opulation to it, has been carried out. The idea was
first tried with tramways, the writer having taken some part in
originating and promoting it. Of the hotels of Adelaide, the best is the
York. It is better than the best, in Sydney, but inferior to the best two
in Melbourne.

Owing to the excellent plan on which the city is laid out, it is
surrounded on every side by suburbs at the short distance of half a mile,
connected by horse-tramways. Beyond these, however, there is the
flourishing watering-place of Glenelg at a distance of only seven miles
by train; and now that the railway has been carried into the hills, it
will not be long before large suburbs grow up in them. Wealth in South
Australia is more equally divided than in the sister Colonies. Hence
there are only a few large mansions, but comfortable six to ten-roomed
cottages abound.

HOUSES.

The inevitable 'newness' of everything cannot but strike the eye
disagreeably. This is especially noticeable in the buildings and houses,
few of which date back more than ten years. In the growth of towns, as
well as in the progress of individuals and institutions, there are three
periods to be gone through. Here the first stage is that of the log-hut.
This is succeeded by the weather-board cottage, which in turn gives place
to brick and stucco. Finally comes the stone building with its two or
three stories. The log-hut stage is of course far past. The weather-board
cottage still lingers in the poorer outskirts of Melbourne, but is
extinct in Adelaide, and fast becoming extinct in Melbourne. The choice
now is between brick and stone. In Sydney the abundance of stone on the
spot, gives it the preference; Adelaide, with less stone, builds chiefly
in brick; Melbourne, which has to get its stone from a distance, uses
hardly anything else but brick. This, of course, for private houses.
There are plenty of admirable stone buildings in Melbourne, as I have
already mentioned.

Now that the brick and stone age is firmly established the style of your
house becomes a mere matter of pounds, shillings, and pence. With wages
at from nine to twelve shillings a day, and with money so much dearer
than at home, the Australian has necessarily to pay a much higher rent
for his house. Excluding, of course, ground-rents, which make London
houses so expensive, I think one may fairly say that rents here are about
double the rate they are at home, and yet, _except for the rise in the
value of