Seddon came, without whose name This temple were unfinished frame.

But in his care, with graceful air, The structure rose, with finish fair.

His sturdy stroke the times awoke, As from Tradition's rules he broke.

Upon the land he scattered bands, With willing hearts and sturdy hands.

To those once rent with discontent, He even-handed Justice sent.

Now o'er the State, nor fear nor hate Could find companion, small or great.

Look o'er the land, from peak to strand, There's happiness on every hand.

* * * * *

Here Cities rare, exceeding fair, Zealania boasts, with modest air.

At eve or dawn, we gaze upon The busy, "blowy" Wellington.

Here, products great for ships await, And here repose the powers of State.

Here, founding laws, for mighty cause, The statesman long the session draws.

Here modest worth and homely mirth Find more respect than rank or birth.

* * * * *

There's Auckland, too--'twixt me and you-- A beauty spot, excelled by few.

Round this fair cove, old Nature strove To show the fickle feats of Jove.

Volcanic smoke in fury broke, Until the heavens all awoke.

When cleared the skies, there did arise A seat for earthly Paradise.

At mountains' feet, where lavas meet, There Auckland sits, serene and sweet.

With seas afore, just off her door, Where proud ships ride for evermore.

* * * * *

We note with care, with Christchurch, there Are few that safely may compare.

For pride of race, for social grace, She holds a high and honored place.

'Mid fertile plain of waving grain, We search for lovelier spot, in vain.

Here, soul and brain; here, maid and swain, A pure companionship maintain.

* * * * *

Dunedin stands, on favored lands, 'Twixt mountains high and ocean sands.

On beauty's spot, the "Canny Scot" Has cast his ever happy lot.

With taste and skill, from rock to rill, Dunedin reaches 'long the hill.

With vision free--upon the lee-- Dunedin gazes o'er the sea.

* * * * *

Full many more, 'tween hill and shore, Are worthy of the poet's lore.

Though hard I seek, the words are weak, Of nobler beauties now to speak.

While cities were, with beauty rare, Contrived by man, with studied care,

The vale, the glen, the lake, the fen, Were made by Him who maketh men.

The fields of grain, where honest swain Earns honest bread, wave not in vain.

For West and East, both man and beast Await to join Zealania's feast.

And from all lands, by skilful hands, White sails are bent for Austral strands.

Here, finest wheat, by many a fleet Is sent, the foreign marts to meet.

And finest fleece--in war or peace-- They shear, that wealth they may increase.

With choicest meat, both rare and sweet, In "Merry England," they compete.

In farm or mine, with food or wine, To lead the leaders they incline.

* * * * *

By skill they coil the threads of toil Around the riches of the soil.

And, for the sake of gain to make, Great enterprise they undertake.

* * * * *

Well, far and near, we've gathered here, And all in all it doth appear

That higher goals and nobler souls Are here, than elsewhere 'tween the poles.

* * * * *

Now wake, my Muse, do not refuse To pay "my hostess" honest dues.

For ladies fair, with beauty rare, Zealania boasts, beyond compare.

And smiles more sweet we'll never meet Until we bow at Peter's feet.

Awake again and listen, when Beholding strong Zealania's men.

'Tis writ by Fate, men only great Could constitute this noble State.

Then sing for all, both great and small, Each in fit place, that none may fall.

The dreams of seers, the hopes and fears, Have gathered 'long the silent years,

And on these Isles, with radiant smiles, Were cast the hoarded "afterwhiles."

* * * * *

Zealania fair, thou art the heir Of all the cries of ancient prayer.

Here sturdy bands, with gen'rous hands, Are guardians of these favored lands.

Then hail thee thrice--let this suffice, Thou art Creation's Paradise.

* * * * *

Oh! float away--like mist in May, Or rainbow tints 'mid ocean spray.

"I wake to sense--please, no offence,-- Forgive my drowsy indolence."

Well, indeed that is pretty; but let us down from Leo's fancies to Mr. Oseba's facts, and while I shall strive to retain a seasoning of Mr. Oseba's richness, time and the love of ease whisper persuasively of the virtues of the blue pencil.

With more animated eloquence, Mr. Oseba resumed his oration. "The audience," says Leo Bergin, "gave the most profound attention."

"Knowledge," said Mr. Oseba, "is a priceless treasure, but," with a smile he continued, "many a good story has been spoiled by over-inquisitiveness. Poetic fancy suffers from flirtations with cause and conscience. Unless inquiry has been thorough, my children, it is wiser, in most cases, to note impressions than to assume to record facts, so I shall give you but a 'bird's-eye' view of these enchanting isles, with the characters as they appeared before the visual camera when I made my observations.

"Had I gone fossicking among the weary ones of Zelania, I should doubtless have found many excellent people who, in some phase of the inquiry, would have questioned the correctness of my conclusions. I might have heard some sighs, amid the almost universal joy--some smiles with the general congratulations, and some discordant groans mingled with the generous applause--but where there is not sufficient diversity of interest to produce mental friction, there is more danger from decomposition than from revolution.

"Yes, I incline to think had I stood on the corner and listened I would have met some well-to-do gentlemen who disliked the land tax; some business men who disliked the labor laws; some farmers, who wanted a free ride and no rent; some patriotic men who failed to admire many of 'Richard's' taking ways. I might also have found healthy gentlemen from 'Home' who, though their conditions were bettered by coming, have little love for 'the colonials,' and who, by virtue of their unwillingness to grasp the true situation, regard every statement of a fact as an extravagance, and every forward movement as a revolution. Then, I should have felt it necessary to inquire how much of such criticism was due to private interest, to defeated ambition, to party or factional prejudice, or to differences in opinion as to who would best grace the conspicuous chair.

"For this I had neither time nor inclination. Man can equivocate, can even lie, 'tis said, but visible conditions never deceive an observing stranger, and when I considered the brief history of that country and compared its early social and political policy with the present free, happy and prosperous situation, I had little care to banquet with private grievance or public criticism.

"I was concerned, not in the salaries of the public servants, but in the character of the public conscience; not in who, for the time being, guided the ship of state, but how the passengers and the crew were being brought to their destination.

"On a lonely elevation, far removed from the murmuring crowd, I levelled my glass, and, without sampling the fluids from which the stage actors drew their inspiration, I noted my 'impressions.' They were favorable, and if I'm guilty of nothing worse than failing to note the faults of those chosen by themselves as ringmasters of the performance, I feel that the Zelanians will not regret my having 'discovered them.'

"As the beauties of Zelania so far transcend the powers of the painter's brush and the poet's metaphor, I pay her homage of my admiration, in modest speech."

IN SILENT WONDER.

"In scenic wonders, these playful Isles present a peculiar series of thrilling charms, which seem to satisfy best the yearnings of those who have visited other lands.

"In geography, Zelania is beautifully isolated, as every beach is washed by more than a thousand miles of sea. Its borders are so erratic, so indented by bays, harbors, and inlets, that its shore-lines are over 4,000 miles in extent, and, in altitude, it reaches from the sea-shore to the clouds.

"Configuratively, it is milder than a dream, and topographically, it presents a most romantic and pleasing aspect. In scenic beauty, the Isles of Greece, the Lakes of Ireland, or the 'Vales of Cashmere' do not surpass it, and in the awe-inspiring wildness of its mountain grandeur, it rivals the noblest of Norway or Alaskan scenes.

"In bold magnificence, the glacial glories of the Swiss Alps are tame comparisons, and its geysers, its boiling lakes, its roaring vents from subterranean fires, its hundreds of spouting caldrons, its grottos and waterfalls, could not be surpassed, if all the rest of Oliffa's wonders were brought together and placed on exhibition--such a congerie of curiosities has Nature thrown in young Zelania's lap.

"When Nature made Oliffa, my children, she nourished a sly intent to show her skill when in the flower of training. With this in view, as she deftly moulded other lands and tempered them from her laboratory, she tossed aside the choice bits of material, and took notes on 'effect.' Then, after finishing the rest, and 'behold it was very good,' with a glance to the gallery gods, she said, 'Now look at me!'

"Then, like the sculptor who has many models for one figure--one from which to copy the most perfect arm, one the hand, another the knee, and still another for the foot--so, she, selecting from the most perfect of all her former works, improved on each, and in her happiest mood she fashioned Zelania, and anchored it in these southern seas. Then she smiled, and--took a _siesta_."

"Geologically," said Oseba, "Zelania is an ancient pile of dirt, but here all the games that frisky Nature played in her boisterous youth, before 'Atlantus' sank from the Ocean bosom, before the Mediterranean burst through the Pillars of Hercules, before the sun and winds drank the waters from the Sahara, and possibly before great Chimborazo was, she still keeps on the stage for the edification or the terror of gods and men."

"At Rotorua, that trysting place of fairies and fiends, man may play with Nature as did the deities of old with the daughters of men; while at Waimangu, the mightiest geyser on the globe, one may safely stand within a few yards' distance and behold a scene of thrilling awe that banishes all consciousness--save that of dread and power.

"To stand near the verge and behold this acre of dark world as it is hurled a thousand feet into the air, is worth a trip round this little globe. Language gives but a faint gleam of human passion, and every effort to describe this scene brings but a pathetic consciousness of human frailty. Beholding this mighty convulsion, even the thoughtless stand motionless and mute, and as Milton is dead, Waimangu will never be described in words.

"The countless mountain lakes, the wild fiords--from whose deep recesses one but rarely sees the sun--the shady solitudes, so painfully still that one shudders with a chilling sense of loneliness, and the easily-approached glaciers and waterfalls--many with a plunge of over a thousand feet, that amaze the Alpine traveller--thrill and fill the beholder with astonishment.

"But for one who enjoys the gun and the rod, there are such tempting opportunities for the diversion of the attention, that the imagination finds ready relaxation, and thus the body and mind gain vigor as the scenes and the days pass by.

"Then, Zelania's wonders may be visited with ease, comfort, and perfect safety. Her furies are on their good behaviour, and save on the borders of her terrors, her aspects are as serene as heaven's azure sky. Her mountains are rarely disturbed by the ravings of Pluto, her great geysers are forcible, but not dangerously erratic, and her boiling springs are so amiable that they may be studied and safely observed at short range.

"Zelania, thou art by far the most beauteous land, E'er dreamed of fate, or reared by Nature's cunning hand. You've heaven-piercing peaks, crowned with eternal snow, A thousand boiling caldrons--heated from below. You've glaciers dwarfing Alpine scenes, and fiords more wild Than Norway boasts. When fashioned, God beheld and smiled.

"That Nature rather recklessly managed this country in early geological times is abundantly evident, but save the activity of the geysers and boiling lakes--which play for the amusement of visitors--and the occasional listing when some great personage steps too close to the edge, _terra_ has been satisfactorily _firma_ ever since the present managers were commissioned in the early '90's.

"In every natural feature, this is a country of boundless variety. In climate, it varies from Finland to Italy; and in production, by intelligent transplanting, most of the necessities of civilised life are here."

Here the notes say the poetess Vauline inquired whether Mr. Oseba had not minutely described some of these marvellous scenes in his report. With reverential mien, the sage replied:--

"No, my children, to attempt this, were to profane the gift and the giver of speech. Only one who beholds these wonders can appreciate them. When confronted, the grandeur of the infinite may be felt by a sensitive soul, but through an interpreter all attempts fail. Beholding one scene, I uncovered and bowed my head in silence.[A] Words! they were meaningless."

Yes, and I will help Mr. Oseba out, for I have observed these things, and I have read somewhere how some sort "rush in" where even the angels incline to hesitate.

_The Painter came!_

Folding his arms, he raised his drooping head, and gazed in awful thought. He stood in rapturous dream; "Oh God, if I could grasp that scene, the noblest fame e'er bought By toil were mine!" With eager hand he clutched the brush. With anxious eye He gazed. Lo! the eye dimmed, the brain reeled, the hand fell, and with a sigh He dropped the brush. In deep despair he turned and said, "Alas, good-bye! 'Tis an unpainted picture. Ye gods of solitude, good-bye!"

_The Poet came!_

With streaming hair, pale brow, and nervous tread he hither came to brood O'er Nature's vastest works, to wrench the beauties from this solitude, And weave in mystic rhyme these wond'rous scenes for common mortals' gaze. Entranced, he seized his pen. Anon he wrote--methinks he wrote in praise. Then pensively he stood, and mutt'ring said: "Words suit well the minstrel's lays, But, 'tis an unwritten poem, to tempt the soul through endless days."

_The Fool came!_

He smiled. On good terms with himself he seemed, as one who owned the world. In jocund speech he cried, "'Tis ours!" and in mock haste his flag unfurled. On ancient log he rests. He laughs, he jokes, and chats. Behold him look! 'Tis for a match; he faggots brings, he lights a fire--a meal to cook. Says he: "Extr'ordinary! Ar'nt this grand? By gol! old fel, I'll write a book." Then words like snow-flakes fall--like snow-flakes in a brook.

A DIGRESSION.

"Now, my children," said Oseba, "permit me to make a few observations based upon my study among the Outeroos, which will apply to the country under review.

"Remember, all terms expressing quality--such as good and evil, right and wrong, truth and error--are relative, and, as affecting men, the definition to each individual depends upon his environment. As a fact, the rules expressing these ideas are largely fictions established by society for its own purpose, but, in their general application, they must be allowed considerable latitude.

"A country is good or bad, as it offers or withholds opportunity for earning a livelihood, and for the development of the mental faculties by the application of reasonable efforts; and a government is good or bad, as it withholds or encourages such opportunities and aspirations. 'When the wise rule, the people rejoice'--even in the barren districts. It is a matter--well, it is a matter--largely of 'grey matter.' As a rule, Nature has not been niggard in the distribution of her blessings. And, as a rule, the term good or bad, when applied to a country, applies less to the soil than to the society. It is college _versus_ cannon, or inquiry _versus_ credulity. Under a reign of benign justice, from a barren soil may arise an earthly paradise, while bigotry, war, and oppression will make a hell of the fairest valley.

'The gods wondered, and Viehnu said to Bel, "With seven wise men shalt thou enter hell, Or with five fools, pass into paradise." "Give me," said Bel, "hell with the wise, For that is heaven, where they do dwell, While fools would make of Heaven itself a hell."'

"The subject, my children, always bears the image of the law, the expression of custom, and customs are established by cunning for the rule of credulity. By custom, one is born the owner of many broad acres; and by custom, ten thousand toil without enjoying, that one may enjoy without toil. But Nature usually lends herself freely to man's designs. In a vast monotonous country, despotism is a usual system of government, Nature suggesting no change; the leader becomes the chief, the chief becomes the monarch, the monarch becomes a despot, and the despot a god.

"On the contrary, in a smaller country with diversified aspects, indented shore-lines and water-front, scaleable mountains and erratic climate, Nature suggests--change. A holy discontent appears, the despot becomes a constitutional monarch, a parliament serves the people, a cabinet advises the king; and then, as mountains suggest liberty and seas adventure, distant colonies, in which custom and precedent are ignored, are established on lines in harmony with environing conditions.

"Human liberty, my children, rarely gains a victory in an old, wealthy, populous and well-established country or government. Society, under such conditions, becomes conservative; the rulers love power, the cunning want no change, the wealthy are satisfied, and the people, being adjusted to the changeless conditions, are 'loyal' and contented.

"Further, every defeat of despotism, every entrenchment upon the 'divine' territory, every victory of human liberty, has been due to the restless inhabitants of the water-front; and remember, for all the progressive movements of all the ages, and for what the centuries call modern civilisation, the world is indebted to colonial enterprise, conspicuously led by Phoenicia, Greece, and modern Britain."

BACK TO ZELANIA.

"But let us, my children," Oseba continued, "return to Zelania, Nature's choicest, last, and most successful effort, and to where these principles apply. In her geographical situation, her configuration, her soil and climate, she offers man everything to toughen the fibre, to quicken the perception, and to strengthen the imagination.

"She has the climate, the fertility, the production, the picturesqueness of Greece, and all in greater variety."

Oseba here led his audience into a most interesting inquiry regarding climatic influence in the development of a people. He said man was a part of, and strongly allied to, Nature, and that he could not escape the influence of his environment.

In interior tropical regions Nature puts a black skin and black hair on her people, and, as a joke, she usually flattens the nose. In vast interior and warm regions, the complexion are tawny, with black or tawny hair and oblique eyes, that shunt the direct rays of light.

"Then, too," he says, "island or sea-shore people are lighter in color than those of the interior, and not only is the complexion of man, but his physical proportions, stature and temperament, modified by climatic conditions. In interior countries men gradually assume a type--they are lithe, and rather small of stature, and so alike that they seem cast in the same mould; while those living on islands along the water-front, or among the mountains, are more sturdy, they vary more in build, size and deftness, and they are mentally more inquisitive, venturesome, impetuous and brave."

He said that by far the most sturdy, virile, impulsive and enterprising people on Oliffa inhabited the British Isles. Of course, the race had much to do with modern movements, but the earlier climatic conditions of the country produced the racial distinctions.

"By the rule of Nature, then," he continued, "Zelania, with the proper stock to begin with, in complexion, form, feature, temperament, and mental endowments, should produce the finest type of man and womanhood on the planet."

He compared the Maoris with the aboriginals of interior Australia, and said both were modified by their environment.

Here Leo Bergin remarked that Mr. Oseba was certainly greatly taken and impressed by his "colonial" experience. However, it is not improbable that while travelling in New Zealand Mr. Oseba received sufficient courtesies to impress him deeply with the matchless hospitality of the people.

"But, enough," says Leo Bergin, "my master is worthy of my whole attention," and the notes run:--

"But let me return, my children, and pick up the theme of Zelania, for in her--with my tours over her romantic islands--I found balm for all my earlier disappointments.

"Zelania has certainly not worried her soul in life-producing efforts. In botany, she is not rich in species; in mammals she is more allied to South America, over six thousand miles distant, than to Australia, but twelve hundred miles, justifying my conviction that this paragon of beauty was an after-thought of the creative power.

"In mammals she has but a little rat--a poor little weakling that has not yet been tamed or learned to board with the people--and two little half-developed bats. Of reptiles, there are a few lazy lizards, but whether some 'Patrick' or 'Denis' had banished them, I could not say; but snakes, there are none."

He said there were some land birds, but as there were no animals to "make them afraid," the more indolent of them had lost their wings and their natural characteristics had changed.

The moa was probably--some time ago--a pretty respectable bird, but there being no danger from which to "flee" and no long flights to procure food, it cast off its wings and strutted about until its bones became as heavy as those of a reindeer, and it stretched up its head until it stood twelve feet high. But having no cares nor anxieties, no fears nor ambition, it failed to develop "grey matter," so when the Maori came it "surrendered," and, having taken off its flesh as well as its wings, it is now resting in the museums. Without the rod or the bun, there seems to be no effort, and without effort there seems to be little progress with any created thing.

THE MAORIS "DISCOVERED."

"And the great god Morduch heaved the earth from its watery bed, and peopled its shores according to his will."

As Oseba evidently meant to proceed upon his discourse in some predesigned order, he here gave some interesting attention to the Maoris, the natives--or, so-called, aboriginals--of New Zealand.

The orator, in his inimitable manner, described the Maoris with amusing detail. He calls them a fine race of romantic savages, whose physique had undoubtedly been greatly improved by the winning smiles of Zelania's climate and general aspects; for 'tis said they have been loafing around there for 500 years. "A large, heavy, dark brown people are these Maoris, who, in their own picturesque costume, often looked gracefully noble. Brave and ferocious while untamed, they are usually amiable and indolent when subjected to civilising influences."

Many of the young women were very pretty, and the children were quick in wit and movement. He did not think that tattooing the under lips of the women had really improved their beauty. Many of the half-castes were very intelligent, and not a few had made excellent reputations, in politics and other "professions." Many of them, too, had a sublime gift of "gab," and this trait is shared--even by the men.

Intellectually the Maoris were, Oseba thought, superior to any other tamed savage; but, like other barbarians, when touched by civilisation, they learned and accepted the vices more readily than the virtues. This was noticeable in all civilising movements. Oseba remarked that it was often observed among the Outeroos when speaking of such people, that the "Christian vices" killed them.

"This," he says, "was natural, for while it takes time to teach the 'brethren' the real advantages to be derived from the practices of Christian virtue, the 'Christian vices' yield 'immediate returns.' 'Thou shalt not steal' to a savage produces a peculiarly disagreeable confusion of ideas, and the advantages are not readily apparent, but two drinks of whisky rarely failed to impress. This is a custom peculiar to 'Christian culture' that is 'taking.'

"To judge by the conspicuous exhibitions of artistic effort and the countless displays by the photo fiend in many of Zelania's towns, a stranger would conclude that the Maoris were the 'superior' and dominant race, though there are but a little over 43,000 in the whole country, mostly on the north or warmer island, and it is said they are about stationary in numbers and in morals."

He told his audience that these Maoris, when originally discovered, were a stalwart, brave and rather superior race of savages; that war was the only argument that appealed to their perverted consciences, and he quoted an admiring New Zealand poet to prove the "amiable" heroism of the Maori "ladies."

"E'en woman, formed for sweetness, for love, and tender art Here showed the tiger instinct, the hard and ruthless heart; Her's was the task in battle, the wounded braves to slay, And cook the reeking corpses for the feast that closed the fray."

"Yes, the Maori women were brave, very brave, but, my children, in all Zelania there was not a mouse.

"Of these Maoris, there are several tribes," he says, "who, when free from the meddlesome 'white man's yoke,' are usually engaged in slaying and stewing each other, and, besides carving with their greenstone cleavers their cooked brethren and their own faces, they practised much in wood-carving. In this, while the workmanship is fair, there is a manifest lack of a sense of proportion, that amuses the connoisseur as it delighted the amateur in art.

"Like the more common, or at least more numerous and more pretentious white fellow-citizen, these Maoris go to church some, and to school, and to the drink-shop and to jail, but as the Maoris have a little creed of their own, they don't go to church very much. But if the Maori goes less to church, to school, and to Parliament, he also goes less to jail and to the hotel than his more pretentious white British fellow-citizen.

"The Maoris are picturesque, especially at the more popular tourist resorts, where their presence lends a particularly charming romance to the occasion. The emotional tourist--especially if a young gentleman from 'Home'--who is safely piloted by the alert, polite, and loquacious 'Maggie' among the roaring and exploding geysers of that charming compromise between awe-inspiring beauty and terror, that unpreached sermon, that unsung song, that unwritten poem, that section of hell in an earthly paradise, Rotorua, in whose weird precincts are seen and heard and smelled, at close range, the seething fires of 'Pluto's dread abode,' he will cherish a generous respect for Maori hospitality forever. Under Maggie's watchful guidance, the most unsophisticated tourist could safely approach the yawning mouth of these boiling caldrons without endangering life or health or appetite; though, unless one heeds the cautious guide, the boot soles are in danger of shrinking, and in these sulphurous regions 'kuss words' flow from pious lips.

"Nature," Oseba argued, "was a unity and is consistent. She ignores individuals, and strives, oblivious to time, for universals. No created thing ever escapes the influence of environment. But Nature carries out her works with the instruments at hand. Whence came these Maoris is a guess, but as in character, stature, proportion, personal bearing, and mental possibilities, no other savage on the globe compares with them, they must have been sufficiently long in Zelania to have become modified by, and made to conform to, the luring conditions of that wonderful country."

But I must continue:--

As there were no indigenous grains or tameable animals, and as no people ever worked out a civilisation without the assistance of tameable animals, the Maori could only remain a savage, but the climate and general aspect of Nature, the peculiar environing conditions, gave him the noblest soul and most fertile intellect ever housed in the brain of a barbarian. The conduct of the Maoris in defence of their country, considering the relative conditions of the contending forces, found no parallel in history or romance.

They had all the cunning and duplicity of the Greek, the stubborn courage of the ancient Briton, and the stoical disdain for death of the North American Indian. While in the whirligig of the great world's doings a contest between the most skilful of all warriors and a few small tribes of savages, in so remote a country, could excite no very great interest among the far-away nations, to the watchful student of events there were few pages of history more interesting than the Maori wars in Zelania.

Socially, the Maori was of a peculiar mould. A communist in property, he was an aristocrat by nature, and in his soul there was a haughty exuberance of spirit that rendered tribal discipline difficult, and domestic peace precarious. In war, the Maori was brave; in diplomacy, shrewd; in council, a born orator.

The Maori remained a savage in Zelania because there was nothing to tame him, but in his nature there was the diamond, and, by a little grinding, its brilliancy always burst forth. His native environment had given him everything of a superior mould but the final touch. I quote:--

"Already from the grim huts of these late savages have come forth the orator, the lawyer, the statesman, and the successful business man. 'From the cannibal feast to the Cabinet,' is almost true of the Maori.

"The fate of the Maoris?

"Well, my children, I don't know, but the grafting of civilisation on such a stock may work wonders, and to study these most picturesque of all the sons of Nature, is worth a journey around this little world.

"It is most interesting," continued Oseba, "to study the aboriginals of any country, and it is pathetic to observe their gradual retirement from the earth's fair face; but the Maori--the handsome, haughty, aristocratic and eloquent Maori--is as different from all other uncivilised races as his enchanting island home is different from all other countries on the surface of Oliffa.

"If bare-handed Nature in Zelania, with no animals for the chase, none for herds or for servants of industry, and practically no grain or fruit, could spank the savage, common to other lands into this shape, what may it not do for civilised man, who brings with him all the aids of all the ages?"

Oseba explained that before he called on Zelania he had visited every other country on Oliffa, and had studied the "inferior" races carefully, but the Maoris stood solitary and alone. All others lacked physical fibre and mental stamina, and for them to remain in contact with the superior races meant many generations for doubtful growth, or a few generations for extinction.

But the Maoris had now attained full manhood. They were "different" from the whites, and this was more proper than to say they were very much "inferior." They had enjoyed none of the advantages of outside communication, no aid from tameable animals, no experiences by the chase, no traditions of industrial art, during probably more than five hundred years. Yet the Maori seems to have attained to a surprising degree a fairly full mental and physical stature. He has eloquence, perception, inquisitiveness and acquisitiveness. He has everything but--civilisation. He has the soul, but it needs tuning; the material, but it needs shaking-up and seasoning. The magic touch of a newer, a higher inspiration is needed, and that is being injected into his awakening consciousness by a benign social sentiment.

"To-day," said Oseba, "the Zelania Maori, as seen in his grotesque works of art, in his struggle for wild independence, in his weird religious ceremony, in his common avocations as toiler, professional man or politician, is the most picturesque human being on the planet, and his presence in Zelania gives a seasoning of romance to be studied and enjoyed in no other land."

_SCENE VIII.--Act II._

APPROPRIATING A WORLD.

All being in readiness, a number of very perfect maps were thrown on the canvas, showing the plains, valleys, mountains, lakes, and rivers of Zelania, with the nature of the production of each island; and a careful and detailed description as to location and resources was given by the orator.

Then, calling the attention of his audience, Oseba notified the people that he was now reaching the closing chapter of his report, or in our refined phrase he was on "the home stretch." He said:--

"Now, my children, at this stage of our inquiry, I desire to remind you again how closely man is allied to Nature; how he is adjusted to all the environing conditions; how the fresh breezes of a temperate zone give him a fair skin; how a varied and pleasing aspect gives him a cheerful temperament; how the mountains suggest to him freedom, and the seas adventure; how climate depresses or exhilarates; how pastoral pursuits awaken the romantic in his nature; agriculture, patience and sturdy industry; and the search for precious metals, a careless independence and intelligence.

"Then, for this last, let the Titans wrest from Nature all that conspired to make the Phoenician, the Greek, the Norse, and the Briton, and mould them artistically into the most pleasing form, and lo! Zelania would appear in her pristine glory to--fashion a man."

Here he briefly described the workings of the government of Zelania, how it had adopted the parliamentary system of Britain, and that, while it acknowledged a proud allegiance to the British crown, it was probably the most unmitigated democracy the world had ever beheld.

"As a member of a compact," Oseba said, "Zelania owes but a loose allegiance to the Motherland, for she is at liberty to part the cable at any time and float away with the parental blessings. But, as a fact, she is held by a sentiment stronger than bands of steel; and by the voluntary sacrifice of many of her noblest sons on distant fields, she has proven, not only her loyalty to the Crown, but her love for the Empire and her devotion to British aspiration. Theirs is not merely the loyalty of the subject--'tis the tender regard of children for the generous kindred of homeland.

"Now, my children," continued the orator, "I am going to show you another series of views, some the works of man, and some the works of Nature, that have influenced my actions. Glance through the album I have given you, and you will see the style of men, who, on the lines so strongly suggested by the inviting environment, have fashioned the social creeds of the country.

"It is a grand thing to behold men strong enough and brave enough to lead the people up, not to where they may 'see the promised land,' but to secure for them and their children a nobler heritage than Joshua ever saw or Moses ever dreamed of."

The orator claimed that though the mightiest imagination could not reach a comprehension of these enchanting scenes, he felt that the views presented would justify his claim that of all lands Zelania was the most wonderful on the globe.

And now he proceeded to call attention to the human side--how the denizens of this most favored country were using their peerless opportunities, and this was even more wonderful, for Nature followed rules and precedents, while these people broke them.

"A man may famish," said Oseba, "surrounded by the most dazzling splendor; he may starve, amid the most wild, weird and stupendous beauty; but when erratic Nature has strewn in the same garden that which most elevates the soul and administers most to the nourishment of the body, man should tender the tribute of his admiration and gratitude, and--'go to work.'"

In Zelania, as I interpret the orator's meaning, the gods have conspired to do all this, and to make the lot of man a happy one. But in a life so frail and so full of wants, the practical side deserves consideration, for while the Deity may furnish the paddock, he will not throw blood oranges on fern trees, or grow "A No. 1" cauliflower on ground not subdued by the spade or the plough.

After having made so fine an exhibition of the choice spots of Zelania, Oseba commented upon the peculiar notions of the Outeroos regarding their visits to other lands. He said by the Outeroos' measure, he himself had been the world's greatest "discoverer," for he had found and charted the whole outer surface. He had "discovered" China, Japan, Russia, and other countries; he had discovered Africa, America, Australia, and finally the "Paradise of Oliffa"--Zelania.

Many people on Oliffa did not care to be "discovered"--in fact, would rather not have been, and, among these, were not improbably, those fading Maoris of Zelania. The "discoverer" had been the bane of many a people--remember the color-line!

Oseba told his people that "Zelania was once discovered by Tasman in 1642, and that it was not discovered again for more than a hundred years, when Cook found it in 1769. Later, to the temporary joy and final regret of the Maoris, the French also 'discovered' the country, and soon some gentlemen from Sydney called, and in 1814 the 'parsons' found it, since which time the collections have been regular. I," said he, "am Zelania's last 'discoverer,' and my report shall be a modest one.

"In 1840 the Union Jack was permanently nailed up in queenly Auckland, Zelania being made a province of New South Wales, and the next year the country was erected into a colony, with a good billet for the favorite of a British Premier.

"In 1865 the capital was removed to Wellington, a very breezy city, with fine 'sloping' hills at no great distance from the water-front.

"As in other British colonies, government here meant liberty, and, as in all habitable countries liberty means progress, Zelania has had a full measure of prosperity, practically from the beginning.

"If," proceeded Oseba, "the Outeroos ever evolve a generation of thinking men, the mystery of mysteries to them will be how a people as educated and business-like as the generation, who discovered and developed steam and electricity, and the modern commercial systems could be stupid enough to give away or sell to a few of the people the land upon--and from--which all the people must necessarily live. Further, it will be interesting to inquire by what course of reasoning the temporary custodians of the public domain arrived at a conclusion that they could rightfully alienate it, ignoring the will and the right of all who might come by the next train.

"As broad, as almost limitless, as is the meaning of supreme authority among the Outeroos, by no compromise with expediency, by no stretch of the imagination, can any human power consign the future generation to a madhouse, or to homelessness, or to a condition of serfdom under the heirs of the more fortunate few; but to grant the lands to a small number of persons is to pawn the cage in which the animals are eternally locked.

"Unfortunately, before the 'rulers' of Zelania had been broadened by the pure air of this wonderland, they had parcelled out much of the better lands to a comparatively few persons. But the grapes fed by the early rulers to the parents of the colonials, set the teeth of the children on edge.

"The area of Zelania is 104,000 square miles, as against 124,000 for the United Kingdom; and the population is 800,000, as against 40,000,000 for the United Kingdom.

"But, behold the growing wisdom of the generations! In the United Kingdom, by inheritance, by the crimes of authority, a few hundred families, or less than one out of every 2,000 of the population, 'own' nearly one-half of the whole country; while in this new world, the smaller follies of earlier rulers are already being corrected, and the lands are being rescued from baronial control and held for 'the people,' regardless of the time of the arrival of their train.

"As the Outeroos are mostly land animals, my children, and as we have learned how important the land is to human happiness, I will give you briefly this phase of the social situation of Zelania as being developed by its present leaders."

Then he reminded his audience that Zelania embraced 104,000 square miles or about 66,000,000 acres of land.

Mr. Oseba claimed that the British Isles, with 79,000,000 acres, with a considerable area of waste, support nearly 40,000,000 people; Italy with about 70,000,000 acres, with much waste, supports 30,000,000 people; Prussia, with about 90,000,000 acres, large areas of waste, supports 31,000,000 people; France, with about 125,000,000 acres, with extensive mountain regions, supports nearly 40,000,000 people; and that Belgium and Holland, with about 18,000,000 acres, and much waste, support over 10,000,000 people.

He argued that if the estimates were approximately correct, this most favored of all lands on the surface of Oliffa would support, on a like plane of living of the Italians, 22,000,000 of people; on a like plane of the French, 12,000,000 people; and on a like plane of the British Isles, at least 10,000,000 of people.

But he explained that with a like population of these countries a like plane of living would be inevitable; so, for the happiness of Zelania, he thought, it was fortunate that many splendid obstacles stood in the way of a rapid increase in population. The cry for population was the most delusive mockery that ever lured a people to the verge of misery.

Here I quote the intrepid discoverer:--

"B-i-g does not spell 'great.' China has what most of the new countries of Oliffa are screaming for--'population.' Yet China is not considered 'great.' India, even with British rule, as a people or a race is not 'great.' The true greatness of a nation consists in the greatness of the individual units composing the nation, and not in their numbers. America is great as a nation, but the real average 'greatness' of the individual American has been declining for many years. Better travel comfortably with a select party than rush to ruin in a crowded train.

"There is no relation between size and value. Even the most ambitious Outeroo would hardly claim Lambert, who weighed forty stone, to have been 'greater' than little Pope, who looked like an interrogation point and weighed but eight. So, as there is no virtue in avoirdupois, there is no 'greatness' in mere numbers. Better flirt with one healthy girl, than take a dozen sour old maids to the pantomime."

Mr. Oseba might have mentioned, had he known the facts, that Phoenicia, that gave to the world the ship and the alphabet, and anticipated modern commercial methods, occupied but a small strip of country--mostly sterile--from eight to twenty-five miles wide, and less than a hundred and eighty miles long; that Attica, at the feet of whose philosophers we still sit, from whose artists we still copy, and to whose orators we still listen, embraced but seven hundred square miles; and that the population of Sparta, while in her glory, probably never exceeded ten thousand souls.

"No, my children," said Oseba, "b-i-g, does not spell 'great,' and any Zelanian who is caught howling for 'population' should be compelled to 'shout' for the whole crowd until he goes 'broke,' and has to hunt a billet to enable him to buy a beer and a bun. The desirable cannot be bribed--others should not be wanted."

Here, Leo Bergin, with a deep love for Zelania, "pimples out into poetry"--"on his own," as follows:--

ZELANIA'S GREETING.

Zelania's stores are rich in wine, Zelania's air is sweet with flowers, Zelania's sons are rich in kine, Zelania's maidens wile the hours, 'Mid scenes of matchless beauty. Zelania's valleys waive with grain, Zelania's hills are white with sheep, Zelania's sons are skilled in gain, Zelania's maidens ever keep The path that leads to duty.

Zelania's crown is rich and rare, Zelania's laws are wise and free, Zelania's sons and daughters care, Zelania's door to ever see Swung open wide, and then-- Zelania speaks across the seas, Zelania calls in welcome voice, Zelania sends by every breeze Zelania's greeting to the choice-- Of earth's deserving men.

Well, that is as refreshing as it is novel. Mr. Oseba and Leo are both right, and I say, "Well done!" for a popular gentleman of old said: "He that provideth not for his own household has denied the faith, and is worse than an infidel," and if this was Paul, he was not far "beside" himself on this occasion.

It is very pleasing mental recreation to talk about the "brotherhood of man" and the equal rights of "all the children of God" to play anywhere on the surface of His "footstool," but Nature suggests that "every living creature" shall hold down its claim or it will be crowded out, and this same cruel, relentless, unsympathising "Nature"--that always "barracks" for her longest-clawed children--helps to shovel the weak into the compost heap.

With the achievements of modern times, with industrial progress, specialised effort and rapid transit, the many-hued people of the earth may enjoy the fruits of all lands without practising at the same bar or sitting at the same table.

That "God made all men equal" is pretty--it is very pretty; but it lacks the merit of scientific truth, and while it may be desirable--profitable--to deal with the outside "barbarian," and to aid, educate, and elevate him, none but a fool or a fanatic would bring a hoard of park loafers into his dining-room and seat them at his table, to the exclusion of his own children--or his wife's relations.

We may do justice by a "brother" man without boarding him or converting him into a brother-in-law.

Mr. Oseba said:--

"Zelania's needed population will arrive in due season, for, besides her own resistless attractions, Oliffa must be more densely covered; but in 'filling up the country' from abroad, the heads should be weighed and not counted. Zelania may select her own coming population, for whether for health, for profit, for pleasure, for curiosity, or to study lessons of the highest social and political wisdom, she is curiosity's magnetic pole, and with prudent management on the part of her 'rulers' she will soon become the happy loitering place for the leisure-loving, wealthy, and well-to-do of all lands. Then, thousands of those who 'call' will be so charmed with her faultless climate, her romantic scenery, her hospitable people, and her splendid opportunities for domestic happiness and private gain, that they will cast their lots in this ever-enchanting land.

"Nature points to Zelania and says to all her children:--

"'Come and see what I did when I had my hand in.' Then, my children, let me anticipate, for I desire that you may now have a glimpse of the goal to which I am leading you.

"Well, I may tell you these British people to whom I have briefly referred, composed almost exclusively in this case of English, Irish and Scotch, being far removed from central authority, so strongly tempted by new opportunities, and so resistlessly influenced by new and pressing demands, have amazed the world by the boldness of their political conceptions and by their marvellous achievements in social experiments."

From Mr. Oseba's oration one would conclude that never did a colony of loyal people more readily depart from traditional usages, never did a community enter into the possession of a new country who so readily adjusted themselves by their customs, their laws, and their rules of action to the requirements of a novel environment as did the settlers of this peerless land.

He claimed that, in little more than half a century, before they were three-quarters of a million souls, by their achievements in social evolution the Zelanians had excited the interest and won the admiration of the civilised world.

"Selfishness," he argued, "is the mainspring of human action, and the actuating motive of every human being is to secure the greatest possible happiness with the least possible expenditure of physical toil.

"Though the social instincts of man help to tame him, all social and political systems in the world are based upon very human traits. The savage, for his own happiness, by force appropriates whatever he wants or can get. The half-civilised man cunningly appropriates the land, that its fruit may ripen in his granary, that himself and family may be happy, while the really civilised man would divide the opportunities among all, and his happiness is found in the general joy. The Zelanians are being civilised by evolution and parliamentary enactments.

"And they allotted the land as each had need."

Oseba reaffirmed his conclusions that no people ever took possession of a new country who shaped the land laws with a due regard to those who came later--with rights just as holy--save the Zelanians. In this they were more nearly complying with the rational demands of justice than any other people.

"I will give you," said he, "a glimpse of the policy now in vogue, and how it seems to satisfy the hopes of its sponsors, for this will deeply interest you."

The orator here began a review of the land system of Zelania, and, with a view to brevity, the notes will be "boiled down" to the lowest possible comprehensive space.

As the country was originally divided into some nine provinces with as many governing bodies, each vested with authority to deal with and dispose of the public domain, there naturally arose a system that resulted in great inequality, as well as in great confusion. Then as all the provinces were in need of roads, bridges, schools, and other public improvements, they vied with each other in offering inducements for immigration or new population, and with a hand exceedingly lavish, the lands were alienated--often in large tracts.

When the Colonial Parliament took over the public property--by an abolition of provincial authority--the land question at once assumed a new importance. This came about at the most intense stage of the modern transitionary period. "Industrial progress" had ushered in the most resistless spirit of commercial expansion in all countries. Then population became a "necessity" and railway construction became almost a mania everywhere.

The contagion struck Zelania. Public improvements were an absolute necessity, and the lands were the chief assets and "capital." For a time the lands were recklessly sold, but the mania for internal improvements became so unconquerable that foreign capital was called, and by a resort to the seemingly most reckless borrowing policy ever indulged in by a sane people, the lands were partially saved for a better future.

I quote:--

"Of the 66,000,000 acres there are said to be 35,500,000 'occupied,' and of this, 16,000,000 acres are 'freehold,' 11,000,000 are held under various crown leases, while the rest is leased from private owners, or from the natives--who own, as a people, several million acres. As the Maoris are usually tired, these lands are mostly leased to the 'superior race,' who do the work.

"The number of holdings is 115,713, with an improved value of £120,981,599. This is good. It shows an unparalleled proportion of land-holders, but it is not enough, and the 'Government' is making strenuous efforts to increase proportionately the population of rural districts, and of 'land holders,' if not of land 'owners.'

"Under an old system, the lands were so recklessly disposed of that even yet fully one-fourth of those 'occupied' are 'owned' by comparatively few people; but the Government has applied a strong 'persuader'--graduated land tax--and the great inequality will gradually disappear. The issue now is, 'custom _versus_ justice,' and with the face turned to the new, the old loses its potency. The burden should be more on the land and less on the laundry.

"The laws and rules applied to the land of Zelania of late years, not only take into consideration the desires and requirements of would-be occupiers, but also the class of the land--the holdings for the better to be smaller in area than those for the poorer tracts. Of good or first-class land, under certain tenures, 640 acres only may be taken or held, and of second-class, 2,000 acres.

"There are several tenures under which 'crown lands' in Zelania may be acquired--one by purchase for cash; one with lease and right to purchase, rent to be 5 per cent. on unimproved value; and one, an eternal lease (999 years) with a rent of 4 per cent. during this period on original capital value--unimproved. Compulsory residence of the holder is enjoined during the currency of the lease in leasehold tenures.

"Under the _ægis_ of the law, if wise and just, people are encouraged and assisted by the Government in forming small agricultural communities of not less than twelve heads of families--for the Outeroos have families--and this group may have set apart for them a suitable block of land upon which to settle. This secures educational advantages, for in every community the Government not only establishes schools, but compels parents to send their children for instruction.

"But when conscience was thoroughly aroused, it became evident to the most casual observer, that the great estates not only stood in the way of social progress, but that holding vast areas out of cultivation was a menace to the future liberties of the people. And further, that though there were considerable Crown lands suitable for occupation, the conditions for 'closer settlement' on them were not over favorable; and, further still, that every successful effort to settle these lands not only vastly increased the value of the great estates, but increased the temptation of the large owner to further extend his domain.

"Under the earlier _régime_ the follies of the old rapidly spread over the new world, and by 1890 most of the better lands in Zelania were parcelled out in lordly estates and owned by a few persons.

"Almost before the people were aware of the tendencies of the times, a gigantic land monopoly threatened to overshadow the country. But being 14,000 miles from central authority, the affections of the people for hoary customs had weakened, and vested rights in ancient wrongs soon began to find earnest protestation.

"The rights of imminent domain were understood, the people had no notion of erecting a landed aristocracy, and a few bold souls, who, by the force of inherent genius had arisen from the industrial ranks, conceived the idea of writing another chapter in the history of human progress.

"No people," Mr. Oseba argued, "ever yet revolted against a despot who ruled with smiling diplomacy, but having learned in the old home the power of the world owners, and knowing that the liberties of none are secure where a few are vested with the instruments of oppression, people in this new and strange country felt the weight of the lordly hand possibly before it was ungloved for action.

"The land barons, with their sheep, inhabited the fertile valleys, while the people with their children, roamed over the sterile hills. But with the squeezing of the people into the bush there was a rush of brains to the head, and the chosen guardians of the public weal said: 'Zaccheus, come down.'

"Though New Zealand mutton was of good quality and wool bore a good price, some healthy gentlemen concluded that men and women and children were about as good as sheep, especially when the sheep belonged to the other fellow, and as the barons had no blunderbusses and the people had votes, the world-owners were called down to pay a little more of the taxes, and the people were called up to earn a square meal.

"Then the show was opened--without a prayer or a corkscrew--and some very sensible men who stood on firm ground suggested that any man who had muscle and a mouth should have an opportunity to exercise the one for the satisfaction of the other, and when the world-owners declined to 'set a price,' the agents of this brave democracy came with a persuader, and the revolution was begun.[B]

"The land barons were treated honorably. The values created by the coming of a progressive population, by the settlement on Crown lands, and by the construction of the highways, were generously allowed them; but when asked to move off the grass and make room for closer settlement, they learned to accept the situation, and the laws had a soothing influence.

"The graduated land tax is a powerful persuader, and already there have been about seventy of the great estates resumed and divided into small allotments among an intelligent, industrious and progressive people. And still the work goes on with success, and even profit in nearly every case.

"In Zelania has been demonstrated, not only the possibility but the wisdom of State landlordism. To-day the State is a landlord to the extent of over 15,000,000 acres, it has 16,000 tenants, and in all these resumptions, divisions, settlements, rent collections and management, there has been no loss, few grievances and fewer scandals.

"Then, too, when the estates are cut up and divided among settlers, schools are established, post offices are opened, roads are made, and--when needed by the settlers--money is loaned to them by the State at a reasonably low interest; and, so far, these laws have been to the infinite advantage of the people, and a profit to the State--the 'profits' used to further the general scheme.

"With this policy of graduated land tax and discretionary resumptions, exorbitant rents and land speculations are inconvenient, and with the 'loan to the settler policy' the money sharks can't squeeze the people, 'they can't.'

"In Zelania, the State, or the people in their organised capacity, aids from the general store the people in their individual capacity--to help themselves.

"The State gives nothing. There is humiliating charity nowhere, but elevating justice everywhere. The State puts a man on a farm, loans him money, helps him up hill, and then demands that he play the Hercules. It will loan him a spade--not to lean upon or to pawn, but to dig with--and he must keep it bright and pay for its use.

"The idea in Zelania, my children, is to have no lords and no paupers--that all men shall be producers, and not vagrants; tax-payers, and not tax-eaters--and that every citizen shall become a sturdy democrat, who will honorably strive as a stock-holder in a paying concern.

"Joint encouragement is given," said he, "and that may be called socialistic; but individual action is demanded, and that is democratic.

"Many persons in Zelania think that the government train is rushing ahead too rapidly, but these should observe the tendencies of the times, and realise the advantages of the general prosperity. Many others think the train moves too slowly, but these should realise the conservatism of wealth, the dangers of exploring uncharted seas, and they should remember that to-day, in all the essentials of human progress, they are by far the most advanced of all peoples.

"Of course, there are occasional failures in Zelania, enough to furnish healthy examples; for while any man who will hustle may thrive, the Almighty does not line up the jerseys for every lout that likes cream in his chocolate. Even in Zelania, the man who claims that this world owes him a living must make some effort to collect that little bill.

"As a fact, in Zelania they furnish a fellow with about everything but brains. This, doubtless, they would willingly do, but as there are a few things in which Nature seems to practice economy, so far there has appeared no surplus of brains--no, not even in Zelania."

Here I cluster some of Mr. Oseba's graphic conclusions into my own "chaste" language:--

Having become familiar with the serene security of the man of acres in other lands, it is curiously interesting to observe that people in Zelania--common and no account as they are in most countries--are held in considerable respect, regardless of their bank accounts, or the social position of their father-in-law.

In most countries, on Oliffa, the people are "moved on" to make room for animals, and, in most countries on Oliffa, the larger the "estate," the more easily can it be made larger; but in Zelania, when too many people are "out in the cold," some fellow with a big paddock is requested to "set a price," and the stray "sheep" are soon comfortably quartered and employed.

Under the old system such "estates" were always held "sacred," but in Zelania, among the most "sacred" of all recognised rights is the "sacred right" of "man to live"; and it has been discovered that to talk of the "sacred right" of a man to live, without an opportunity to earn something upon which to live, is an insult to God's noblest creatures; and the graduated land tax has so conciliated the lordly inheritors, that the "blessed" who "hunger and thirst" are not asked to wait for the platter of "charity," but they are "filled" from the products of their own strong hands.

Here I quote:--

"The Christian Outeroos, my children, all think they are in the world by the special desire and fiat of God, and yet of all the civilised Outeroos, the Zelanians alone have had courage enough to demand standing room on a world where God had placed them.

"They assume to think their deity made the world and then made them to people it, yet most of them have been persuaded that 'He made the world' for just a few of them, who are privileged to put up the notice 'Keep off the grass.' The Zelanians alone have removed the 'notice.'

"While to us, my children, so far away, with so long a history behind us, even these measures seem but the cautious experiments of amateurs, they are the most advanced known to the Outeroos; and the Zelanians, in their numerical 'fewness,' their national youth, and their splendid isolation, are more courageously grappling with the difficulties that have baffled the noblest statesmanship of all the ages, than any other social group in the world's progressive history.

"Zelania, my children, is the most unmitigated democracy ever known to the outer world of this planet, yet her people have just gained a glimpse, not a realisation, of human liberty. But the divine flame from the sacred torch is spreading, the public conscience is aroused, the public intellect is alert, and the social train is moving rapidly.

"What the dreamers, the poets, and the academicians of other lands laud as social ideals, the tradesmen, the farmers, and the mechanics of Zelania discuss as every-day matters of practical politics.

"'Touch not the Lord's anointed' hath saved the head of many a despot, and touching appeals for the observance of the 'sacred rights'--in hoary wrongs--hath larded the ribs of idleness for a very protracted season, but the Zelanians, in the exuberance of a novel situation, are indulging in mental gymnastics, and putting on grey matter--with results.

"A shipwrecked mariner, tossed on a lone island, rich with food, and shelter, and material for raiment, may 'own' that little world--for a time. His rights are supreme. He has a 'vested interest.' He 'discovered' it. As a contribution to the world's wealth he had practically created that patch of dirt. It is his. But suppose the next morning another fellow from the same or some other ship is tossed on the island. Well, number one must 'divvy.' The social conditions have changed. 'Right' has a new definition--unless the first enslaves the other.

"Definitions change. Right and wrong as expressing the various social theories, are fictions established by society for its own use, and if a rule established by society for the benefit of itself cannot be modified by society for the benefit of a larger social self, one man might own all the people who might be cast on the island--even if the island became a continent.

"The Zelanians have discovered that despotism consists chiefly in a loyal observance of ancient customs, and they are giving new definitions to old terms--and then adjusting society upon the new definitions. In no country are human rights more respected, or vested interests more sacredly guarded, than in Zelania, but the outposts are extended, and no longer is the power of the few to legally wrong the many, sanctified as a sacred right.

"In Zelania it has been decreed," said the sage Oseba, "that one man's rights must stop where another's begins--especially if there are several of the 'others.' In Zelania it has been decreed that the interests of 'all of us' are paramount to the interests of 'a few of us,' and, though the rights of no man must be infringed, the equal rights of the many must not be withheld.

"Man is a social being, and how much of his rights--as defined by himself--he may be called upon to yield for the happiness of many--as defined by themselves--has nowhere been determined.

"In Zelania, my children, the people have ideas, and the people rule. In Zelania the people may ask the lucky fellow who first struck the lonely island to 'set up a price.' They may ask that he who toils shall enjoy, that the size of a paddock be decreased, that the distance between drinks be increased, and, in Zelania, the statesmen with fidelity carry out the will of the people as expressed under the rules prescribed.

"Now, my children, I have dwelt with some detail on the land system of Zelania, for of all nations on the surface of Oliffa, the Zelanians are gradually adjusting themselves most wisely to the permanent happiness of the people--and we may desire to send thither a 'colony.'

"Zelania is a lovely land, my children, and, were there no principle involved, I would like to own it myself; but, alas! no 'principle' should be violated for so transient a pleasure."

_SCENE VIII--Act III._

UTILITARIAN.

Here the notes record that there had been a half-hour's recess, during which Leo Bergin mentions that he enjoyed a pleasant chat with the poetess Vauline, that she was very charmingly inquisitive, and that while he confessed his lack of eloquence as compared with that of Oseba, he thought Zelania had lost nothing through his modesty.

Leo remarks that he showed the poetess many photos of the outer world, especially some fine ones of Zelania--among others, some of the leading statesmen and jurists--"all at the same sitting."

But I will ring off Leo Bergin, and have Amoora Oseba continue his observations, as per Leo's notes boiled down--by the fire of genius.

Mr. Oseba, on rising, is noted to have observed that men were human, to which I partially agree.

Taking from the immortal Robert as a text,

"Man's inhumanity to man Makes countless thousands mourn,"

he delivered a long and eloquent oration on man's relations to this world; how the earth is the storehouse of Nature; how all that we call wealth, and the things that contribute to our health, comfort, and well-being are the products of the toil of men; and he then observed how few of us get much exercise out of this useful occupation.

As a fact, he conveyed the rather startling information that, as relating to actual production, fully nine-tenths of us were on vacation, or, to put a point on it, that every toiler was carrying about nine more easy-going souls on his back. These remarks applied to general productive industry.

Mr. Oseba explains "how in sparsely settled countries, where there are animals, primitive man lives by the chase, where there are tameable animals he becomes partially tamed and lives by his flocks, and where there is good soil--as population increased--the people turn to agriculture, and with more culture and more people industry becomes specialised, and commerce arises to put on the finishing touches.

"But," he argued, "as man clings to the muscles with which his ancestors flapped their ears, so he clings to all the habits practised by man in the past. He lives by the chase as long as there is room, he reduces nomadic industry to a science, and by co-operation all contribute to the advancement of the higher ideal.

"In Zelania, save for sport, the chase has been abandoned, and the living and wealth come from herding on, delving into, or cultivating the soil."

I gather from Leo's notes, that of some 66,000,000 acres of land in Zelania, there are but 6,000,000 subdued by the plough, 1,400,000 acres in crops, 4,600,000 acres in grass, and 7,000,000 unploughed--also in exotic grasses--and that chiefly from this source of wealth 800,000 of the best fed, best clothed, best housed, best educated and best satisfied, most progressive, healthy, happy and free people, that ever loafed about on the surface of this planet are quite alive, and satisfied to remain--_sine die_.

In grain and root crops, etc, the soil yields more abundantly than that of any other country. In pasture it carries more stock, in fruit it is promising, and as for the dairy, Denmark must fight to retain her laurels.

It will be seen that but a small portion of the land of Zelania is devoted to its "best use," so there is room for many millions of people, whose lot there should be blessed indeed, for in no country is the fortune of the land dweller so happy a one. His soil is fertile, his climate is genial, his seasons are reliable, his health is perfect, he has the best implements in use, his taxes are light, and his prices are always good. Happy Zelania's farmer!

SOME THAT ADAM NAMED.

"And God made the beasts of the earth after his kind, and cattle after their kind, and everything that creepeth upon the earth after his kind, and God saw that it was good."

But only a few miserable little "creeping things" got to Zelania, until the British brought others.

Oseba, in a review of the "animal business," remarked, that as all animals--save the long-wooled goat herded on the desert and mountain sides--had long retired from Cavitorus to make room for people, he would use the terms common among the Outeroos in his present statement, leaving the more minute explanation to be studied in his published report.

He claimed again that man had never been able to work out a civilisation without the use of tameable animals, and many of the Outeroos had been most fortunate in these aids of Nature.

Where man had the association, company and use of the camel, the horse, the ox, the sheep, and the dog, he had been able to keep up the march towards a higher goal. The animals became at once servants, beasts of burden, motive force, food and raiment.

The people about the Mediterranean, for many thousands of years, had all these amiable and useful animals. These animals carried civilisation to the remotest parts of the world, and from servants they became more a source of commerce, food and raiment, than of motive force.

Rearing these animals became the chief industry of Zelania early in her colonial days, for the fertility of the soil, the healthfulness of the country, the geniality of the climate, and the ever reliability of the seasons, made this--of all lands--the most suited for flocks and herds.

"Ah, my children," said Oseba, with animation, "had the Maoris possessed the horse, the ox, and the sheep centuries ago, the dark republic of the South Seas might have sent the most eloquent diplomats to the opulent courts of the Old World--but the Maori was alone."

But let us back to the animals--and "boil them down." These 800,000 Zelanians have 20,250,000 sheep, 1,360,000 cattle, 280,000 horses, and 224,000 swine; and--well, there are a few thousand, more or less, dogs. These 20,000,000 sheep are of a fine breed, reared with the dual idea of good wool and good mutton; they belong to about 19,000 persons, and they yield, from export, an annual income of about £5,000,000. There are 11,700 flocks of less than 500 per flock, and 138 of over 20,000. The Zelanians confess to having the best mutton in the world.

I quote:--

"Zelania is a country of big things, only when taken on the average. She has no millionaires and no paupers. She has no sheep kings or sheep thieves. She has big geysers, and big Premiers, big yields, big people and big ideas, but few big fortunes. They have 'trusts' in Zelania, but they are in God and--the people."

PROFITABLE EXERCISE.

Among the most pleasant as well as most profitable industries anywhere, I conclude from the notes, are dairying and fruit-growing, and Mr. Oseba thinks that in no country or climate on the upper crust of our planet are these industries more promising or more profitable, especially the former. The absence of cold winters, the purity of the atmosphere, the nutritiousness of the grasses, and the frequency of rain, all "work together for good" to those who attend to business.

I quote:--

"The relative area of land in Zelania specially suitable for this purpose is enormous, and as the fertility of the soil is improved instead of being impoverished by this industry, the possibilities of its development are incalculable.

"For a person with moderate means this seems the most tempting industry in this charming land. Mining, too, with its variety of products, the generous laws, the healthful climate, the abundance of water, is a most interesting and remunerative industry.

"The mining laws and regulations are as generous as the land laws, and in every undertaking of this nature the policy of the Government is, 'arm energy with the implements of industry that wealth may come in response to the kindly invitation.'

"As the Zelanians were among the most commercial people of the globe, considering population, they entered into the spirit of railway building in early times with great enthusiasm. The railway mania began during the reign of provincialism, and each province commenced its little system without regard to the plans of the others."

Here a map was thrown on the wall, showing different railway systems, with their different routes and purposes. Considering the nearness of the sea to every populous centre, and the accessibility of these points for steamers, the construction of costly railways evidenced a commendable spirit of enterprise.

Doubtless, provincial pride and a willingness to bid high for population in former times, that rents on fine estates might be raised, had much to do in stimulating this enterprise.

The railway lines were expensive, but they have proved a good investment. I conclude that at present Zelania has 2,325 miles of railway. The road-bed is good, the rolling-stock fair; travelling is about as comfortable as in other countries, and the average passenger fare is lower than in America. For the benefit of the joint owners--the people--all "profits" go to the general lowering of rates.

The wisdom of the Australasian colonies in constructing, managing, and owning the transportation lines cannot be too much admired, Mr. Oseba thinks, especially as it was "contrary to the world's experience."

The orator argued logically, and in detail, the wisdom of the public ownership of public utilities, claiming that, as transportation was of so vital an importance to all commercial people, unless the Government owned and operated the railways, the railways would, by some means, own and operate the Government.

He proceeded:--

"The railways in Zelania are a valuable asset. Their construction has doubled the value of the public lands, and, as at cheap rates they are yielding a good per cent. on the total cost, they are worth to-day the full amount of the investment.

"The railways are being extended and improved as rapidly as the demands require, and the finances justify; and with the post offices, telegraphs and telephones, they are under the watchful eye and control of a Cabinet Minister--at present Sir Joseph Ward--the early evidence of whose sagacity was shown in his having selected these antipodean regions as a country in which to endure life's fitful dream.

"Sir Joseph is an ornament too, as well as a pillar in, the political and social structure of Zelania. He is affable, polished, ambitious and patriotic. He is brilliant in his business conceptions, and, possessing a pleasing personality and persuasive speech, he rarely fails in the execution of his well organised designs. While he has hardly passed the noon of life, he has long been the skilful lieutenant of the sturdy Seddon, and if the chief, at whose side he has so unfalteringly stood, should weary under the burden of public cares, it would seem most fitting that the mantle of leadership should fall upon the trained shoulders of this able and versatile statesman.

"Then the construction of all the railways, with all their _et ceteras_--the highways, bridges, and other public works--is also directed by a Cabinet Minister.

"Well, from all the 'millions' that have been spent under this tireless guardian in the promotion of these stupendous improvements, in a country, too, in which very many intelligent people would sit up 'all hours' to find something to criticise, there is probably not one person who could be persuaded that there was ever a sixpence coined in His Majesty's Mint sufficiently nimble to find its way into the wrong pocket.

"This 'Minister of Works' works twice as many hours per day as any one of the thousands of men in his employ, and the thought of his being influenced by any consideration save that of the public good, could not be advanced to the debatable stage in any company in Zelania. These people trust their 'servants,' and rarely, indeed, is their trust betrayed. This is a Zelanian 'trust.'

"Nearly all these great works are carried on under a co-operative policy, with a wage based on individual capacity to earn, the work being usually given to the 'unemployed' nearest the productive operations. It is claimed that this policy has been no more costly than the old contract system. It is of the people, for the people, by the people.

'Who will not sing "God Save the King" Shall hang as high's the steeple. But while we sing "God Save the King," We'll ne'er forget the people.'"

Here, the notes record, the poetess Vauline suggested that the sage Oseba give the audience a little further information regarding Zelanian statesmen, their relation to the Motherland, and their hold upon the affections of the people.

In interesting detail, Mr. Oseba explained that while Zelania claimed allegiance to the British Crown, and that in defence of Britain's honor she would pour out her blood and treasure with Spartan valor, she was so proudly free that should the same "loved mother" demand a penny per pound tax on her tea, the next rising sun would kiss a thousand emblems of a new-born republic. For the Motherland, Zelania would sacrifice all--save honor--but it must be as a partner, and not as a vassal.

"I have no desire," said the orator, "to applaud the star performers of this great social drama, for such leaders are but the chosen instruments of the people, and as no other power had conspicuously succeeded in establishing justice among men, the people have the innings, and may--yea, must--be trusted.

"But the chosen are not sure to enjoy the 'affections of all,' for as long as a man is alive and in business," Mr. Oseba concludes, "there will be marked differences of opinion regarding his mental and moral worth."

Mr. Oseba "caught on" alright, for he soon discovered that among the Outeroos the real live man is always in somebody's way; that the fellow who reached the persimmons, or "got there"--at the top of the poll--was bad, and that if such a one ever did a proper thing it was through inadvertence, or from unholy motives.

While a man "is quite alive" and wants something, we scoff at his ability, we laugh at his language, we question his motives, and we wound him with our poisoned shafts. But let him die once, and what a wondrous change! As long as he is in our way, as long as his quivering heart can feel, we cannonade him; then, when we have wrapped him in the habiliments of eternal silence, we feel subdued, we magnify his virtues, and--_canonise_ him.

Among a free and educated people, on questions of domestic policy, there are always differences of opinion among men, and this is no imputation either on the intelligence or the patriotism of the disputants; but Mr. Oseba rather likes the man who gets there while the other fellow is holding his caucus.

From these opposing opinions arise party prejudices and factional strife, and earnestness should be reckoned a virtue, even should the reasoning finally prove faulty. Democracy, then, instead of raising men above the human, not infrequently reminds us how far men fall short of the divine.

But on this point Mr. Oseba closes thus:--

"While Zelania is a conspicuous jewel of the British Crown and very red on the map, and her government is of, for, and by the people, any praise of her statesmen is a compliment to the character and intelligence of the 'ultimate power'--the people."

LET'S TO BUSINESS.

Here, for the sake of brevity, I condense many eloquent pages, and for the sake of clearness I make Mr. Oseba's story my own, quoting when we pass the general argument.

Commercially, I conclude, Zelania, on a population basis, is one of the leading countries on the upper crust, her annual exports and imports amounting to about £24,000,000. To furnish financial convenience for the great industrial and commercial enterprise of the country, there are provided excellent banking facilities. As a fact, the capital invested in banking, for so small a society, seems fabulous. The banking laws are explicit, and while the banks have provided for their own perfect safety, they cannot, if they should desire, oppress the people. But the fact that advances by these banks amount to about £20 per cap. of the whole people shows to what extent they are patronised.

Referring to a review of the political side of this country, it appears that the Zelanians, all in all, have the most rational system of taxation of any people anywhere. With a desire to encourage "home industry," and also influenced by custom, the laws provide that the necessary revenue be raised by the usual methods, direct and indirect taxation, but it is of the former I shall chiefly speak. Of the total, say £3,113,000, about 74 per cent. is raised by indirect methods, or from taxes on imports and excises, while 26 per cent. is raised by a direct tax on land and income.

On land and income the taxes are graduated, the rates increasing with the increase of the income, or the value of the estate--those on land being on the unimproved value. This system of graduated taxation is a new departure, a reversal of the history of the ages. It is based upon the idea of social defence of personal rights. It is plain that the more property a person possesses the greater are his claims upon society for protection, and the graduated tax is simply demanding extra rent for extra room, or extra charge for the extra expense for the extra security given. In fact, it is extra insurance for extra risks.

The justice of the idea has been clear to thoughtful men--who had nothing to tax--for many years; but in Zelania--to discover a new truth means to occupy a new position. Zelania does not allow her intellectual jewels to rust in the brains of the academician.

Under Zelania's novel policy the books show her to be carrying a public debt greater in proportion to population than any other country, but for every shilling of her debt she has more than two shillings in valuable assets, and for most of it she has a reproductive asset. So, as a fact, the burden helps to carry the people. Like other "heavily involved" Australasian States, if measured by the rule of other nations, she is among the least burdened of all people.

"And these people were cunning in handicraft."

Oseba tells his audience at some length about the manufacturing industries of Zelania, but a small space will suffice, as it is better to remember the haste of the age. The pith is, that considering the newness of the country, and the narrow limits of the markets, there has been a laudable advance in manufacturing enterprise. The chief industries, of course, have developed from the most common and profitable material resources of the country.

"My children," said Oseba, "we are never done with Zelania's wonders. While she offers the most tempting rewards for effort, she gives nothing ready-made. In all Zelania there was, and is, nothing of the 'Arise, Peter, slay and eat' to be found, but everywhere there is seen: 'In my treasure-house there are many jewels, and he who cannot open my door and unlock my chest would be an unsafe custodian of my riches, an unworthy recipient of my favors.' Or, like the gay and mischievous maiden who says, 'Catch me, and you have a kiss,' she keeps all her promises. Relying on Nature without effort, any man in Zelania might genteelly starve; but relying on effort with Nature's aid, any man in Zelania may live like a prince.

"Zelania had no indigenous animals, and really no indigenous grasses, and her fruits were meagre, but she had the magic force of fecundity, and she said:--

'I am the nourisher. Like the wise virgins I have long waited a worthy wooer. By action, arose I from the mad seas' bosom. By action, arose my heaven-piercing mountains. By action, were my rivers dug, and plains fertilised. By action, created I and concealed my mineral wealth; And, loving "action," to him who gives an ounce of sweat, I pledge a pound of glittering gold.'

"Yes, as Zelania's laws give pound for pound of private contribution to worthy causes, so Zelania's goddess of fortune gives to honest toil a reward of many fold.

"Zelania offers nothing for sloth, everything for industry. Her treasures are all hidden, but a plough reveals them. Tickle a field with a harrow, and it laughs with a crop of a hundred bushels to the acre. Remove a fern, a sprig of clover comes. Bring a little rabbit to 'amuse the boys,' and, lo! Nature is so pleased that the 'boys' have to hustle to save the crops.

"Well, as Zelania, by every feature of her nature, suggests action, her people are exploring every field of industrial enterprise. Though wages are high and the market for most of the manufactured goods very limited, there has been reasonable success in many branches of the arts productive.

"Of course, the chief of these industries," he says, "relate to what might be called raw pastoral products: meat, wool, butter, and cheese. The list of manufactures include some twenty general classes, covering over one hundred sub-classes.

"As a rule, the manufacturing plants are fairly well equipped--the machinery for the meat and dairy works being especially up to date. The wages of the 41,000 persons employed are, high. Nearly £8,000,000 are invested in plant, and the annual output amounts to £17,000,000. Certainly these facts speak strongly for the enterprise of so new a people.

"But, Zelania, 'twas not thy 'riches' nor thy trade, 'Twas not thy fields, thy fruits, thy wool that made Thee loved of gods and men, nor gold; nor stately domes. 'Twas 'justice,' inscribed on the portals of thy homes. For thou first learned that men and women must be great, Else folly only boasts the grandeur of a State."

_SCENE VIII.--Act IV._

THE MORAL SIDE.

Relating to the moral side of Zelania's progress, the notes were very full, but the story will be briefly and chiefly told in the less chaste style of Marmaduke:--

As a rule, the people of Zelania, if the great discoverer is correct, enjoy excellent health--or should enjoy it--though we rarely "enjoy" anything that is very common. Of course, Zelania has not yet evolved a type, though she has begun her task, for while the Zelanians are of excellent stock, the "born Zelanian" is said to be superior, both in physical fibre and mental perception, to the average person of the Motherland. Nature, Mr. Oseba thinks, will preserve the "sorrel hair," the white skin, the florid complexion, the fine shoulders and the firm "understanding."

The Zelanians are loyal to the Motherland. They speak of Britain as "Home," and, as a compliment to her, the color with which she paints her dependencies is conspicuously present in the cheeks of Zelanian ladies.

Unless Zelania dilutes her blood by hurried accessions to her population, she will, in a few generations, furnish the finest type of mental and physical man and womanhood that ever kicked a football, or "did the block," on the surface of Oliffa.

In the care of the unfortunate, the deaf, the dumb, the blind, and the lunatics, Zelania is already on the "fortunate" side, as Mr. Oseba abundantly testifies.

Oseba says:--

"As an evidence of the satisfaction of the people of Zelania with their present condition, it is only necessary to remark the low death rate among the people. This for the last eleven years has averaged less than ten persons per thousand. For the same period, the rates in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, were about sixteen per thousand; in the United Kingdom, over eighteen per thousand; in Germany and France, about twenty-two per thousand; in Italy, about twenty-five; and in Austria, over twenty-seven per thousand. Then it appears that of all people the Zelanians are best satisfied with their present situation.--Mayhap, some tarry even a little too long.

"While these people are all earnest, and want to go to heaven--afterwhile--they seem to be in no hurry about starting, and have little desire for risking climatic changes.

"With other matchless wonders, had Nature been attending properly to business, she would have placed the 'Fountain of Youth' in some of these charming spots, for the 'untimely taking off' of a person in Zelania seems quite unjustifiable. A person willingly leaving any other country might be justified in making the change, but when anyone permanently retires from Zelania it means there has been coercion, an exercise of some extraneous power.

"Strange, but the books show seventy-nine suicides to have been committed in one year in Zelania, though it seems incredible that any person in Zelania should voluntarily retire. Of course, they may have desired to get to heaven ahead of some of their neighbors, for in Zelania they like to be considered a little advanced.

"To insure or secure the public health, there are wise sanitary laws, charitable institutions and hospitals; the practice of medicine is wisely guarded, and carried on by able physicians. In all these public affairs, the Government--which means the people in their organised capacity--is most generous in its assistance.

"In local hospitals, or charitable enterprise, the Government usually gives pound for pound for all private contributions, and the many institutions of the kind in all Australasia furnish a pleasing surprise to observing travellers."

"ON THE MAKE."

Mr. Oseba was greatly interested in the "enterprise" of the Outeroos. I quote:--

"I have visited all the countries of the upper crust of Oliffa, and I have observed that the Outeroos are taking a lot of physical exercise. They are engaged in a mad scramble for dollars. Just why any man should want so many 'dollars' is not very clear, but it is very clear that they do want them. Men with very many dollars are, in most things, much like the men with very few dollars; they are alarmed at smallpox, the cold and the heat make them thirsty, and the shapely actress turns alike their shallow heads. Then, too, the grim chariot that carries waste from the 'City of Confusion' and deposits it in the 'City of the Silent,' calls about as promptly at the mansion of Lady Bountiful as at the hovel of the laundress.

"When the man of dollars dies, he is about as dead as his footman--under like circumstances. He'll be dead about as long, and whatever his facilities for the transfer of wealth while in active business, he can take none of it with him. But, maybe, 'tis well, for if the old story be true, it would probably melt.

"The world has been aroused by the magic force of modern genius, and is being unified by Anglo-Saxon commercial enterprise. The nations are growing wealthy; gold is the sole object of ambition, of toil, of production, of trade. For gold the industrious strive, the duke marries, the boss robs, the politician 'negotiates,' the lawyer deceives, the judge decrees, the noble cheats, and the 'parson'--takes up a collection. In this enormous confusion, a great many people get a lot of exercise--a few, 'clip the coupons,' and are happy.

"But the superior Outeroos are only veneered pagans, my children, and gold is the universal god. When Moses smashed the 'golden calf' the fragments must have been many, and each tiny piece must have multiplied into many full-grown bullocks.

"This deity, however, should never grow 'jealous.' His worshippers have at least one sturdy virtue, for among all the millions of them, there kneels not one hypocrite. While the other deities are occasionally scoffed and often neglected, the 'golden calf' is always in evidence. But he attends to business, and in all places he hath wonderful potency.

"Genius has quickened the hand of toil," said Oseba, "but it has not removed the callous, and almost everywhere on the surface of Oliffa the opulence of the mansion tells the wretchedness of the hovel. The owner of the one schemes, the tenant of the other toils. The man who toils, toils for another; the man who 'schemes'--well, the other fellow goes to him for a cheque at the end of the week. Until the great democracies of the Antipodes were established, every government of the world, regardless of title, style or form, conspired with cunning to rob credulity, with the schemer to rob the toiler.

"I have thus reasoned, my children, that you might realise by 'looking upon this picture and then upon this,' that Zelania has introduced to the world a social policy under which the people, in their organised capacity, have secured to the people, in their individual capacity, a fuller measure of the fruits of their mental and physical efforts than was ever enjoyed in any other country under the sun.

"It is not even a policy of the 'greatest good to the greatest number,' for, as the purest happiness consists in a participation of the general joy, it is a policy of the greatest good to all.

"Zelania's motto is: 'He who earns shall have, and he who strives shall enjoy.' In this, the people builded better than they knew, and soon Zelania will be the most conspicuously conspicuous spot on Oliffa, and thousands of people will visit her marvellous shores, not more to enjoy the museums of the gods than to study the customs and the character of the first nation of emancipated men.

"Zelania, though she is now the foremost among the world's social pioneers, was practically wrested from Nature by the present generation of men. The Zelanian Isles were Nature's last best gift to the noblest race of her noblest creatures--the gods seeming to have waited for a proper tenantry for these more than Elysian fields.

"Zelania, my children, is the John in the Wilderness--the prophesied of old, the prophet of the new. She is the beacon of the present, the divine torch of the future."

Oh, that is inspiring! Let's take an amateur "soar."

To the Goddess of Justice their prayers are read. To that Goddess Zelanians bow low the head; For she gave the Zelanians, nor seer nor priest, She gave them the custom of Galilee's feast. For rich though her gifts to the present and past, She saved for these Britons the "best for the last."

Here built they a temple--'twas built on the plan That he is most noble that's most of a man; They laid as foundations the "love of their kind"; For strength of the structure, firm held they in mind That no fortune or creed, but justice alone, Should ever remain as the chief corner stone.

They builded the temple--'twas builded by men Who were called from the shop, from the mountain and glen. 'Twas builded for men--not for some, as of yore-- 'Twas builded of men, from the spires to the floor. 'Twas builded too strong for the strong to transgress, But 'twas builded too weak, the most weak to oppress.

Pardon; let's back to Leo's notes, for Mr. Oseba's modest candour better suits this prosy age.

SHE CAME--FINALLY.

"And the Lord God said, 'It is not well that man should be alone; I will make him a help-meet for him.'"

Without irreverence, I would regard this as an excellent idea.

Mr. Oseba, say the notes, gave a most pleasing review of the domestic relations of the Outeroos, with special reference to the position of women.

The notes on this pleasing phase of the oration were full and spirited, but in boiling down some dozen pages I will array the orator's impressions in my own garb, as though I myself had learned something on this interesting theme.

The stronger and more haughty among the Outeroos are called men, while the more frail, gentle and loquacious are called wo-man, which means that in some way these latter are to be "wooed and won" before reaching the final end of existence.

In old times, man won these fair creatures in a race for life. They "wooed them" with a bludgeon, captured, and dragged them to a hut, and chained them to the door-post until they were "persuaded" to stew the oysters. But this woman, with a shrewdness she is said to have retained even to this day, cunningly devised a trap into which she knew her "lord and master"--an epithet that has survived the wreck of empires--would place his brogan.

From the waste of the "kitchen" she fertilised the soil at the roots of a heavy grass, and it grew into a grain. She moistened a plant, and it opened into a fruit. She tamed the young animal--brought for the stew--and it became the faithful dog. By a cushion of moss she softened the log used by her lord as a pillow, and, on his return with terrapin and salmon berries, she looked into his swarthy face and smiled.

He was impressed. He took her gently by the hand, pressed her to his palpitating bosom, and, looking into her deep liquid eyes, he said, "I love you." He broke the chains that bound her, and, the wrist fetters being stubborn, he polished them into bracelets--and these are still worn as a rudiment of the earlier times. What "Papa" might say came later. The twain became one flesh--which one, has always been debatable.

Then it was arranged, with very considerable limitation, that they should be partners. She, the wooed-man, or woman, was to love, to serve, to obey, while he--furnished the superintendence.

The old system dropped out of use many centuries ago, and the new was a change, largely in form, hardly in fact.

The old fetters have rusted in the museums of the past. The club, that potent persuader of old, has been presented to the champion of the base-ball team, and the woman is at large. But as the priest now signs and sanctifies the bond, the change, in most countries, is still chiefly in the character of the fetters.

All people have traditions that help to justify the stronger in acts of oppression, and to conciliate the weaker in their vassalage.

But civilisation has grown--only with the emancipation of women. Just as the fetters have been removed from the brain, and soul, and conscience of woman, has the social ideal risen, has arbitrary force weakened, and have feeling and reason prevailed. The woman is the mother; from hereditary and prenatal influences come form and character.

How can a mother, with the feeling of inferiority, a feeling of subdued dependence, with no courage nor conscious individuality, bring forth brave, independent, high-minded offspring? Only by emancipated mothers can full-statured men be reared, and thus has the race crawled slowly forward.

For the snail-like pace of human progress, the world is more indebted to the past and political inequalities of the sexes than to all other retarding influences combined.

With the progress of science, with the physical forces of Nature harnessed by mental exploits, the relative positions of human muscle and human sentiment are changing, and, with a cultured reason, deeper affections and higher ideals invariably appear.

Here I quote:--

"In Zelania, women are 'people,'" said Mr. Oseba, "and liberty and social rights are not limited to any particular cut of the garments. In Zelania, the mother, the wife, and the daughter stand proudly erect with the father, the husband, and the brother--and still the seasons come and go, the showers are as usual damp, the fruits ripen in due course of time, the fair 'fellow-elector' is as greatly surprised at the suddenness of the long-hoped-for question, papa is invoked as of yore, and the gay old world swings merrily on her uneventful voyage.

"In Zelania, my children, the women vote, and claim equal political rights with those who buy the opera tickets and set up the ice cream. Of course, they don't go to Parliament, save at the sittings, to which they bring their loving smiles and their sewing but they are on their way, and they will get there all the same.

"But with the coming of women few changes have been noted--so few of the hopes or fears of the ages have been realised. Woman does not wear spurs--she has not got out of her place--and she does not do the sights, as does her hubby, and swear she was detained at the 'ledger.' She has not become masculine, for she is still the gentle mother of the children, and she is still the same dear old mother, or wife, sister, or lover as of yore, when Zeus said, 'Behold! when the fair smile, victory is nigh.'

"But neither have all the hopes, so confidently cherished, been fully realised. It has not been discovered--so 'tis said--that the 'political atmosphere' has materially changed; that legislators are greatly altered in personal character; that social ethics have been revolutionised; or, to the surprise of many, that the distance between drinks has been materially lengthened. But, whatever the means, great changes come slowly.

"As a fact, the experience of Zelania, at three parliamentary elections, rather indicates that on social, political, economic, and moral questions, the men and women of the country are 'tarred' with about the same brush.

"But in this reform there is a sense of justice and a conscious largeness of soul that is mentally exhilarating, and must result favorably to society everywhere. In the air of Zelania all fetters rust away, and the flag of a new victory, won over traditional custom and selfishness, having been unfurled in this noble land, people afar will first dream, then hesitate, then inquire, and then conclude to have a reshuffling of the cards in this doubtful game of life."

INTELLECTUAL TASTES.

"If Zelania is proud of her system of education, she may be forgiven," was Oseba's first reference to the intellectual ambition of her people. He was eloquent on this subject. As any thinker could "guess," the Zelanians were certainly not slow in efforts to elevate the mental tastes or in making provisions for the education of the future citizens.

The foundation of the present excellent school system was laid by the old provincial authorities, and the best hopes of the pioneers, those who believed in "teaching the young ideas how to shoot," are being beautifully realised.

The orator says:--

"At present 82 per cent. of the people of Zelania have the rudiments of education, which, considering the pioneer character of the country, 'speaks volumes' for the community.

"There are over 2,000 schools in the colony, with an attendance of about 150,000 pupils. Of these schools some 1,600 are free, and all children from seven to fourteen years of age are required to attend them. The natives, also, are supplied with 96 of these free primary schools, at which 4,500 pupils attend. Rather new; but the railways carry the children free to and from the nearest school.

"In the primary schools, besides the usual branches, such as reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, grammar, and history, the elementary sciences, and drawing, the girls are taught sewing and domestic economy, and the boys are drilled as 'military heroes.'

"Besides these free primary schools there are many higher secondary schools, supported partly by the Government and partly by 'fees,' and many more private and denominational schools of a very good order. As a rule, one religious denomination--the Roman Catholics--decline to very generally patronise the public schools, and this church supports independently a large number of excellent educational institutions. There are eight technical or art schools, at which some 3,000 young persons attend, a majority of them finishing their school life at this stage. The branches taught at these schools, and the subjects of examination, cover a broad field, and the young person who becomes proficient in them may be regarded as fairly well equipped for most of the battles of this active age. At these schools a young person is armed with the 'practical,' with little danger of being over 'stuffed.'

"As a fact, my children," said Mr. Oseba, "many countries on the upper crust are filled with educated dunces, who are mentally deformed by over-cramming, and who are inspired by the hopes of living on 'sheepskin'; but as Zelania has practically no rich or leisured class, the basic idea of school-day training is to fit the rising generation, not for ornamental, but for practical service.

"Zelania, as a capstone of her educational edifice, has a university, which was instituted by Act of Parliament in 1874, not for the purpose of teaching, but for encouraging a liberal education. This university is an examining, scholarship-awarding, and degree-granting institution, and the responsibility for the success of university work rest mainly with the four affiliated teaching colleges, which have a curricula in science, arts, medicine, law, mining, engineering and agriculture.

"Then there are industrial schools, schools for the blind, deaf, and dumb, which, taken all in all, constitute a splendid system, all being carried on at heavy expense to the State. But the general high character of the people, their usual bearing and manners, the average moral tone, and absence, in the main, of coarseness and vulgarity, tell strongly for the merits of the educational system of the country, as well as for the natural and social influences that mould society."

OTHER "TASTES."

With the next phase of Zelanian life, according to the notes of Leo Bergin, Oseba was deeply impressed and pleased, for he said:--

"As might be expected, my children, in a land so blessed by Nature, occupied by so noble a race, and ruled by such incomparably wise and generous laws, the word 'pauper' is not found in Zelanian statistics, and the 'criminals,' considering the newness of the country, are few indeed."

Speaking of the character of crime, Oseba said:--

"Vice and virtue, my children, are largely questions of sensation. The actions of men that produce disagreeable sensations--immediate or remote--we call vices, while the opposite we call virtues. We are the product of experience. Vice is the guide board to virtue--the danger signal. Without vice there would be no definition for virtue.

"But taste has much to do in guiding a people. The Zelanians have a taste for knowledge, but they have other tastes. The Christian Outeroos are thirsty, and the Zelanians are Outeroos. Strange, but in a single year there were over 7,000 of these noble Zelanians arrested for their earnest efforts to satisfy this peculiar infatuation. This seems incredible, for while there are several persons in Zelania who are never known to be thirsty, there are about 7,000,000 gallons of beer used annually in filling the 'alimentary canal' of the Zelanians. Just why, with so goodly a supply, with so short a distance, both in time and space, between drinks, this peculiar sensation should turn the heads of men, is not very clear.

"Many very well-meaning people believe there would be less 'arrests' for these peculiar freaks should the distance between drinks be extended, but others, having considerable interest in the matter, hold that most of these confused persons are 'taken in' during their long search for somebody to do the 'shouting.'

"However," Oseba said, "there is a pleasing side, for while 51 per cent. of the population over fifteen years of age were born in Zelania, this portion is said to have furnished but 17 per cent. of the Court's takings for this confusing recreation.

"For other crimes, the 51 per cent. of native-born furnish but 28 per cent. of the law breakers.

"It may be, my children, that the 49 per cent. of the foreign born, who are said to furnish the other per cent. of the 'takings,' are only celebrating their arrival in so glorious a country--a country in which a day's earnings, it is said, will pay for many beers. At any rate, the native-born Zelanian seems the better man, for he either 'calls' less frequently or 'carries his load' better than the 'new chum.'"

But all are thirsty, Mr. Oseba, and the "practice at the bar," if not profitable, is exhilarating.

They think they want a drink. When it's wet they want a drink. When it's dry they want a drink. When it's warm, and when it's cold; When they're young and when they're old-- They think, and when they think, They want a drink. When they're sick, and when they're well, Bound for heaven or for ----, Then they think--they want a drink. But do they think when e'er they drink? Or does the drink confuse the think?

"But the fact," said Mr. Oseba, "that in one year there were twelve homicides is most surprising to the inquiring stranger. Surely no man well 'quartered' in Zelania should care to be killed, and the reckless head that would plan, or the ruthless hand that would execute a design to close a life in Zelania, should in some manner be restrained from so fell a purpose. Deducting the homicides of foreign birth, however, it leaves for the Zelanians the cleanest record in the 'Christian' world--as one would expect.

"The Zelanians, my children, are usually glad they are alive, and, too, they are usually willing to allow others to remain and enjoy the entertainment."

INTELLECTUAL GYMNASTICS.

The notes relating to Zelanian art and literature were very full, and they were complimentary. 'Tis said that art develops only with age, and that while the aspect of Nature may appeal to the poetic or artistic imagination, art arises from dominant ideas, from deeply-seated sentiments, and as in new, active, progressive, and commercial countries the dominant ideas do not lend themselves to reverie, and could not be feelingly expressed on canvas, art in Zelania must be "imported" for a season. But literature has come, and literature is civilisation.

The notes continue:--

"Literature, or, to broaden the theme and say the taste for knowledge and for general reading in Zelania, deserves many compliments. While there is not, as yet, a literature bearing a distinctive stamp of Zelanian genius, many volumes with real merit, both in prose and verse, have been written, and the topics show a versatile taste, knowledge, and imagination.

"While from the very nature of things Zelania must be a land of romance, poesy, and song, of the stage, of the race, and the hall, yet from the sturdiness of the stock there must first come a sufficiency of works of a graver character as the present exuberance of society tones down toward restful meditation. To-day Zelania is 'waltzing,' to-morrow she will walk, and next week she will think.

"Zelania has many well-managed libraries, and, considering the population, the Zelanians buy, pay for, and read, more books than any other people on earth. The kind of books? Well, just the kind that any student would expect--trash, the most of it, as trashy trash is the taste of the times, everywhere.

"But it shows the desire for reading, and, as these children grow older, a more sober class of books will find its way from the shelves to the desk of the reader. Even now in Zelania the taste for blood and thunder literature is waning, while gay and chaste humour, with glimpses of the philosophy of life, is in growing favor. The heart of a nation may be seen through its laws, but the heart, and the soul, and the laws are the product of national literature. Literature is civilisation.

"The Zelanians are a new community--the people have but recently come together--society is in a 'stew,' as the members have but little mutual 'acquaintance,' and as the new environment, the air, and the aspect of Nature suggest hilarity, all the sermonising in the world would not convert this Zelanian 'holiday' into a prayer-meeting. In the Zelanian character there appears the sparkling diamond, and in the Zelanian fibre there are also the oak and the steel that will tell in the morrows.

"As an evidence of the mental appetite, or the reading habit, the 800,000 Zelanians have and support 200 newspapers, several of which rank with the great journals of the globe, and the average tone of no press in the world is higher than that of Zelania.

"True to the racial defects," Oseba said, "the Zelanians, like the Australians and the Americans, are not linguists. These wonderful people seem neither desirous nor capable of speaking 'strange tongues.' With brief experience, I thought this unfortunate, but I gradually changed my mind, for not only is the world coming to the use of the English speech,[C] but as 'silence is golden,' and it is manifestly easier to keep quiet in one than in several languages, this weakness has a virtuous side.

"I have often noticed while abroad how prone are the masters of many tongues, when striving to keep silent in one, to break out in some less euphoneous speech, and thus give themselves away, or at least arouse a contagious smile of good-natured disapproval.

"But mental gymnastics in Zelania have produced a high order of visible results.

"Though the country is very new in all phases of modern being, political, social, judicial, educational and religious, it possesses a wonderfully symmetrical form. For its present splendid condition the country is indebted to the efforts of men who were themselves the products of hard but happy and interesting colonial life.

"New and distant as this country is, narrow as has been the political, industrial and social horizon, by the vigor of inherited pluck and the resistless persuasiveness of the romantic environment, in physical courage, in moral stamina and in intellectual force, Zelania's leading men will compare well with those trained in the great world's historic centres.

"The present Premier, who has guided the ship of State during more than ten years of its most wonderful progress, graduated in the rugged school of industrial activity, and, casting off the implements of custom and delusion, he not only made Zelania a more conspicuously red patch on the world's map, but himself became a recognised force in the Councils of Empire.

"But with others than her progressive statesmen, Zelania is rich in sturdy manhood and ability--grey matter. Her schools and colleges rank well with the educational institutions of older and richer countries; her instructors are profoundly learned; her judiciary, with its present head, would adorn the bench of the Motherland itself; and her professionals in law and medicine, if cast in a body in any other country, would not lower the average.

"Of course, my children, as yet not all the milestones are statues; not all who loaf in the parks are poets, nor are all who stroll in the streets philosophers, but according to the prevailing notion in Zelania, this noble aspiration will soon be realised.

"These, my children, though I drank not with the statesmen, I came not before the courts, I 'feed' no solicitor, and my health was perfect during my sojourn in Zelania, were my impressions on these themes."

FOR OPINION'S SAKE.

"Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works." (Usually obeyed.--Ed.)

Under this head the notes were full and clear, but as life grows shorter and space less, I will condense greatly.

Amoora Oseba informs his audience that the Zelanians have considerable religion--in fact, there seems to be nearly enough to go round, for all save a very few are reported to have it in some of its various forms.

"Of the 800,000 people, nearly all," he says, "belong to some religious society, and about all who claim God as a father, seem to think it necessary to regard the church as a mother--so few do business direct.

"Of the various creeds, the Church of England claims about 40 per cent. of the whole; the Presbyterian 22; and the Roman Catholic, 14 per cent. There are nearly 1,000 clergymen in Zelania, said to be gentlemen of excellent attainments.

"As would be expected from so free and civilised a people, there is among all classes and creeds in Zelania a commendable spirit of common brotherhood and toleration. As a fact, members of the various creeds drink at the same bar and attend the same football match, though, being so reared, they desire to go to heaven by different trains. All seem to strive together for the general good, dividing, by common consent, as to methods for the accomplishment of the one desired aim. The Roman Catholics, however, that their followers may be so instructed that they will be sure to 'select the proper train,' usually provide their own schools, while contributing, through general taxation, to the support of most of the others. Probably in no country so universally religious is there so little creed prejudice or intolerance.

"But political and social emancipation everywhere gives a man a conscious dignity and worth that places him in closer harmony with the infinite, and tells for sympathy, love, and charity. The people are religious, but not bigoted. The are religious, but they do not superstitiously cringe, and, as they have been specially guided, they express no disfavor with the methods of the Deity.

"As a fact, like all well regulated people, the Zelanians pray, but, instead of prostrating themselves, they stand bravely erect, and, considering themselves the crowning act of the creative power, they congratulate the Almighty on the excellence of His handiwork."

Here the poetess Vauline inquired if all the people among the superior Outeroos worshipped the same deity.

"Yes, my children," said the sage Oseba, with candor, "on Sundays. On Sundays the Christian Outeroos meet in comfortable places and worship the one true God. On the other days, many people give a lot of attention to another deity. This every-day deity--by persons who praise lavish generosity in other people--is spoken of very slightingly.

"This deity is worshipped by many people under many names, but the Americans, among whom it is said--abroad--he hath great influence, spell it this way--$. It may be doubtful, however, if the Americans really care more for the smiles of this deity than others, but they get up earlier. From tradition the Christian Outeroos call him Mammon, and though he is denounced very much by pious lips, he is considerably in evidence in very holy places.

"Of course, my children, these observations do not apply to the Zelanians. But the Outeroos are growing wiser, stronger, nobler, and better, and the people are inclining to the notion that he who serves man most, pleases God best."

Right, Mr. Oseba! The world grows better, and more truly religious as it grows wiser.

When our skies are filled with demons-- In famine or in feast-- We cower before the lightning, And we kneel before the priest; When we grovel in the caverns, The laying on of hands, Our service and our substance, Our faith and fear, commands. But we peer into the heavens-- Recking not the frown nor rod-- Till we gain a glimpse of Euclid, Then we're face to face with God.

_SCENE VIII.--Act V._

"WORTHY OF HIS HIRE."

And it was decreed that the lives of those who wrought should be spared.

As Leo Bergin, before he retired, himself took a deep interest in all industrial affairs, he reported Oseba in profusive detail as the labor situation of Zelania was discussed.

There had been an intermission and lunch, and the audience, feeling refreshed, showed deep interest in a problem, the solution of which had taxed the best energies of the ablest statesmen in many countries for many generations. As a text for his pleasing sermon, Oseba said:--

"To you, my children, to the Shadowas of Cavitorus, it will seem strange, but among the Christian Outeroos there is industrial confusion about everywhere, with little prospect of early harmony--for Zelania alone is a land without strikes, without class hatred, and, of those having parliaments, without a labor party in the legislature."

I conclude from the notes:--

Zelania was settled by an excellent class of people, and though too much of the better lands, as before remarked, were at first allowed to fall into few hands, influenced by the isolation and distance from the scenes that created the old precedent, by the novelty of the environment, from the necessities of discovering new expedients to satisfy the new demands or conditions, and from the quickening influence of new competition in a new, free, and exhilarating climate, there was a rush of brains to the head in Zelania, and a new shuffle of the cards was called.

Where none were rich, and all had to hustle, the "grafter" was respected. A community of interests arose, and he who wrote and he who wrought marched shoulder to shoulder, choosing from among themselves the instruments or servants through which the public conscience should find expression in law.

In questions of colonial policy, none invoked the "shades of honored sires," none appealed to the "experience of the ages," none asked or cared what Britain or America was doing, but "how can we construct the most comfortable edifice from the material at hand?" was the problem they sought to solve.

If all those who have prayed, struggled, fought, and died for liberty, from Otanes, the Persian, down to the swarthy sons of Cuba or the Philippines, could behold this scene, they might well say--not in the words of Mr. Oseba--"Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen Thy salvation."

In Zelania there were no class contests. There was no social revolution in the story, but the people "rose to the occasion," they looked around inquiringly, yielded to the logic of the situation, and--were.

Here the people saw clearly the fundamental theory, or basic essentials of production. Here they saw Nature's treasure-house filled with tempting rewards, and they soon realised that toil was the open sesame to which Nature responded promptly, and with a lavish hand.

They saw that "labor and land," after a long divorce, must re-wed--for the children's sake--and that "wealth," instead of being a partial god that sprang from magic caves to aid the cunning in squeezing humanity, was really but the savings or net products of "yesterday's" toil, and capital but that part of wealth devoted to improving the implements with which toil may more easily coin more wealth from the stores of material, offered by Nature free to her inquiring children. Who "corners" the raw material, insults dame Nature, and assassinates liberty.

There being some considerable unanimity of feeling on these questions in Zelania, it was deemed wise to arrange some equitable rules for the working of the various factors, cogs, wheels and pulleys of this complex machine. Of course, a few persons who felt strongly that they were entitled to complimentary passes to all the public entertainments objected; but these gentlemen were asked to stand by and "hold the 'phone" while the inquiry was being made.

Mr. Oseba said: "So near is the Government of Zelania to the doors of the people that the laws are really but the recorded conclusions of the community."

The people had learned--I conclude from the notes--that in all countries and in all ages, a monopolisation of the land with legal privileges had resulted in insolent class distinctions, poverty, misery, and oppression, and they proposed to take up a collection, and erect a new lighting-plant. For--

Not for booty came the Briton, but for a home; And he built a State, from foundation to dome. In honor of his sire he "grew." To the "old chimes" He listened, but he hewed and carved, to fit the "times." As oracles, he inquired of "Justice." "Glory" To him was naught, "but works," said he, "live in story."

Mr. Oseba reminded his audience of the rules regulating land tenure and "settlement," which held in view the broadening of the base of the social pyramid, and he said the labor laws were but extending the same principles to other members of the productive or industrial machines.

"The labor laws of Zelania," says he, "are unique; but they are only 'unique' in ignoring the 'experience of darker ages,' in their purpose to equitably distribute the burdens and profits of industry, and in the desire of the framers to secure permanent industrial peace and intelligent social co-operation.

"The labor laws of Zelania may be said to be but rules provided for the better understanding between, and the better security of the employer and employee, as joint promoters of industrial enterprise, and nowhere is the holder of wealth given an undue advantage over the creator of wealth.

"The labor legislation of Zelania comprises about thirty-five distinct Acts, and in tone they are usually almost more advisory than mandatory. There are no general laws regulating the hours of labor, or providing a minimum wage, but in the interest of open-handed justice, certain courts may exercise considerable power when called upon to settle questions of this character.[D] The labor legislation began in Zelania as early as 1865, in 'The Master and Apprentice Act,' and has at least kept pace with the rational demands of the community ever since.

"The labor laws of Zelania, like her industries, have grown gradually with the country's requirements, as suggested by the industrial unfoldment of the country. As it is an industrial and commercial community, the laws are designed to cover every phase of business activity, to be specific in their directions, simple in their application, and speedy and inexpensive in their execution."

Uttering a truth, but possibly misquoting, Mr. Oseba remarked:--

"As a despairing statesman once said, 'Rome realises no danger, nay, she heeds no warning, until the enemy is thundering at her gates, when she must act without deliberation,' so, in like manner, the industrial Acts of other countries are usually formulated and passed to meet pressing emergencies, while the sagacity of Zelania prepares, not for emergencies, but that emergencies may not arise.

"While labor is the chief factor in the production of all wealth, from a time to which the 'memory' of man runneth not to the contrary, the select few, who cunningly possessed themselves of the wealth, have treated with scant courtesy those who created it.

"In Zelania, this 'time-honored custom' has been changed, for it has been ordained that he who coins his sweat into the things that administer to human wants, shall not be forgotten by those who coin their cunning into magnets for drawing the price of those things to their commodious pockets.

"In Zelania, my children, people who toil, who build houses, make corkscrews, and grow asparagus, are regarded as considerably human, even outside of Sunday-school and prayer meeting.

"Here the power of one to toil and to produce is considered his capital. His family, in whom the community has an interest, is to be considered and supported from this source, and, if in the employ of another, such a person meets with--or is overtaken by--an accident--his capital impaired--he must be 'compensated.'[E] This, for a time, seemed a hardship on employers--all changes being hardships--but experience has proven otherwise, for the practice not only produced a nobler 'fellow-feeling,' but mutual interest between the employer and the employed.

"Every change necessitates other changes, and every new light exposes some defects that call for improvement.

"In this measure there was a glimpse of justice, but to obviate apparent hardships, the State undertook to insure the laborer, and then it was seen that private companies could find a lot of--financially--healthy exercise in the same line, and thus the industrial machine became more symmetrical.[F]

"To the casual observer, or to him who regards the torch-bearer as an innovator luring away his fetish, and to the wise-looking owl that sits on the cemetery gate hooting at the passing train of progress, these novel experiments seem mischievous and revolutionary; but in the early future, the long-eared politicians of many lands will have to face the inquiry, 'What has made Zelania the industrial paradise of the world? Give us a smile from her canteen.'

"She is changing the ideal, she is blessing the brick and the mortar of which the Temple of State is built.

"If the State is made for woman and for man, You should make the man and woman--best you can.

"The fact that for a dozen years, the industrial machine of Zelania has worked smoothly, and that, while in other lands there has been much confusion, she has enjoyed an era of unparalleled progress and prosperity, should be some answer to the fears of those who, because 'of old' they made much gains in furnishing Diana with her stage outfit, are now feeling weary.

"However, should these laws fail to satisfy the aspirations of an educated people," Mr. Oseba argued, "the agents of the ultimate authority would be instructed to adjust them to the popular needs of society, and the new patents would be issued.

"As a fact, of all people the Zelanians alone receive as much from, as they contribute to, their Government.

"I am not sure my children, not very sure, that in all cases these liberal laws have quickened the employee's stroke. I am not sure that all employees are endowed with sufficient grey matter to appreciate the fact that every security or privilege conferred by law imposes reciprocal obligations. To emancipate a man, should ennoble him.

"A free man should scorn to soil his palm with an unearned penny. The law that raised the eyes of labor did not intend to direct them to the face of the town clock, and the law that forbade an employer demanding twenty shillings worth of work for fourteen shillings in truck goods, never meant that labor should take from its employer a gold sovereign for fourteen shillings' worth of work.

"Justice and security should elevate the soul, sharpen the sense of right, awaken the energies and quicken the pace of all who fall under these benign influences.

"I am not sure, not very sure, that all the people of Zelania are worthy participators in these noble benefactions; I am only explaining the facts of the situation, the generous sentiment that so largely prevails among the people, and the purposes and intentions of the makers of the law.

"Of course Zelanian statesmen may need to remind the people, that increased effort will be demanded for every opportunity given, and that for personal success, energy, self reliance and hustle must be wholly relied upon, or there may be some misunderstanding."

Whoever leans heavily upon the Government--not the language of the chaste Oseba--usually gets tired easy, so while it is well to furnish every passenger with a life preserver, the fellow who is too lazy to kick deserves to die at sea, to save funeral expenses.

"But, my children," says Mr. Oseba, with rather a human smile, "as it is much less wearisome to put on avoirdupois than to put on grey matter, the social millennium has not yet become firmly seated, even in Zelania."

But, Mr. Oseba, they are steaming up and they will get there all the same, for now that the light has been turned on, the audience will encourage the players to grander performances.

In all changes in life there are sorrows. We come into, and go out of life with pain. In every advance some are left behind, by every improvement some hand is left idle, until it is trained to a new duty. Every economic advance violates some custom under which hoary wrongs found an honored refuge.

But I conclude, from many pages, that Zelania's labor laws are still imperfect, as the leaders themselves recognise, by further improving them. But she is safe in her situation, and these eternal principles of justice are destined to exercise a wide influence throughout the world, for improved light always gives the whole plant a more symmetrical growth.

To the undeviating progress of the industrial situation of Zelania, the world is indebted, first, of course, to her unparalleled natural conditions, second to the intelligence of her people, then to her progressive statesmen, and especially to R. J. Seddon and the able men who have constituted his political family. These, without tradition, history or precedent, have raised the industrial plane of the country to a condition approaching the social ideal--as per mandate.

Like Bolivar and Lincoln and many other of humanity's torch bearers, Mr. Seddon, by the force of his own genius, arose from the industrial walks of life. His was not a meteor flight bursting resplendently upon a startled world; but faithfully biding his time, he came prepared, and evidently he came to stay--for the time of his leave-taking has not yet been announced.

"Mr. Seddon was born a true Briton. He was toughened by colonial experience, his hands were calloused with honest toil, his muscles were hardened with heroic struggles, his intellect was developed by a broad and intelligent observation of interesting events; and he belonged to, arose from, and came forward to serve the people.

"He knew but one rank, that of the free citizen; but one guide, the people's voice; but one master, that of duty--as he understood the command.

"Well, an upper seat became vacant, and, having a ripe experience in parliamentary affairs, appreciative authority, with inviting tones, remarked, 'Richard, come up higher,' and he joined a strong Cabinet. He did his duty as he felt it, and was a part of Zelania's most progressive laws. He ripened with the ever-changing seasons.

"Events hastened; the public appetite was whetted, and said, 'More!' Mr. Ballance, a beloved Premier, foolishly died, a still higher seat was vacant, and again appreciative authority said, 'Richard, come up higher.' He became Premier--the most responsible position in any country ruled under the British parliamentary system--in 1893, and for ten years, with the strength of a Hercules, the courage of an Ajax, and the industry of an Ixion, he has courageously worked in extending, amending, pruning and consolidating the industrial rules of Zelania, until the world that first looked on with amusement, and then with inquiring interest, now beholds with admiration the successful workings of an industrial theory that gives hope to humanity.

"He was a product of the times. The opportunities came, and he harmonised the conditions with the interests and the aspirations of his countrymen, and, without the use of an elevator, he has reached the dome of the temple.

"The labor laws, like the land laws, are based upon the enlightened selfishness of the people in their organised capacity, the idea being, not that everyone may, but that everyone must, earn his or her own living--must be a producer and not a pauper, a tax-payer and not a vagrant. This is democracy.

"The people are not kept, but they are allowed opportunities to keep themselves; they are not aided as a charity, but they are enabled, as a right, to earn and to have, and to contribute to the general well-being of the country.

"In Zelania the soil is a basis of wealth; capital and labor are the active factors, and society, for the good of each and all, proposes that these factors shall peacefully pursue the joint enterprise of production, according to the dictates of justice and humanity.

"It is selfish, of course. Capital must be secure, and industry must necessarily move her tireless wheels. Then society, as a whole, having an interest in each of its members, and a stake in the proceeds, must be the arbiter in all industrial disputes, and the interested parties, being loyal members of the social compact, must yield obedience to the public will."

Well, that is worth embalming!

They numbered the people. If high or low, Was not worth asking; enough to know That each had wants; and, that all might live, Those receiving must willingly give. Then strove they in love, and not in hate, To build for aye this matchless State; For they knew that a temple could not endure That enriched the baron, and crushed the poor.

"Society," continued the sage, "made up of the industrial cells, requires the security of every shilling, the service of every member, and the peaceful co-operation of all the factors in every industrial enterprise, and as it has not yet been determined how much of our imagined 'natural rights' we may be called upon to yield for the general good, the passionless decision of the public will, for the time being at least, must be the only guide.

"Under the benign _ægis_ of a rule, bearing the lengthened legend, 'The Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act,' there serenely reposes the most perfect industrial security known in this discontented world. The Labour Laws of Zelania may be 'experimental,' but they sprang from the soul of the public conscience, they were moulded by a desire to secure impartial justice, and for many years they have given a degree of industrial peace, stability, and prosperity, that has won the favour of the general citizenship, and is now exciting the surprise and winning the admiration of the world.

"Then, to cap the climax, my children," said Mr. Oseba, "of all the measures ever calculated to confirm the claims of the Master as to the 'brotherhood' of man, it has been ordained in Zelania that, under liberal provisions, all persons above the full age of sixty-five years, shall be entitled to a life pension."

In harmony with other liberal legislation, support for these measures was asked, Oseba informs his people, not as a matter of charity, but of justice, for it seems to have been held that as members of an industrial community, all worthy persons were supposed to have entitled themselves to a living, and that those who found themselves indigent at that age, had either met with misfortune, or had failed to receive a just equivalent for his or her contribution to the public wealth. There, it seems to be recognised that the world owes, to all men, a living, and that these pensions are advances made to those who have failed to "collect" what was properly due to them. Rather new.[G]

A public sentiment that, above the taint of charity, coins its "respect for worthy old age" into sovereigns, that may be "demanded as a right," by the deserving, stands as far above the pious cant of other countries--as philosophy stands above superstition.

Indolence, poverty, sorrow and want are common to human society, and benevolence and charity have been lauded as saving virtues for many ages; but here, where new ideas seem to generate spontaneously, there has arisen a novel notion--that so closely is the world akin, that the very fact of a person having taken the pains to be born, to behave pretty well, to float to Zelania at the proper time and to exist for sixty-five years, justly entitles him or her to £18 worth of annual "respect."

"This is novel indeed," says Mr. Oseba, "and this notion, in its conceptions of human relationship, social duty and moral responsibility, is nobler than all the sermons--save one--ever preached on this little globe.

"R. J. Seddon is no saint; I am told, my children, he gets angry, he storms, and he may use cuss words, but no poet, priest or philanthropist ever uttered nobler thoughts than he, in his championship of this progressive measure. Only the dreamer can realise the far-reaching moral grandeur, not of the measure itself, but of the lofty sentiment upon which it is based--and the Premier claimed to speak 'for the people.'

"Considering the general backwardness of the Outeroos in breaking old traditions and especially in the direction of a greater recognition of human brotherhood, or the rights of the individual as a unit of society, the Zelanians have another rule, even more surprising, as you will see, for it is not only the offspring of a sentiment or idea, as novel in its nobility of conception as that upon which grew the old age pension, but it is so radical a departure from old British customs, as to startle a student with its audacious demands.

"In the older lands the desire, as well as the custom, is to erect commanding fortunes and to perpetuate wealthy and powerful families--though many of the kindred struggle through miserable lives in poverty; but in Zelania, should a person who contemplates permanent 'retirement,' endeavor by will or 'last testament,' to leave all his belongings to the 'white headed boy,' or otherwise fail to provide, according to his means, for the 'proper maintenance and support' of any of his dependents, the Courts 'may go back of the returns,' inquire into the matter, practically annul 'said will,' and make such provisions as 'shall seem fit,' according to the demands of open-handed justice.

"Zelania recognises every person as an integral part of the social group, with reciprocal rights and duties. An individual may pray with and prey upon the community and acquire 'much riches,' and, as the legal custodian of this 'lucre,' he has considerable latitude; but, as a fact, he is only a trustee, and when he leaves his money in this world--lest it should melt--he is not allowed to deprive any of his dependents who may remain for a time as members of the community, of all 'consolation' for his departure.[H]

"Contrary to the general notions of outside barbarians, the advanced legislation in Zelania is not the result of an erratic temperament, but of advanced thought, of a nobler conception of human duty, and a higher ideal of social progress.

"Zelania as a social entity is not a commanding empire. She points to no glorious traditions, to no rivers of blood, to no ancient splendors with ruined aqueducts, fallen columns or ivy-grown temples; no chained captives and moss-grown universities, where hoots the hooded owl; but representing a new phase of intellectual aspiration, her sturdy statesmen have planted the banner of social progress beyond the dreams of other lands, and they have made her the most interesting, the most hopeful, and, socially, the most conspicuous spot on the broad surface of Oliffa."

Eloquent in his recital, Mr. Oseba closed this topic:--

"The time is hurriedly coming, my children, when the statues of Zelanian statesmen who have pushed to their full realisation the noble principles, towards which humanity has been vainly struggling for countless ages, will adorn the most popular niches, galleries, and squares of the world's most civilised centres."

SOME PLEASANT OUTINGS.

Here Mr. Oseba runs off on a pleasing tangent, and he leads us to the conclusion that a tour of Zelania is a jaunt of unrivalled pleasure; so full of change, of variety and surprising incidents, that curiosity lashes one forward, and physical vigor so rapidly improves as to banish all thought of weariness. On these tours good health is actually "catching," and the appetite always arrives before meal time.

He describes in interesting detail the ease, safety and comfort, as well as the jocund hilarity, of these kaleidoscopic gyrations, and how easily, with a word and a wire from Mr. T. E. Donne, the candid and competent tourist manager, one may find the path to the noblest scenes.

"That time may not hang heavily on the spring bathers, millions of fish--better than Peter ever hauled from the Sea of Galilee--are waiting in many lakes for the tempting fly, and if one tires of glacier climbing in the South, the woods are full of red deer, and other nimble game, waiting to give him a wilder sport.

"As for climate, I conclude that one may choose that as he chooses his drinks, for he may have sunshine or shower, chilling glacier or burning valley, frozen or boiling lakes, simply by switching on or off a new path. The weather is 'almost always' good, and as one may dodge a storm by going fishing, instead of going mountain climbing, or a hot wave by stalking deer instead of hunting geysers or Maori maidens, bad weather is not worth talking about."

Then he turns the globe and shows that Zelania is in the Southern Hemisphere, and he expects that as soon as his discoveries are made known, many thousands of people--to avoid the severe cold winters of Europe and America--will spend a season of eternal spring among those romantic scenes. Here Mr. Oseba grows eloquent. I quote:--

"As bare-handed Nature, by her almost infinite allurements, spanked the rude savage of Zelania into an eloquent politician, so she improves upon every animal turned loose upon her palpitating bosom. Bring a little starved rabbit to Zelania--well, it does not become a tiger the same afternoon, but it soon begins business, and in a brief period it has the 'lord of creation' on the defensive--for it is eating him out.

"The offspring of every animal, every bird, every lake, brook or river fish, brought to Zelania, in a very short time greatly improves in size and beauty. Well, so it is with people."

ENCORE ZELANIA.

Again thy face, Sapho, though thou hast won the crown, The moon hangs high, return, let's laugh till she goes down.

The notes of Leo Bergin record no sign of weariness, either on the part of the audience or the orator. The sittings had been prolonged, but a cheerful and most intelligent interest seemed to have been preserved throughout, and the closing scenes in the review of Zelania had almost aroused enthusiasm. The curtain had been rolled down for a brief intermission, and as it was known that the last act was now to be staged, all the anxiety and freshness of a new sitting were manifest in the audience.

The lantern appliances had been removed, and it was evident that the conclusions of these unique proceedings were very near. The notes say:--

"Oseba arose, and when he stepped to the footlights, and indicated his readiness to proceed, he was greeted with an applause well becoming a Boston audience on the appearance of a Webster."

Here the poetess Vauline, apologising for the interruption at so late a stage in the proceedings, ventured to inquire by what course of reasoning the sage Oseba had reached his conclusions that the Anglo-Saxon was destined to a universal supremacy, and why the Zelanians should now be regarded as the torch-bearers of the future ages?

With a smile of approval Mr. Oseba answered:--

"The question is timely and important. Following the laws of natural progress up to a certain point, survival depends largely on the thickness of the skin and the length of the claws, but, above that point, it is a question of grey matter, and the Anglo-Saxon has brains in his head. Well, the Zelanians are a picked squad on the skirmish line of the Anglo-Saxon legions."

Here again I "boil down," and note my own conclusions from Mr. Oseba's argument:--

The Anglo-Saxon intellect is the product of more than 1,400 years of unparalleled vicissitudes, and by its inherent virtue it has resistless force. Progress is a question of intellectual development, of susceptibility, adaptability, and adjustability of a people, and in the constitution of this racial brain are found all these traits in full measure. Besides, in the Anglo-Saxon character there are found a solid sincerity and love of justice, that inspire a respect and confidence that are irresistible. It is a matter of brain--of ideal.

The ideals of Assyria, Persia, and Babylonia were Empire--military conquest, and we see passing over the stage but kingly splendor, and, as a background, the gods that lashed the people--if there were any--into loyal obedience.

The ideal of Egypt was durability--to eternise the works of kings--based upon a religious idea, and she erected the Pyramids, still the wonder of the world's wonders.

The ideal of Phoenicia was commerce, and the ship was the type of her realised dream. Here the city was greater than the empire, and the merchant was greater than the king.

The ideal of Greece was beauty--then personal beauty--in form and character. Under the reign of this ideal came her noblest achievements. But the Greek brain was erratic; the Greek heroes were soon deified. The artist came, and when the marble statue became the ideal and also the idol, the Greek philosopher became a sophist, and Greece fell a prey to a more practical race.

The ideal of Rome was power, force and the glamour of Patrician splendor. That the lower orders might fight more bravely for the further aggrandisement of the holy city, they were fed on barley buns and flattered with an imaginary freedom, but the ideal of Rome was force.

The ideals of Venice and Genoa were wealth, luxury and art, and their palaces and cathedrals--still the wonder and admiration of the world--became their realised dreams; but only these, and the folly of the Doge, remain to us.

The ideal of Spain--in her greatness--was royal splendor, propped by the spiritual authority, with subject colonies to furnish places for favorites and revenues for the State.

The ideals of Britain were trade, the factory, the shop, the ship, and the "old family"--to occupy the easy seats. But these British ideals developed individual enterprise, and soon it was discovered that in Britain there were people. Save for a few brief periods in Attica, from the fall of Israel to the rise of Britain the _people_ cut little figure in recorded history.

The ideal of America, say up to the passing of Lincoln, was personal liberty, and under this sentiment she produced some of the noblest characters that ever stood erect and wore the image of God. But the gates were turned in, millions came from afar, the earlier sentiments were perverted, great wealth became the master motive, and dollars have become the national ideal.

All these countries have succeeded, if Mr. Oseba's arguments are valid, in some measure in developing the "master motive," or in realising the national ideal.

"Well, my children," said Oseba, "the force of Zelania as a social leader is also in her ideals, and as the conspicuous happiness and prosperity of a people are the best evidence of a benign rule, the appreciation of her ideals has proved their utilitarian virtues.

"Well, by some exploit in mental gymnastics, the Zelanians have chosen the highest possible ideal, Justice--the enthronement of the individual--and with the inherited instincts of the race and a most favorable environment, it was to be expected that, with the ripening of the yearnings of man, humanity should find its highest type in these Romantic Isles.

"In closing, allow me briefly to recall to your minds a few of the more important features of my argument on these most interesting themes.

"I have reminded you, my children, that liberty never gained a victory in an old, well-established, and wealthy nation.

"I have reminded you that with great wealth and population people become conservative, the rulers cling to inherited power, the wealthy fear change, and the mass, by custom becoming loyal, reform is impossible--or at best, progress is slow indeed.

"I have reminded you that commerce is the basis of modern civilisation, but that only people inhabiting the water-front have ever become sufficiently commercial to materially influence any considerable portion of mankind; and I have reminded you that it was only through the colonial enterprise of commercial nations that the great progressive movements have been carried on.

"Further, I have reminded you that only in the colonies, in new and isolated communities, far removed from central authority, where novel conditions required novel methods, is self-reliance nourished, liberty aroused, and social progress made possible.

"And, I have also further reminded you, that of all the tribes, races, or nations that ever loafed about the earth's surface, those of Phoenicia, Greece, and Britain were alone capable of breaking away from inherited customs, and asserting freedom of action, or of so adjusting themselves to the requirements of a new environment as to develop a state of society differing materially from that of the old order of things.

"Then, too, I have shown you the social outposts of all the nations, and how improbable it is that they should advance any further by their own inherent force.

"I have reminded you also, that the total or aggregate of human rights is the same in all states, regardless of form or population, that, like elbow-room, individual rights decrease as the numbers participating increase, and that of all things a great population is least to be desired, and an over-population the most to be dreaded.

"But Zelania occupies a unique position. She has no traditions, she has no overlord, no organised trusts, no vested rights in hoary wrongs; she has no withering precedents, no millionaire monopolies howling for victims, and having room for many millions she may bide her time, and if she cares for more people she may make her own selection.

"With her numberless wonders to attract the tourist, her splendid opportunities for profitable industry, and her more wonderful social situation to attract the inquiring thousands from many lands, she will soon become, with sagacious management, the Mecca of the world's leisured wealthy, and from these will come the best of all 'invaders.'

"My children, with all these splendid facts, I would not advise the empty-handed to rush to Zelania, hoping to secure an easy livelihood; but no person with an inquiring mind who loves Nature, who feels an interest in the social progress of his race, and who is possessed of moderate means, should allow himself to quit this fair and interesting life, without visiting this most charming of all lands, this paragon of social happiness, this paradise of Oliffa.

"Many of you, my children, after having read my report, and having meditated more deeply upon the pleasures and profits of travel and observation, will make this pleasing visit, and should the hospitable people of Zelania meet any quiet, dignified, well-regulated stranger, who says little, but sees and hears everything, who inquires without criticising, admires without flattery, lends freely to all his friends, and pays his own bills, they may 'guess' that he is a 'gentleman' from 'Symmes' Hole.'

"Measures, my children, the character of which would shock the tender sensibilities of those who assume to be the saviours of society, have vindicated the wisdom of Zelania's statesmen--by the demonstrated applicability of these measures to the necessities of modern progress.

"Of all spots on the surface of Oliffa, this Zelania is most charming, and of all people on the surface of Oliffa, these Zelanians have made the greatest social advance, and occupy the most favored position for future usefulness.

"Then, with all these masterful advantages, with an ideal country, capable of supporting many millions of people, she holds--with a small number of the choicest of the race--her own destinies in her own hands.

"So, my children, there is hope for the world. Genius has annihilated time and space, commerce has brought humanity so in touch, that the light of inspiration may come from without, and seeing the beacon from afar, the oppressed of many nations will arouse and demand 'a little more light.'"

Great idea, Mr. Oseba, worthy of the "Poet's Lore," for though the watchman on the tower may be slow in gaining a glimpse, his keen eye will finally behold its glowing effulgence.

With faith he hath struggled for reason and right, Withdrew from the darkness in search of the light; With face to the morning, and gazing afar, O'er Southern horizons he spies a new star, And cries, "Hail, Zelania! though distant thou be, Welcome thy light shining over the sea; Welcome thy flag, to the heavens unfurled, The beacon, the guide, and the hope of the world."

"Zelania is like unto another prophet, teaching from the mountain top. The blaze of her divine torch is not of a fitful glare, but the genial rays of its steady glow are so spreading over all the earth, that the people of all lands may soon behold and wonder, and inquire, and then emulate.

"Well, my children, the tales of my strange adventures are well-nigh told. The curtain will soon fall, and while the lessons from these happy sittings will remain with us as but fading memories, the wonders of this enchanting land will thrill and fill the inquiring souls of men for all time--for the day of Zelania is just at the dawn.

"Inspired by an inherited instinct, and guided by Anglo-Saxon genius, civilisation has won more victories since the crowning of Victoria than during all the generations from 'Saul of Tarsus' to Paul of Pretoria, and Zelania is away in the vanguard of the great progressive social force that is destined to enlighten the brain and unfetter the limbs of humanity.

"It is manifest destiny that Anglo-Saxon aspiration, language, and civilisation should dominate the world. With the realisation of this hope, business interests will prevent war; despotism will be good-naturedly hissed from the stage; Europe will be commercially united; production and exchange will be so adjusted as to employ all willing hands; the arsenals will become factories; the great guns will be stood erect as pillars in historic museums; the muskets will be cast into gas pipes, and swords into sheep-shears, and the gods will look down and smile upon the first generation of truly civilised men!

"Then, at the consummation of these noble purposes, when a monument shall have been erected in honor of those who led in the emancipation of humanity, on the highest tablet on the Temple of Eternal Fame, and in letters of imperishable splendor, shall be emblazoned,--

'ZELANIA.'"

FOOTNOTES

[A] The Remarkable Mountains, on the easterly side of Lake Wakatipu, S. Island.

[B] Lands for Settlement Act.

[C] During the 19th century the common use of the English language increased over 500 per cent., as against 150 per cent. for the German, 102 for the Italian, and about 66 for the French and Spanish. It is practically the business, and is rapidly becoming the "polite" language of the "civilised" world.

[D] The Industrial Conciliation and Arbitration Act, 1900, with amendments.

[E] Employers Liability Act, 1882, practically superseded by The Workers Compensation for Accident, 1900, Act.

[F] Government Accident Insurance Act, 1899.

[G] Old Age Pension Act, 1898.

[H] Testators' Family Maintenance Act.

End of Project Gutenberg's Mr. Oseba's Last Discovery, by George W. Bell