The Sun.
London, England, 1857-01-24 00:00:00

TDB FALKLAND ISLANDS.

The following letters have been addressed to the editor
of the Ti 771 C :-

Sir—My attention has been called, by one of your lead-
ing articles this day, to a letter by Mr. Eddy, advocating
the Falkland Islands as the most eligible situation for a
convict settlement.

Having resided there seven years and a half as Governor
I may be permitted to explain many of the erroneous as-
sumptions of Mr. Eddy, which his imperfect knowledge of
their climate, soil, &c., have led him into. First, I admit
that as to the question of economy of transport the Falk-
land Islands have the advantage over the Australias and
Vancouver's Island—not as compared, however, with Hud-

son's Bay.
The pensioners, or military settlers, alluded to by Mr.
Eddy, wero sent to the Falklands during my administra-
tion in 1849. The expedition consisted of a captain and 30
non-commissioned officers and privates. I was instructed
to make over to each man 25 acres of land, on which
wooden cottages, brought from England with them, were
to be erected at the expense of the colonial Government.
Rations, fuel, and a right to employment on public works
wwre also secured to them for the first and part of the se-
cond years; and a right of commonage, in addition to their
land, of 100 acres was allowed to each man.
On their arrival great discontent was manifested among
them, participated i❑ by their officer, and I had much diffi-
culty in inducing them to suspend their judgments as to
the entire impracticability of boths oil and climate to grow
anything besides the natural grasses of the country; and
it was not until they saw, some months afterwards, a cror
of very tolerable potatoes dug in the Government gardet
that I could persuade any of them to commence cultivat-
ing plots of their own. Notwithstanding that there wet()
a few of those men indefatigable in their attempts to raise
produce of various kinds, not one of them has over suc-
ceeded in maintaining himself or family by agriculture.
Vegetables of all the ordinary descriptions succeed pretty
well, provide you raise a wall sufficiently high to protect
them ; turnips will, however, grow without shelter.
The inability to live by cultivation is not confined to the
pensioner class. Up to the present time no settler in the
Falkland Islands has ever maintained himself by agriculture
alone, and the numerous experiments I made (most of them
at my private expense) convince me that it is impossible to
do so. Wherever the soil is not pure peat is mixed tip
with heavy stones, and it cost me about 301. to clear and
prepare one acre in a selected situation for a crop of turnips,
and, although I manured it with guano in one part and
stable manure and blood iu another, the crop in no way
recompensed the outlay. I repeated the experiment after
two years with no better result. In gardens, however, I
have seen with extreme care turnips as fine, although not
quite so large, as I have ever seen in this country. My
trials to raise wheat, barley, oats, &c., were complete
failures. In ono instance only I obtained a tolerable sample
of barley, grown under the shelter of a wall. As Mr. Eddy
has introduced Lord Grey's name in his letter, I will merely
say that as regards the steps I took for the settlement of
the pensioners I met with his lordship's approval, and hav-
ing transmitted the samples of grain I attempted to raise
Lord Grey agreed with me in thinking it inexpedient to
encouraging further experiments. The staple produce of
the Falkland Islands hitherto has been the wild cattle, and
although there is no doubt that since the Government dis-
posed of the entire property over them and all other wild
animals in the island, including horses and pigs, to—first,
M. Lafone, of Monte Video, who subsequently sold his con-
tract, with the consent of her Majesty's Government, to
the Falkland Islands Company, the present possessors, the
numbers of them have largely decreased. There are and
always have been, however, sufficient to supply numerous
shipping, both mercantile and naval, touching the ports
with fresh beef, to which the settlers and shopkeepers were
enabled to add during the last five years of my office vege-
tables, occasionally fish and provisions of every sort.
I am therefore surprised that Mr. Eddy should have
fallen into the mistake of supposing that Australian ships
are unable to procure refreshments at the Falkland Islands.
I admit that, occasionally, the stock of poultry was defi-
cient, but the impossibility of raising grain or of importing
it at prices to induce large breeding of fowls is an answer
to that allegation. Rabbits at one dollar per dozen, and
any number of wild geese at I.s. each, form, however, some
substitute for the scarcity of domestic fowls.
Mr. Eddy likewise assumes that no facilities for repairs
of shipping exist at the Falkland Islands. I have no me-
moranda of the number of ships refitted, but I recollect in
one week seven large vessels coming into port, most of them
seriously damaged, and all (except one, which was con-
demned as unseaworthy) repaired and forwarded on their
voyages. Another instance I recollect of an American
ship of 800 tons which struck on a rock and tore off all her
false keel and part of her kelson. This ship was refitted,
and returned to the United States. I feel it due to the
exertions I made, in conjunction with the colonists, to
render the islands useful to the vast number of shipping
passing them to copy a letter I received from Captain Bar-
nard, 11. N., of her Majesty's ship Vixen, which entered
the harbour in a disabled state :

" Stanley Harbour, June 6, 1853.
" Sir,—l beg to acknowledge with many thanks the re-
ceipt of your Excellency's letter of the 4th inst., offerii,g
all the aid in the power of the local Government should I
experience any difficulty in procuring supplies of coals,
provisions, and stores required for her Majesty's steamer
under my command. Fortunately, I have bees enabled to
supply all our wants from the stores of Mr. Dean (Lloyd's
agent) at so reasonable a rate that I have taken o❑ board
300 tons of coals and a large quantity of biscuit, flour, and
sugar, and shall not have to trench on the Government
depots, excepting for a small quantity of wide plank, spe-
cified in the enclosed requisition,
"On my return to Monte Video I shall consider it my
duty to report to the Commander-in-Chief the great facili-
ties that now exist at the Falkland Islands for coaling,wa-
tering, and procuring every requisite necessary at the
shortest possible notice for a much less price than at any
other place between this place and England. The arrange-
ments for watering will enable the largest ship to complete
in a day.

" I have, &c.,
BARNA.RD,
"Commanding her Majesty's ship Tixen,
" His Excellency Governor Rennie."
Having thus explained the state of the Falkland Islands
as they were when I left them about a year since, I shall
only offer a very brief reply to Mr. Eddy as to my reasons
for thinking them ineligible for the foundation of a large
colony of convicts.
A gaol may be formed on any given site, and prisoners
may bo coerced to work and to submit to discipline. On
those points no difference of opinion exists ; but the ques-
tion undecided is where that site is to be selected. I have
already, in your journal of the sth inst., given, under the
signature of " A Practical Man," my views as to the loca-
lities I think most eligible. I will therefore only now
discuss the special merits of the Falkland Islands.
Let ns suppose an expedition fitted out on a large scale,
with all the needful appliances for forming a settlement.
For the first year or more full employment will be found for
all the convicts in building prisons, guardhouses, &c.
Those works completed, what is to be undertaken with any
reasonable prospect of beneficial or remunerative result ?
In my evidence before the committee of the House of
Lords, last session, June 24, I replied in answer to a ques-
tion of the chairman (Lord Harrowby), that with the ex-
ception of a patent slip for the repair of shipping, there are,
as far as I can judge, no public works of any great utility
required of sufficient importance to employ a large body of
convicts ; and as the machinery of the slip must be made in
England, its erection would not involve great labour. As to
the docks, suggested first by Lord Grey, and alluded to by
Mr. Eddy, I was of opinion when on the islands, and subse-
quent consultations with eminent civil engineers since my
return convince me, that the nature of the ground and
slight rise of the tides (only about 6 feet) would render the
construction, if not impracticable, at all events so
costly as to make the attempt highly inexpedient. The
facility of water carriage all round the islands is
great that roads, if made, would never ha used for heavier
goods, and no settler on his unshod horses would ride on
them. Draining might to a considerable extent be cariiedet
on, hut to move large parties and to guard them in diffeeoreeld
localities, to cut drains for land of little or no valAufet,er
the
scarcely be advantageous in any point of view.
be
of the Falkland Islands the fisheriesmthyabteirseacknoned
the pursuit next in importance ; surelyhboutwi
th the necessary boat
em-
ployment unsuited to prisoners
required, might escape on board of of whalers, who are, espe-
cially the Americans, not at allparticular as to whom they
never employ any number
engage. The cattle farmers
canwhole of the criminals must be
of prisoners, and nearly
maintained by the Government. The term of panishment
expired, is there any reasonable probability of the man com-
mitted settling voluntarily on the
islands? Itly experience
me to the contrary. Notwithstanding the high
c:aur.veisnepersocurable by artisans and labourers, the former,
shipwrights,earning sometimes 4 and 5 dollars per diem,
the latter from 4s. to 65., few of them remain permanently,
and the small population is kept up chiefly by fresh arrivals.
The hardships endured by the fishermen, although the
gains are sometimes considerable, prevent their continuing
for any length of time to follow that occupation, and the
facilities which now exist for every man who can pull a
rope to obtain service on board of the shipping touching
at the islands enables the industrious to carry off their
earnings to any part of the world, or the idle and vicious
to change their residences.

I, moreover, doubt exceedingly the great safety of the
Falkland Islands as a prison. If you m regulations of
very stringent character you will diminish the attraction s
of the islands as a touching port for rents and refreshment.
No vessels excepting under circumstances of real distress
would ever come there, as the freedom and healthy re-
creations of the crews and passengers would be seriously
nterfered with for tho necessary secu of the convicts,

Sir—Will you permit me to add a few words to those of
your correspondent in this day's paper ?
My experience as a seamen abort.the Falkland Islatile
and Tierra del Fuego while in command of the Fuegian
Mission schooner during the past two years enables me to
confute whatVr. Eddy has advanced on the subject ; and
I consider that it would be an immense boon to the corn.
mercial and nautical world were the Falkland Islands made
a lima' settlement.
That the colonists would not object to it I know to he
the case from what I have frequently heard them say ; and
also from what his Excellency the present Governor has
indeed, I believe that some request has al-
roef
aten, y toldbee mnme
; made to the Home Government in reference

to
Of the advantages to be derived by all classes who have
an interest in our shipping and commerce I will not now
dwell, more than to say that I am convinced many vessels
that now pass the Falkland Islanda owing to circumstances
connected with the difficulty in getting repairs speedily
executed, would, were it a penal settlement with abund-
ance at our command, call there instead of going to Monte
Video, and endeavouring to attract attention to this sub-
ject and narrative of my cruise lam preparing for publi-
cation, that I shall be happy to give any public informa-
tion in my power that may lead to so desirable and such a
boon to Cape' Horn ma, iners as the establishment of a
penal settlement to the Falkland Islands.
With regard to the Fuegian Mission, Mr. Eddy is under
a slight mistake as to its being located on East Falkland. It
is on one of the west islands, and there are circumstances
connected with it shortly to be made public that will show
that there can be very little fear of any hindrance being
evinced on their part to any plan for the deportation of our
convicts to the Falkland Islands. The " peculiar privileges
granted to the mission" consist, I believe, only in the per-
mission to choose a small portion of land in the West
Falklands, and purchase it at the usual price, without hat•
ing it first submitted to competition by public auction.
Wben I left the Falklands in November last the purchase
had not been effected.

I am, sir,your very humble sarvant,
W. PARKER SNOW,i
Late Commander of the Allen Gardiner.
Grosvenor-hmite, Knightsbridge, Jan. 21.