Auckland, New Zealand

“ Auckland is already a considerable town at the head of the harbour, which is said to rival Sydney in its beauty of site; shut in by low volcanic hills, well grassed, which are indented with bays and deep inlets; the cliffs rich with vegetation, in which the scarlet clianthus gives fine patches of colour. It forms a magnificent sheet of water, with abundant and safe anchorage. Already it has a history, being the first spot in New Zealand chosen for permanent settlement. ”

“ It is of North Island that I shall speak chiefly, because that is the part of New Zealand with which I am most familiar. Auckland is built along the southern harbor, which forms the western extremity of the island—spangled Hauraki Gulf. The site of the city, flanked by suburbs, rises in a long and gradual slope to the base of Mount Eden, a slumbering old volcano from whose easily scaled summit one obtains a most glorious panoramic view. Auckland's surroundings make her one of the loveliest of cities. Nature has lavishly endowed it with her choicest gifts. ”

“ The cloudless blue of the Australian sky has here given place to the exquisite variety of ever changing hue and form, which gives such animation to the New Zealand landscape, and forms one of the chiefest charms to the visitor from the bigger island.
Yes, Sydney harbour is lovely. But Auckland, with its wider sweep, its greater diversity and bolder features, has a beauty of its own which makes her a not unworthy rival. ”

“ When all is said, however, it is not the cities which interest most the ordinary visitors to New Zealand. They may have a charm which it is no exaggeration to call loveliness, as Auckland has; or be finely seated on hill-sides overlooking noble harbours, as Wellington and Dunedin are. They may have sweetly redeeming features, like the river banks, public and private gardens, and the vistas of hills and distant mountains seen in flat Christchurch. They may be pleasant altogether both in themselves and their landscape, as Nelson is. ”

“ Auckland is, as I said, the only town I actually visited in New Zealand. Of the town itself there is not much to be said. It is not particularly interesting, and the climate is rather relaxing; when it rains the roads are almost impassable with mud. But its situation is most charming from its beauty, and most advantageous for trade. The harbour of Auckland is thought by some to rival that of Sydney for beauty and commodiousness. ”

“ Rounding Cautley's hidden guns, the steamer plowed the Waitemata, "the waters of affliction." On the mainland to the left were long, indented walls of sandstone, green, rolling meadows, groves and hedges of trees, scattered homes, and beach resorts; on shrub-mantled cliffs to the right, the pretty suburbs of Devonport, Stanley Bay, Birkenhead, Northcote, and Chelsea, where the Colonial Sugar Refining Company extracts sugar from Fijian cane.
Straight ahead, climbing hills and filling valleys, was Greater Auckland, one hundred thousand strong. ”

“ When one tide is high the other has receded, yet at high tide they are only a thousand yards apart.
Auckland has been called a city of parks. It is more. As seen from Mount Eden it seemed a park itself,—a rolling park with meadows, fertile hills, trees and hedges, bowling-greens, football and cricket grounds, race-courses, and harmonious intervals of water. ”

“ Even more delightful than its natural beauties is the fact that Auckland has no slums. There are a few narrow streets and mean houses, but the overcrowding and dirt of the poorer quarters of an English town do not exist, and the Auckland city authorities have firmly resolved that they never shall. There is plenty of space, so the houses need not be built too close together, and very few of them are of more than two stories; and as there is far more than enough work for everybody, there need be no poverty. ”

“ In spite of its shortcomings, he feels some little satisfaction in having had the opportunity of contributing a stone to the building of Auckland’s history.
Looking back over the brief period which comprehends the city’s career, no citizen of Auckland but should be proud of the progress—social, economic and commercial, which has been made; it is a record of difficulties successfully overcome, and of advancement, despite many handicaps. ”

“ And here let me observe that Auckland and its surroundings make the pleasantest urban district in the islands. Within thirty miles of the city there is much that is charming both on sea and land. Nor will a longer journey be wasted if a visit be paid to the chief bays and inlets of the northern peninsula, notably to Whangaroa, Whangarei, Hokianga, and the Bay of Islands. Still, nothing in the province of Auckland is likely to rival in magnetic power the volcanic district of which Roto-rua is the official centre. ”

“ Auckland is the largest city in the Dominion and is about the size of New Haven, Connecticut. Its spacious inner harbour, which has five and a half miles of smooth deep water, is thirty miles from the open sea. There are nine wharves, swarming with business, but they are not sufficient for the fast-growing port, one of the trade centres of the South Pacific. The annual imports and exports come to more than a hundred million dollars and the figure is growing rapidly. ”

“ We saw the late autumn apples of April here and there ungathered on the trees about Auckland, and were grateful to escape the imaginative dislocation of a midsummer Christmas, with sunstroke as the punishment of over-indulgence. It would be interesting to know in what period of residence New Zealand undertakes to change one's dreams.
A green, rolling land, homely turnip fields, orchards, pasture containing fine cattle and sheep, pleasant, red-roofed farm-houses, [53] comfortable country residences, and thriving market towns at frequent intervals, sped past the train. ”

“ The boundaries of the Borough of Auckland, as originally proclaimed, were wider than they are now, and stretched across the Isthmus from the Waitemata to the Manukau, and from the Whau Creek to the Tamaki, an area of about 58,000 acres. The population of the borough was between seven and eight thousand persons. ”

“ Around Auckland, the country seems pretty populous. Farm-houses are frequent, villas numerous, cultivation common, and every now and then a modest little spire marks the site of a snug little village. The strata we note in the cuttings is ridgy, wavy, and streaked like a ribbon, showing the volcanic influences that have been at work.
Nearing the Waikato Hills, whose broken outlines loom out dark on the horizon; we pass great rich flats, with a black, peaty soil ”

“ Development: 1851-1870
The advent of the second decade of Auckland’s history finds the town passing from the cradle stage to one of more independence. Until the year 1851 Auckland had been variously described as “the town,” “the seat of government,” or “the capital.” In other words, it had been fostered by the Government. Now, by a Proclamation of the Governor, Sir George Grey, it was elevated to the position of a borough, with a corporation—the first to be created in New Zealand—to which was given the powers of self-government on all matters of local interest. ”

“ The agricultural industry has made wonderful progress in these years, and the city, being the natural medium of exchange between the producer and the oversea markets, advanced rapidly as an important commercial centre. Auckland’s prosperity has been built upon its advantageous commercial position, and the present ratio of progress is a happy augury of the future.
The Twentieth Century opened auspiciously with the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York, who arrived in Auckland—their first port of call in New Zealand—on the 10th of June, and remained here until the 12th. ”

“ The cottages of the settlers are handsome and clean, but of singularly small dimensions, very much the result we suppose of the dearness of building material and the high price of labour near Auckland.
According to the census of 1857 the entire population of New Zealand amounted to 108,204, [29] the white European population numbering 52,155, of whom 16,315 persons inhabited Auckland (9038 men, and 7277 women) .
The aborigines (Maori in the native tongue) are officially returned at 56,049, of whom by far the larger number, above 38,000, inhabit the province of Auckland. ”

“ The waters of the gulf attract both yachtsmen and fishermen, for scenery and sport are to be found in abundance. Auckland's beaches, which are easily accessible, are famed for their safety, and to the jaded city dweller they are a source of physical refreshment and enjoyment. In the summer time they are the pleasure grounds of thousands. Nature has dealt bountifully with Auckland. ”

“ During the depression many residents sold out and emigrated to Australia, or elsewhere, some permanently, others temporarily. Houses and shops everywhere became vacant, and rents became absurdly low. In some cases people shut up their houses, boarded over doors and windows, and went away. The young city was experiencing the most serious reverse in its history, but the speed with which it recovered itself demonstrated its vitality.
With the advent of the ’seventies, Auckland may be said to have arrived at the modern period ”

“ Sir John Logan Campbell, in the interesting account [13] of his pioneer experiences, gives a graphic picture of Auckland a few weeks after the Lieutenant-Governor’s visit, when he settled the site of the capital. “The capital!” he writes—“a few boats and canoes on the beach, a few tents and break-wind huts along the margin of the bay, and then—a sea of fern stretching away as far as the eye could reach.”
The first consideration of the Government officials and mechanics was to provide housing for themselves and then to make buildings for the requirements of the young community. ”

“ The city is well supplied with parks; also a splendid museum and an art gallery are among the assets of that busy, far-off place. Auckland's street car system is the only one privately owned in New Zealand. Unlike Melbourne's, though, it is fast and modern.
The winter climate of Auckland proves a magnet to those living in colder parts of the Dominion. It is semi-tropical and has an invigorating atmosphere.
The dwellings are mostly frame-built, two stories high, and from $15 to $20 a month rent is charged. Wages do not exceed $3 a day for mechanics and $2 a day for laborers. ”

“ The amusements which the City affords are limited naturally by the numbers of the population. A city of Auckland's size cannot expect to be catered for to the same extent as London. Yet, despite this limitation, the City has been fortunate in receiving visits from world renowned artistes. Generally speaking, however, the City has to depend for its entertainments upon the talent contained within the Dominion and periodical visits by Australian companies. ”

“ Auckland, with 90,000 people, is the largest, as it is the most beautiful; Wellington, with 70,000, holds but the second place.
Decentralised as New Zealand is, large as its rural population is, and pleasant as its country life can be, still its four chief towns hold between them more than a quarter of its people, and cannot therefore be passed over in a sentence. Europeans are apt to be impatient of colonial towns, seeing in them collections of buildings neither large enough to be imposing nor old enough to be mellowed into beauty or quaintness. ”

“ The city was lavishly decorated, [Pg 184] the illuminations at night being a feature. On their journey from the wharf to Government House Their Royal Highnesses received a welcome, characterised by unparalleled enthusiasm, from the citizens, which included some 2500 school children, who formed a living Union Jack in Wellesley Street East. During his stay in Auckland the Duke was present at a military review at Potter’s Paddock, where he distributed medals to men who had served in the Boer War. ”

“ Although in years the city is comparatively young, many of the events which have marked its progress have already been forgotten. With the exception, perhaps, of the principal incidents associated with the foundation of the city, and a most interesting account of the state of Auckland in the early ’fifties, written by Mr. W. Swainson, no period of Auckland’s history has been adequately dealt with. The lack of information has made the task of writing a history a difficult one, and may account for the fact that none has hitherto been essayed. ”

“ A line is in course of formation from Auckland up the valley of the Waikato, as far as Newcastle, at the confluence of the Waipa, and a survey has been made for about 20 miles further. A road runs from Bowen, on the Bay of Plenty, across the country, through the wonderful lake district, with its boiling fountains, steam geysers, and mud-baths, round by the east coast of Taupo Lake, and over the highlands to Napier, in Hawke s Bay province. The history of Auckland was for long the history of New Zealand, and will be fully treated under that heading. ”

“ They leave their jobs in time to dress for the evening, and take their families to the movies, where they often see American films. During the half holiday they spend more money than if they were at work.
In proportion to its population, Auckland, the commercial metropolis, has more rich men than any other city in New Zealand, although Wellington, the capital, is growing the fastest. On the South Island, the largest city is Christchurch. It is on the famous Canterbury Plains, “The Garden Spot of New Zealand.” South of it is Dunedin, with a population of sixty thousand. ”