Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1914-02-26


Who was the vainest man in modern
history, as well as the greatest Pooh
bah on record? One Is inclined, after
reading extracts from his voluminous
diaries and from the notes and chron-
icles of his that soon are to be sold at
auction in London, to award these dis
tinctlons to the late Maj.-Gen L. Mac
quarle, who once was governor of New
South Wales-or, rather. who WIS
New South Wales in his day, and not
merely the kings representative.
Most probably you never have heard
of Maj.-Gen. Macduarie before, and no
more had nine out Of ten jewellers in
these islands until 1t was announced
that these private journals of his,
weighty package that has been tossed
about for eighty-nine years since 1t
left Botany bay, would be sold to the
highest bidder at Sotheby's famous
salesrooms on the 22d Of this month
writes a London correspondent of the
Buffalo Express. For Macquarie was
his own best press agent, like a GER
tain famous parsonage, who now is In
South America, and after his demise
his stock fell rapidly, but in the early
days of 1900 he was absolutely and
entirely It in New South Wales. He
was the law and everything else, in
Guiding commander of the troops,
chancellor of the exchequer, lord chief
justice, lord mayor, chief of police,
collector Of taxes, taker OF the census
and lord high everything else, just like
Gilbert's Pooh-bah.
In short, he believed in Maj .-Gen.
Macquarie. Fewer than forty years
then had passed since Capt. Cooks
first encounter with the natives, and
Australia was new to the white man
Just the place for an official with a
habit Of discovering rivers and noun
tains and improving them by afixing
his celebrated name to them.
Stones laid by L. Macquarie, ESQ.,,
were as numerous as the opportunities
for planting them. He was the cham
pion foundation stone layer of all time.
But the name of MacQuarie was
plastered also on the works of nature.
There are Macquarie streets and Mac
quarie buildings everywhere, and
there are Macquarie county, Macquar-
ie marshes, Macquarie plains, Mac
quarie river, Macquarie harbor, Mac
quarie island. And when he founded
a new convict settlement It, inevtta-
bly,, became Port Macquarie.
He never took advice. But he gave
1t by the ton. When he visited Ho-
bart he advised the inspector of works
where to build the hospital, where to
put the Jail and where to put the prin-
cipal square and what to call it--Mac-
quarie, as a matter of course
In his own opinion Macquarie was
the pioneer of religion and morality.
Natives we're taught not to steal by
being shot at sight with their wives
and families-innocent with guilty.
Whole tribes disappeared. but Mac
quarie stood amazed at his own hu-
manity Did he not start a school for
native children and hold annual con-
ferences with the chiefs? Chiefs who
stayed away we're ordered to be de-
Some writer's on Australia have
painted Macquarie a monster. 1t is
more interesting to recall that he
struck the English public of his own
day as a man too meTciful for his Job.
How he organized exploring par
ties, founded the city of Bathurst,
made the first road to the Blue noun
tains and marked out sites for Wind
sor, Castlereagh, Wherefore and |
with many of the rest of
his acts, are they not written in these
faded chronicles, the property of fe-
male descendant, now for sale? There
are eighty pages of foolscap Of his ad-
with natives alone. The de-
scription Of his journey to the Blue
is little shorter.