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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 78

As a Tourist Resort

As a Tourist Resort.

As a tourist resort for those who like the strange and little known, Tonga is a place of great interest, Nukualofa, the capital, is a surprise for the visitor, for instead of a collection of native Jiouses, such as he might expect to see, he will behold a bright little town with dazzling white buildings, of which the King's Palace and Chapel Royal, both imposing edifices, are the most conspicuous. The Tongans are the cleverest of the Polynesian people, with courteous, dignified manners, and are physically the finest specimens of mankind in the wide Pacific, which is saying a great deal. The king is a man of very imposing presence, 6ft 4in in height, and very stout, although only 34 years of age. He is handsome quite European in manners, and received part of his education in Auckland. He is of an extremely shy and retiring disposition, and does not, as a rule, give permission to travellers to view the palace, but it is generally possible to see The Chapel Royal, which is a handsome building. So that those who expect to ... away from Nukualofa with the boast, for the delectation of friends at home, that they have "dined with a king." are most likely to he disap-pointed. Tonga is one of the drollest little countries, and one of the pleasantest, md those who want to see something fresh ind novel cannot choose a better place for a holiday. It is not a bad place, either, for title merchant. It takes-, roughly, four days to get to Tonga from Auckland (the distance is 1100 miles), so that if one has three weeks to spare he may spend nearly a fortnight there, the cost of the return passage being £13. The return passage to Suva by the war, which is a little farther away than Nukualofa, is only £12. so that here is another instance of the many anomalies in the Union Company's rates.