The Present Picture of New South Wales (1811) by David Dickinson Mann

D >> David Dickinson Mann >> The Present Picture of New South Wales (1811)

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The 11th cause of loss to the crown, and of the expenses of
the colony, arises from the dependent settlements within the
limits of that territory; and although the governments at the
River Derwent and Port Dalrymple are allowed to draw separate
Treasury bills for their internal expenses, yet, the great
quantity of wheat, maize, salt provisions, slop clothing, and
other stores, it is absolutely necessary to send from the
principal seat of government to those places, added to the
conveyance and other unavoidable charges, enhances the expenses
at Sydney to an amount that no person would believe but such as
have had an opportunity of being an eye-witness to the mode in
which such immense sums are disposed of, or upon strictly
investigating the voluminous official documents which are
transmitted from that colony. As the accounts of the expense of
the settlement at Newcastle are wholly included in those at Port
Jackson, I shall forbear to make any regular estimate thereupon;
but it must be evident, that where the subsistence of such
distant places chiefly depend upon a settlement but a short time
colonized, the expenses must be very considerable, and the
supplies must be given out and used with the greatest caution, to
prevent the necessity of applying to a market where their charges
are generally exorbitant, and in most cases optional.

The last source of expense to the government which I shall
mention, and which, although now also done away, has been the
means of an astonishing increase in the expenditure of the
colony. From the fertility of its soil, Norfolk Island was for
some time considered a great acquisition to the principal
settlement; but subsequent experience has proved the futility of
this idea, since the price of grain, instead of lowering in
proportion to the additional trouble bestowed on the cultivation
of the soil, remained the same just before its evacuation as it
had been eight years before. As a place for raising swine this
island, indeed, might have proved of much utility, if the
establishment there had been almost entirely reduced, and the
attention of the colony had been confined to this subject, and to
the curing of pork for the consumption of all the other
settlements; but as this method was not adopted, it proved, from
the time of its establishment, a continual check upon the
prosperity of the principal colony, draining those resources
which ought to have been applied to different purposes, where the
hope and probability of some recompense, adequate to the expense,
might have been more sanguine, and less unlikely. Norfolk Island,
so far from returning any proportionate recompense for those
supplies, had not, in the course of thirteen years, sent to New
South Wales property of any description exceeding in value
2000L.; during which period all the expenses of that
island were included in the general account of the whole country
with the Lords Commissioners of his Majesty's Treasury. So far
from being in itself a flourishing colony. Governor Hunter, who
called there in his way to England in 1800, found that the whole
of the public, and numbers of private erections, were in a most
miserable condition; and his excellency declared that he had
scarcely seen a negro town in the West Indies with half such a
wretched appearance. The grain here and there displayed a
promising appearance, and swine were in some considerable
numbers; but the coast was dangerous, Governor Hunter being
himself once wrecked upon it in the Sirius, and nearly lost with
all his ship's crew; and this circumstance is calculated to deter
vessels from touching at the island in quest of wood and water,
which are both plentiful, but which may be procured in equal
abundance in any of the other islands of the Pacific ocean where
there are fewer rocks and breakers to contend with, and where the
acquiescence of the natives might easily be purchased. In
addition to the above obstacles and inauspicious appearances,
vessels at this place have no anchorage, but are obliged always
to keep under sail; and I have known them to be blown off the
island for several weeks together, with very little provision on
board, whilst a part of the crew have been on shore; and by those
means not only a considerable loss has accrued to the merchants
or owners, but the lives of a number of fellow-creatures have
been exposed to the most imminent danger.

To the existence of these, with other subsequent causes, it
may be attributed that the colony of New South Wales has not made
a more rapid progress towards independence, but has so long hung,
as it were, upon the breast, and derived its sole nourishment
from the food, of the mother country. To raise the settlement
from this state of dependence; to expunge from its early page
that stain which must be affixed to it by remoter ages; to
stimulate its growth, and impel it along the path which leads to
greatness, must be the object, the desire, and the hope, of every
one who feels an interest in its prosperity; and if a long
residence in the colony, a full consciousness of its capacity,
and an unshaken affection for the country, can entitle any one to
a rank amongst the friends of this infant empire, I flatter
myself that my claim must be allowed; and I shall therefore
proceed to suggest those further ideas of improvement which are
founded in a thorough knowledge of the subject from
experience.

To facilitate the rise of New South Wales to a state of
consequence and independence, its interests must be entrusted to
a governor who has no private or mercenary views, and will seek
after nothing but the welfare of the colony; who will thoroughly
support the trust and honour reposed in him, as the
representative of our most gracious Sovereign; who will not
treat, nor suffer others to treat, the officers serving under him
with indignity; who will not study the rapid rise of one man, and
the sudden downfal of another, but will administer, and cause
justice to be administered impartially to all descriptions of
persons, and only shew his favour to those whose conduct is such
as to merit his distinguished notice. Under such a man, the
industrious settlers should receive the most liberal
encouragement to induce them to pay every attention to the
cultivation of their lands and to the rearing of stock; and I am
of opinion, that when the price of grain has been reduced under
ten shillings per bushel for wheat, five shillings for maize and
barley, and four shillings and sixpence for oats, the grower has
very frequently been a loser, without admitting that in the
course of the season there had been any flood, blight, insect, or
rust, to injure the growing crops. I speak this from the general
knowledge I have of the country, having taken every settler's and
other muster there for a number of years, and from the concurrent
opinions of several of the first and most independent farmers
throughout the settlement; nor can any man who is acquainted with
the exorbitant wages demanded by every class of labourers, who
are not prisoners assigned by the crown to their employers, in
that part of the world, and the great difficulties attending the
various occupations he has to encounter before his grain can be
brought to the market, judge otherwise. The government stores
should also be open at all times to receive the grain, which
would not only enable the commissary to send the requisite
supplies to the dependent settlements, but would also afford a
powerful security against the fatal and frequent losses which are
occasioned by the floods, so destructive to property of every
description, but more particularly to the grain; and it would
also set aside the necessity of issuing short allowance to those
prisoners who are necessarily supported by the crown, by which
means government labour is sometimes retarded, in consequence of
the reduction of the hours of work in proportion to the
diminution in the weekly ration.

If government were also to decline farming, it would excite a
greater degree of perseverance in the settlers, and would, in my
opinion, eventually disburden the crown of a very considerable
expense, as those employed in agriculture, on the government
account, are generally that description of persons who only care
how little they work, and are equally as indifferent as to the
manner in which their labour is performed; besides which, very
few of these individuals are at all acquainted with the art of
husbandry, particularly that system which ought to be adopted in
a colony, the climate, soil, and produce of which, are so
essentially different to those of the mother country; and those
few, as soon as they have attained a knowledge of the regular
method necessary there to be pursued, are generally taken away by
some cause or other, or claim their freedom, from the original
term of their transportation being expired, so that little better
than a succession of new hands have to perform a task of which
the chief part are totally ignorant.

By the opening of the stores, and the prevention of the losses
before mentioned, the Southseamen, and other vessels touching at
Port Jackson, might at all times receive ample supplies of such
refreshments as they stood in need of, in exchange for articles
more serviceable to the inhabitants than any recompense of a
pecuniary nature; and, indeed, absolutely necessary to the
comfort and prosperity of the colony. In case of a war in these
seas, or in any part of India, this settlement would prove a very
desirable _depot_, and place of rendezvous. Soldiers and
seamen would at all times be healthy, without great fatigue, free
from scorbutic complaints so prevalent after a long voyage, and
would not suffer from a change of climate, which too frequently
brings on dysentery, or other fatal diseases; these circumstances
would naturally render them more fit to enter a field of battle,
and better qualified, in every respect, to endure the wearisome
fatigues and dangers of war.

Several ships which have touched at the settlement under the
pressure of necessity, have been denied the requisitions which
they have made for bread and other provisions; and, although the
local circumstances of the colony rendered that denial absolutely
necessary, yet, had the settler been guaranteed by any means
against loss, or could he have received any sufficient security
for his grain, every ship which had been in need, as well as
every one touching there in future, would have been, and might
be, amply provided for. The influx of American vessels, and ships
from the East Indies, has recently suffered a very considerable
diminution; the former, at one period, nearly supplied the colony
with articles of almost every description, at very reasonable
prices, but, from some cause or other, vessels from the United
States seldom now arrive at the settlement with merchandize for
sale; the Indian vessels have also ceased to arrive in the same
numbers as formerly, and the supplies have consequently fallen
off materially, which naturally injures all descriptions of
persons, not only by preventing an immediate intercourse between
those countries, but also by lessening very considerably the
consumption of stock, grain, etc. so that the settler, in
planting his land, has now no other views than to raise a
sufficiency of grain for the consumption of his own family, and
the liquidation of his debts. He has no longer a stimulus to
labour; he calculates that the time and toil are wasted which are
spent in raising an article for which he has no vent; his
industrious disposition is consequently cramped; his present
exertions are without hope of reward; and his prospects are
divested of the supporting promise of future comfort or
competence. Such a system as this evidently and rapidly tends to
ruin; these symptoms are the obvious marks of a diseased economy;
and, if decay appears in the present unripe state of the country,
with what propriety--with what hope--on what grounds, can the
mind calculate upon future prosperity?

The vessels of neutral powers ought to be encouraged, in my
opinion, to trade to the settlement; they would serve the colony,
by giving encouragement to the settlers; there would once again
be a beneficial competition; there would be a channel for the
carrying off the surplus produce of the country, and industry
might again look forward with joyous expectation to the harvest
of its toil. These vessels might be laden back with spermaceti or
other oils, seal skins, coals, ship-timber, fustic, or any other
articles the produce of the settlements and the Southern Seas;
and thus a traffic might be established and carried on with
reciprocal benefit, and the independence of New South Wales must
be greatly aided in consequence of these beneficial
regulations.

It may perhaps be argued, that the indiscriminate admission of
the trade of neutral vessels might tend to injure the British
ships trading to this colony; but such a consequence, I think,
may easily be averted, since the governor has power to prevent
those ships from selling any such articles as he may deem it
expedient to prohibit; and no injury could consequently be
sustained, while it would hold out the necessity of selling the
European goods at a reasonable rate, or the wants of the colony
might be supplied from another market. The arrival of neutral
ships with merchandize would also tend to prevent the too
frequent monopolies which take place in this quarter, of the
nature of which and their mischievous effects upon the general
prosperity of the colony, I have spoken in a former part of this
chapter; and I feel a great regret that circumstances at this
moment prevent me from enlarging upon so destructive a subject,
and exposing the very root of so pernicious an evil, which has
latterly been fostered by those whom nothing more than suspicion
could ever have attached to, but by recent events; and I am
anxious that a full exposition of the plans which had been
adopted to facilitate the rapid rise of a mercenary and powerful
few, to the serious injury and almost inevitable downfal of the
country, will be held up to the public view of every impartial
man; by which means the grand promoters of so nefarious a
practice will bring upon their own heads that disgrace,
dishonour, and infamy, which their vile projects had formed for
others to bear the burthen of. It has been truly said, that by
means of those ships a great quantity of spirits have been
introduced into the settlement of Port Jackson, and on this plea
the prohibition of their sales, it is said, has taken place, but
which I do not strictly believe: However, the landing of those
noxious cargoes might easily be prevented; or they might be
suffered to be brought on shore, and lodged in one of his
majesty's store-houses, under a bond, so that, whenever the
vessel was about to sail from the port, she might receive it
again, having some trusty and vigilant person placed on board, to
see that no smuggling transactions were carried on, and where he
should be ordered to remain until the ship quits the Heads. By
these means, which would be no expense to the crown, the dry
goods, etc. which had been brought to the market, might be
readily disposed of, without any risk being incurred of the
introduction of too much of that maddening liquor, generally
brought by these vessels, to be distributed amongst the
inhabitants of the colony.

It must be obvious to every man of reason, that the early days
of a colony require as much attention and assistance as human
infancy, and that a course of improper and unskilful treatment at
the outset must undoubtedly lay the foundation of future
imbecility and ultimate destruction. Much evil has already been
done in the settlement, but it is not yet too late to apply the
remedy; the malady which threatens the existence of the colony
has not yet attained to an incurable height, and if the proper
measures are adopted, prosperity and happiness may yet be seen,
where adversity and apprehension are at present discovered; and
the seeds of a new and powerful nation may not be doomed to
perish, before they have scarcely broken the ground which was
intended for the scene of their growth and expansion. I shall,
however, without farther digression, endeavour to point out other
means of improving the settlement than such as relate to its
agriculture.

The establishment of a post-office for the receipt of all
letters and parcels for private individuals, and for the dispatch
of those which are transmitted from the colony, would be
productive of essential service to the general interests, and
could be entrusted to some person of respectability, whose
remuneration might arise from a certain tax or postage: Such an
institution would prevent a number of letters from being lost,
delivered to wrong persons, or illegally obtained by such for the
purpose of sending to the friends of the person for whom they
were intended, with a view to obtain money or other property. It
has frequently occurred that boxes, etc. have been gained
under false pretensions, from on board ships which had arrived in
the port, and the contents of which have been worth a very
considerable value: The persons guilty of this crime, by some
means obtain the information as to the packages which are on
board, and then personate, or cause some of their connexions to
personate, those to whom the packages are addressed, on which
they obtain the property by only signing a receipt to the officer
on board. An office of this description would effectually prevent
the recurrence of such fraudulent practices, and would give a
security for the regular delivery or transmission, as well as the
security, of the letters, etc. which were entrusted to its
care. An oath might be administered to the superintendent.

The unfit clothing sent out for the convicts has been a
subject of sincere complaint, as being dispatched without any
regard to quality or comfort. I am therefore of opinion, that it
would be highly expedient to send out a considerable portion of
wearing apparel unmade, so that there would be an absolute saving
of the cost of making; for the wearers would feel much greater
satisfaction from being allowed to receive it in the piece, that
they might suit it to their respective wants, as well as consult
their own comforts: Those who might have less leisure than their
fellow-prisoners, could have their clothing made by the tailors
of the different settlements, while the others would be happy to
make their own. If this plan were to be carried into execution,
it might be necessary to find a person properly qualified to take
the superintendence of this mechanical department; and such an
one might readily be found in the mother country, whose
disposition, owing to adverse circumstances, might lead him to
accept this situation in the colony; thus a proper quantity of
work would be completed, and economy would be much promoted.

The indiscriminate distribution of the clothing sent over is
also another evil which requires a remedy, and this might easily
be provided, by supplying the prisoners only with such articles
as were necessary to them; since those who had received
superfluous garments have been in the habit of resorting with
them to gaming, or sell them, being unable to apply them to any
purpose of wear, as their scanty make will not allow of a change;
this, however, would not be the case if the clothing was given to
them unmade, since every man would find himself enabled to turn
it to some beneficial purpose. The clothing has materially fallen
off, in point of quality and suitableness for the climate, of
late years; but the evil complained of would, in my opinion,
cease to exist, if articles similar to those originally
distributed in the time of Governor Phillip (of which I have seen
several suits) were now to be issued annually. Many of the
females indeed are the slaves of vanity and pride, and being in
the custom of cohabiting with persons in affluent circumstances,
never appear in the dress originally given them by the crown;
from such as these the issue is now withheld, and they are struck
off the victualling list. The consequence of these regulations
would be the obtainment of more comfortable clothing to the
convicts, and a considerable diminution in the sick list, which
has been filled as much from this as from any other cause; and a
degree of content and carefulness would be instilled into the
minds of the prisoners, in lieu of the negligence, slovenliness,
and discontent, which have recently prevailed amongst them on
that account.

A very considerable saving in the expenses of the colony would
be effected by the consolidation of the two offices of Ship-owner
and Contractor into one, and the undertaking to land all stores
which are liable to injury in the colony, in a perfect state, at
his own risk; for it is a notorious fact, as I have often had
occasion to observe in an official capacity, that vast quantities
of clothing, stores, and provisions, are landed out of every
vessel which arrives in the port, in such a damaged state as to
be actually unserviceable; the necessary consequence of which
very often is, the total loss of the articles to government; nor
has it unfrequently happened, that boxes containing stores have
been broke open on the passage, and articles of various
descriptions thereby have been purloined to a very great amount.
It cannot be doubted that there are many ship-owners who would
not scruple to enter into an engagement of the kind to which I
have alluded, by sending out his own vessels, and might undertake
to convey the stores safely at a very reduced expense. The saving
which would thus be effected is surely sufficient to justify the
experiment, since the security of the articles, which are in
general the most damaged, might be easily guarded by the adoption
of a few measures of prudent precaution, and by a careful
attention during the voyage. A considerable advantage might also
accrue to the merchant from employing his vessels in the Southern
Whale-fishery, and a strong probability would exist of his
procuring freights from India for his ships, on account of the
East India Company: The adoption of this plan seems to be
practicable, and there cannot be a reasonable doubt entertained
of its superiority over every other in point of economy.

A commissioner or agent might be appointed for the purposes of
inspecting the stores and various articles sent to New South
Wales, whose duty it would be to see the articles shipped
correctly, and thus to prevent those omissions which are daily in
the habit of occurring, and which are of more consequence than
may, at first glance, be imagined. This person might also be
beneficially employed in comparing the stores shipped with the
receipts of the masters, so as to preclude all possibility of
practices which are inconsistent with the welfare of the
government, but which are too common, and can only be prevented
by the adoption of such a measure as the one which I now propose.
Whenever the governor of the colony should send over a
requisition, this agent ought immediately to be furnished with an
extract from his excellency's correspondence, so that by these
means the requisition would not be liable to neglect, and much
trouble would be spared to the Public Office, whose province it
had previously been to attend to this department. The reduction
of expense which would result from this appointment would be much
more than adequate to the increased expense incurred by the
appointment and remuneration of a gentleman of probity and
respectability to this office.

The method of conveying convicts from England is so very
inhuman, that some better and more benevolent measure ought to be
adopted. The lives of these unfortunate victims of depravity
ought surely to be regarded with as much care as those of any
other class of his Majesty's subjects; the contrary of this has,
however, been too frequently the case, and some of the masters of
the transports who have been entrusted with these captives, have
treated them with such uniform rigour that numbers have perished
through the intensity of their sufferings. This want of care is
to be attributed to the former custom of contracting for the
transport of the convicts at so much per head, so that the master
has no interest in the preservation of those entrusted to his
care. This evil, too, might also be remedied by the contract
being made only for the number which might be landed in New South
Wales, and by which means the owner of the transport would study
to preserve the life of each individual with the most studious
attention, since the loss of a single life would be a diminution
of his profit, and there could no longer be a danger of the
unhappy prisoners being suffered to perish from any negligence or
severity. In addition to this, the surgeon and the master might
receive a reward for each person whom they delivered in good
order, if their humanity was such as to require a pecuniary
stimulus. I believe this has been tried in some instances, at
least report has so stated, and, if so, there must have been
sufficient evidence gained of the superiority of the method over
that which was formerly adopted. It might not be a bad plan to
try if some of the superfluous frigates in the service might not
be converted into good transports; for there could be no doubt
that, in vessels of this description, the accommodations which
might be afforded to the convicts would much exceed those of the
common transport ships, and the prisoners would of course be
sooner fit for duty, and less liable to the attacks of disease.
Out of several ships that have arrived, not two-thirds of the
number of convicts originally put on board have reached their
place of destination; and this mortality, it is feared, must have
been occasioned by the embezzlement of the provisions and stores
which were intended for the use of the captives. It is also much
to be feared that an undue degree of severity has oftentimes been
exercised towards the convicts, under the pretence of some
attempts to mutiny and effect their escape, and such methods of
throwing censure upon the innocent, to excuse wantonness and
cruelty, cannot be too severely reprehended, if reprehension be
all that can be inflicted upon the perpetrators of such
diabolical deeds. The treatment has been directly reverse where a
King's officer has been placed on board the transport, who
evinced an unshaken resolution to perform his duty. The convicts
which came out on board the Royal Admiral, Captain Bond, met with
a treatment, and arrived in a condition, which reflected the
highest honour on the humanity and prudence of her esteemed
commander, and might be properly held forth as a model and an
example to the masters of all transports who may in future be
employed in the service. Every attention was paid to their
cleanliness in particular, care was taken to provide them with
the most wholesome provisions, and their messes were so varied as
to prevent any dislike arising from repetitions with too much
frequency; on the slightest appearance of indisposition, some
nourishing broths, wine, etc. were constantly ordered; twice a
day they were mustered on deck, and the ship was completely
fumigated: The whole arrived in the most excellent health and
spirits imaginable. If every master had displayed a similar good
conduct, there would have been no ground for the present
complaint, nor any room for the remedy which I suggest in the
preceding part of this article.

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