^ national Nurseryman 
FOR GROWERS AND DEALERS IN NURSERY STOCK 
The National Nurseryman Publishing Co., Incorporated 
Vol. XXII, 
ROCHESTER. N. Y., SEPTEMBER, 1914. 
No. 9. 
MELBOURNE and SIDNEY. AUSTRALIA 
Mr. James McHutchison Gives His Views and Impressions of His Native 
Country After an Absence of Twenty Years. 
W E are in Australia, where the trees shed their 
bark instead of their leaves, where the trees 
turn their sides instead of their flats to the sun, 
where the swans are black instead of white; the home 
of the kangaroo, the laughing jackass, and the Platypus, 
that strange combination of bird and animal that lays 
an egg, and suckles its young, has the bill of a duck, 
and the tail of a beaver, has fur instead of feathers, but 
no wings, front webb feet of a bird, but hind paws with 
other countries, and surpasses them in some features. 
Melbourne is only seventy years old, with a population of 
about 600,000 yet it covers with its suburbs quite as 
large an area as Chicago with over 2,000,000 inhabitants. 
This is due partly to the good suburban system of rail¬ 
road,—soon to be electrified—, partly to the fact that 
nearly all residences are detached, with but one story, 
each home set in gardens. So they occupy much space. 
All large Australian cities are noted for their fine pub- 
Melbourne 
claws of an animal, makes its hole on the land with the 
entrance under water. Australia is a geological age 
behind any other continent, yet the last to be inhabited. 
This is my first return to Australia in twenty years, 
and during that time the two principal cities of Mel¬ 
bourne and Sydney have not only grown largely hut have 
been improved in many ways, until now either of them 
compares favorably with cities of the same size in many 
lie buildings and the large areas devoted to public parks 
and gardens, especially is this true of Melbourne and 
Adelaide. 
Melbourne has about thirty public parks with a total 
area of 5,500 acres, all kept in splendid condition. In 
this respect it surpasses, for its size, any city I have seen, 
as Americans. Tlie telegraph system—also Government 
owned, is well managed and the rates reasonable, like- 
