The Express.
London, England, 1861-10-17 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

We have advice. from Melbourne to August 24.
The great event of the month bad been the elec-
tions, which had resulted in the return of a large
majority of supporters of Mr. liestes.
The minister is said to have doubled the must, ber
of Lis supporters.

There had been a serious strike, attended wi th
violence, at the works on the government railway. s.
Advice. from Sydney are to ther 21st of Septembet '•
The most important relate to the political excite
went arising out of the fatal disturbance at this
Burrangong gold-laid. The following account of
these occurrences is from. the alydifies MuraiatA
Herald :

Almost the only event which has called forth any degree,'
of political excitement during the put mouth has been the,
fatal disturbance at the Berrangoss gold•Seld. The polio.
force assembled there being insufficient to meet an aetioi-•
paled attack from the theirs, the *Wilier:* were sent up T.,.
and although a collision was loudly threatened. and.by some•
apprehended, a number of arrests, were made without-
the slightest resistance. The only aches taken by
the diggers was to hold meetings to draw up
petition to the Governer, praying for an official
inquiry into the circumstances of the colliekne and to ap-
point delegates to present the petition to **Governor.
These proceedings were to some extent reseeded by •
handful of people in Sydney, who, by weans cf wilful and
barefaced misrepresentations of the cans, made aa attempt
to excite • public sympathy for the rioters. Obviously
for this purpose, but ostensibly with the view of con-
sideriug the Chinese immigratiou, a public. meeting
was convened, and notwithstanding the glaring fast
that the disturbances at Burrangong were the re-
sult of a savage and entirely unprovoked assault
by the Europeans upon the Chinese, the speakers, several
of whom were members of the Assembly, thread their
complaints at the unfortunate Mongolians as the cease
of the disturbance, and indulged freely in all those
false and wanton vilifications of the Chinese whieltare so
immensely popular with large •umbers of the working and
illiterate classes. The delegates sent with the petition front
the diggers were recoguiseel as having been mixed up with
the rioters, and Sir Johu Young refused to receive them,
but promised that their petition, if forwarded, should be
mid before the executive coated. A second public meeting
was held for the purpose of urging on the government to
suspend the operations of the military until an inquiry
should have been made into the cimuuultauces of the colli-
sion. The two delegates were present, end made speeches,
partly justifying the conduct of the rioters ; and by the
other speakers the conduct of the governor. in refusing
to receive them, was denounced as unconstitutional.
To show the malignant hatred of the Chinese, shared in
common with the rioters of Burrangong, by the majority of
those preseut at the meeting—when a speaker rose to
denounce the ruffianly attack upon the Chinese, he was
assailed with hooting and yelling, and was not allowed •
bearing. Torpy - one of the delegates, slid who wee a pub-
lica• at Burrangoog—was, on the morning of the meeting,
arrested on • charge of being concerned in the riots,
and was allowed bail for his appearance before
the magistrates at Burrangong, WIMP) be has since
been discharged, owing to the departure from
the gold-field of those who were prepared to give evidence
against him. The deputation appointed at the meeting
waited upon the Governor with the petition, but were
very plainly informed by his excellency that the circum-
stances did not justify his suspension of the ortheary opera-
tion of the kw, and th►t the judicial tribunals would
afford them all the inquiry that they desired. No other
proceedings have since been taken, and the attempt fo arouse
public sympathy on behalf of the diggers hes beau a ludicrous
failure. The statements they furuished with regard to the
collision, impugning the truth of the of reports, have
been proved to have been so entirely mendacious
and exaggerated, that their cause has become utterly con-
temptible, ►nd most of those who at first took it up warmly,
believing there bed been some injustice, have since aban-
dulled it in disgust.
The public at large were not misled by these r.erversions
they saw at once that the assemblage of • company of armed
men in front of the camp, demanding the release of pri.
loners, was only the preliminary to the attempt to rescue
them. It was no lees obvious that, whether the Riot Act
had been read or not, or whether the police or the diggers
fired first, was of little consequence, end that the troopers
were justified in the vigorous stops they took to disperse
the rioters. All the evidence that has been given respect.
ing the occurrences hoe served to confirm and justify that
opinion.

The recent proceedings at the gold-fieltla have afforded
proof, if such had been needed, that the animosity which
is entertained by a large clam against the Chinese, and
which has been freely pandered to by the touters for popu-
larity in the Assembly, is the result, not of any actual
experience of the immorality or die offensive habits of that
people, but of the selfish and indefensible prejulice against
them. As those who entertain this sentiment are
more noisy and demonstrative than others whose in-
telligence and social position better entitle them to be
heard, it is probable that some measure of a prohi-
bitory ch►racter with regard to the Chinese may be
forced on the legislature._ _ _ .

The elections that had taken place since the par-
liament was prorogued had somewhat affected the
relative strength of parties in the Assembly, the
return of Mr. Forster of Mr. Holt, and of Mr.
Faucett affording valuable secesaions to the opposi-
tion. The ministerial party is numerically strong,
but it is only on two or three leading questions that
the support of any large proportion of these can be
relied on, and it is not at all unlikely that upon
the announcement of their Unsocial or their educa-
tional policy many of their uncertain supporters
may turn against them, and assist to put them out.
The Land Bill and the Legislative Council Bill
were to be introduced early in the session, and
would probably be quickly passed with little altera-
tion by the Amembly.