CHAPTER XIV 



HOME AND SOCIAL 



THE complaint that the Australians are 

 abandoning the pleasant home life of their 

 fathers is not unfrequently heard from the older 

 generation in Australia, and especially from 

 those of British birth. The rigorous British 

 winter, that casts a halo of attraction around the 

 family circle gathered about the fireside, has no 

 place in the experience of young Australia. In- 

 clination conduces to less time being spent in- 

 doors and more in the open air. For the greater 

 part of the year, the beaches, parks, and streets 

 of the cities are thronged in the evenings with 

 promenaders, chatting and laughing gaily in the 

 enjoyment of the pleasant coolness that comes 

 after sunset. It may be possible that the in- 

 timacy of family life is weakened by this devo- 

 tion to outdoor recreation, but it is not easy to 

 discern any marked difference between the home 

 life of the Australians of the cities and that of 

 people in a similar sphere of life in Great Britain. 

 In the bush, however, the absence of any 

 attempt to make home attractive is readily 

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