# Narrative of a Visit to the Australian Colonies/Chapter 5

CHAPTER V.
We remained in Hobart Town a month; in the course of which, in compliance with a request from the Lieutenant Governor, we presented him with a report on the state of the Penal Settlement at Macquarie Harbour; the substance of which is contained in the preceding remarks.
Our meetings for worship, during this period, were often attended by pious persons in an inquiring state of mind, to whom we were enabled to impart religious counsel. We had also discussions with some of them on the principles of the Society of Friends, which we endeavoured to show were those of the Gospel practically carried out.
When taking a meal with pious persons, I was frequently requested to give thanks. This being intended as a mark of Christian courtesy to a stranger minister, I received it as such; but we found it necessary to explain, that it was our practice on such occasions, to endeavour to feel thankful, but not to give expression to their feeling on behalf of ourselves and others, unless under such a sense of divine influence as warranted the belief that it was done in spirit and in truth. ​Though, in the course of our travels, we were sometimes present when thanksgiving was uttered in a formal way, which left upon the mind, the impression, that God was drawn nigh unto with the lip, while the heart was far from him; yet we were often sensible of a measure of the influence of the Holy Spirit, when thanksgiving was devoutly uttered by those who were in the constant practice of using expression on such occasions. Nevertheless, when we were present, where the attention of the company was individually turned to the Lord, in a short period of silence, in order to feel thankful, and to acknowledge this feeling in the secret of the heart, we were sensible of a greater measure of divine influence, which comforted our minds, under the belief that the Father of mercies condescended more decidedly, to mark this homage with approbation.
One of the pensioners who came to this land by the Science, died in the Hospital about this time. He came under powerful convictions for sin, on the passage hither, and appeared to rind a measure of peace through faith in Christ, and to be seeking help from God, in a humble frame of mind. At that time he abstained from drunkenness, but he could not be persuaded to give up taking his ration of spirits, alleging that the water was bad, and required qualifying. He had formerly been affected with dropsy, and having kept alive an appetite for intoxicating drink, his old shipmates succeeded, after he landed, in prevailing upon him to drink largely. This soon produced a recurrence of the disease, and again brought darkness over his mind, and in his last days, nothing could be learned to afford any ground of hope in his death.
Meeting with a young man who had thoughts of entering the artillery, I endeavoured to dissuade him. Nothing seems to me more clear, than that if we 'do to others as we would that they should do to us,' we cannot fight; and that if we love our neighbour as ourselves, we cannot make war upon him. That if the keeping of the commandments of Jesus be a proof of our love to him, it is impossible to make war, and love him; for this evil is as much opposed to his commandment, 'If thine enemy hunger, feed him, and if he thirst, give him drink,' as darkness is to light. It seems a vain attempt ​to elude the force of this injunction, by saying it applies to persons, and not to nations. Is not this making the commandment of none effect by the tradition of men?
8th mo. 15th. We crossed the Derwent to Kangaroo Point—a distance of about three miles—in an open boat; and travelled along a cart track through the Bush, to the house of a Government Surveyor on Clarence Plains, whose wife was our fellow-passenger from England. Here we were received with that hospitality for which the settlers in this country are justly celebrated, and of which we largely partook during our journeying among them. There are several houses in this direction; but as is generally the case in this country, most of the land is unenclosed, grassy forest. The few fields which are near the houses are fenced with posts and rails.
16th. We visited one of the Government Schools, many of which are established in different parts of the Island. They are generally imperfectly organized on the plan of the English National Schools, which is far from working well with the small and irregular attendance general in this country. This originates in the lack of interest, induced by the schools being free, the want of a proper value for education on the part of parents, the unsettled and undisciplined habits which prevail extensively, and from the circumstances in which the settlers in a newly-occupied country are generally placed. Many of the people in this district were formerly resident on Norfolk Island; from whence they were removed by the Government: they have had too little education themselves to be able to estimate its value for their children.
17th. We visited a chain-gang stationed at Kangaroo Point, consisting of twenty-nine men, employed in making roads, &c. While speaking to the men as they sat on the ground at the dinner hour, a Scorpion came out of a log upon their fire, and attempted in vain to escape from the heat; it became affected with convulsive movements, by which its tail struck its back. Probably something of this kind may have given rise to the notion, that a scorpion commits suicide by stinging itself when surrounded by fire. Scorpions are common in this country among decayed timber; they are of small size, and their sting is not much worse than that of a wasp. A green, ​venomous Centipede, about three inches long, is found in similar situations, and among stones. Its bite is considered worse than the sting of the scorpion, producing gangrenous inflammation; but from the habits of these animals, which sting only in self-defence, and seek retirement, accidents rarely happen by them.
18th. Having received an invitation from a settler named Robert Mather, to pay him a visit at Lauderdale, on Muddy Plains, we made our way to his house, crossing a salt marsh on the side of which were large bushes of Shrubby Samphire. R. Mather sent notice to his neighbours, of our wish to have a meeting with them, and walked with us to the house of an industrious, sober couple, who, while prospering in temporal things, did not forget the importance of those that are spiritual. A well-worn bible was lying on their table, and the woman told us, that as she became unable to do needle-work by candle-light, she spent much of her evenings in reading this precious book to her family. Her husband was a marine, and is a pensioner. He was formerly addicted to the use of spirits, till, like many others in this country, he would bring rum home in a bucket, and drink it neat out of a pint tin. This, his wife would not allow, and he had the good sense to submit to her better government, by which he has become greatly raised in circumstances and in comfort. They have a neat, clean brick house, two tidy children, and a thriving garden, clear of weeds.—The hills on the peninsula of Muddy Plains abound with Blue Gum, Peppermint, and She-Oak: some of these trees as well as another kind called He-Oak, are also plentiful on the lower grounds.
19th. We had a meeting on R. Mather's premises, with about twenty-five persons, some of whom were prisoners, in which the people were warned against habitual sins. Drunkenness and swearing were particularly adverted to, as openly dishonouring God and serving the devil.
20th. Accompanied by R. Mather, we called on several of the settlers, many of whom are of the poorer class, to whom we spoke on the importance of attending to their spiritual concerns, and gave some tracts, for which they appeared grateful. We dined with a respectable family living ​in a hut of the humblest structure, who increased their means of support, by converting into lime, such shells as have accumulated in great abundance on the shore of Ralphs Bay. At this place we met with William Gellibrand—a settler residing on a peninsula in the Derwent called South Arm,—and accepting an invitation to visit his establishment, proceeded thither in a lime boat. W. Gellibrand's house is situated near the northern extremity of the peninsula: it commands a view of Ralphs Bay and the Derwent, backed by the woody hills on the shore, with Hobart Town at the distance of 9 miles. This part of South Arm is a little elevated. Basaltic and grit rocks project on its steep sides; on which Gulls and Shags roost in great numbers. Peach and almond trees are coming into blossom in the well-stocked garden. The native grass of the country is thin; but the land in tillage yields a fair return. The intelligent proprietor pays more attention than most persons, to the comfort and morals of his assigned servants. This attaches them to him, and raises a tone of feeling in their minds congenial to their reformation. On conversing with one of these men, who has had an unusual measure of privilege during the time he has been a prisoner, respecting the comparative difficulties he might expect on becoming free, his sentence expiring in a few days; he remarked, "But, Sir, Liberty is sweet!"
21st. We returned to the main land, and dined with an interesting family of Independents. Here we first partook of Kangaroo, the taste of which is somewhat intermediate between that of beef and mutton: it is usually served up with bacon in a kind of hash called "a steamer."
22nd. Accompanied by a son of R. Mather, we visited the settlers around the Pipeclay Lagoon, which opens into the sea, and on the shores of which were lying the remains of some Box and Cow-fishes. These are about four inches long, and are encased in coats of mail; having apertures for their mouths, eyes, fins and tails. One of the people on whom we called is said to be an illicit dealer in spirits, or what is called in the Colony, the keeper of a "Sly-grog-shop." These are a description of persons that are a great nuisance, but it is difficult to obtain evidence against them, and ​they are rather numerous in the Australian Colonies, especially in remote places.
23rd. Proceeding across a salt marsh to the shores of Frederick Henry Bay, we saw the Princess Royal—a vessel with female emigrants from England—driving from her anchors, in a violent storm of wind and snow. She was perceived also by some persons on the opposite side of the bay, who lighted a fire as a signal, on a point, behind which was a mud bed; on this, the ship went safely on shore in the night, the helmsman attending to an instruction received from the land, in a welcome English tongue, when those on board knew not on what coast they were driving. We took refuge from the snow storm in the house of a settler from Uxbridge, by whom we were hospitably entertained; and afterward proceeded to Glen Ayr, the residence of William de Gillern, which we made out when almost dark, by following the barking of a dog, and where we felt the value of a kind welcome, after a walk of 15 miles in snow, wet and mire.
24th. The snow was about three inches thick in the morning; but defending ourselves against the frequent showers, we went to Richmond, to arrange for holding a meeting. The court-house was readily granted for the purpose by William T. Parramore, the Police Magistrate; who also ordered a constable to invite the inhabitants. The court-house at this time was used as a place of worship by the Episcopalians and Wesleyans. The town of Richmond consisted of the court-house, a jail, a windmill, and about 30 dwelling-houses, three of which were inns. It is prettily situated, at the extremity of an inlet called the Sweet Water.
In the evening we returned to Glen Ayr. The snow among trees in full foliage, presented a novel appearance to an Englishman.—All the trees and shrubs of this country are evergreens; and with the exception of the little patches of land that have been cleared by settlers, may be said to cover the whole country. The thermometer at Richmond was at 27° several times this winter.
25th. We returned to Richmond, and called upon John H. Butcher, a magistrate, residing in an unfinished stone ​house near the town; who, when he came to this country, brought a variety of fruit trees, packed and stowed at the bottom of the ship's hold. The Ribstone Pippin, French Crab, Golden Harvey, and a few other sorts of choice apples, survived the voyage, and have stocked the gardens of the Colony, in which fruits of this kind are produced in greater abundance and perfection than in England. People in this country often occupy houses as soon as they are built, and finish them as they have opportunity. In the earlier days of the colony J. H. Butcher, as well as many others, was robbed of much of what was available in his house, by Bush-rangers; but these marauders have been so reduced, that the inhabitants now live in such security, as often to be without fastenings to their doors and windows.
26th. We had a religious interview with the prisoners in the jail, and a meeting with the inhabitants in the court-house. In the latter, it did not seem to be my place to express much; nevertheless I was well satisfied in having appointed the meeting; believing that if people were directed to wait more singly upon the Lord, they would not omit assembling for worship because no minister was present, as some did to-day, when their minister was prevented from arriving by the stormy weather. It is a hurtful thing to lean upon man, in that which is a duty to God, and which ought to be performed in spirit and in truth.
27th. Accompanied by J. H. Butcher, we visited some of the settlers upon the Coal River. The district which bears this name is remarkably rich and fertile: it consists chiefly of extensive grassy levels, and gentle undulations, thinly timbered, and bounded by more thickly wooded hills, of various height and form. In this district there is a striking variety in the settlers. One of them is an intelligent man from one of the West India islands, who is improving a beautiful park-like estate, on which he has put up about 17 miles of post and rail fence, at the rate of £70 per mile, by free, and £60 by convict labour. Another was a prisoner, in the earlier days of the Colony: he became free and obtained a location of land, but retained such a love for strong drink as was incompatible with ​advancement in the scale of society. Few of this class have retained their possessions; and the greater strictness in the penal discipline of latter years, combined with the new regulations, which put a stop to the granting of land, and only allow it to become the property of settlers by purchase, now precludes such men from becoming proprietors. The day was bright and pleasant. Numbers of little green Parrots were extracting honey from the flowers of the Black-butted Gumtree; and Anguillaria dioica, a little, purple-spotted, white-blossomed, bulbous plant, was decorating a sunny bank, as one of the first harbingers of spring.
28th. We have lodged a few nights at the Lenox Arms, a good inn, but with higher charges than in England. This evening we returned to Glen Ayr, after attending a meeting for the formation of a Temperance Society, and visiting some caves, in a range of hills near Richmond, called the Oven Hills. Formerly they were the resort of a horde of bush-rangers, the name of the chief of whom was Michael Howe. These hills are of silicious sandstone, and are clothed chiefly with thin grass, and Gum and She Oak trees.
29th. We visited Orielton, a fine estate, on which a considerable quantity of land has been brought into cultivation. Our guide thither was a prisoner constable, from Birmingham. On remarking to him, that we met with many prisoners from that place, he replied, that many of them were persons who had formed bad habits, beginning with drinking; and that they were often drawn into this practice by having their wages paid at public-houses, or by the wages of several being paid to one man, which occasioned them to resort to public-houses for change, in order to divide the sum. From Orielton we went to Sorell Town, and became the guests of James Norman, one of the Colonial Chaplains, with whom we became acquainted in Hobart Town.
30th. Sorell Town, often called Pitt Water, from being situated on a little gulf of that name, has a neat Episcopal place of worship, a parsonage, a Government School-house, and a watch-house of stone, as well as about 50 houses and cottages, most of which are of wood. There is likewise ​near the town, a bird-cage windmill,—a lively object, and rare in this country. The land in the vicinity is considered the richest in the Colony; some of it is said to have produced sixteen crops of wheat in succession, many of them self-sown: but this careless sort of agriculture, has in some places allowed Perennial Cress, an imported plant that has become a troublesome weed, to take almost exclusive possession of the land.—An estate of 400 acres is now on sale. The price asked is £2,000—a large sum for this country. A meeting was held for the formation of a Temperance Society: it was the first for a philanthropic purpose ever held in the place.
31st. We visited the lower settlement on Pitt Water, and dined with James Gordon, a native of Middleton Tyas, Yorkshire, who was acquainted with some of the older branches of my family, and was one of the first persons who welcomed me to this land, where a knowledge of family connexions, is a source of great interest, often producing pleasant recollections. At his house we found several of the females landed from the Princess Royal, and formed an acquaintance with Charles Price, an Independent Minister, who came out as superintendent of the female emigrants, and had much trouble with some disorderly individuals, who were injudiciously put on board, to the destruction of the comfort of all the others. In the evening we had a meeting with a small company in the Government School-house at Sorell Town.
9th mo. 1st. Accompanied by J. H. Butcher, who again joined us at Sorell Town, we visited a number of the settlers to the north of that place, to invite them to a meeting. Some of these were born on Norfolk Island and others in this Colony; and, as is the case in numerous instances, these are less intemperate than many originally from Europe.—The view from behind Sorell Town is striking and beautiful. Undulating, cultivated ground, divided into fields by post and rail fences, and ornamented by the scattered dwellings of settlers, stretches in various directions among the woody hills, except to the south, where the lively-looking little town stands on the shore of Pitt Water, in ​which are several small islands. On its further side is a long and narrow woody point of land, over which are seen the sea in Frederick Henry Bay, the hills of Tasmans Peninsula and Muddy Plains, and more remotely, those of Bruny Island. In the distance, surmounting the lower hills to the west, Mount Wellington, the top of which is still covered with snow, bounds the interesting picture. The weather has become as fine as that of 5th month, in England. Many little flowers begin to enamel the ground, one of which is too much like an English daisy not to excite the pleasing recollections associated with that little flower. Others, by their form and colour, bespeak the antipodes of England: and "strange bright birds" of the parrot tribe, as they exhibit in the sun their brilliant plumage of crimson, yellow, blue, and green, remind the British spectator, that he is in a foreign land; his ears are also assailed by the strange sound of their screaming voices, and by the unceasing noise of frogs and crickets, the former of which often rival that of a spinning mill.
By the day of the week, it is a year since we sailed from London. The time seems to have gone rapidly, though we have passed through a great variety of scenes. On the 5th, it will be a year since we saw the face of a member of our own Society, to which we do not feel the less attached on that account. The remembrance of the last meeting we were at, with our fellow professors, is still fresh in our recollection. The Comforter, who powerfully affected our minds at that time, is still, through the mercy of God in Christ Jesus, present with us, to bless and to keep us; so that from season to season we can acknowledge that the Lord hath dealt bountifully with us.
On the 2nd we had a meeting with about 70 persons, in the school-house at Sorell Town, and on the 3rd, after a rough passage over the Bluff Ferry, and a walk of nine miles through the bush, we re-crossed the Derwent, in a large boat, from Kangaroo Point, to Hobart Town, where we were cheered by letters from our friends in England.