The Sun.
London, England, 1857-06-08 00:00:00

AUSTRALIA.

We take the following summary of Australian
news from the Me'bourne Arg us of 14th April :
"Our last summary was despatched by the European,
Royal mail steam ship, on the 15th March. The depar-
ture of the Columbian affords an excellent opportunity
for the transmission to Europe of another chapter in the
history of the progress of the colony.

" THE GOLDFIELDS.

" The yield of the goldfields continues to be subject
to the fluctuations with which the current year com-
menced. The mildness of the weather and the scarcity of
water have been protracted over a longer season than
usual, and the escort returns have not been maintained
up to the average of the year 1856. It is, however,
satisfactory to know that they have been considerably
above the average of the years 1854-55. The re-
c-ipts by escort and the shipments for the first three
quarters of the following years, were :
FIRST THREE MONTHS.
1854 1855 1856 1857

oz. oz. oz. oz.
I Receipts by escort 382,901 407,394 748,303 527,154
Shipments
" The greatest falling off this year, as compared with
1856, is, it will be observed, in the escort returns.
The shipments, under all disadvantages, still keep up to
the average of 10 tons troy per mouth, or 120 tons per
year, a sum total not to be despised from a colony Eo
sparsely populated. The decline in the eocorts is to be
attributed to the fact that the improved state of the
roads enables coaches to run through to Melbourne in
a day, quite as much as to the undoubted temporary
fluctuation in the yield.
" When the wet weather has set in sufficiently to
flood the creeks and the old water holes, the escort re-
turns will show a decided improvement. At present
comparatively few puddling machines are at work, and
large hoards of rich `washing stuff' are in tie hands of
the miners. Some fine nuggets were brought into
town last week from Korong and from Dunolly. The
departures of gold ships since last summer have been—
" March 3, Joseph Tarratt, for Bombay, 1,576 ounces ;
7th, Sussex, for London, 47,844; B'tb, T. A. Cole, for
Hongkong, 7,260 ; Bth, Persia, for Bombay, 1,415 : B,h,
Lancaster, for Calcutta, 2,669 ; Bth, Monarch. for Syd-
ney, 45 ; Bth, Stebonheath. for London, 5,254 ;
Walmer Castle, for London, 38,123; 14th, European,
for Suez, 10,704 ; 20th, Francis Henty, for London,
24,732 ; 21st, Tudor, for Liverpool, 14,502 ; 21st, Royal
Shepherd, for Launceston, 20 ; 23d, Jeannette, for
Hongkong, 2,831; 25th, Kent, for Loudon, 69,221 ;
29th, Day Dream, for Calcutta, 2,311; April 3,
Challenge, for Hongkong, 675 ; 6tb, Champion, for
Liverpool, 32,831 ; 7th, Roxburgh Castle, for London,
30,267; 9tb, Cornwall, for Hong Kong, 596.
" The population of the colony on the Ist of January
was, according to official returns, 351,000 souls. To
this, if we add the balance of arrivals over departures
since, and the increase of births over deaths, we shall
arrive at the following calculation :
Population Ist of January, 1857
Balance of arrivals, January 5,214
Ditto, February 7OO
Ditto, March
Increase by births over deaths for three months 1,400

Total..

362,152

"A census was taken on the 29th of March last, from
which, when completed, valuable statistics can be drawn.
Hitherto it is admitted the information on the subject
of population has not been very accurate.
"All our politicians are looking forward with strong
interest to the events of the next few days. Parliament
reassembles to-morrow, and the Parliamentary verdict
upon the O'Shanassy Ministry will then be given.
Hitherto, since the sudden and unexpected overthrow of
the Haines' Administration, which we chronicled in our
last summary, almost all political topics have been
purely prospective. Speculations have been rife as to
the reception that Mr. O'Shanassy will meet with, and
indications have been abundant that the country has no
faith in him as the head of the present Cabinet, but
whether he will be tolerated for the present still remains
to. be decided, and round that question the political
feeling of the time accumulates.

"I.`iie most engrossing topic of the past month—one
!Afore which even the interest of the Ministerial crisis
grew dim—has been of a very melancholy kind. On
the 2Gth ult., the Inspector-General of the penal depart-
ment, Mr. Price, was brutally murdered by a number
of convicts at Williamstown, wlio set upon him and mal-
treated him with such ferocity that he never fairly re-
covered his senses, and died the day after the onslaught,
" The excitement among the convicts both in the
stockades and on board the h ilks became txceedingly
great after Mr. Price's murder. The greatest insubordi-
nation prevailed, and on board the Suec.ss this reached
to such a height that the warders were unable to go
among the prisoners, who maintained a continual uproar
for several hours. It was deemed necessary to place the
Victoria war steamer with shotted guns alongside of the
Success, and there can be no doubt that had the mutiny
among the convicts gi no much further, orders would
have been given to tire into the hulk, Since then quiet

has been restored without recourse to such cxtrecie
measures.

" A numerowly attended public meeting was held in
the Prot,stant Hall, Melbourne, on the .9th instant;
v;hen the artisans and mechanics of this city mug'
tiered in great force, for the purpose of discussing the
immigration scheme of the Government, which has
received the sanction of the Legislative AsserablY,
and awaits that of the council. Resolutions were
passed conOemnatory of the scheme as unjust Prin•
ciple, bad in practice, and injurious in its results. It was
urged by some of the speakers that there was pleety,.
of labour in the colony ; that there were numbers 0'
men upon the gold-fields who were able and willing to
undertake the work of constructing railways if the Go-
vernment would give them employment, and that it wag
unjust to the working classes of Victoria to relieve the
pressure upon the labour market in England, and glut
our own, at the expense of the colonial revenue. The
whole of the proceedings of the meeting were very are'
ditable to the temperate feeling and intelligence 0'
those who took part in it."