the technical forms of law; but on the rights of British subjects, which ought in no case whatever to be invaded. They humbly petition for no more than a sacred observance of national contracts, containing express stipulations, easily understood, and ratified by solemn acts of the supreme legislature. : Under anxious apprehensions, not more sensibly felt on their account, than for the good faith, the public credit, and the honour of the nation and impressed with a sense of the duty they owe not only to themselves, but to the community at large, your petitioners humbly intreat this honourable house to take the premises into their most serious consideration; and they pray, that no alteration in their security for the better or the worse, may take place without their consent; and that the said bill may not pass into a law. Half a pod of cotton being found on the islands, supposed to be brought there by a bird, and a cocoa nut, which was perfectly sound, and appeared to have been but a short time in the water, being thrown upon the beach, have given some reason to suppose that both these articles will be found in some island at no great distance. Lord Howe Island has been examined, but no fresh water, or good anchorage, being found, it can be of no other advantage to this settlement, than occasionally supplying a few turtle. I had the honour of informing your lordship, that a settlement was intended to be made at a place I named Rose Hill. At the head of this harbour there is a creek, which at half-flood has water for large boats to go three miles up; and one mile higher the water is fresh, and the soil good. A very industrious man, whom I brought from England, is employed there at present, and has under his direction one hundred convicts, who are employed in clearing and cultivating the ground. A barn, granary, and other necessary buildings, are erected, and twenty-seven acres in corn promise a good crop. The soil is good, and the country, for twenty miles to the westward, which is as far as I have examined, lays well for cultivation; but even there, the labour of clearing the ground is very great; and I have seen none that can be cultivated without cutting down the timber, except some few particular spots, which, from their situation (laying at a distance from either of the harbours), can be of no advantage to us at present; and I presume the meadows mentioned in Captain Cook's voyage, were seen from the high grounds about Botany Bay, and from whence they appear well to the eye, but when examined, are found to be marshes, the draining of which would be a work of time, and not to be attempted by the first settlers. The captain's guard, which until lately did duty at Rose Hill, is now reduced to a lieutenant and twelve privates, and intended mere ly as a guard to the store which contains the provisions, and which is in the redoubt, for I am now sensible there is nothing to be ap prehended from the natives; and the little attention which had been desired of the officers, more than what was immediately garrison duty, when at Rose Hill, is now no longer required. At Sydney Cove, all the officers are in good huts, and the men in barracks; and although many unforeseen difficulties have been met with, I believe there is not an individual, from the governor to the private soldier, whose situation is not more eligible at this time than he had any reason to expect it could be in the course of the three years station. And it is the same with the convicts; and those who have been any ways industrious, have vegetables in plenty. The buildings now carrying on are of brick and stone. The house intended for myself was to consist of only three rooms, but having a good foundation, has been enlarged, contains six rooms, and is so well built, that I presume it will stand for a great number of years. The stores have been lately over-run with rats, and they are equally numerous in the gardens, where they do considerable damage; and as the loss in the stores could only be known by removing all the provisions, that was ordered to be done, and many casks of flour and rice were found to be damaged or totally destroyed. The loss in those two articles by the rats, since land, ing, has been more than twelve. thousand weight. Vegetables and provisions having been frequently stolen in the night from convicts and others, twelve convicts were chosen as a night watch; and they have actual. ly answered the end proposed, no robbery having been committed for several months, and the convicts in general have lately behaved bet ter than I ever expected. Only two convicts have suffered death in the last year. Four were exe cuted the first year. As near two years have now passed since we first landed in this country, some judgment may be formed of the climate, and I believe a finer or more healthy cli mate is not to be found in any part of the world. Of one thousand and thirty people who were landed, many of whom were worn out by old age, the scurvy, and various disorders only seventy-two have died in one-and-twenty months; and by the surgeon's returns, it appears that twenty six of those died from disorders of long standing, and which it is more than probable would have carried them off much sooner in England. Fifty-nine children have been born in the above time. In December the corn at Rose Hill was got in: the corn was exceeding good; about two hundred bushels of wheat, and sixty of bar ley, with a small quantity of flax, Indian corn, and oats, all which is preserved F2 preserved for seed. Here I beg leave to observe to your lordship, that if settlers are sent out, and the convicts divided amongst them, this settlement will very shortly maintain itself; but without which, this country cannot be cultivated to any advantage. At present I have only one person (who has about an hundred convicts under his direction) who is employed in cultivating the ground for the public benefit, and he has returned the quantity of corn above mentioned into the public store; the officers have not raised sufficient to support the little stock they have. Some ground I have had in cultivation will return about 40 bushels of wheat into store; so that the produce of the labour of the convicts employed in cultivation has been very short of what might have been expected, and which I take the liberty of pointing out to your lordship in this place, to shew, as fully as possible, the state of this colony, and the necessity of the convicts being employed by those who have an interest in their labour. The giving convicts to the officers has been hitherto necessary, but it is attended with many inconveniences, for which the advantages, arising to the officers do not make amends. It will not, therefore, be continued after this detachment is relieved, unless particularly directed. The numbers employed in cultivation will of course be increased, as the necessary buidings are finished, but which will be a work of time; for the numbers in this settlement who do nothing towards their own support, exceed those employed for the public. In November, the Supply sail ed for Norfolk Island with some convicts, and returned after being absent six weeks.-All the people in that island were well, and their crops, after all they had suffered from rats, birds, and a worm which had done them considerable damage, so good, that they had grain sufficient for six months bread for every one upon the island, reserving sufficient for their next year's crops. Early in January, 1790, the Supply again sailed for Norfolk Island, with more convicts; and in her passage left a small party on Lord Howe Island, to turn turtle ; but in fifteen days only three were taken; so that no great advantages will accrue at present from thence. The island has fresh water, but no good anchoring ground. Since the deaths mentioned in a former part of this letter, one woman has suffered for a robbery, five children have died, and twenty-eight children have been born; making in all seventy-seven deaths, and eighty-seven births. against the easterly winds, which frequently blow very hard in the winter, and which has been farther proved by captain Hunter, and the first lieutenant of the Sirius, when there to survey the bay. After having been several times with the boats to Broken Bay, in order to examine the different branches in that harbour, a river was found; but the want of provisions obliged us to return without being able to trace it to its source, which has since been done; and in the sixteen days we were then out, all those branches which had any depth of water were traced as far as the boats could proceed. trace them with our boats. On these rivers we saw great numbers of wild ducks, and some black swans; and on the banks of the Hawkesbury, several decoys made by the natives to catch the quail. Richmond Hill (near the foot of which a fall of water prevented our proceeding farther with the boats) is the southern extremity of a range of hills, which, running to the northward, most probably join the mountains which lay nearly parallel to the coast, from fifty to sixty miles inland. The soil of Richmond Hill is good, and it lies well for cultivation. Our prospect from the hill was very extensive to The breadth of this river (named the southward and eastward; the the Hawkesbury) is from 300 to country appearing, from the height 800 feet; and it appears, from the at which we were, to be a level soundings we had, to be navigable covered with timber: there is a for the largest merchant ships to flat of six or seven miles between the foot of Richmond Hill; but Richmond Hill and a break in the as the water near the head of the mountains, which separates Lans. river sometimes rises, after very down and Carmarthen Hills; and heavy rains, thirty feet above its in this flat, I suppose, the Hawkes1 common level, it would not be bury continues its course, but which safe for ships to go so far up; but could not be seen for the timber, fifteen or twenty miles below that, with very few exceptions, Richmond Hill, they would lay in covers the country wherever the fresh water, and perfectly safe. I soil is good. speak of Richmond Hill as being the head of the river, it there growing very shallow, and dividing into two branches. The high rocky country which forms Broken Bay is lost as you proceed up the Hawkesbury, and the banks of the river are there covered with timber, the soil a rich light mould; and judging from the little we saw of the country, I should suppose it good land to a very considerable extent; the other branches of fresh water are shoal, but probably run many miles farther into the country than we could The great advantages of so noble a river, when a settlement can be made on its banks, will be obvious to your lordship. The settlement made at Port Jackson, near the head of the harbour (Rose Hill) very fully answers my expectations; the soil is ex. ceeding good, lies well for cultivation, and is well watered. Six miles to the southward, there is a small fresh water river, and 20 miles to the westward, there is a more considerable river, the source of which I suppose to be at the foot of the mountains. The banks of of this river, which most probably empties itself into the Hawkesbury, are high; the soil a good light mould, and covered with trees; the wood of some of these trees is very light; they are about the size of large walnut trees, which they resemble; they shed their leaves, and bear a small fruit, which is said to be very wholesome. This river likewise frequently rises thirty feet above its common level; it is, as far as I have seen it, from 300 to 400 feet in breadth. I named it the Nepean, and its source will be traced in the course of the winter; and from its banks I hope to reach the mountains, which has been attempted by a party who crossed the river, but after the first day's journey, they met with such a constant succession of deep ravines, the sides of which were frequently inaccessible, that they returned, not having been able to proceed above fifteen miles in five days; when they turned back, they supposed themselves to be 12 miles from the foot of the mountains. As the land for several miles to the southward, and twenty miles to the westward of Rose Hill, that is, to the banks of the Nepean, is as fine land for tillage as most in England (some few particular spots excepted, the soil of which is poor, but bears a very small proportion to the good land), I propose that tract of land for those settlers which may be sent out; and though they will be placed at some distance from each other, for the conveniency of water, (from one to three or four miles) they will have nothing to appre hend from the natives, who avoid those parts we most frequent, and always retire at the sight of two or three people who are armed. As the labour of clearing the ground of timber will be great, I think each settler should not have less than twenty men on his farm, which I suppose to be from five hundred to one thousand acres : it will be necessary to give that number of convicts to those settlers who come out, and to support them for two years from the public stores; in that time, if they are any ways industrious, they will be in a situation to support themselves, and I do not think they would be able to do it in less time. At the expiration of the two years, they may return half the convicts they have been allowed, and would want no farther assistance from government. It may be necessary to grant lands to officers and soldiers, who becoming settlers, will of course be entitled to every indulgence; but few of the officers now here, have reaped any great advantage from being allowed convicts; and it is attended with unavoidable inconveniences, from those convicts being left so much to themselves, and from their mixing with the soldiers. It may be found more to the advantage of the crown and the officer likewise, if officers on duty in this settlement were allowed a certain quantity of grain to support their live stock, until they have a market to go to, and I make no doubt, but that in the third year from the time settlers arrive, there will be a market well supplied with grain, poultry, hogs, and goats, of all which there has been a great increase, but killed, from wanting corn to support them; and the natives so frequently setting fire to the country, which they do to catch the opossum, flying squirrel, and other animals, has prevent ed |