BOTANICAL AND HORTICULTURAL GARDENS. 127

he strolls down these beautiful walks and breathes the pure air of the park.

When you visit Melbourne, do not forget the parks and gardens.

The mildness of the climate, of course, gives our antipodean cousins a very great advantage over us, as very few, if any, of the park plants or flowers have to be housed for the winter. Making all allowance for this difference, however, the Canadians are still far behind in their efforts in this direction.

Horticultural societies are encouraged by the Government, and are found now in almost all parts of the land.

The Royal Horticultural Society of Victoria, located at Melbourne, is the oldest and most important. It has five hundred members. We visited their garden in Richmond Park, accompanied by one of the directors, a very dear friend, M. L. Hutchinson, Esq.

The collection of fruit trees is very large.

There are in this garden over six hundred different kinds of apple trees, ninety different kinds of cherries, twenty-eight of currant, one hundred and twenty of gooseberries, twenty-one of oranges, four hundred pears, one hundred and two peaches, one hundred and forty-eight plums, fifty strawberries, one hundred and seventy grapes, eighteen raspberries, forty-eight apri

cots, fifty-six figs. New varieties are annually imported from Europe, America, Japan, and other countries.

CHURCHES AND COLLEGES.

The number of churches in the colony of Victoria for 1855 was 349; for 1865 it was 1,695; for 1875 it was 2,519; for 1885 it was 3,982.

Victoria

The increase in the number of churches and chapels is greater than the increase of population. may be said to be very well supplied with churches, as there is offered by these nearly 4,000 buildings to a population of one million-room for all.

Counting one hundred and twenty-five as a fair average congregation, you have a seating capacity for 500,000 persons, which is as large a percentage of the people as could reasonably be expected to attend service upon any given day.

I doubt whether any country in the old world could give us a more favorable showing as regards provision for the spiritual wants of the population.

The number of Sabbath-schools in 1884 was 2,044; in 1885 the number had increased to 2,157. The children attending these schools is about 150,000.

The Methodist denomination return the largest number, viz.: 39,675. Next to them the Presbyterians,

29,710; next to them, Church of England, 27,903, and next, Roman Catholic, 23,751.

The day-schools also show a satisfactory growth.

The Melbourne University is worthy of at least a short notice. Its foundation-stone was laid in 1854. Royal letters patent were granted, giving it university powers in 1859. In 1880 it was thrown open to ladies, admitting them to all its corporate privileges.

Provision having been made for the establishment of affiliated colleges in connection with the religious denominations, the Church of England has erected Trinity College, the Presbyterians Ormond College, and the Wesleyans Queen's College, all quite near the University. We had the privilege of witnessing the laying of the foundation-stone of the last named, by Sir Henry Loch, Lady Loch, and Lady Brassey, of the Sunbeam, being also on the platform to witness the

ceremony.

Up to 1886 there were, in round numbers, twelve hundred graduates from the several departments, and very nearly four hundred and fifty matriculants were. on their way towards graduation.

As a colonial institution the Melbourne University ranks high, being held quite equal to the universities of England.

MELBOURNE COFFEE PALACES.

MONG the factors at work in the direction of the

restriction and diminution of the liquor traffic in Australia, are the great coffee palaces or temperance hotels which have lately been erected, together with others which are being erected, not merely in Melbourne, but in various parts of the country. The question has been asked, Can hotels be successfully run without the sale of intoxicants? These magnificent hotels, so thoroughly equipped, and so acceptable to the public and remunerative to investors, are answering that question in a most satisfactory way.

That there must be places for the entertainment of the travelling public everybody admits. That these places must sell intoxicants in order to live and flourish a great many good people deny. Many of these houses which sell intoxicants are, by reason of such sale, public nuisances, and not a public necessity. Even the best of them are less useful, as regards their service to mankind, because of such sale.

The bars of some of these very respectable hotels are frequently the starting point towards ruin for