Urban Australia 99 



every facility for the rapid transaction of business. 

 The influx of business men from the suburbs be- 

 gins shortly before nine o'clock. From the big 

 railway station issues an endless stream of human 

 beings, as train after train arrives from the sub- 

 urbs. Every train is crowded, and the ferry- 

 boats ply busily across the water. The footpaths 

 show that the stream is setting in one direction 

 only, towards the heart of the city. The stream 

 continues to flow until half-past nine, and then 

 stops. Principals and employees are all in their 

 places by that hour, and business is in full swing. 

 Many of the Australian business customs are 

 practical and convenient. Some warehouses close 

 their doors for three-quarters of an hour in the 

 middle of the day, when it is an understood thing 

 that members of the staff take their luncheon. 

 During the rest of the day, every employee must 

 be in his place for the transaction of his business. 

 The long luncheon hour and the subsequent drag- 

 ging on of business are not possible; there is not 

 enough time. The banks shut their doors at 

 three o'clock, and most offices at five. At six 

 o'clock the shops put up their shutters, and every 

 one is at home, or on the way home. 



It is a short day, but it is a busy one. When 

 they say in Australia that a man can "run like a 

 Melbourne shipping clerk," they intend to pay 

 tribute to his speed. The Sydney man moves in 

 a more dignified manner, and the people of 

 Brisbane are so leisurely, by contrast, that the 



