en
through the hands of the drill-sergeant. The women--who are still
somewhat less numerous than the males--are as tall, but not usually
as slight, as those of the English upper classes. To sum up, the
New Zealand race shows no sign of beating the best British, or
of producing an average equal to that best; but its average is
undoubtedly better than the general British average. The puny myriads
of the manufacturing towns have no counterpart in the Colony, and, if
humanitarian laws can prevent it, never should. The birth-rate and
death-rate are both strikingly low: the latter, 9.14 per 1,000, is the
lowest in the world. The birth-rate has fallen from 37.95 in 1881 to
25.96 in 1897. The yearly number of births has in effect remained the
same for sixteen years, though the population has grown thirty
per cent. larger in the period. The gain by immigration is still
appreciable, though not large.

Their speech is that of communities who are seldom utterly illiterate,
and as seldom scholarly. I have listened in vain for any national
twang, drawl, or peculiar intonation. The young people, perhaps, speak
rather faster than English of the same age, that is all. On the other
hand, anything like picturesque, expressive language within the limits
of grammar is rarely found. Many good words in daily use in rural
England have been dropped in the Colony. Brook, village, moor,
heath, forest, dale, copse, meadow, glade are among them. Young New
Zealanders know what these mean because they find them in books, but
would no more think of employing them in speaking than of using "inn,"
"tavern," or "ale," when they can say "hotel," "public-house," or
"beer." Their place is taken by slang. Yet if a nation is known by its
slang, the New Zealanders must be held disposed to borrow rather
than to originate, for theirs is almost wholly a mixture of English,
American, and Australian. Most of the mining terms come from
California; most of the pastoral from Australia, though "flat" and
"creek" are, of course, American. "Ranche" and "gulch" have not
crossed the Pacific; their place is taken by "run" and "gulley." On
the other hand, "lagoon" has replaced the English "pond," except in
the case of artificial water. Pasture is "feed," herd and flock alike
become "mob." "Country" is used as a synonym for grazing; "good
country" means simply good grazing land. A man tramping in search of
work is a "swagman" or "swagger," from the "swag" or roll of blankets