The Sun.
London, England, 1853-01-05 00:00:00

EMIGRATION TO AUSTRALIA.

A lecture was delivered yesterday evening, by Mrs.
Chisholm, at the Mechanics' Institution, Greenwich,
on the subject of Australian emigration, more especially
with reference to the 'gold diggings. The audience was
very numerous, and comprised a large proportion of
females.

After remarking that all she pretended to do was to
give honest and useful information, Mrs. Chisholm
proceeded to say that the majority of those who came
to her for information with regard to emigration were
about fifty years of age, and were probably led to do
so by a &gad of the workhouse. The emigration
which ,was now going on, though large, was of a
trivial character compared with what might be ex-
pected to take place during the present year. Many of
its features, too, were of a melancholy character, and it
became all who had any influence to endeavour to miti-
gate the evils. Of the married men who were emi-
grating, at least 60 per cent., she believed, were leaving
their wives and children in this country, in the hope that
they would be able to remit money to pay for their pas-
sage ; and whether emigration should become respect-
able or not, whether it should become moral or not, de-
pended greatly on the means which such men had of
carrying out their wishes. The last mail which arrived
brought money from her husband, who was in Mel-
bourne, and who had no clerk or other person to assist
him, to the amount of 2,3741., composed entirely of re-
mittances from working men. One man sent 601. for
three sisters ; another 421. for his two children ; the
balance, after paying for their passage, about 20/., to be
given to the children's grandfather and grandmother for
their care of the children 110/. was sent by a young
man for his parents and all the family ; another sent 501.
to bring two brothers ; 1821. was sent by a young
man who was married and had a family, and who had
been in the colony two years, to take his parents from
America. After mentioning several similar instances,
she observed that it was thus proved that
the English as well as the Irish were willing to
remit money to pay for the passage of their relatives
and friends, and all that they wanted now was a safe
and convenient mode of remittance. There was now
preparing for emigration a party of intending gold
diggers. According to advices received from the colonies,
and principally in the letters of actual diggers, it was
far more desirable that young men should form parties
here, than that they should go the colony and there
make a random selection of the first companions they
could find. It was desirable, too, that they should form
rules for their own guidance and management ; such as
that they would not work on Sunday, and that they
would not allow any drink to be consumed, except m the
presence of the whole party. The great objection to
secret drinking amongst the gold diggers was not so
much the expense, as a fear lest parties should get
drunk, and while in that state tell where the gold was
buried. (Laughter.) Thirty was considered a very good
number for a party ; and it was desirable that it should
include a medical man, whose principal duty it would be
to give advice for the preservation of health rather than
to cure any positive sickness. The party should be
provided with a good cart and with a tent ; or if the
cart were of good size it would be better to have two
small tents than one large one. They should also be pro-
vided with six months' rations, thatlis six months' food ;
and it would be cheapest and best to purchase the food
in London and have it all packed ready for the expedi-
tion. She then gave a scale of dietary suitable for the
expedition. In addition to the food, the party were re-
commended to take a small supply of medicine and a few
comforts, such as arrowroot, sago, and oatmeal. As
they would sometimes have to cross rivers without
bridges, they should be provided with at least one belt
for the use of those who could not swim. A rope with
a ring at one end and an iron peg at the other, to be fas-
tened to the stump of a tree or a wheel of the cart, would
be useful for the same purpose ; and by the same means,
small parcels might be transported. The digging party
of 50 who were, as she had before stated, preparing to
emigrate, would leave 117 persons in this country desti-
tute. Husbands were leaving their wives and children,
young men were leaving their sisters and aged parents,
and these were distributed over 28 parishes. There was
no desertion in the ordinary sense—the object was the
benefit of all concerned. Still, there must be many
difficulties on both sides. The voyage of the diggers
would occupy perhaps four months, and under the most
favourable circumstances five months must elapse before
they would be at work. Gold being a marketable article
they might then assist their families at once if they could
only send it home through a post-office order; but having
no such convenience, they must wait till they had accu-
mulated enough to make it worth their while to go to
Melbourne to sell it ; and before any could reach Eng-
land their families might be on the parish. To her own
knowlege there were 11,000 husbands at the diggings
already, and it was frightful to think what their families
might endure. She then remarked upon the advantages
which would accrue to the diggers and their relatives in
England from the extension of the post-office order sys-
tem to Australia. She strongly objected to the sending
of young girls to the colonies as charity girls. Of the
first 1,0001. advanced by the society with which she was
connected, 3121. had been repaid. A lady who was
present had requested to be informed in what way she
could best assist a family, comprising seven children, the
eldest being eleven and the youngest three, to emigrate.
She designed to give them a passage, and asked what
sum would be necessary to ensure them something like
comfort when they had arrived. The great difficulty in
the case of large families occurred on their arrival ; and
under the circumstances she would recommend the
lady to supply the family with three months' pro-
visions. This would be far better than giving them money,
and the expense of making this provision on the scale -
of dietary used on board emigrant ships would be very
trifling. She would advise parents who were sending
out.their sons to give them very little money indeed ; a
small tent and a month's provisions would be better:than
a 101. note. She then spoke of the earnings of the colo-
nists. A servant girl who formerly lived with herself,
and had 81. a year, now received 361. a year. Family
washing could be done in a plain way at 3s. a dozen.
Everything was in that case sent home in the rough ;
12s. a dozen was the price paid if the things were washed
and ironed. It did not answer in the colonies to exa-
mine the shirts so closely as they were examined here ;
the laundresses would not stand it. (Laughter.) She
held in her hand an advertisement to this effect—" Wanted
at the diggings, a few men who thoroughly understand
• the making of German yeast." A fortune might be made
by any one who answered to that description. Ginger-
beer makers were much wanted ; and bakers, who must
be provided with portable ovens. She had received a
very interesting order for an iron schoolroom for the
diggings, and never had anything given her greater
pleasure. A schoolroom for little children would tell
on the moral character of the colonists, and many might
be led by it to perform their duty to those who were
left behind, as well as those who were there. On re-
turning to the colony, in August next, it was her inten-
tion to take with her at least 500 respectable females.
She was already filling up her list ; all would pay for
their passage ; and she was determined to do nothing to
pauperise the character of female emigrants. Five
pounds was the sum which she considered it necessary
for every female to have on arriving ; and all she re-
quired was power to see the money properly applied in
each case until a situation had been obtained. Ignorant
women would not be so useful as those who had some
degree of education ; and it was perfectly useless for
any one to go who was not prepared to make puddings
and to wash her own clothes. (Laughter and cheers.)
She had received information, that evening to the
effect that the colony of New South Wales, ap-
• proving of her plans, had voted the sum of 10,000/.
for the purpose of carrying out the principles of
the Family Colonisation Society. (Hear.) She believed,
however, that the adoption of the post-office order
• system would do more for emigration than 50,0001., and
that a larger sum of money would thus be brought to
this country than the colonists, however liberal, would
be disposed to grant. Mrs. Chisholm concluded by men-
tioning several pleasing instances in which money ad-
vanced to assist females in emigrating had been either
wholly or in part returned, including the cases of two
girls, who, having had very eligible offers of marriage,
declared that they would not marry till they were out of
• debt ; and by stating that she would be happy to give
advice to any one who might call upon her at her resi-
dence in Salisbury-square, Fleet-street, between eleven
in the morning and two in the afternoon. (Loud cheers.)
On the motion of Mr. BASS, the secretary of the insti-
tution; thanks were voted to Mrs. Chisholm by acclama-
tion for her lecture.