ay
remarkable. Anyone who has not seen the London Mint will find the
Melbourne Mint worth a visit. The Observatory contains one of the largest
telescopes in the world; and even if there are no races going on, the
Flemington Racecourse is a 'lion' of the largest dimensions. There are
four theatres, only one of which is well-fitted up. The visitor will
notice that drinking bars are invariable and very disagreeable
accompaniments of every theatre. One bar is generally just opposite the
entrance to the dress circle, an arrangement which is particularly
annoying to ladies.

Altogether, the public buildings of Melbourne do the greatest credit to
the public spirit of the colonists, and offer substantial testimony to
the largeness of their views and the thoroughness of their belief in the
future of their country. There is certainly no city in England which can
boast of nearly as many fine buildings, or as large ones, proportionately
to its size, as Melbourne. And this is the more remarkable, remembering,
that even in the existing hard times, masons are getting 10s. 6d. a day
of eight hours, and often a very dawdling eight hours too.

The Botanic Gardens, just outside the town, are well worth a visit. They
have no great scientific pretensions, as their name would imply, but are
merely pleasure-grounds, decked with all the variety of flowers which
this land of Cockaigne produces in abundance. Besides these, there are
several pretty reserves, notably the Fitzroy, Carlton, and University
Gardens, and the Regent's Park, which are all well kept and refreshing to
the eye after the dust and glare of the town.

The proportions of the commercial buildings and business premises are on
the same large and elaborate scale. Of the architecture, as a rule, the
less said the better; but everything is at least more spacious than at
home. The climate and the comparative cheapness of land give the
colonists an aversion to height in their buildings, and even in the
busiest parts of Melbourne most of the buildings have only two
stories--i.e., a ground-floor and one above--and I can hardly think of
any with more than three. The sums which banking companies pay for the
erection of business premises are enormous. Thirty to sixty thousand
pounds is the usual cost of their headquarters. The large insurance
companies have also caught the building mania, and the joint-stock
companies which are now springing up in all directions emulate them. The
Austral