. There were
several other guests, and they were all nice and amusing. One wet day we
had, and only one. I must tell you an incident of it, to show you what
babies grown-up men can be at the Antipodes. We worked hard all the
morning at acrostics, and after my five o'clock tea I went upstairs to
a charming little boudoir prepared for me, to rest and read; in a short
time I heard something like music and stamping, and, though I was _en
peignoir_, I stole softly down to see what was going on; when I opened
the door of the general sitting-room a most unusual sight presented
itself,--eight bearded men, none of them very young, were dancing a set
of quadrilles with the utmost gravity and decorum to the tunes played
by a large musical-box, which was going at the most prodigious pace,
consequently the dancers were flying through the figures in silence
and breathless haste. They could not stop or speak when I came in, and
seemed quite surprised at my laughing at them; but you have no idea how
ridiculous they looked, especially as their gravity and earnestness were
profound.

This is one of the very few stations where pheasants have been
introduced, but then, every arrangement has been made for their comfort,
and a beautiful house and yard built for their reception on a flat, just
beneath the high terrace on which the house stands. More than a hundred
young birds were turned out last spring, and there will probably
be three times that number at the end of this year. We actually had
pheasant twice at dinner; the first, and probably the last time we shall
taste game in New Zealand. There is a good deal of thick scrub in the
clefts of the home-terrace, and this affords excellent shelter for the
young. Their greatest enemies are the hawks, and every variety of trap
and cunning device for the destruction of these latter are in use, but
as yet without doing much execution among them, they are so wonderfully
clever and discerning.

Letter XIX: A Christening gathering.--the fate of Dick.

Broomielaw, June 1867. We reached home quite safely the first week of
this month, and I immediately set to work to prepare for the Bishop's
visit. We met him at a friend's house one day, just as we were starting
homewards, and something led to my telling him about the destitute
spiritual condition of my favourite "nest of Cockatoos." With his usual
energy, as well as goodness, he immediately volunteered to come up to
our little place, hold a