Volume 1 — FROM 1803 TO 1824 (continued 2)

Few instances of nautical disaster and personal misfortune have surpassed the case of Captain Howard, in 1819. He was robbed of an iron chest containing money and jewels to a large amount. Next, the Lachlan, his property, was stolen by convicts. He freighted the Daphne for India, and sailed with two women and a boy, beside the crew. They anchored at Kent's Group, and Howard landed. The brig, some hours after, was observed to drift: the wind blowing hard on the shore, her destruction was inevitable. The long boat was laden, and leaving behind the passengers and some seamen, Howard after great efforts reached the Derwent. Under his direction, the Governor Sorell sloop was dispatched to receive the people left on the island. Meanwhile the John Palmer entered the group, took off the women and the boy, and a bag of 400 dollars left in their charge; and was lost with the whole of her cargo. Nor was the Governor Sorell more fortunate: the seamen of the Daphne, who left the island in a boat, saw on the north-east coast of Cape Barren, the binnacle and other fragments of that vessel, in which Howard perished.

The same fate seemed to attend his property after his death. He had freighted the Frederick and the Wellington with sheep and cattle for the Isle of France, a market which then offered large gains. After some delay they reached the Northumberland Islands, off which the stock all died, from want of room and the influence of climate. Unwilling to proceed without cargo, the captain detained the vessels for spars. Here the Frederick was wrecked, and twenty-two of the crew were drowned; but the chief officer, one woman, and a boy, reached the Wellington. They then proceeded to Timor, constrained on the passage to subsist on the preserved hides of the cattle. From Timor they proceeded to Batavia: the captain died, and the crew dispersed; and the vessel was taken under charge by the Orphan Chamber, her register being lost, and her owners unknown!

A calamity still more singular, may be worth record.[117] The Surrey, Captain Raine, left the Derwent in 1820. Having heard that men were detained at Ducie's Island, he went there in search of them. The men came to the beach, but could scarcely articulate from exhaustion: they had belonged to the Essex, a whaler. One day, a whale of the largest class struck the vessel, and broke off part of her false keel: she then went a-head of them a quarter of a mile, and turning back met the vessel with such tremendous velocity that she was driven back at the rate of several knots: the sea rushed in at the cabin windows; every man on deck was knocked down, and the bows were completely stove in. The sailors were obliged to abandon the vessel, and after visiting several islands were found by the Surrey as described.

The strong inclination to trade, common to emigrants, was in these colonies a passion, while the settlers were of the lower class. The want of coin induced the government to pay the debts it incurred in rum, which, commonly valued at £1 per bottle, passed from hand to hand. The commissariat receipts were, however, the chief medium of exchange: they were acknowledgements of the delivery of goods for the use of the crown. They were paid by the settlers to the merchants, who on the appointed days presented them for consolidation, and received in return bills on the lords of the treasury. Every trader issued his notes. The islands of Scotland possessed a small paper currency, and to that origin were we probably indebted for our own. Dr. Johnson found such trifling bills in circulation during his celebrated tour. In Hobart Town they were issued in great profusion.[118] Often of the lowest value, both in amount and in credit, they kept afloat by the risk which their refusal involved. When presented in small quantities they were usually paid. A trader rejecting his neighbour's bills would be harrassed by his revenge: this was, however, done in some instances. A large issuer of notes in Launceston was staggered by a sudden demand for payment: to maintain his credit he borrowed dollars, and gave additional notes as security. A few days after they returned, and the same dollars were again borrowed by the unfortunate financier. The run was devised by his clerk, who managed by such manœuvres to obtain a large bonus for negociating a loan of coin. The credit of these notes depended greatly on the Naval officer, a sort of collector: if admitted in payment of duties, they were current everywhere. The criminal courts continually exhibited frauds, consequent on these small issues. The issuers, however, had many chances in their favor: they did not always know their own notes; but great numbers were destroyed by persons intoxicated, or lost or worn out. The meaning of payment in currency, they interpreted, as giving one note for another, or four shillings for five shillings.

The colonial dollars were mutilated to prevent their exportation. In 1810, dollars were imported from Bengal. To make a smaller coin the centre was struck out, and valued at 1s. 3d.; the ring retaining its full current value. The crown payed the dollar as five shillings, and received it as four shillings; thus gaining 20 per cent. in exchange for bills, and in the settlement of accounts: an injustice so shameful was the subject of parliamentary reprobation, and ultimately suppressed. In 1824, the Samarang imported £10,000 of British silver, and the lords of the treasury directed that British coin should be paid to the troops, and taken in exchange for treasury bills.

The establishment of the Van Diemen's Land Bank (1823) was the most effectual remedy of many financial difficulties. The traders obtained a charter from Sir Thomas Brisbane: the capital was divided into shares of 200 dollars, and its direction was committed to a local board.[119]

The issues of individuals were finally suppressed by act of council. The detection of many frauds enabled the dishonest, with a show of right, to dispute payment. They were sometimes recovered in the court of request. Justice was once secured by Mr. Hone, in the following manner:—The defendant was requested to select the notes he admitted to be genuine, and then to hand both parcels to the bench: these being marked were dropped purposely, and the defendant unsuccessfully attempting the same division once more, showed that his repudiation was fraudulent, and lost the cause.

It was the custom to load a cart with goods, and send it through the country: the peddling merchant exchanged his commodities—a cask of rum, a basket of tobacco, a chest of tea, a bale of slop clothing—for sheep and cattle. The profits were often enormous: on his return to head quarters he would appear with a flock worth five times the original cost of his merchandise.[120]

The manners of a people are seen in the courts. A series of trials, arising from the same transaction, included a considerable portion of the settlers, and illustrated the trading habits which prevailed. Mr. Gunning being indebted to Mr. Loane, a merchant, agreed to pay him in cattle: this arrangement was superseded. Fearing, notwithstanding, that his claim would be damaged by a general insolvency, Loane took with him seven men, and swept from Gunning's premises a herd of various ownership. For this he was called in question by the police as a felon: in retaliation, he instituted actions for malicious prosecution. Crossley, an emancipist lawyer, issued summonses, and instructed the officer to arrest, contrary to standing orders; but Timms, the provost marshal, to exhibit a spectacle, captured the police magistrate proceeding to government house. The whole settlement was involved in actions arising out of the debt, rescue, and criminal charge, either as parties or witnesses. The provost marshal was dismissed for "drunken ignorance." These trials occurred in 1821, during the circuit of the judge, Barron Field, who was induced, by the representations of Commissioner Bigge, to hold a session in this colony.

FOOTNOTES:

SECTION VIII

The ecclesiastical notices contained in this work, will relate chiefly to external and material interests. The eye of a stranger cannot be expected to survey with impartiality the peculiarities of systems. It will be attempted to supply a few general facts acceptable to the community at large.

During the first years of this colony the duty of providing religious instruction, was both admitted and neglected by the state. The clergy were limited to the towns, who with the clerical functions united the business of agriculture and the administration of punishments. The church of England was then regarded by statesmen as the religion of the empire, and to clergymen of the episcopal persuasion the spiritual interests of the settlements were confided.

The first clergyman of New South Wales was the Rev. Richard Johnson: his labors were prosecuted under many discouragements. The priest of a Spanish vessel raised his hand with astonishment when he found (1793) no sacred edifice had been provided, and that the clergyman sought some shady spot to evade the burning sun in the performance of his ministry. He remarked, that the first house his own countrymen would erect, would be a house for God.[121] The habits of the officers discouraged a moral reformation. Earl St. Vincent had prohibited the marine officers taking their wives. A lady, who followed her husband in the disguise of a sailor, was sent home by Governor Phillip, when half her voyage had been completed.[122]

Four years having elapsed, in vain expectation of official help, Mr. Johnson erected, at his own cost, a wooden building: strong posts were driven into the ground, the walls consisted of wattle and plaster, and the roof was thatched: thus the first Christian temple in this hemisphere was raised by a voluntary effort. This building was maliciously destroyed. After a long season of slumber, the governor resolved to enforce the observance of the Sabbath, which had been commonly spent in "abominable dissipation." The prisoners were compelled to attend on public worship, and their officers enjoined to accompany them: a few weeks after, the church was in flames. The governor, irritated, threatened to employ the workmen on Sunday to erect another church; but a large stone store being available, it was fitted up for the purposes of devotion, and the weekly penance exacted in another form more suitable to the day (1778). Mr. Johnson returned to Great Britain: he was the first who reared orange groves, from which he realised considerable wealth.[123]

Before Mr. Johnson's removal, the Rev. Samuel Marsden arrived: a man of great intellectual and physical energy, who while he accomplished much for his family, effected more as a clergyman. Mr. Marsden was a graduate of St. John's, when he received his appointment, which was pressed upon him. His mission excited great interest. He was about to address a large assembly at Hull, when the vessel fired a signal to weigh anchor: the service was suddenly stopped, and Mr. Marsden proceeded with his bride to the boat, followed by the whole congregation, who covered the young adventurers with benedictions.

Mr. Marsden resided at Parramatta, where his agricultural success was conspicuous. Perón exclaimed—"The whole of this spot was covered with immense and useless forests. With what interest have I trodden over these new meadows, through the midst of which this respectable pastor conducted me himself with the most affectionate kindness. Who could have believed it! This residence is seven or eight miles from Parramatta, in the midst of woods; and it was over a very excellent road in a very elegant chaise that Mr. Marsden drove me. What exertions must have been taken to open such communications: these pastures, these fields, these harvests, these orchards, these flocks, are the work of eight years!" In his spiritual husbandry Mr. Marsden was not at first equally successful.

He returned to England in 1808, and the colony was left for some time without any clerical instructor. The Rev. Mr. Fulton, a protestant clergyman of Waterford, transported for sedition, was stationed at Norfolk Island, and Father Harold, an exile, a catholic priest, had returned home. "There was," says Holt, "no clergyman to visit the sick, baptise the infant, or church the women. So we were reduced to the same state as the heathen natives who had none of these ceremonies." At this period, however, many missionaries, driven from Tahiti, took refuge at Port Jackson. Some were employed as preachers, and others as schoolmasters, and several rose to considerable station and wealth, while others resumed their mission under more favorable auspices.

Mr. Marsden succeeded in arousing the attention of the ministry: additional clergymen were procured, and schools were established. The country-born children displayed an aptitude for instruction which kindled the most pleasing hopes. They exhibited a feeling, approaching to contempt, for the vices of the convicts, even when manifested in the persons of their parents.[124] "These feelings," said Sidney Smith, "convey to the mother country the first proof that the foundations of a mighty empire are laid."[125]

It is scarcely possible to imagine a condition more unfavorable to the rising race; and yet the aptitude for instruction, and the self-respect observable in the Australian youth, have been remarked by every visitor from the earliest times, not without astonishment. It is not uncommon to see children of the most elegant form, and with an open countenance, attended by parents of a different aspect, as if a new region restored the physical and mental vigour of the race.

A pleasing instance of the love of knowledge occurred during the early ministry of the Rev. Mr. Cartwright, which he related to Governor Macquarie. The river which separated them from his dwelling was swollen, and knowing the ford was impassable, he saw with great amazement his young pupils approach his Sunday school: they had tied their clothing on their heads, and swam across the stream.[126] It is asserted, that without any other instruction than a casual lesson, some learned both to read and write.

The Rev. Robert Knopwood, who arrived with the first settlers, was long the sole chaplain of Van Diemen's Land. In addition to his clerical functions he regularly sat as a magistrate. He had not much time to care for the spiritual interests of his flock, and of his success in their reformation nothing is recorded: his convivial friends are the chief eulogists of his character. His little white pony was not less celebrated. Mr. Knopwood received a pension, and was subsequently appointed chaplain to a country district: he died in 1838. The gaiety of his disposition made him a pleasant companion and a general favorite; and conciliated whatever esteem may be due to a non-professional reputation.[127] Mr. Knopwood was not, however, unwilling to tolerate the assistance of a sect whose zeal wore a different aspect from his own. The wesleyan ministers found a kindly welcome and an open field.

In the absence of clergymen, it was customary for the magistrates to conduct public worship, or where that was not possible, to assemble the prisoners and accompany the inspection with a few words of advice.[128]

The attention of the London committee of the wesleyan mission was aroused by their agents stationed at Port Jackson, who referred to this colony as "a settlement called the Derwent, two weeks' sail distant." The Rev. B. Carvosso, on his passage to New South Wales, touched at Hobart Town, in the month of May, 1820. He embraced the opportunity thus offered. He was introduced by the Rev. Mr. Knopwood to the governor, who authorised and protected his teaching. Mr. Carvosso stood on the steps of a dwelling-house; his congregation partly within and partly without: his wife conducted the psalmody. The text which initiated the wesleyan ministry was characteristic of its style and results: "Awake thou that sleepest!" The colony required such addresses. Mr. Carvosso's description of the inhabitants may be imagined: they were kindly, but dissolute. At New Norfolk and at Pittwater, with a population of several hundreds, no religious service had been performed. A seriously-minded soldier, by diligent inquiry, found out a settler said to be religious. To converse with this person, he took a journey of fifteen miles, and found him swearing!

Shortly after Mr. Carvosso's departure, several soldiers of the 58th regiment, who at Sydney adopted the sentiments of methodism, were quartered in the island. They prompted a Mr. Noakes to obtain a room for worship: eight persons met on the 29th October, 1820, at a house in Collins-street, Hobart Town. They next removed to the residence of a Mr. Wallis: the soldiers and their coadjutor filled up the hour with singing, exhortation, and alternate prayer. Corporal Waddy appears to have been the leader of the band. They were assailed with great, though transient fury: their devotion was stifled by hostile noises. The governor, however, interfered, and the disturbers were intimidated.

But the landlord of the house growing weary of their company, they sought a place of refuge. Donne, a carpenter, whose skilling formed a workshop, was entreated to arrange it for worship. At first, he gave a hesitating consent: his wife, a woman of vigorous temper and "a Romanist," violently interdicted the project; "but," says the chronicler, "that night there was a dreadful storm; the house rocked: she awoke in terror, exclaiming, 'the methodists shall have the room!'" The building became too small: it was enlarged to accommodate three hundred persons: a society of fourteen members was constituted. On the 13th May, 1821, a Sunday school was established; the first in Van Diemen's Land. All this was done in the absence of a minister. Waddy, who was made a sergeant, went to India, where he soon died. He was mentioned with admiration by his brethren. Donne had been a prisoner: he lived to acquire the respect and confidence of his neighbours. His proper name was Cranmer: he was descended from the family of the illustrious archbishop.[129] He remained in membership until his decease. Mr. Noakes, the organiser of these wesleyan victories, became dissatisfied with their results: the Gazette, of 1823, announced that he had withdrawn from their fellowship. To him, however, belongs the honor of gathering the first school for gratuitous instruction.

In the year following, September 21st, 1821, the Rev. Mr. Horton arrived. His labors were fatiguing and minute: he read the scriptures to "four persons in one place, and addressed twelve in another; chiefly old people and young children." He describes the social state of the country: "The wretchedness of Launceston is past description:" "of the deaths at New Norfolk, all except two are attributed to accident or drunkenness."

Mr. David Lord gave Mr. Horton a plot of ground, and he resolved to build. He was indefatigable in his collections; and by contributions, then thought liberal, obtained £400.; but chapels are not built by cautious men. Having raised the walls his money was gone; and they remained long uncovered: a reproach to his calculation, but not to his faith. The Rev. R. Mansfield, two years after, obtained timber and labor from the government: gifts and loans were provided by the society in England, and the building was completed.[130]

In 1822, a considerable religious immigration took place. Carvosso transmitted accounts of the material and moral prospects of the colony, which determined several of that class to settle in this island. They embarked in the Hope, and encountered great dangers in the British channel. On their complaints the vessel was seized, under an act for the protection of passengers; and the Heroine being chartered for the purpose, they were transmitted at the expense of the government. The owners successfully appealed against the seizure, and accused the passengers of conspiracy; who, however, themselves suffered considerable detention and loss.[131] Many still survive, having largely contributed in their various spheres towards the social improvement of the country.

Mr. Knopwood was superseded, as principal chaplain, by the Rev. William Bedford. This gentleman received his appointment by the recommendation of persons who had been impressed by his zealous attendance on criminals awaiting execution in the metropolitan gaols.

The presbyterian church was founded the same year by the Rev. Archibald Macarthur. He was cordially received as a representative both of his country and his religion: though not himself of the national church, most Scottish names are appended to the first subscription for his stipend.

The co-operation of the various bodies was not prevented by their differences. Of the first annual meeting of the wesleyan mission, Mr. Bedford was president, and the whole community joined in the support of a bible society, the first religious institution of the colony.

The missionaries who fled from Tahiti a second time, formed at Sydney a bible society, under the patronage of Macquarie, and transmitted a considerable supply to the care of Mr. Knopwood. In return for the liberal gift, an auxiliary was formed, of which Messrs. Birch and Dry were the lay officers. The meeting held in May, 1819, contributed £100 on the spot: £300 during the year. This munificence was avowedly for the credit of the settlement. Not only did the institution unite all sects, but it was the first instance of friendly co-operation between the emigrant and emancipist classes.[132] Among the contributors were twelve who, giving 5s. each, designated themselves the "members of the free and accepted masons of St. John's Lodge, Hobart Town." An early general meeting of the society was an example of dispatch: the governor took the chair, the report was read, the resolutions passed, and the meeting dispersed within ten minutes. With such celerity were pious labors finished in those days.

The erection of the archdeaconry in favour of the Rev. W. Scott, in 1824, was the result of his visit to the colonies, as secretary to Commissioner Bigge, whose reports were attributed to his pen. His alleged hostility to the emancipists excited resentment, and detracted from his usefulness. When delivering his charge at Hobart Town, the governor required the attendance of all officially connected with the government, whatever their faith. New South Wales was within the diocese of Calcutta, but the relation was nominal; yet the newspapers did not think a visit from Bishop Wilson improbable.

The Rev. John Youl, formerly a missionary at Tahiti, was the chaplain of Port Dalrymple. His labors were divided between George Town and Launceston, and until his arrival no clergyman had ever visited the northern districts of the island.[133] In 1819, he made a tour, and baptised sixty-seven children, and married forty-one couple; many of whom were recognised as such before his interposition.[134] He was accustomed to call his congregation together by the sound of an iron barrel, which was swung to a post, and struck by a mallet; or he announced his arrival by walking through the settlement in his canonical dress.

Launceston was destitute of a clerical resident until 1824, when Mr. Youl returned with the establishment from George Town. The people were sometimes weeks without a service, and three years without a clergyman. Shortly after, during a visit of the governor, the church was crowded; an event said to be unparalleled in the history of Launceston. The church was a wooden building of small dimensions: sometimes occupied as a court, sometimes as a temporary sleeping place for prisoners; sometimes as a stable.[135]

The disposition of Mr. Youl was amiable, and his professional reputation unblemished: placed in a station of little promise, he cultivated the minds and affections of the young, and discountenanced vices he could not extirpate.

The first Roman catholic priest established at Hobart Town, was the Rev. Peter Connolly. Less polished than his protestant friend, Mr. Knopwood, he was not less genial in his temper: the pastor of a people drawn chiefly from the Irish peasantry, he well understood their character. He received a grant from the crown, and erected a humble chapel and dwelling-house; which he ascribed partly to the charity, and partly the penance of his flock. He used a common brush to sprinkle them with holy water, and spoke of their faults without much softness or reserve. Occasionally an execution required his services at Launceston, otherwise a place long overlooked by the priesthood.[136]

The return of the Sabbath was unattended in the country with a religious welcome. Many employed their time in hunting: the more scrupulous in visits, and the profane in labor or intemperance. A gentleman, now distinguished among the wesleyans, was found by his neighbour ploughing by the road side on Sunday morning: both himself and his men had forgotten the day. Yet at the houses of all, a minister of religion, of any name, met a cheerful entertainment and a willing audience. Whether that the presence of an intelligent stranger is itself a grateful interruption to rural solitude, or that the miseries resulting from sin were too apparent for dispute, the utility of religion was never openly questioned; and it is certain, that few people were less inclined to reject the instructions, or to affront the ministers of religion.

FOOTNOTES:

SECTION IX

On the 19th July, 1823, the British legislature enacted a law for the "better administration of justice in New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land, and for the better government thereof;" to expire at the close of the session of parliament, 1827. The old courts with their military functionaries were superseded,[137] and a supreme court erected; whose jurisdiction extended to causes, criminal, civil, and ecclesiastical. The judges were entitled to the powers and jurisdiction enjoyed by the courts of King's Bench, Common Pleas, and Exchequer of England; and to enquire into and determine all treasons or other crimes committed within the Indian or Pacific Oceans. The military jury of seven officers on full pay, were retained; but the court proceeded according to the forms of civil tribunals. The trial of civil issues was confided to the judge, and two justices of the peace chosen by the governor; the right being given to either party to apply to the court for a jury of twelve freeholders. The king was authorised to extend trial by jury at pleasure. Causes of more than £500, or a less sum with consent of the judge, were subject to appeal to the governor of New South Wales; and appeals in certain cases were allowed to the king in council. The rules of court were authorised by the king. Courts of quarter session, and of request for sums under £10, were established. The governor, with the advice of a council of five or seven, or the major part of them, was empowered to enact ordinances not repugnant to the laws of England. The duties levied under former acts were made perpetual, but the council were inhibited from imposing a tax, except for local purposes. The governor, with one member assenting, could pass any law: or, for the suppression of a rebellion, although all might dissent: and the king was empowered to enact an ordinance which the council might reject.

It was provided also, that the king might erect Van Diemen's Land into a separate colony: confer on the acting-governor, in the absence of the governor-in-chief, the various powers conveyed by the act; and, in that case, terminate the dependence of the supreme court on the court of New South Wales. On these extensive powers the checks provided were the requisite preliminary certificate of the chief justice, that the ordinances proposed were consistent with the laws of England, or the circumstances of the colony; the exposure of these acts on the table of the House of Commons; the obligation of the governor to show cause for the act passed in defiance of his council; the prohibition of direct taxation, except for local purposes: guarantees of little value at the time of their adoption, but rendered of greater importance by the growth of freedom in the empire at large.

The act of parliament did not pass without animadversion and discontent. Sir James Mackintosh moved that a jury of twelve should be substituted for the clause constituting a military jury—the most obnoxious portion of the bill. In this he was seconded by Mr. Wilberforce, but the proposition was defeated by a majority of eleven. Mr. Canning recommended a compromise between the friends and opponents of the bill, by limiting its duration to five years, and to this the minister assented.

The capacity of the colonies to furnish jurors was long a subject of debate, Mr. Justice Bent stated, that after full consideration he recommended a grand and a common jury, in conformity to the English law, and the trial of convicts by the police;[138] but Commissioner Bigge pronounced against the scheme, and was confirmed in his opinion by the leading colonists of the time. The whole state of society opposed serious objections to its adoption, and it was scarcely practicable in Van Diemen's Land.

The settlers were generally desirous that Van Diemen's Land should be erected into a separate colony. To this, Sorell was opposed. He thought the measure premature: tending to augment the expenses of government; to deprive the people of the advantages of an appeal to the elder colony, and of participation in that more liberal system of government a larger community could demand. A public meeting was, however, summoned, and a petition adopted by acclamation. The sole dissentient present, Mr. Murray, was roughly treated by the petitioners.

The nearer inspection of a chief authority, and the more ample means possessed for good, were its advantages; but it occasioned a more rigid separation in social life, multiplied offices which might have been long confined to the elder colony, and removed too far the governor and courts from effectual oversight and appeal. The colony was not sufficiently consolidated to oppose a force of public opinion to the despotic tendencies of the new constitution.

This petition was forwarded to the king through Mr. Edward Barnard, the colonial agent, who owed his appointment to the suggestion of Mr. Bigge, and the nomination of Lord Bathurst. His office was not, however, political. He was authorised to purchase stores for the local government; to give drafts on the colonial funds in exchange for cash; and otherwise to assist persons designing to emigrate to this country. He received 8 per cent. commission, and a salary until 1839, when it was withdrawn. He bore no resemblance to those bold political agents, such as Franklin, sent by the American colonists to watch their interests in Great Britain.

In the early journals the name of Sorell occurs frequently, to illustrate the qualities which adorn a ruler, and to point a satire on his successor. On his departure a banquet was given him, where, said the reporter, "the cup was often replenished, and the flow of reason never ebbed." It was observed, that the return freight for merino wool, which the colony owed to his care and foresight, anchored beside the Guildford, that was to carry him home.

Towards the close of Sorell's government, the commerce of the colony was assisted by the enterprise of some British merchants. A company was formed at Leith, with a capital of £100,000, professing to promote the welfare of the colonies, by taking their produce in exchange for merchandise. A succession of vessels were dispatched: the first was the Greenock; among the rest, the Triton, Captain Crear. These vessels introduced many families from Scotland, whose moral worth and successful enterprise have established their families among the chief of the land. The shipments provoked the anger, and broke up the monopoly of the local merchants.

The administration of Sorell was successful in colonial estimation: his habits were familiar without rudeness, and his fine countenance attracted the confidence of the stranger. He was accustomed to linger about the gate of government house, chatting with the passers by, and a slight excuse entitled the humblest ranks to prefer their solicitations. The admiration expressed by the settlers for his character, was partly the result of their relative positions. He was a dispenser of crown favors, and when compelled to refuse an immoderate suitor, he could refer his request to the governor-in-chief. The rigour of king's commissioner was softened by his official worth: nor is it necessary to search for a censure, amidst such concurrence of praise. The settlers, to express their regard, agreed to offer Sorell a testimonial of £750 value. They deprecated his recall by petition[139]—a rare instance of popular favor: there was but one dissentient. A request so unusual might, perhaps, have been successful, had it not come too late.

On his return to England, he received a pension, which commencing in 1825, continued until his death—twenty-four years, and amounted to £11,500: more than the official salary he received during his government twice told. This pension was authorised by the crown, and charged on the colonial revenue. Sorell was colonel of the 48th regiment: he died on the 4th June, 1848, in the seventy-fourth year of his age.

The aspect of the country at this time was not inviting to strangers; but the current of colonisation was set in, and its ultimate superiority, compared with all others, became an article of Tasmanian faith. On this subject the agricultural societies maintained a war of papers. Baron Field, the chief justice of New South Wales, was the champion of that country, and dwelt on its vast forests, its wool, its boundless pastures and rivers. The president of the Tasmanian agriculturists urged all in the defence of Van Diemen's Land, which became his position. At that time, protective laws had not furnished them with more formidable weapons.

The trials and disappointments of the colonist pioneer, will have been long since forgotten. The modern emigrant to Australia can know them only in part. He is carried to his destination by a public conveyance, at a cost determined by extensive competition. He can have the mechanical labor he may need: he can buy the stock, descended from European flocks and herds, lower than in their native regions. The choice fruit trees, flowers, and plants, which multitudes have combined to collect, he can obtain often at a gift. The costly experiments of his predecessors have established the rules which preserve his crops from destruction, or his folds from disease. There is a market for his produce, and a bank for his money; and a school for his children.

A poet, of some celebrity, predicted the fortunes of Tasmania. The picture he drew, is no unpleasing prospect for posterity:—

FOOTNOTES: