mile from the
business portion of the city, not far from the Alfred Hospital, is the
first that was founded in the Southern Hemisphere. In its immediate
neighborhood are the affiliated colleges of St. Paul, St. Andrew, and
St. John, belonging respectively to the Church of England, the
Presbyterian denomination, and the Roman Catholics. Religious
instruction is given at these colleges, but not in the University. This
edifice is of Gothic architecture, built of freestone, and is situated
in spacious elevated grounds overlooking Victoria Park and the city,
being enclosed by a high iron fence. Within this enclosure, which is
several acres in extent, the land is terraced and ornamented with choice
trees and flowers. The facade of the main building is over four hundred
feet in length. On one side is a fine large stone building just
finished, which is designed for a Medical School; and on the other is a
spacious structure appropriated to the purpose of a museum, where we
found some thousands of classified objects of special interest as
antiquities. The object of the University is to afford a liberal
education to all orders and denominations without distinction. Graduates
rank in the same order as those of similar British home institutions.
This University was originally founded by Government, but from time to
time it has been the recipient of rich endowments from private sources,
until it has become nearly self-supporting. The great hall of this
building deserves particular mention. It is a remarkable apartment
finished elaborately in the Elizabethan style, and is lighted by ten
large stained-glass windows. In these were observed representations of
the sovereigns of England, from William the Conqueror to Queen Victoria.
Several of these windows are the gifts of wealthy patrons. The room is
about a hundred and fifty feet in length and fifty wide, with a ceiling
reaching to the roof, being at least seventy feet in height, finished in
Gothic style and forming a marvel of carpentry, carving and painting.
The citizens of Sydney may well be proud of this admirably appointed
University.

The Art Gallery is a low one-story iron building in the grounds of the
park known as the Domain, and it well repaid a visit of a few hours,
though it is at present only the nucleus of a future collection. It
contains some excellent modern pictures by popular artists, English and
French. One fine example by Louis Buvelot, an Australian artist, is ful