The Northern Daily Times.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1857-03-18 00:00:00

NEW 'SOUTH WALES

It being the week of the Christmas holidays
when the Dunbar left, public business was at a
stand still. The Colonial Parliament had not been
sitting for some days, nor would they meet until
the beginning of January.
Great anxiety was manifested by the settlers to
hear what determination the parliament will arrive
at with respect to the land question. The railway
business excepted; the settlers have taken little or
no interest in anything the parliament has done,
and they are Very anxious to hear the say of their
pet members, whom they advocated with such
enthusiasm at the election, on the subject.
Some additional particulars, with reference to
the North Australian expedition, are published
in the Sydney papers. Throughout the whole
journey no impediments of at all a serious nature
appear to have been met with. The party were
visited with very little sickness, and nat little of
a trifling character. No risks were encountered
on dccount cf the natives, who in general evinced
very little hostility. The tribes in the interior
were found to be much smaller in stature than
those inhabiting the coast, eroni which it may be
confidently inferred that food is less abundant in
the former than in the latter locality. The Victoria
was found to be a copious stream, second only to
the Murray in respect of volume, and as, unlike
all other known Australian rivers, it has no bar at
its month, it may even he considered superior to the
Murray for trading purposes. The Victoria is of
no great length, extending as far as can be made
out some three degrees into the interior ; but as
its coarse is extremely winding, it waters a large
tract of country The territory through which it
flows was found to be fertile, and the climate, so
far as the experience of the members of the expe-
dition could decide the point, was considered to
be healthy, Ole heat having been found by no.
means oppressive. Here then are to be found the
elements of a prosperous settlement,—a river
accessible to ships of large tonnage, a fertile soil,
and a salubrious climate; and with all the,te ad-
,juncts to successful colonisation it is not likely
that the Victoria will remain long unoccupied
either by a free or convict population On its
banks will perhaps be found the future cotton
fields of Britain. In the journey from the Victoria
to the Albert two horses died, either from snake
bites of from eating poisonous plants, and
this appears to hare been the most
serious casualty which befel the expedition.
The course followed from the Albert was by the
Burdekin, the Peak range, and the heads of the
eastern rivers, which appears to have been a closer
adherence to Leichhardt's line than was desirable;
but Of course the information which transpires is
very imperfect, and a judgment ought not to be
forrtied until the official details of the expedition
are before the public. The objects contemplated
by the journey have no doubt been successfully
attained. Considerable additions have been made
to Australian geography, as also to the natural
history and mineralogy of the continent, as will,
no doubt, in due course appear. • The exploration
of the Victoria river is in itself a service of great
importance and value; and Sturt's desert, although
its exact limits have not been ascertained, has,
nevertheless; been proved by this expedition to be
of large extent. The success which Mr. Gregory
has met with, ought to stimulate the Government
to undertake further explorations, the field for
which can as yet be considered as only just
opened.
The accounts from the New South Wales gold
mines is very satisfactory. New diggings have
been discovered near Braidwood ; taken as a whole,
the average earnings of miners was about 30s per
day.
A Moreton Bay correspondent, writing to a
Sydney correspondent, oa the " Seperation
scheme," says :
In reference to this subject, I observe that a member of
the Victorian Legislative Council, Mr. Hood, had given
notice of his intention to move a series of resolutions,
to the effect that the thirtieth parallel should form
the southern boundary of the new colony, as proposed.
A ground of interference is made out on the score that
in the event of the general confederation of the Austra-
lian colonies, it is not advisable that any of them should
possess a disproportionate extent of territory. Our best
hope is that the measure will be consummated before all
the conflicting advices that have been proffered .regarding
it reach the Colonial Office, for undoubtedly the natural
effect of all these conflicting representations would be at
least to cause delay in carrying out the announced intentions
of the Secretary of State. The address to the Qeeen,
agreed to at the recent separation meetings, held at
Brisbane and Ipswich, was forwarded to Sydney by the
Boomerang, on Wednesday last. It received 1,500
signatures in Brisbane, and 700 in Ipswich.