i86 A SPORTSMAN'S EDEN. 



ton of Vancouver Island, and there, I am told, 

 the present Premier, Mr. Dunsmuir, is about to 

 build himself a palace. The house I looked at 

 to-day was a specimen of the best to be found in 

 the island. It was built on a stone foundation, 

 the rest of the building being of wood. It 

 seemed solidly and strongly put together, stood 

 close to a main road in about an acre of ground, 

 and was very prettily gabled and finished exter- 

 nally. There were stables, built on a raised 

 platform, in which, I confess, I could hardly fancy 

 that an English hunter could make himself com- 

 fortable. There were sheds and barns, and a 

 washhouse, whilst in the house itself there was 

 certainly ample accommodation for a moderate- 

 sized family (e.g., father and mother and four 

 children, with servants), and a spare room. The 

 floors were parquetted, the walls furnished with 

 a handsome carved dado ; in the reception-rooms 

 there were handsome carved mantel-shelves with 

 framed mirrors above them, and every room was 

 finished in the very best taste and style. The 

 price asked for this house was about 1,500. I 

 don't pretend that all the houses in Victoria are 

 built in similar style. This had been built to 

 order ; but you may form some idea of the cost 

 of purchasing a house out here, and the value you 

 would get for your money, from what I have told 



