ioo Australian Life 



southern states have christened Queensland ' ' the 

 land of lots o' time." The Brisbane man is usu- 

 ally sitting still or riding on a train. He wastes 

 no effort, but the net result of his day's work is 

 usually a satisfactory one. The principle under- 

 lying business in Australia is decision. The man 

 who says " I '11 think it over and write to you " 

 is a comparative rarity. The average Australian 

 business man, if he thinks he sees a chance, is 

 willing to take a risk, for he knows very well that 

 the offer is not likely to be repeated. He has 

 another characteristic. He can lock up his office 

 at five o'clock and leave his business behind him 

 in the office. When he leaves the city for his resi- 

 dential suburb, the thread of business is broken, 

 and will not be taken up again until he steps out 

 of the train next morning. In the meantime, he 

 lounges, both mentally and physically. 



There is nothing arbitrary in the selection of 

 residential districts near the big Australian cities; 

 the best situations are occupied by the best class 

 of suburbs. The squatter whom we have seen in 

 his Riverina station also occupies a mansion at 

 Pott's Point, near Sydney; at Toorak, a Mel- 

 bourne suburb; or in some corresponding out- 

 skirt of one of the Australian capitals. The most 

 striking feature of the big grey house is its wide 

 colonnaded balcony, and the extent of the grounds 

 that surround it. There is nothing distinctive 

 about the interior; ball-room, billiard-room, li- 

 brary, reception-rooms, all are arranged after the 



