FOOTNOTES:

FOOTNOTES:[172]Sydney Gazette, 1822.[173]Copy of a grant of 1,500 acres:—"Whereas full power and authority for granting lands in the territory of New South Wales are vested in his Majesty's captain-general and governor-in-chief (or in his absence the lieutenant-governor for the time being) in and over the said territory and its dependencies by his Majesty's instructions under the royal sign manual, bearing date respectively the 25th day of April 1787 and the 20th day of August 1789: In pursuance of the power and authority vested in me as aforesaid, I do by these presents give and grant unto A. B. his heirs and assigns, to have and to hold for ever, 1,500 acres of land lying and situate in the —— district, Van Diemen's Land, bounded, &c. &c. &c. &c., to be had and held by him the said A. B. his heirs and assigns, free from all taxes, quit-rents, and other acknowledgements, for the space of five years from the date hereof; provided always, and it is hereby expressed to be understood that the said A. B. the grantee in these presents named, shall in no ways either directly or indirectly sell, alienate, or transfer any part or parcel of the land hereby granted within the said term of five years; and also provided always that the said A. B. should clear and cultivate, or cause to be cleared and cultivated, within the said term of five years, the quantity of 75 acres of the said land hereby granted, otherwise the whole of the said land hereby granted shall revert to the crown, and the grant hereby made thereof shall be held and deemed null and void, and saving and reserving to government the right of making a public road through such part of the said land as may at any time be required: such timber as may be growing or that may grow hereafter upon the said lands, which may be deemed fit for naval purposes, to be reserved for the use of the crown; and paying an annual quit-rent of 30s. after the term or time of five years before mentioned. In testimony whereof," &c.[174]It appears to have been followed in the court, lately instituted in Ireland, for the sale of encumbered estates.[175]Despatch, 10th June, 1849.[176]Bastianv.Bridger.

[172]Sydney Gazette, 1822.

[173]Copy of a grant of 1,500 acres:—"Whereas full power and authority for granting lands in the territory of New South Wales are vested in his Majesty's captain-general and governor-in-chief (or in his absence the lieutenant-governor for the time being) in and over the said territory and its dependencies by his Majesty's instructions under the royal sign manual, bearing date respectively the 25th day of April 1787 and the 20th day of August 1789: In pursuance of the power and authority vested in me as aforesaid, I do by these presents give and grant unto A. B. his heirs and assigns, to have and to hold for ever, 1,500 acres of land lying and situate in the —— district, Van Diemen's Land, bounded, &c. &c. &c. &c., to be had and held by him the said A. B. his heirs and assigns, free from all taxes, quit-rents, and other acknowledgements, for the space of five years from the date hereof; provided always, and it is hereby expressed to be understood that the said A. B. the grantee in these presents named, shall in no ways either directly or indirectly sell, alienate, or transfer any part or parcel of the land hereby granted within the said term of five years; and also provided always that the said A. B. should clear and cultivate, or cause to be cleared and cultivated, within the said term of five years, the quantity of 75 acres of the said land hereby granted, otherwise the whole of the said land hereby granted shall revert to the crown, and the grant hereby made thereof shall be held and deemed null and void, and saving and reserving to government the right of making a public road through such part of the said land as may at any time be required: such timber as may be growing or that may grow hereafter upon the said lands, which may be deemed fit for naval purposes, to be reserved for the use of the crown; and paying an annual quit-rent of 30s. after the term or time of five years before mentioned. In testimony whereof," &c.

[174]It appears to have been followed in the court, lately instituted in Ireland, for the sale of encumbered estates.

[175]Despatch, 10th June, 1849.

[176]Bastianv.Bridger.

A work of Edward Gibbon Wakefield, professed to detect the errors in British colonisation, and to prescribe a new and more effective plan.[178]It consisted in selling land at "a sufficient price" to combine labor and capital, to collect all the elements of civilisation, to prevent the dispersion of population, the premature possession of land by the workman, and speculation by jobbers. Thus a colony, on this model, was compared to a tree transplanted, the fibres of its roots undivided, and its branches unbroken.

For several years previous to this decisive change, the desire had been widely expressed to relieve the parent country by the emigration of paupers. Sir William Horton devoted great attention to the subject. He visited various districts most oppressed by population, and pointed out the methods available to an extensive removal. The Canada Company, which transacted much business with him while under secretary of state, had purchased and re-sold crown lands; and many laborers, who were transferred at their own expense to that country, rapidly improved their condition. A committee of the Commons sat upon the subject, and a bill was introduced by Mr. Horton himself, to authorise the parishes to mortgage their poor rates. It was once intended by the government to levy a tax on convict laborers, and to increase its amount on artizans, and thus raise a fund for emigration: this project, Arthur successfully resisted, and large permanent resources were discovered in the sale of lands. The parishes were not willing to incur the outlay, and it was opposed by many who were persuaded that the poverty of the laborer resulted from oppression.[179]The intolerable degradation of the poor led to outrages and crimes. Large numbers were transported for agrarian offences, and many others had no refuge, but to obtain deliverance from starvation by less concerted violations of the law.

Agricultural laborers were driven from town to town; offered by auction at two-pence a day; harnessed to gravel carts; mocked by being sent with a barley straw fifteen miles a day; imprisoned in pits, and kept standing morning after morning in a public pound. Such were the scenes which induced Horton to lecture through the country on redundant population and emigration; and to call the attention of the parliament to the march of poverty, pauperism, tyranny, and crime.[180]

The proposition of Sir William Horton led to various projects of private parties, in furtherance of colonisation. Grants of land were given to capitalists in proportion to the laborers they conveyed; whom they were permitted to engage as indented servants. The scheme chiefly important to Van Diemen's Land, was the settlement of Swan River. Four gentlemen proposed to government, to convey 10,000 persons, for a grant equivalent. The ministerthought the project too vast. Three of the four declined: Mr. Thomas Peel, a relative of Sir Robert Peel, still persevered. Many persons entrusted their capital to agents, who presented it, and obtained a title to possessions they never intended to cultivate.

By the regulations published at Downing-street (December 5th, 1828), the settlers were allowed 40 acres for every £3 of invested capital; 200 acres for every laborer conveyed. No convicts, or any other description of prisoners, were to be sent; but land granted, was to be forfeited, unless improved within twenty-one years. Thus, those who conveyed laborers, were met by competitors who had incurred no such expenses; and the conditions imposed neutralised each other. The settler who carried out labour, found his servant desert him to occupy land acquired by the capitalist who carried out money. Of three hundred persons embarked by Mr. Peel, in a few months not one remained to light his fire; but the recreant workmen were soon reduced to want. Many, under their broken indentures, claimed relief of Mr. Peel, whose flocks had been scattered, and his property destroyed by their desertion. He was glad to hide from their violence, while they were embarking for the neighbouring colonies. Respectable families were compelled to perform the most menial offices, and young women of education were reduced to rags. Contributions of clothing were collected and forwarded by the ladies of Cornwall. Many were brought to Van Diemen's Land, as to a city of refuge: the population, from 4,000, decreased to 1,500, and the ruined landholders petitioned the government for a share of convict labour—a boon which the elder colonies deprecated, and the minister refused (1835).

Swan River seemed to promise a desirable market, and the merchants dispatched vessels with provisions and cattle: Mr. Gellibrand speculated largely. On the whole, the returns were not equal to the outlay; and although sometimes great profits were realised, Van Diemen's Land was injured by the trade.

Scarcely were the settlers of Western Australia landed, when another colony, Spencer's Gulf, was projected. The authors of this scheme imputed serious detects to the plan of its immediate predecessor. The low price and extensive holdings, the want of combinable laborers, and the imperfect organisation of its social fabric, seemed to account for its disasters. A body of persons, concurring in the Wakefield system of colonisation, and comprehending manymembers of the House of Commons, formed themselves into an association, and applied to the government for the necessary powers. After considerable discussion, the minister declined their proposal, and the realisation of their hopes was deferred several years. The more active partisans of the scheme kept it before the public. An act passed the legislature on the 15th of August, 1834, empowering the crown to erect South Australia into a British province. Commissioners were appointed for the sale of land, and for the conveyance of emigrants. It was determined that the price should be sufficient to prevent laborers from buying land, and furnish the cost of their emigration. The company were authorised to borrow £50,000. If, at the expiration of ten years, the population should not reach 20,000, the control of the land was to revert to the crown. With a population of 50,000, they were to obtain the rights of political freedom, and no convict ship was to anchor on their shores. The upset price was at first £1, and, for a time, 12s. per acre. The intended colony was viewed with distrust by the elder settlements for the theoretical character of the plan, and its entire opposition to the then prevailing notions of penal labour. The advocates of the enterprise lost no occasion to denounce the social condition of Van Diemen's Land and New South Wales; where, however, the scheme was pronounced insane, and destined to certain disorder and ultimate overthrow. The appearance of new speculators in the Australian colonies compensated them for these reproaches. In publishing their plans, the company had always referred to supplies within their vicinity, as an immediate and certain reserve. The Tasmanian merchants met them on the shore of the royal province. Sheep were sent over as the basis of their flocks; timber for their huts; and the various produce of rural wealth, originally brought at great cost from Europe. A long succession of adventurers raised the value of produce throughout the colonies; and individuals realised large profits in the trade; but when the arrivals from England ceased, the new colony was involved in whatever misfortunes its peculiar plan was supposed to avert. Many hundreds, driven out by poverty, settled in the penal colonies, and the property of Adelaide became unsaleable: the frail dwellings were deserted, and the land lay utterly waste. Of the Adelaide traders, scarcely a house escaped insolvency, and the loss was total. Those who remained turned their land to account: their flocks increased, and the discovery of the mines happily realised more than their early hopes. Thelands sold by the company were freed from the mineral reservation.

An old gentleman, named Mengè, formerly an attendant on a distinguished German geologist, was the discoverer of its mineral riches. He was employed by Mr. George F. Angus to select his special surveys. His occasional choice of rocks and barren soil excited ridicule and astonishment; but he was accustomed to say, "the wealth is below, not upon the ground." He lived in the cleft of a rock at the junction of the Gawler and Para, near a plot of forty acres, almost surrounded with water, where he cultivated melons of every variety. He spoke many languages, and had travelled through Germany, Switzerland, and Iceland. A mineral collection he made, is in the University Museum, Edinburgh. His excursions in South Australia were intrepid, and extended far: he carried a wallet and a hammer, and subsisted during his wandering on gum. His conversation was visionary; and his predictions, at the time, but little regarded.

The coast of New Holland, opposite to Van Diemen's Land, was almost neglected since the removal of the colony in 1803. Various reports were brought by whalers of its suitableness for sheep farming. Howell, Hume, and Batman had explored the country in 1824, and had acquired some knowledge of its quality. In 1827, an application was made by Messrs. J. T. Gellibrand and Batman to General Darling, for permission to land stock, to the amount of £5,000, in the neighbourhood of Western Port. This project failed; but in 1835, Mr. Batman, called the Australian Penn, acting for certain colonists, of whom a nephew of Arthur was one, proceeded to Port Phillip. Several Sydney blacks, under his care, had acquired the English language, and accompanied him thither. This important expedition embarked in a colonial vessel, and landed on the 26th May, on the shore of Port Phillip. The civilised blacks were now decked with native ornaments, and advanced towards the fires of the aborigines; but they had fled. They were, however, tracked by Batman's company, who opened a friendly conference, and were perfectly understood. The natives displayed some apprehension, and intimated they had already experienced injury from the English. Batman gave them presents of tomahawks and trinkets, and conciliated their fullest confidence. Some time after, the party met the chief of another tribe, who had heard reports of the white man's liberality: he conducted them towards the huts; but in their progress they were surprised by an hostile array of the natives. Theblacks of Batman's party called out to them, and amity was established. Batman took the spear of the chief, who carried his gun. He then proposed to live among them: the conditions were explained to their satisfaction. The treaty of Penn with the Indians was the model of the covenant with the tribe of Dutegaller. They conveyed a track of 600,000 acres, for blankets and other objects of native desire, and an annual payment of similar articles to the value of £200. This deed was signed, sealed, and delivered by the natives in due form.

The report of this expedition was presented to Arthur, who warmly concurred in the occupation, and approved the consideration of native rights; but observed that those rights had been disregarded in the recent colonisation of South Australia, and that Port Phillip was within the government of New South Wales. Arthur was desirous of making that territory dependent on Van Diemen's Land. The minister favorably noticed the proposal; but in the meantime Governor Bourke asserted his claim, and declared the company intruders, and their bargains with the natives void.

Notwithstanding, the colony now opened was occupied by many adventurers. Their sheep were rapidly transferred, and the greater portion of the early inhabitants were settlers from Van Diemen's Land. The settlement was suffered with reluctance. The theory of concentration had been adopted only a few months before; but, except by setting up a government on the spot, it was found that an illegal occupation of land could not be prevented. Governor Bourke wrote to the secretary of state, that whatever the general wisdom of concentration, an opposite course was necessary for pastoral wealth; and that to neglect nutritious food, would be to reject "the bounty of providence." He proposed to sell the land in townships, and employ the proceeds in the public service.

Lord Glenelg confessed that the scheme of concentration was not of universal application: that Lord Ripon's regulations were not everywhere desirable, and that it was proper to tolerate the ardour of private enterprise; to moderate its course, and gather up its fruits. The Dutegaller association was dissolved; but not until they had given an impulse to colonisation, more rapid than any example offered by history. This peaceable occupation, contrasted with the cruelties inflicted at Twofold Bay—a whaling station, now rising into a province.

While these plans of colonisation were in progress, thesocial condition of the penal colonies was constantly discussed. To correct the evils admitted on the spot, and to obviate the dangers apprehended at home, it was determined by the ministers to promote the emigration of mechanics and females. One series of plans were proposed for New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land, and with the same general results. The policy of government required the emigration of free mechanics.

The employment of prisoner artizans by the local government, was disapproved by the crown, and Colonel Arthur was instructed to assign them to masters, and contract for public works. In defending this measure, he had maintained that the high rate of wages would subvert the design of transportation: the employer would indulge the workmen, and to obtain their full strength supply the means of sensual gratification.

In 1831, a notice appeared inviting the opinions of the colonists on the subject of emigration. Lord Goderich solicited the assistance of the settlers in removing the population which the colonies might employ, and England spare. They were requested to state what amount of money they would engage to afford, and what class of servants they required. Such as contributed to the cost were promised a preferable claim to engage them. The notice was received in silence: no public meeting was held. The servants of the Van Diemen's Land Company had generally deserted their employers; and in the colonies, the valuation of pauper laborers, compared with convicts, was not great; and although some extended their views beyond the moment, the chief object of most persons was to secure a fortune and be gone. The settlers dreaded the vicinity of small farmers, as fatal to the discipline of their men, and to the safety of their flocks.[181]

This notice was on its way, when Lord Howick, on the behalf of the colonial-office, addressed the lords of the treasury, and proposed a loan of £10,000, to be repayed by the land fund. The proceeds of sales were then a matter of conjecture; but it was the opinion of the secretary of state, that these resources should be devoted to emigration, especially of females. He calculated that a growing population would more than compensate for the cost, by extending thebasis of colonial revenue (1831). In this view their lordships concurred, and a commission was instantly appointed, to carry out the design.

During this emigration the supply of labor exceeded the demand, and a benevolent society was formed to succour the numerous poor. The governor advised that no laborers, except mechanics, should be sent, and four members of the legislative council protested against the outlay. They stated that the support of 10,000 prisoners, without expense to England, was a sufficient benefit for a colony to confer; that the "poor house prisoners," and the "gaol prisoners," were equally demoralised; and the first more insolent and uncontrollable. They contended that the expenditure of the land fund out of the colony was to complete the mischief resulting from the cessation of grants, "the calamities of which it was fearful to anticipate."[182]

The colony was thought likely to afford a desirable home for Chelsea pensioners, who commuted their pensions for four years' payment. Forty-six embarked in theScience, with Messrs. Backhouse and Walker, whose reports of their conduct explain their subsequent misfortunes. They were intemperate and thriftless, and passed the voyage in disorder. The women were nothing superior to their husbands.[183]On their arrival, they expended their money, and sunk into misery. To this there were some exceptions, and here and there an old soldier may be found, whose property has risen in value, to a competence for his declining life. The land they were enabled to acquire was, however, generally too small in quantity to yield a living, from their unskilled and irregular toil. Their distress excited more discussion than sympathy. They requested the sheriff to call a meeting, to inform the crown of "their unspeakable sufferings."

The home government resolved to advance £20 to married mechanics willing to emigrate to this colony. They gave the parties the amount, who were expected to sign a warrant of attorney for its repayment within two years. Many emigrated, but few paid: a Mr. John Hose, who did so, was noticed for his singular honesty; but the greater part evaded the liability with success. Females were expected to repay £8 towards their passage; but many were minors, and the proof of their hand-writing was not easy, and fewregarded the obligation as just. The demand of this pledge contracted the choice of emigrants: many country girls refused to sign their names to a paper, promising a sum equal to the English wages of a year; or to enter into engagements, of which they could not see the end. The ordinary revenue was charged with payment and collection arising from this scheme; but the land fund eventually defrayed the loss.

A succession of vessels, with mechanics and females, anchored at Hobart Town: theAmelia Thompsonat Launceston. A committee of ladies in London, of whom Mrs. Fry was the most distinguished, undertook the selection of the females. They were commended for their philanthropy and care in England: in the colonies, they received but little praise. Mr. Marshall, a considerable shipowner, was appointed agent. To fill his vessels, was said to be the main object of his efforts, and that he held a low scale of female morality would not be unacceptable. The statements of the colonial press were often undiscriminating and highly unjust: many valuable women were included in these immigrations; many were girls of tender years, whose chief fault was their ignorance.

The debarkation of these females occasioned scenes, more subjects of regret than of wonder. Thus, on the arrival of theStrathfieldsay(1834), the fair emigrants, 286, most of good character, were indiscreetly landed at high noon: 2,000 persons awaited them on the beach. Their feelings were outraged with ribaldry and insult: they were astounded at their reception, and many wept. The ladies of the colony protected and advanced them; and some, whose want drove them from their native country, remember the day with gratitude when they first pressed the soil of Tasmania. 1,280 females were brought to the colony in three years, ending 1835; and rather more to New South Wales.

The emigrant rarely appears to advantage: the occupation of a new sphere, in which his position is uncertain, renders his manners awkward, and his expectations ridiculous. The disorderly conduct of many made their presence a burden, and their civil condition no great advantage to their masters. Yet, since it was necessary to labor or to starve, the greater portion chose the better alternative; and the women of decent habits, found that destiny for which nature designed them.

The extravagant expectations formed by many emigrants, fostered by reports of individual success, which when substantially true are still exaggerated by fancy, were commonly disappointed. The suspicious coolness of strangers; the high price of provisions; the comfortless dwellings, with their awkward fuel; the absence of conveniences, which are not valued until lost; and the memory of home, produced a depression of spirits, only overcome by reason or youth. But their complaints of after years, are the result of affectation and habit: they pretend to have sacrificed a lot, from which in reality they escaped; and forget that in the midst of those scenes they profess to regret, they often wanted a meal.

A curious instance occurred at an early time: a settler took a location order and provisions, and went out to commence his labors. He was disheartened by the obstruction of the forest: at his first stroke, the axe was shivered; he threw it down in despair, and returned home in the vessel that brought him out.

The emigrants were not, on the whole, inferior to other persons of their education and calling; and were often justified in resisting the tyrannical spirit and disposition to oppress, which the habits of colonial life do not extinguish. This emigration, amounting to 7,000 for both colonies, is an epoch to be remembered for its influence on their fate.

These events revolutionised the social state of the colonies. Free workmen and their families formed an intermediate class, whose interests were hostile to a penal government, and to bond labor in every form. The individual importance of employers consoled them for their political dependence; and the subservience of transportation to their material prosperity, reconciled them to the restrictions it imposed. The free workman found it an obstacle to his advancement: it depressed his wages and debased his position, but gave him nothing. If his industry raised him, he yet retained the sympathies of his early life: he remained distrustful of the rich, jealous of rank, and fond of the equality of human rights. Trial by jury, legislative assemblies, and official responsibility, found earnest advocates, where they had often been mere rallying points of personal discontent.

All this was foreseen by Arthur: when free laborers were intruded by the crown, the great bond of his system was broken.

DISPOSAL OF CROWN LANDS IN NEW SOUTH WALES AND VAN DIEMEN'S LAND.Authority.Date.Terms.Superseded.Remarks.King's sign manualto governors ofNew South Wales.1787 and 1789.Residence on the grant.Cultivation and improvement.Reservation of naval timber.Quit rent: emancipists. 6d. per 30 acres; freesettlers, 2s. per 100 acres, after ten years.1810.100 acres only to any person,over the quantity allowedto emancipists.Governor Macquarie.January 1, 1810.Quit-rent, 2s. per 100 acres.Cultivation of a proportion (20th part) in five years.Reservation of naval timber.Right of forming highways.Non-alienation in five years.November 30, 1821.Town allotments usuallyleased at Hobart Townfor twenty-one years,quit rent 30s. per acre;7 only were granted,1820. Allotments wereoccupied at Launcestonon permission of thecommandant.—Bigge'sReport.Governor Brisbane.July 11, 1822.1823.Omits cultivation clause, and saddles every 100acres with a convict servant. This was cancelledby indorsement on some grants, on conditionof cultivation.Grants liable to quit-rent of 15s. per 100 acres.Colonial Office,November 1824.Notified in Van Diemen'sLand, 18th May, 1825.Colonial Office.1824.April, 1826.Convict clause inserted. Purchase money repaid,if claimed within ten years, or for the redemptionof quit rent.Quit rent 5 per cent. value.Settlers who could obtain no convicts, allowedabatement of half quit-rent; or a new purchaseat half price, who should expend fivetimes value of the grants, given or sold them.Convict clause withdrawn,in 3rd edit. of notice,1827.Town lots granted onspecified expenditurewithin three years, andnon-alienation for 18months.Governor Arthur.1828.Land Board established; capital required, £500for each square mile granted.Land sold at highest tender; one-half left onmortgage for twelve years, at 5 per cent.Precious metals reserved.January 20, 1831.Colonial Office.January 20, 1831.Order: all land to be sold by public sale; upsetprice 5s., conveyed in fee simple at a peppercornrent.Precious metals reserved, and indigenous producefor public works.August, 1838.Colonial Office.August, 1838.1842.12s. per acre.£1 per acre.1842.1845.[184]

FOOTNOTES:[177]Report on the Disposal of Crown Land, 1836.[178]England and America.[179]The plan of selling crown lands, and appropriating the proceeds to emigration, was claimed as his own by Galt, the novelist and projector. SeeLife of John Galt, vol. ii. p. 135.[180]Edinburgh Review, 1849.[181]"We are much mistaken, if the letters addressed to the secretary exceed six, and they are written by the paid magistracy."—Launceston Advertiser, 1832.[182]Protesters:—Charles Swanston, Charles M'Lachlan, Richard Willis, John Kerr. October, 1833.[183]Backhouse's Narrative.[184]1845.—The Act 5th & 6th Victoria, chap. 36, repealed; as to Van Diemen's Land only: which returned to the status of 1787.

[177]Report on the Disposal of Crown Land, 1836.

[178]England and America.

[179]The plan of selling crown lands, and appropriating the proceeds to emigration, was claimed as his own by Galt, the novelist and projector. SeeLife of John Galt, vol. ii. p. 135.

[180]Edinburgh Review, 1849.

[181]"We are much mistaken, if the letters addressed to the secretary exceed six, and they are written by the paid magistracy."—Launceston Advertiser, 1832.

[182]Protesters:—Charles Swanston, Charles M'Lachlan, Richard Willis, John Kerr. October, 1833.

[183]Backhouse's Narrative.

[184]1845.—The Act 5th & 6th Victoria, chap. 36, repealed; as to Van Diemen's Land only: which returned to the status of 1787.

The increasing population of the Australian colonies led to important changes in their monetary institutions. Hitherto the stock employed in banking was supplied by the merchants, or invested by East Indian capitalists. These local relations were not without their advantages: they enabled the banks to extend accommodation beyond the ordinary usage of companies subject to more extensive and complicated interests.

The announcement of the "Leviathan," as the Bank of Australasia was called, created the usual amount of discussion. The capital was desired by those who had occasion to borrow, and dreaded by such as were interested in lending. It was incorporated in 1835; and commenced operations the following year. By granting bills on London at par, the manager first drew largely on the current coin. Treasury bills were no longer the cheapest remittance, and the disposition to purchase them declined. The outcry of the local banks reached the legislative council, and it was proposed to make a treasury bill a legal tender. An act passed for the purpose, but was never called into force by proclamation. The resources of the English enabled them to vex and contract the sphere of the colonial establishments; but had treasury bills become a legal tender, they could have redeemed their own notes by their payment, and thus recovered the coin which found its way into the coffers of the stranger.

At Launceston, the quarrel between the Australasia and a local bank, afforded much sport to those not deeply interested. Of the Tamar Bank, 20 per cent. only had been paid on its capital, which was exceedingly small compared with its discounts and issues. Every morning, the agent of the London took a wheel-barrow to the Tamar bank, attended by an armed guard, and carried away the dollars in exchange for notes. The superior strength of the Australasia soon brought the contest to a crisis, and Mr. Gilles, the manager of the Tamar, shut up his books. He, however, first gave warning, that such must be his course, unless it was agreed to restore the dollar bags to the state before the war. To this it was replied that, perhaps, the Tamar had exceeded the just limits of its capital, and an offer made to discount a bill for its accommodation. In the end, timewas given. The parties concerned were more frightened than hurt: no serious injury was intended.

In 1837, the Union Bank of Australia, with a capital of £1,000,000, divided the field. This institution was formed in England, under the auspices of Mr. Philip Oakden, a merchant, of Launceston. With such spirit was the project accepted, that the amount was subscribed in one day.

The chief objection to these banks was their tendency to create a class of absentees, whose revenue withdrawn from the colonies would add nothing to their welfare. To this it was replied, that the repayment was intended to be made from profits the colonies would divide with the London capitalist, which, except for his assistance, could not be obtained.

The last business address of Arthur to his council, expressed his antipathy to the London bank, and his hope that the monopoly attempted would not be successful. He asserted that the proprietary, an absentee body, had no interest but their own to regard, while the local banks were colonial in every sense. These were his views of finance, and they were characteristic of the time.

"The glorious 23rd of May!" Such was the day and month of 1831, separated by those who witnessed its achievements to everlasting renown. The excitement of the campaign against the blacks (see vol. ii.) had absorbed political animosities, and brought all parties together; but by this time the popularity of the governor was spent. The struggle for parliamentary reform agitated Great Britain, and the colonists determined to attempt the recovery of their rights as Englishmen. So lively was the interest in the affairs of Europe, that the tri-color was mounted by more ardent politicians. The last wave of revolution, which had scattered thrones, rippled on these shores.

A meeting was called by the sheriff, and the principal speakers were the Gellibrands, Crombie, Cartwright, Abbott, F. Smith, Meredith, Lascelles, Gregson, Dunn, Jennings, Kemp, Hewitt, and Lowes: of these, none were so conspicuous as Mr. Thomas Horne (a relative of the great Horne Tooke), afterwards puisnè judge, and who was described as the "honest barrister" by the admiring press. "If crushing," said the learned civilian, "is to be brought into operation, no doubt I shall be crushed. Let them crush me, and they will associate my name with the record of this meeting, which history will preserve to the latest period of time." The object of the movement was to bring under the royal notice the government of the colony, and to demand trial by jury, and a legislative assembly. The petition to the king was entrusted to the custody of Mr. Sams, who was proceeding to Great Britain. Whether it ever reached the throne was a matter of dispute: some said it had been committed to the deep, with much solemnity; others, that it had passed from the messenger to the hands of a merchant, who disregarded its fate. It obtained no reply.

The colony had just reason to complain at the time. The supreme court had been closed for many months: the business of the legislative council detained the judge and attorney-general from their proper functions, and for nearly two years no gaol delivery had occurred at Launceston. Two persons, father and son, charged with cattle-stealing, had been two years awaiting trial, when they were both acquitted. The evidence against them was of the slightest description; yet during their detention domestic calamities of all kinds had overtaken them.

The delay was still further extended by the issue of a new charter, and with the usual incaution of the secretary of state. This charter arrived 1831: it nominated Mr. Pedder chief justice, and Alexander Macduff Baxter, puisnè judge. It made no provision for continuing process begun in the late court, and required colonial legislation to cure the defects of its details.

Mr. Baxter, the puisnè judge elect, had been attorney-general of New South Wales. His relations with Darling had not been cordial, and he was disgraced in the eyes of the public by domestic differences: his wife was insane, and he himself was intemperate. Just before he left Sydney for Van Diemen's Land, he was bound over to keep the peace, and was declared insolvent. On his arrival, the royal warrant for his induction had not reached the colony, and after some delay he returned to New South Wales, and thence to Great Britain, where he died. Mr. Baxter ascribed his ruin to his grant from the crown: he employedpersons to look after his estate, and they conducted him to beggary.[185]

The lieutenant-governor resolved, if possible, to exclude Baxter from an office which he could only dishonor, and passed an act, pronounced by the lawyers a piece of "doubtful and dangerous" legislation, by which the clause of the charter requiring two judges was expunged, thus constituting the court of one. The act of parliament, however, authorised the measure: the council had power to repeal or annul a patent, until the pleasure of the crown were known. The act was approved, and remains among the laws. Occasions might occur, when the course of justice would be arrested in a small community by requiring many officers to constitute a court.[186]

The reformers were not disheartened by their failure: they assembled again the following year,[187]at the request of the Hornes, the Gellibrands, and the Gregsons. The effort was unavailing. In 1834, it was renewed with still more earnestness: the former parties, reinforced by many important accessions, maintained the popular cause. Repeated disappointments excited some bitterness, which was expressed in strong terms.[188]Mr. Thomas Horne reminded the home government that they would make "a dissatisfied and turbulent people, ready to use their power, and assert their rights, if necessary, by force of arms." He advised the oblivion of minute grievances, and said, "were the angel Gabriel to propose one measure, and Satan another, if he considered Satan's the most politic, he should have the honor of adopting it."[189]But neither importunity nor threatenings prevailed.

These efforts were renewed in the following year; but in1835 some of the chief advocates of a legislative assembly deprecated the penal institutions of the colony, and proposed that all convicts, on their arrival, should be set free: of this plan, Mr. R. L. Murray was a distinguished advocate.

A deputation from the meeting for free institutions, requested the intercession of the governor with the crown; but he replied, that if the grant of free institutions, and the discontinuance of penal coercion, were connected by one common advocacy, the interests of the colony, of the crown, and of philanthropy, would demand the most serious precaution. He maintained that all British rights were conceded, "excepting the elective franchise;" and quoted with more cleverness than dignity, their statements of colonial opulence, to show how little they had suffered by a former denial of their prayers.

Mr. Gellibrand, senior, was a person of intellectual tastes and lofty spirit. His early life had been spent among liberal politicians: he was a zealous advocate of freedom, but still more of knowledge and virtue.

Mr. Gellibrand, junior, was a lawyer of popular talents, whose practice as a barrister made office of little importance, and who, when discarded by Arthur, opposed him with incessant vigour. His eloquence was never exhausted, and his learning as a lawyer obtained him consideration in the court, which his boldness as a pleader often threw into jeopardy. Mr. Thomas Horne exhibited a fervour in the popular cause, worthy his kinsman. The rest were chiefly settlers, and patriots from resentment or conviction.

These meetings preserved the principles of constitutional freedom; and if they did not hasten its possession, reiterated its lessons and prepared for its enjoyment. Whatever temporary turmoil the meetings created, they were conservative of great interests, and deserve a grateful remembrance. These appeals to the British legislature were commonly accepted in silence: by the crown they were graciously received and forgotten. They had no perceptible influence on colonial policy, and only acquitted the settlers of indifference to rights, which can never be valued at too high a price.

The surplus revenue, accruing from year to year, suggested to the secretary of state the imposition of police, and gaol expenses on the colony. The non-official members of the council, except one, voted against the appropriation. They denied that the supposed advantages conferred by prisoner labor, justified a claim on the colonial funds for the supportof a great national object; and they added this remarkable passage:—"The influx of moral pollution has been perpetuated, and the colony doomed for ever to be the gaol of Great Britain, and destined never to rise to any rank among the British colonies."[190]A dim fore-shadowing of that universal sentiment to which the constant attempts to lessen the profits of prisoner labor gave rise. The revenue was largely dependent on the consumption of liquors, and upon habits which generate crime and impose expenses on the public. It received an appropriate destination: funds contributed chiefly by drunkards for the repression of criminals. Such was the apology for exactions enormous, when compared with the population; a view not easily impugned, except that in such cases the interest of the government ceases to be hostile to vices which increase its wealth.

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