The Express.
London, England, 1851-01-17 00:00:00

COLONIAL.
CEYLON.
(From our Correspond•rt. )
K ANOY,Dac 12.
_ _

The Legislative Council met on the 11 th'November
last, under the presidency of Mr. MCarthy, the
acting governor, Sir George Anderson's warrant not
having arrived. It arrived, however, on the 22nd
ultimo, being brought out by Captain Ifigginson, the
new Governor of Mauritius, who makes a short stay
here, en route to his government. Sir George met
his counc lon the 4th inst., for the first time. His
opening address, together with a financial statement
for the half-year, 1850, is given below. On the 2nd
he held a levee more numeroasly attended than any
that has been held in Ceylon since the time of Sir
Edward Barnes. It is generally underst:od that he
has received orders to reside frequently in Kandy, in-
stead of making Colombo always his residence. If
this place could be made the seat of government, it
would still be an improvement. Almost all the
Europeans reside here, on coffee estates. Almost
all the capital expended has been expended here.
This province is also the latest of our native posses-
aims. These reasons combined, added to the coolness
and salubrity of the climate, point it out as the most
eligible, in fact the only proper seat of government.
Tin heavy rains have ceased, and we have now
fine bracing weather and strong breezes. Coffee
picking is in full operation. The out-turn of the
crop this year will be, if anything, under the quan-
tity mentioned in my last. It is, however, of a fine
quality. In c onsequence of murrain umong the cattle,
carriage is very expensive between this place and
Cdombo, so much so that planters seriously contem-
plate delaying to send their coffee crops down for
shipment. Coolies are plentiful and labour cheap.
Sir George Anderson es address to the Legislative
Council was rather in a Queen's Speech style, but it
showed firmness and temper, and has made a good
imprt colon. lie said:
He felt sure all the .tt at' of his council would be directed
to the attainment of he best interests of the a ilony. He
was aware he succeeded to time. of trouble, but thole were
not now to be th.iught o'. They had now the duty of
attending to the interests of all, without distinction of party
or interest. His was happy to find the revenue and expen-
diture in a favourable rate and thus he would not have
that difficulty in the o,lllia rate,
Lis government. He had
'.every prosprct of a prosperous revenue, and should, he
hoped, at no distsnt period, be able to propose to
lessen the burdens of the people by diminished taxation
—die imperative duty of all governments. Ile rejoiced
lin the trafiquillity prevailing in the island. He assumed.
the government under the meet favourable circumstances
Ile felt assured of receiving the assistance of the council and
the cooperation of the rfficcrs of government; and then he
could not fail is accomplishing all he so earnestly and truly
desired.
This is rather different from the addresses of the
late governor. He increased taxation and caused
discontent. This proposes to reduce it and ensiarre
tranquillity. One, by his manner, shows he holds to
the Downing-street theory—tax to the utmost; the
other says, "dimini-hed taxation, the imperative duty
of all governments." We look to Sir George Ander-
son also to increase our non-official members of council,
and, if possible, to mak, them elective.
The half-yearly inspections of troops have been
made by the General (Smelt) in Colombo, and he is
now in Kandy for that purpose. There is one opinion
only upon one solitary te ntenoe of the late governor.
He said, writing to Mr. Wodehouse, " Get rid of the
general," and every ore echoes the !eying.
Jung Balladeer, the Nepaulese ambassador, is here,
on his way home : he came Lowe some temples parti-
cularly holy. He has been feted by Sir Anthony
Oliphant, Chief' Justice, one of the best men in this
country. Lord Grosvenor, the Hon. LeVeboll Gower,
and Captain Egerton are here (arrived by last mail)
on a shooting excursion. May they have gond sport,
and destroy hundreds of elephant., the moat destruc-
tive brutes imaginable. The Kandyane who were
o
transported for the disturban
44
ces in 1848, and had
icnonsotemstpolrattea the
time. lose
( of)ut hoffe
is been pardoned, have also arrived. It is dreadful to
uMaaniasepeaortead iu ngDem them
m.
m
ber, 1848, 21 have -died, 13 returned, 1 gone to China,
and 6 unpardoned. 24 deaths out of 44! in one year
three-fifths dead ! Surely same other place ought to
be chosen as a penal settlement.
An ordinance has been introduced to give district
courts jurisdiction in cattle stealing cases, and to
take away the right of trial by jury in those cases.
Great opposition will doub less be made to it in its
various stages, and unless much altered it will doubt-
less be defeated.

Our obituary contains the name of Captain Bing.
ham, R.A., who died from an injury while riding.
He was universally respected.

AUSTRALIAN COLONIES.
NEW SOUTH WALES.

Sydney journals to the 10:h October are taken up
with discussions respecting the transportation system.
In the language of the Sydney Morning Herald,
Sept. 20, it is " the common question for the Austra-
lian colonies." The people of New South Wales are
sensibly awake to the importance of the emergency,
and are determined that, if the Legislative Council
shall decide for the renewal of transportation, it must
be in most flagrant contempt of public opinion. More
meetings had been held in Sydney and the interior.
for the purpose of enlightening their legisleo:s upon
this point, which have also instructed them that their
proper duty on the occasion was not to legislate, but
to act as the moutl.-piece of the colony ; that they
were not to decide whether transportation was in
their opinion good or bad for the colony, but to collect
the opinion of their constituents, and to transmit that
opinion home,
On the night of August 220, as Sir Charles Fitz-
roy was alighting from his carriage at the theatre, a
stone was burled with considerable violence at him,
struck the bayonet of one of the guards, and split the
blade. The military being present happily prevented
any serious disturbance. It is impossible to conceal
the fact that Governor Fitzroy is very unpopular.
The sessions of the Legislative Council were ad-
journed on October 2. During its sittings the prin-
cipal acts passed were those for establishing and
endowing a university for hydn,y, for improving the
organisation of the police, for regulating the corpora-
tion of Sydney, and for confirming certain presby-
terian marriages. The result of the transportation
debate was the adoption of measure, with the view of
pledging the Secretary of State that convictism should
net be resumed. The report of the debate extends
over no less than 87 column;, and contains a full de-
claration of the sentiments of the colonists on this
momentous subject.
There are within the limits of the city of Sydney,
288 houses with rents at .51. per annum; 1,493 houses
let at above 51. and under 101.; 1,757 houses, let at
from 101. to 201.; and 4,204 at 201. per annum. The
present franchise gives votes to lees than one-third of
the adult male population of the city.

VICTORIA.
Melbourne journals to the beginning of October,
like those of the adjacent colonies, indicate a firm re-
solve on the part of the inhabitants to put an end to
the transportation system. It appears at length
generally felt that it will avail the other Australian
colonies but little to close their territory against
direct transportation, so long as the evil reaches them
indirectly through Van Dmmen's Land. Oa this
point the Meth() urns Argue eaborta " Let us knit
ourselves together for a common effort ; let the Anti-
Convict League be conducted with but one tithe of
the energy and intelligence which led the Anti-Corn-
law League to such splendid triumphs, and teller
times are still in store. The battle is an easy one, if
the recruits are but sincere, resolute, watchful, and
untiring." From all these demonstrations of public
feeling, it is evident the inhabitants of Australasia
are resolved not to submit any longer to be inundated
with convict importations ; and they look signifi-
cantly to one advantage which America derived from
her independence, namely, that it saved her from
the obligation of receiving every year an importation
of the refuse population of Great Britain.
The squatters of the colony had been completely
startled by a recent land purchase. For the first time
since the passing of the Crown Land Sales Act the
power thereby given of purchasing by private con-
tract 20,000 sores or more at the minimum price had
been brought into play by W. J. T. Clarke, Es q., who
bought np a tract of 28,000 acres of land at Mount
Macedon, including the principal stations of several
eminent squatters, utterly destroying the tenure of
these parties, who must either purchase or abandon
their stations. The squatters are resolved to litigate
the matter, conceiving that the imperial set (5 and 8
Viet., c. 36) only empowers the governor to sell any
block of "nnsurveyed land" cor-sprialng 20,000 acres
or more, and that the land la dispute does not coma
within that definition.