In the year 1846, when His Excellency Colonel Robe laid the estimates on

the table of the Legislative Council, its attention was drawn to the

state of education and religion in the province, and after a long

discussion on the subject, a grant of 2s. per head was voted to the

different sects in aid of religion and education. It was left to the

ministers of the Protestant Church, and to the proper officers of the

other persuasions to appropriate the sum received by each, according to

the last census, as they deemed best, for the promotion of one or the

other of the above purposes, with the sole condition that they should

render an account yearly to the Council of the manner in which the

several sums had been appropriated. Yet this provision, which without

interfering in the slightest degree with any religious sect, gave to the

heads of each the greater power of doing good, caused very great

dissatisfaction. All I can say is, that it was an instance of liberal and

enlightened views of government, of which the Council of South Australia

in having set the example ought to be proud.

The Legislative Council of New South Wales has since, I believe, followed

its example, and I sincerely trust the good that is anticipated, will

result from this proof on the part of both Governments to raise the moral

and social character of the people.

In addition to the schools already noticed, there is a school for the

natives on the Park lands. At this school there were in 1847, thirty-five

boys and twenty-nine girls. The establishment being entirely under the

superintendence of the Government, is kept in the very best order; the

apartments are neat and clean, the master is patient and indulgent, and

if we could hope for any improvement in the moral and social habits of

the aborigines, it would be under circumstances so promising, but as I

propose, in another place, to make some observations on the natives

generally, it may not be necessary for me to add to the above remarks at

the present moment.

Of other public buildings not under the immediate controul of the

Government, the Bank of South Australia is certainly the first. It stands

on the North Terrace and is a prominent and pleasing object from whatever

point of view it is seen. There are, however, several other very

creditable buildings in different parts of the city.

Had the city of Adelaide been laid out in the first instance on a smaller

plan, it would now have been a compact and well-built town, but

unfortunately it was planned on too large a scale, and it will

necessarily have a straggling appearance for many years to come.

North and South Adelaide are, as I have already stated, separated from

each other by the valley of the Torrens, than which nothing can be

prettier. Its grassy flats are shaded by beautiful and umbrageous trees,

and the scenery is such as one could not have expected in an unimproved

state. The valley of the Torrens is a portion of the Park lands which run

round the city to the breadth of half a mile. Nothing could have been

more judicious than the appropriation of this open space for the

amusement and convenience of the public, and for the establishment of

those museums and institutions which tend so much to direct the taste,

and promote the scientific improvement of a people.

Beyond the Park lands, the preliminary sections, of 134 acres each,

extend to a certain distance--many of which have been laid out into

smaller sections, and the city is surrounded by numerous villages, few of

which add to its appearance. This certainly may be said of Thebarton,

Hindmarsh, Boden, and several other villages, but those of Richmond, and

Kensington, embosomed in trees, and picturesque in scenery, bear a strong

resemblance to the quiet and secluded villages of England.

In Hindmarsh, Mr. Ridley, whose mechanical genius has been of such public

utility, and whose enterprise is so well known, has established his steam

flour-mill, which is the largest in the province. In addition to this,

the South Australian Company has a steam-mill at the upper bridge; there

are several of a smaller size in the city, and the total number of

flour-mills in the Colony, including wind and water mills is twenty-two.

This general description of the capital of South Australia will perhaps

suffice to shew its rapid growth during the eleven short years since the

first wooden dwelling was erected upon its site.

It may be necessary for me to state that its peace and order are

preserved by a body of police, whose vigilance and activity are as

creditable to them as their own good conduct and cleanliness of

appearance; and whilst the returns of the supreme court, and the general

unfrequency of crime, prove the moral character of the working classes

generally, the fewness of convictions for crimes of deeper shade amongst

that class of the population from whose habit of idleness and drinking we

should naturally look for a greater amount of crime, as undoubtedly

proves the vigilance of the police. From the return of convictions before

Mr. Cooper the Judge, it is clear that the majority of those who have

been brought before him are men who have already suffered for former

breach of the laws, and who, having escaped from the neighbouring

Colonies, have vainly endeavoured to break themselves of former evil

habits. The eyes of the police are however so steadily kept on such men,

that they have little chance of escaping detection if they commit

themselves, and they consequently level their aim at those who encourage

them in vice, and who, in reality, are little better than themselves in

morals, as knowing that, in many instances, they will not dare to bring

them to punishment.

There are five principal roads leading from Adelaide; three into the

interior, and two to the coast. Of the three first, one leads to the

north, through Gawler Town, one as the Great Eastern Road leads to Mount

Barker and the Murray, and the third running southwards, crosses the

range to Encounter Bay. Of the roads leading to the coast, the one goes

to the Port, the other to Glenelg. In endeavouring to give a description

of the country, and enabling the reader to judge of it, I would propose

to take him along each of these roads, and to point out the character and

changes of the country on either side, for the one is peculiar and the

others are diversified. My desire is to present such a view of the colony

to the minds of my readers, as shall enable them to estimate its

advantages and disadvantages. I would speak of both with equal

impartiality and decision. The grounds of attachment I entertain for this

colony rest not on any private stake I have in its pastoral or mineral

interests, and I hope the reader will believe that my feelings towards it

are such as would only lead me to speak as it really and truly should be

spoken of. There is no country, however fair, that has not some drawback

or other. There are no hopes, however promising, that may not be

blighted; no prospects, however encouraging, that may not wither.

Unfitness for the new field of enterprise on which a man may

enter--unpropitious seasons, the designs of others, or unforeseen

misfortunes; one or more of these may combine to bring about results very

opposite from those we had anticipated. I would not therefore take upon

myself the responsibility of giving advice, but enter upon a general

description of the province of South Australia as a tourist, whose

curiosity had led him to make inquiries into the capabilities of the

country through which he had travelled, and who could therefore speak to

other matters, besides the description of landscape or the smoothness of

a road.

If we take our departure from Adelaide by the great Northern Road, we

shall have to travel 25 miles over the plains, keeping the Mount Lofty

Range at greater and less distances on our right, the plains extending in

varying breadth to the westward, ere we can pull up at Calton's Hotel in

Gawler Town, where, nevertheless, we should find every necessary both for

ourselves and our horses.

That township, the first and most promising on the Northern Road, is, as

I have stated, 25 miles from Adelaide; and occupies the angle formed by

the junction of the Little Para and the Gawler Rivers; the one coming

from south-east, and the other from north-north-east; the traveller

approaching from the south therefore, would have to cross the first of

these little streams before he can enter the town.

Still, in its infancy, Gawler Town will eventually be a place of

considerable importance. Through it all the traffic of the north must

necessarily pass, and here, it appears to me, will be the great markets

for the sale or purchase of stock. From its junction with the Little

Para, the Gawler flows to the westward to the shores of St. Vincent's

Gulf. It has extensive and well wooded flats of deep alluvial soil along

its banks, flanked by the plains of Adelaide--the river line of trees

running across them, only with a broader belt of wood, just as the line

of trees near Adelaide indicates the course of that river. If I except

these features, and two or three open box-tree forests at no great

distance from Albert Town, the plains are almost destitute of timber, and

being very level, give an idea of extent they do not really possess,

being succeeded by pine forests and low scrub to the north from Gawler

Town.

The Gawler discharges itself into a deep channel or inlet, which, like

the creek at Port Adelaide, has mangrove swamps on either side; still the

inlet is capable of great improvement, and the anchorage at its mouth, so

high up the gulf is safe, and if it were only for the shipment of goods,

for tran-shipment at Port Adelaide, Port Gawler as it is called, would be

of no mean utility, but it is probable that ships might take in cargo at

once, in which case it would be to the interest of the northern settlers

to establish a port there. Captain Allen and Mr. Ellis, two of the most

independent settlers in the province, are the possessors of the land on

both sides the Gawler, and I feel confident it is a property that will

greatly increase in value. The alluvial flats along this little stream,

are richer and more extensive than those of the Torrens, and they seem to

me to be calculated for the production of many things that would be less

successfully cultivated in any other part of the province. Apart,

however, from any advantages Gawler Town may derive from the facilities

of water communication, it will necessarily be in direct communication

with Port Adelaide, as soon as a road is made between them. At present

the drays conveying the ore and other exports are obliged to keep the

great northern line to within a few miles of the city, before they turn

off almost at a right angle to the Port; but there can be no doubt as to

the formation of a direct line of communication with the Port from Gawler

Town, if not of the establishment of a railway, ere many years shall

elapse, for not only are the principal stock stations of the province,

but the more valuable mines to the north of this town.

Up to this point the traveller does not quit the plains of Adelaide, the

Mount Lofty Range being to the eastward of him and the plains, bounded by

the mangrove swamps extending towards St. Vincent's Gulf. Generally

speaking, for their extent the soil is not good, but there are patches of

alluvial soil, the deposits of creeks falling from the hills, that are

rich and fertile. Yet, notwithstanding the quality of the soil, a great

portion of the Adelaide plains have been purchased and are under

cultivation. There is a great deficiency of surface water upon them, but

it is procurable by digging wells; and Mr. Ellis I believe has rendered

those parts of them contiguous to the Gawler available as sheep stations,

by sinking wells for the convenience of his men and stock; neither can

there be a doubt but that many other apparently unavailable parts of the

province might be rendered available by the adoption of similar means, or

by the construction of tanks in favourable situations.

This is a point it is impossible to urge too much on the attention of the

Australian stock holder. There is generally speaking a deficiency of

water in those Colonies, and large tracts of country favourable to stock

are unoccupied in consequence, but the present liberal conditions on

which leases of Crown lands are granted will make it worth the sheep

farmer's while to make those improvements which shall so conduce to his

prosperity and comfort.

In proof of this, I would observe that I had several capacious tanks on

my property at Varroville, near Sydney, for which I was indebted to Mr.

Wells the former proprietor, and not only did they enable me to retain a

large quantity of stock on my farm, when during a season of unmitigated

drought my neighbours were obliged to drive their cattle to distant parts

of the Colony--but I allowed several poor families to draw their supplies

from, and to water some of their cattle at my reservoirs.

Beyond Gawler Town the country changes in character and appearance,

whether you continue the northern road across the river, or turn more to

the eastward, you leave the monotonous plain on which you have journeyed

behind, and speedily advance into an undulating hilly country, lightly

wooded withal, and containing many very rich, if not beautiful valleys.

The Barossa Range and the districts round it are exceedingly pretty.

Here, at Bethany, the Germans who have fled from the religious

persecution to which they were exposed in their own country have settled,

and given the names of several places in their Fatherland to the features

around them. The Keizerstuhl rises the highest point in the Barossa

Range, the outline of which is really beautiful, and the Rhine that

issues from its deep and secluded valleys flows northwards through their

lands.

In this neighbourhood Mr. Angas has a valuable property, as also the

South Australian Company. Angas Park is a place of great picturesque

beauty, and is capable of being made as ornamental as any nobleman's

estate in England. The direct road to the Murray River passes through

Angas Park, but a more northerly course leads the traveller past the

first of those valuable properties to which South Australia is mainly

indebted for her present prosperous state. I mean the copper mines of

Kapunda, the property of Captain Bagot, who, with Mr. Francis Dutton,

became the discoverer and purchaser of the ground on which the principal

lode has been ascertained to exist. There has been a large quantity of

mineral land sold round this valuable locality, but although indications

of copper are everywhere to be seen, no quantity sufficiently great to

justify working had I believe been found up to the time I left the

Colony. As however I shall have to give a more detailed account of the

mines of South Aust ralia, it may not be necessary for me to speak of

them at length in this place.

Captain Bagot is anxious to establish a township in the vicinity of

Kapunda, and he will no doubt succeed, the very concourse of people round

such a place being favourable to his views.

Beyond this point to the north the coast range of Mount Lofty, which thus

far preserves a northerly direction, throws off a chain to the westward

of that point, but the main range still continues to run up into the

interior on its original bearing, rather increasing than decreasing in

height. Upon it, the Razor Back Mount Brian, to the south of which is the

great Burra Burra mine, and the Black Rock Hill, rise to the height of

2922, 3012 and 2750 respectively. On the more western branch of the

chain, Mount Remarkable, Mount Brown, and Mount Arden, so named by

Captain Flinders, form the principal features. This chain has been traced

by Mr. Eyre to Mount Hopeless, in lat. 29 1/2, and has been found by him

to terminate in the basin of Lake Torrens. The main range on the contrary

has only been followed up to lat. 32 degrees 10 minutes, beyond which

point it cannot extend to any great distance, as if it did, I should

necessarily have seen something of it during my recent expedition. It is

a remarkable fact that the further the northern ranges have been followed

up, the more denuded of trees they have become. Immense tracts of land,

through portions of which the Wakefield flows, rich in soil and abundant

in pasture, have scarcely a tree upon them. The scenery round Mount

Remarkable on the contrary is bold and picturesque, and much diversified

by woodland.

Here again the indications of copper were so abundant, that 20,000 acres

were taken as a special survey a short time before I left the Colony. The

occupation of this land will necessarily extend the boundaries of

location, but up to the period when the survey was taken, Mr. White,

formerly a resident at Port Lincoln, was the most distant stockholder to

the north.

Proceeding eastward from Angas Park, the road to the Murray river leads

through a hilly country of an inferior description, portions only of it

being occupied as sheep stations. From the brow of the last of these

hills, the eye wanders over the dark and gloomy sea of scrub, known as

the Murray belt, through which the traveller has to pass before he gains

the bank of the river or the station at Moorundi. He descends direct upon

the level plain over which he has to go, and after passing some pretty

scenery on the banks of a creek close to which the road runs, and

crossing an open interval, he enters the belt, through which it will take

him four hours to penetrate. This singular feature is a broad line of

wood, composed in the lower part of Eucalyptus dumosa, a straggling tree,

growing to an inconsiderable height, rising at once from the ground with

many slender stems, and affording but an imperfect shade. About the

latitude of 34 degrees the character of the Murray belt changes--it

becomes denser and more diversified. Pine trees on sandy ridges, Acacia,

Hakea, Exocarpi, and many other shrubs form a thick wood, through which

it is difficult to keep a correct course. Occasionally a low brush

extends to the cliffs overlooking the valley of the Murray, but it may be

said, that there is an open space varying in breadth from half a-mile to

three miles between the Murray belt and the river. It is a flat table

land about 250 or 300 feet above the level of the sea, the substratum

being of the tertiary fossil formation. The surface is a mixture of red

sand and clay, mixed with calcareous limestone in small rounded nodules.

The very nature of this soil is heating, and the consequence is that it

has little herbage at any one time. There is however a succession of

vegetation, especially during the spring months, which, from the fact of

the cattle being particularly fond of it, must I should imagine be both

sweet and nutritious.

Any one who has ever been on the banks of the Murray will admit that it

is a noble river. The description I have already given supersedes the

necessity of my dwelling on it here. In another place I shall have to

speak of it, not in a commercial point of view, but as a line of

communication between two distant colonies, and the important part it has

acted in the advancement of the province of South Australia. As a

commercial river, I fear it will not be of practical utility. To prove

this, it may be necessary for me to observe that the Murray runs for more

than five degrees of latitude through a desert. That it is tortuous in

its course, and is in many places encumbered with timber, and its depth

entirely depends on the seasons. The difficulties, therefore, that

present themselves to the navigation of the central Murray are such as to

preclude the hope of its ever being made available for such a purpose,

even admitting that its banks were located at every available point.

Moorundi, the property of Mr. Eyre, the present Lieutenant-Governor of

New Zealand, is ninety miles from Adelaide, and twenty-six from the N.W.

bend of the Murray. It is part of a special survey of four thousand acres

taken by Mr. Eyre and Mr. Gilles on the banks of the river, and in

consequence of its appropriate position, was selected by Captain Grey,

the then Governor of South Australia, as a station for a Resident

Magistrate and Protector of the Aborigines, to fill both which

appointments he nominated Mr. Eyre. There can be no doubt, either as to

the foresight which dictated the establishment of this post on the banks

of the Murray, or the selection of Mr. Eyre as the Resident. At the time

this measure was decided on, the feelings of the natives on the river

were hostile to the settlers. The repeated collisions between them and

the Overlanders had kindled a deep spirit of revenge in their breasts,

and although they suffered severely in every contest, they would not

allow any party with stock to pass along the line of the river without

attempting to stop their progress; and there can be no doubt but that, in

this frame of mind, they would have attacked the station next the river

if they had been left to themselves, and with their stealthy habits and

daring, would have been no mean enemy on the boundaries of location. The

character and spirit of these people is entirely misunderstood and

undervalued by the learned in England, and the degraded position in the

scale of the human species into which they have been put, has, I feel

assured, been in consequence of the little intercourse that had taken

place between the first navigators and the aborigines of the Australian

Continent. I have seen them under every variety of circumstances--have

come suddenly upon them in a state of uncontrolled freedom--have passed

tribe after tribe under the protection of envoys--have visited them in

their huts--have mixed with them in their camps, and have seen them in

their intercourse with Europeans, and I am, in candour, obliged to

confess that the most unfavourable light in which I have seen them, has

been when mixed up with Europeans.

That the natives of the interior have made frequent attacks on the

stations of the settlers I have no doubt; very likely, in some instances,

they have done so without any direct provocation, but we must not forget

their position or the consequences of the extension of boundaries of

location to the aborigines themselves. The more ground our flocks and

herds occupy, the more circumscribed become the haunts of the savage. Not

only is this the inevitable consequence, but he sees the intruder running

down his game with dogs of unequalled strength and swiftness, and

deplores the destruction of his means of subsistence. The cattle tread

down the herbs which at one season of the year constituted his food. The

gun, with its sharp report, drives the wild fowl from the creeks, and the

unhappy aborigine is driven to despair. He has no country on which to

fall back. The next tribe will not permit him to occupy their territory.

In such a state what is he to do? Is it a matter of surprise that in the

confidence of numbers he should seek to drive those who have intruded on

him back again, and endeavour to recover possession of his lost domain?

It might be that the parties concerned were not conscious of the injury

they were inflicting, but even that fact would not lessen the fancied

right of the native to repossess himself of his lost territory. Yet on

the other hand we cannot condemn resistance on the part of the white man;

for it would be unjust to overlook the fearful position in which they are

placed, and the terrible appearance of a party of savages working

themselves up to the perpetration of indiscriminate slaughter. No doubt

many parties have gone to take up stations in the interior, with the

honest intention of keeping on good terms with the natives, and who in

accordance with such resolution have treated them with hospitality and

consideration; but, it unfortunately happens that a prolonged intercourse

with the Europeans weakens and at length destroys those feelings of awe

and uncertainty with which they were at first regarded. The natives find

that they are men like themselves, and that their intrusion is an injury,

and they perhaps become the aggressors in provoking hostilities. In such

a case resistance becomes a matter of personal defence, and however much

such collisions may be regretted, the parties concerned can hardly be

brought to account; but, it more frequently happens, that the men who are

sent to form out-stations beyond the boundaries of location, are men of

bold and unscrupulous dispositions, used to crime, accustomed to danger,

and reckless as to whether they quarrel, or keep on terms with the

natives who visit them. Thrown to such a distance in the wild, in some

measure out of the pale of the law, without any of the opposite sex to

restrain their passions, the encouragement these men give to their sable

friends, is only for the gratification of their passions. The seizure of

some of their women, and the refusal to give them up, provokes hostility

and rouses resentment, but those who scruple not at the commission of one

act of violence, most assuredly will not hesitate at another. Such cases

are gene rally marked by some circumstances that betray its character,

and naturally rouse the indignation of the Government. If the only

consequence was the punishment of the guilty, we should rejoice in such

retributive justice; but, unfortunately and too frequently, it happens,

that the station belongs to a stockholder, who, both from feelings of

interest and humanity, has treated the natives with every consideration,

and discountenanced any ill-treatment of them on the part of his

servants, but whose property is nevertheless sacrificed by their

misconduct.

I have been unintentionally led into this subject, in the course of my

remarks on the policy of Captain Grey, in establishing the post at

Moorundi. The consequences have been equally beneficial to the settlers

and aborigines. The eastern out-stations of the province have been

unmolested, and parties with stock have passed down the Murray in perfect

safety. If any act of violence or robbery has been committed by the

natives, the perpetrators have been delivered up by the natives

themselves, who have learnt that it is their interest to refrain from

such acts; and instead of the Murray being the scene of conflict and

slaughter, its whole line is now occupied by stock-stations, and

tranquillity everywhere prevails.

About seventy {FIFTEEN in published text} miles below Moorundi is

Wellington, where a ferry has been established across the Murray, that

township being on the direct road from Adelaide to Mount Gambier, and

Rivoli Bay. A little below Wellington, Lake Victoria receives the waters

of the Murray, which eventually mingle with those of the ocean,

through the sea mouth.

The country immediately to the eastward of the Murray affords, in some

places, a scanty supply of grass for sheep, but, generally speaking, it

is similar in its soil and rock formation, and consequently in its

productions to the scrubby country to the westward. The line of granite I

have mentioned, in the former part of my work, as traversing or crossing

the Murray below Wellington, continues through the scrub, large blocks

being frequent amongst the brushes on a somewhat lower level than the

tertiary fossil limestone in its neighbourhood. Round these blocks of

granite the soil is considerably better, and there is a coating of grass

upon it, as far as the ground consists of the decomposed rock.

About sixty miles to the E.S.E. of Wellington is the Tatiara country,

once celebrated for the ferocity and cannibalism of its inhabitants, but

now occupied by the settlers, who have of late crossed the Murray in

considerable numbers to form stations there. The distance from Wellington

to the district of Mount Gambier, said to be the fairest portion of South

Australia, whether as regards its climate or its soil, is more than 200

miles. The first portion of the road, to almost the above distance, is

through a perfect desert, in which, excepting during the rainy season,

water is scarcely to be found, so that the journey is not performed

without its privation. After passing Lake Albert the traveller has to

journey at no great distance from the Coorong over a low country, once

covered by the waters of the ocean, the noise of whose billows he hears

through the silence of the night. The first elevation he reaches is a

continuation of the great fossil bed, through which the volcanic hills,

where he will ultimately arrive, have been forced up. Mount Gambier, the

principal of these, is about 40 miles from the Glenelg, and 50 from

Rivoli Bay. The country from either of these points is low for many

miles, but well grassed, of the richest soil, and in many places

abundantly timbered. Mount Gambier is scarcely visible until you almost

reach its base--nor even then is its outward appearance different from

other hills. On reaching its summit, however, you find youself on the

brink of a crater, standing indeed on a precipice, with a small sheet of

water of about half-a-mile in circumference, two hundred feet below you;

the water of which is as blue as indigo, and seems to be very deep; no

bottom indeed has been found at 50 fathoms. The ground round the base of

Mount Gambier is very open, and you may ride your horse along it

unchecked for many miles. At the lower parts, and at some distance from

it, the ground is moist, and many caverns have been found in which water

of the very purest kind exists, no doubt deposited in the natural

reservoirs by percolation from the higher ground. The whole formation of

the district, these capacious caverns, and the numerous and extensive

tea-tree swamps along the coast, plainly demonstrate that they are

supplied by gradual filtration, or find their way through the

interstices, or cells of the lava to the lower levels.

It is generally admitted that the greater part of the land in the

neighbourhood of Mount Gambier is equal to the richest soil, whether of

Van Diemen's Land or of Port Phillip, the general character indeed of

this district, and the fact of its being so much farther to the south

than Adelaide, its perpetual verdure and moister climate would lead to

the supposition that it is capable of producing grain of the very finest

quality, and there can, I think, be but little doubt that it will rival

the sister colonies in its agricultural productions, and considering the

nature of the soil is similar to that round the volcanic peaks in the

Mediterranean, it will also produce wine of a superior description.

Settlers both from the province of South Australia and neighbouring

colonies have vied with each other in securing stations in this fertile,

but remote district, and it would appear from the number of allotments

that have been purchased in the townships which have been established on

the coast that settlers are fast flocking to it.

From what has been stated it would seem that the district of Mount

Gambier is adapted rather for agricultural than pastoral pursuits, and

that it is consequently favourable for occupation by a rural population.

Tea-tree swamps (melaleuca) are a feature, I believe, peculiar to South

Australia, and generally indicate the presence of springs, and always of

moisture. The soil is of the very richest quality, and there is, perhaps,

no ground in the world that is more suitable for gardens, and as these

swamps are both numerous and extensive in the lower country, behind

Rivoli and Guichen Bays, this portion of the province promises equally

fair for the growth of those European fruits which are less

advantageously cultivated in the more northern parts of the province.

Returning to Adelaide, and proceeding from thence to the eastward, along

the great eastern or Mount Barker line, we cross, in the first instance,

the remaining portion of the plains lying between the city and the hills,

to the base of which the distance is about three miles, the whole is laid

out in farms, and is extensively and carefully cultivated. As you

approach the hills, the country becomes lightly wooded and undulating,

affording numerous sites for villas, on which many have already been

erected, both by settlers and the more opulent tradesmen. Individuals

indeed, residing in England, can form but a faint idea of the comforts

and conveniences they enjoy, at such a distance from their native

country. Being at sufficient elevation to catch the sea breeze, which

passes over the plains of Adelaide, without being felt, they have almost

the advantage of living near the sea coast, and the cool winds that sweep

down the valleys behind them, and constitute the land breeze, ensure to

them cool and refreshing evenings, when those dwelling at a lower

elevation are oppressed by heat. On the first rise of the mountains is

the Glen Osmond Lead Mine, which will be noticed hereafter. The Mount

Barker district being more numerously settled than most other parts of

the province, and being one of its most important and fertile districts,

more labour has been expended on the road leading into it, than on any

other in the colony. From the level of the Glen Osmond Mine, it winds up

a romantic valley, with steep hills of rounded form, generally covered

with grass, and studded lightly with trees on either side, nor is it,

until you attain the summit of the Mount Lofty range, that any change

takes place in the character of the hills or the vegetation, you then

find yourself travelling through a dense forest of stringy barks, the

finest of which have been levelled to the ground, with the axe, for the

purpose of being sawn into planks for building, or split into rails for

fencing. From Crafer's Inn, situated under the peak of Mount Lofty, the

road to Mount Barker passes through a barren country for some miles, and

crosses several steep valleys, in the centre of which there are rippling

streams; the summit of the ranges still continues to be thickly wooded,

the ground underneath being covered with shrubs and flowers of numberless

kinds and varied beauty. In illustration of this, I may observe, that the

first time I crossed the Mount Lofty range, I amused myself pulling the

different kinds of flowers as I rode along, and on counting them when I

reached Adelaide for the purpose of arranging them in a book, found that

I had no less than ninety-three varieties. The majority of these,

however, consisted of papilionaceous plants, and several beautiful

varieties of Orchideae. On descending to a lower level, after crossing

the Onkaparinga, the scenery and the country at once change, you find

yourself upon rich alluvial flats, flanked by barren rocky hills, the air

during the spring being perfumed by the scent of the Tetratheca, a

beautiful hill flower, at that time in splendid blossom, and growing in

profusion on the tops of the hills, mingled with the Chyranthera, with

its light blue blossoms; both these plants it has always appeared, are

well adapted for the edges of borders, but there are not many plants in

Australia that would be fit for such a purpose.

It does not appear necessary, in a work like this, to trouble the reader

with an account of every village or of every valley in the districts

through which I lead him; my object is to give a general and faithful

description of the country only, reserving the power of drawing attention

to any thing I may deem worthy of notice. Taking the district of Mount

Barker therefore in its full range, I would observe, that it is one of

the finest agricultural districts in the province. It abounds in very

many beautiful alluvial valleys, which, when I first crossed, had grass

that rose above the horses middles as they walked through it, and looked

luxuriant beyond description. These valleys are limited both in length

and breadth, but are level and clear; their soil is a rich alluvial

deposit, and the plough can be driven from one end to the other without

meeting a single obstacle to check its progress. Independently of these

valleys, there are other portions of good grazing land in the Mount

Barker district, but there are, nevertheless, very many stony ranges that

are entirely useless even to stock. The Mount Barker district may be said

to extend from the village of Nairne to Strathalbyn, on the River Angas,

the latter place being 15 miles from the shores of Lake Victoria. Within

the range of this district, there are also the villages of Hahansdorf and

Macclesfield, the former being a German village, at no great distance

from Mount Barker. Immediately to the north of the village of Nairne is

Mount Torrens, the river of that name has several branches to the

north-east of it as high up as Mount Gould. The first of the Company's

special surveys, and perhaps some of the finest soil in the province is

in this locality. The surveys on the sources and tributaries of the

Torrens are splendid properties, and the Company may well consider them

as amongst the most valuable of its acquisitions; beyond the heads of the

Torrens the country is more hilly and less available. There are,

nevertheless, isolated spots sufficiently large for the most comfortable

homesteads. From this point, a west-south-west course will soon lead the

traveller into the plains of Adelaide, and at less than 10 miles after

entering upon them, he will again find himself in the metropolis. Again

departing from it for the southern parts of the province, he will keep

the Mount Lofty range upon his left, and will really find some difficulty

in passing the numberless fences which now enclose the plains. The land

indeed in this line of road is more fenced than in any other direction, a

reason for this may be that the road runs nearer the base of the hills,

and the land is consequently better than that on the lower ground. Many

very excellent farms are to be found on the banks of the Sturt and the

Onkaparinga, on the latter of which the village of Noorlunga has been

established, at the point where the road crosses it. The Sturt has a

tortuous course, somewhat to the northward of west, and falls into the

gulf at Glenelg, after spreading over the flats behind the sand-hills at

that place. The direction of the road is parallel to that of the ranges,

or nearly south-south-west as far as the village of Noorlunga, when it

turns more to the eastward of south, for Willunga, which is 28 miles

distant from Adelaide. The banks of the Onkaparinga, above the crossing

place, are extremely inaccessible, insomuch that stock can hardly be

driven down to water for many miles above that point. The hills however

are rounded in form, grassy, and clear of trees, consequently well

adapted for grazing purposes. It was at Noorlunga, which is not more than

two miles from the gulf, and can be approached in boats, as high as the

bridge there, that Captain Barker first landed on the South Australian

shore. The country between it and Willunga is generally good, portions of

it are sandy and scrubby, but Morphett's Vale is a rich and extensive

piece of land, and I can well remember before it was settled seeing

several large stacks of hay that had been cut, as it then lay in a state

of nature. Willunga is close under the foot of the hills, which here,

trending to the south-south-west, meet the coast line extremity of the

Southern Aldinga plains. Close to this point is a hill, called Mount

Terrible, almost of a conical shape, over the very summit of this, in the

early stages of the colony, the road led to Encounter Bay; and I shall

not forget the surprise I experienced, when going to that place, on

finding I could not by any possibility avoid this formidable obstacle. On

the other side of Mount Terrible the country is very scrubby for some

miles, until, all at once, you burst upon the narrow, but beautiful

valley of Mypunga. This beautiful valley, which had scarcely been trodden

by the European when I first encamped upon it, was then covered with

Orchideous plants of every colour, amidst a profusion of the richest

vegetation. A sweet rippling stream passed within five yards of my

tent-door, and found its way to the Gulf about a mile below me to the

west. It was on the occasion of my going to the sea mouth of the Murray,

that I first stopped at this spot. Amongst the boat's crew I had brought

with me from Adelaide a young lad, of not more than twenty-one, who had,

for some weeks before, been leading a very hard life. At Mypunga he was

seized with delirium tremens, and became so exceedingly outrageous, that

I was obliged to have his feet and hands tied. In the morning he was

still as frantic as ever, but the policeman, under whose charge I had

placed him, having imprudently loosened the cord from his ankles, he

suddenly started upon his feet, and gaining the scrub, through which we

had descended into the valley, with incredible swiftness, secreted

himself amongst it. Nor could we, by the utmost efforts during that and

the succeeding day, discover his hiding place. I was accompanied by a man

of the name of Foley, a bushranger of great notoriety, who had been

captured by the Adelaide police, and was sent with my party in the hope

that his knowledge of the coast would be of use to me, but neither could

he discover the unfortunate runaway, who, there is no doubt, subsequently

perished. Beyond Mypunga, to the south, are the valleys of Yankalilla and

Rapid Bay, but very little, if in any respect inferior to the first

mentioned place. The country between them is, however, extremely hilly,

and contains some beautifully romantic spots of ground. The rock

formation of this part of the ranges is very diversified; the upper part

of Rapid valley is a fine grey limestone; a little to the southward veins

both of copper and lead have been discovered, and I have good reason for

supposing that quicksilver will one day or other be found in this part of

the province. At Willunga there is a small stream, which issues from a

valley close behind the township, and appears in former times to have

laid many hundred acres of the flats below under water. Their soil is

composed of the very richest alluvial deposit, and has produced some of

the finest crops of wheat in the province. Aldinga plains lie to the

south-west of Willunga, and are sufficiently extensive to feed numerous

sheep, but unavailable in consequence of the deficiency of water upon

them, and are an instance of a large tract of land lying in an

unprofitable state, which might, with little trouble and expense, by

sinking wells in different parts, be rendered extremely valuable. On

ascending the hills above Willunga, in following up the southern line of

road to Encounter Bay, it leads for several miles through a stringy-bark

forest, and brings the traveller upon the great sandy basin, between

Willunga and Currency Creek. This gloomy and sterile feature bears a

strong contrast to the rich and fertile valleys I have described, and is

really a most remarkable formation in the geology of the province. At an

elevation of between 600 and 700 feet this basin is surrounded on all

sides by rugged stony hills, excepting to the south and south-east, in

which direc tion it falls into the valley of the Hindmarsh and Currency

Creek respectively. Mount Magnificent, Mount Compass, and Mount Jagged,

rise in isolated groups in different parts of the basin, the soil of

which is pure sand, its surface is undulating, and in many parts covered

with stunted banksias, through which it is difficult to force one's way

in riding along. The Finniss rises behind Mount Magnificent, and is

joined by a smaller branch from Mount Compass, as it flows from the

eastward. At about 25 miles from Willunga the traveller descends into the

valley of Currency Creek, and finds the change from the barren tract over

which he has been riding as sudden as when he entered upon it from the

rich flats of Willunga. The valley of Currency Creek is not, however, the

same as those I have already described in other parts of the colony; it

is prettily wooded and grassy, but continues narrow for some distance

after you have entered it; a small running stream, with a rocky bed,

occupying the centre of the valley, which ultimately escapes from the

hills by a kind of gorge, and discharges itself into an arm of the

Goolwa. The extent of good land in Currency Creek is not very great, and

is bounded both to the north and south by barren scrub. Due south, at the

distance from 15 to 18 miles, is Encounter Bay, the country intervening

between the two points to the shores of the Goolwa is very level, the

soil is light but rich, and there appeared to me to be many thousand

acres that were adapted for agricultural purposes, better adapted indeed

than the richer soils. Whether that view be correct or not, the valleys

of the Inman and Hindmarsh immediately behind Encounter Bay would fully

make up for the want of agricultural land in this part of the province.

Hindmarsh valley is not of any great extent, but the soil is good, and

its scenery in my humble opinion surpasses any other I remember in South

Australia. I shall never, indeed, forget the beautiful effect of sunset,

on a fine bold mountain at the head of it, called the Black Hill. The

glowing orb was fast descending behind it to the west, and the Black Hill

was cast into deep shade, whilst the sun's rays shooting down two valleys

on either side gave the grass the appearance of young wheat. The extent

of arable land in the valley of the Inman is very considerable, but in

point of scenery bears no comparison with the first. I do not know

whether I have made it sufficiently clear that there is a high range at

the back of the coast hereabouts. If not, I would observe that it runs

uninterruptedly from Mount Lofty to Cape Jarvis. Opposite to Encounter

Bay it occupies nearly the centre of the promontory, and consequently

forms a division of the eastern and western waters, there being a

considerable breadth of barren stringy-bark forest between the heads of

the opposite valleys, here as on the higher parts of the ranges near

Mount Lofty, from the ascent of the great eastern road to the valley of

the Onkerparinga.

It is a remarkable fact, but one that I believe I have already adverted

to, that the farther north, towards the valley of the Wakefield, the more

denuded of timber the country becomes, until at last not a tree of any

kind can be seen. These extensive and open downs are, nevertheless, well

grassed, and covered with a profusion of orchideous plants. Whether,

however, there is any salt present in the soil, to check the growth of

the trees, it is impossible to say. Undoubtedly many of the ponds in the

Wakefield, as well as other parts of the province are brackish, but the

same denuded state of the country exists not any where else. These

districts are far too valuable to be overlooked, and are therefore

extensively occupied by cattle and sheep. My most worthy friend, Mr.

Charles Campbell, and my companion Mr. John Browne, and his brother, both

occupy the most distant stations to the north. Mr. Campbell has one of

the finest cattle runs in the province, and my comrade, I believe, is

perfectly satisfied with his run. The condition of their cattle and sheep

would at all events lead to the conclusion, that neither suffer from the

nature of the water they drink or the pasture on which they feed.

As regards the general appearance of the wooded portion of the province,

I would remark, that excepting on the tops of the ranges where the

stringy-bark grows; in the pine forests, and where there are belts of

scrub on barren or sandy ground, its character is that of open forest

without the slightest undergrowth save grass. The trees are more or less

numerous according to the locality, as well as more or less umbrageous, a

character they generally have on river flats, but the habit of the

eucalyptus is, generally speaking, straggling in its branches. In many

places the trees are so sparingly, and I had almost said judiciously

distributed as to resemble the park lands attached to a gentleman's

residence in England, and it only wants the edifice to complete the

comparison.

The proportion of good to bad land in the province has generally been

considered as divisible into three parts; that is to say, land entirely

unavailable--land adapted for pastoral purposes only, and land of a

superior quality. On due consideration, I am afraid this is not a correct

estimate, but that unavailable country greatly preponderates over the

other two. If, in truth, keeping the distant interior entirely out of

view, and confining our observations to those portions of the colony into

which the settlers have pushed in search for runs, we look to the great

extent of unavailable country between the Murray and the Mount Gambier

district, along the line of the Murray belt, and the extensive tracts at

the head of the Gulfs, we shall find that South Australia, from the very

nature of its formation, has an undue proportion of waste land. Those

parts, however, which I have mentioned as being unavailable, were once

covered by the sea, and could hardly be expected to be other than we now

see them, and it may, therefore, be questioned how far they ought to be

put into the scale. In this view of the matter, and taking the hilly

country only into account, the proportion of unavailable and of pastoral

land may be nearly equal; but that of the better description will still,

I think, fall short of the other two. Taking South Australia in its

length and breadth, the quantity of available land is, beyond doubt, very

limited, but I regard it as exceedingly good, and believe that its

capabilities have by no means been ascertained. I feel satisfied, indeed,

that necessity will prove, not only, that the present pastoral districts

are capable of maintaining a much greater number of stock upon them than

they have hitherto borne, but that the province is also capable of

bearing a very great amount of population; that it is peculiarly fitted

for a rural peasantry, and that its agricultural products will be

sufficient to support masses of the population employed either in its

mining or manufactures. In this view of the subject it would appear that

Providence has adapted the land to meet its new destinies, and that

nothing we can say, either in praise or censure of its natural

capabilities, will have the effect of concealing either the one or the

other, as time shall glide on.

On the better soils the average crop of wheat is rather over than under

twenty-five bushels to the acre. In many localities, and more especially

when the ground is first cropped, it exceeds forty; and on some lands,

once my own, in the Reed Beds, at the termination of the Torrens' river,

five acres, which I sold to Mr. Sparshott, averaged fifty-two bushels to

the acre. The Reed Beds may be said to be on the plains of Adelaide, and

their very nature will account to the reader for the richness of their

soil; but the soil of the plains is not generally good, excepting in such

places where torrents descending from the hills have spread over

portions, and covered them with an alluvial deposit to a greater or less

depth. The average crop of wheat on the plains does not exceed twelve or

fifteen bushels to the acre, and depends on the time when the hot winds

may set in. Barley on the light sandy soil of the plains is much heavier

than wheat.

In the description I have thus endeavoured to give of South Australia, I

have omitted any mention of the district of Port Lincoln, chiefly because

sufficient was not known of it when I sailed for England to justify my

hazarding any remark. Recent advices from the colony state that a

practicable line of route from Adelaide has been discovered along the

western shore of Spencer's Gulf, and therefore, the disasters that

overtook early explorers in that quarter, are not likely again to occur.

It is farther said, that the number of sheep now depastured on the lands

behind Port Lincoln, amounts to 70,000--a proof of the utility, if not

the richness of the country--as far, however, as I am aware, the soil

must be considered of an inferior description--in other respects, the

Port has advantages that will always render it an agreeable, if not

altogether a desirable residence. It appears to be gradually improving,

but the amount of its population is still low, not more than sixty. It is

frequented by American and other whalers, but the duties collected add

little to the revenues of the province. Port Lincoln, however, could

hardly now be abandoned, since there are considerable interests at stake

there. It has been stated that copper has been found in the interior, and

I see no reason why it should not exist in the mountain formation of the

Gawler Range, in such case an impulse will be given to the whole

district, that would even change its prospects, and increase the

mercantile operations of the province.

It does not appear to be the disposition of the English settlers to try

experiments on the growth of intertropical productions. It must be

admitted, however, that there are not many places in South Australia

where they could be cultivated with advantage; for although both the

plains of Adelaide and the valley of the Murray are warm in summer, the

frosts, which are sufficient to blight potatoes, would necessarily

injure, if they did not destroy, perennials, whilst in the hills the cold

is adverse to any plants the growth of a tropical climate, if we except

those which, as annuals, come to maturity in the course of a summer; but

the true reason why the growth of extraneous productions is neglected in

South Australia, is the expense consequent on the state of the labour

market--for no doubt many pursuits might be followed there that would be

remunerative. It is exceedingly difficult, however, to lead the pursuits

of a community out of their ordinary course, and it is only where direct

advantages are to be gained, that the spirit of enterprise and

speculation breaks forth.

The climate of South Australia is admirably adapted for the growth of

fruit trees of the hardier tropical kinds, for although the tenderer

kinds grow there also, they do not arrive at perfection. The loquat, the

guava, the orange, and the banana, are of slow growth, but the vine, the

fig, the pomegranate, and others, flourish beyond description, as do

English fruit trees of every kind. It is to be observed, that the climate

of the plains of Adelaide and that of the hills are distinct. I have been

in considerable heat in the former at noon, and on the hills have been in

frost in the evening. The forest trees of Europe will grow in the ranges,

but on the plains they languish; in the ranges also the gooseberry and

the currant bear well, but in the gardens on the plains they are admitted

only to say you have such fruits; the pomegranate will not mature in the

open air, but melons of all kinds are weeds. Yet, such trees as are

congenial to the climate arrive at maturity with incredible rapidity, and

bear in the greatest abundance. The show of grapes in Mr. Stephenson's

garden in North Adelaide, and the show of apples and plums in Mr.

Anstey's garden on the hills are fine beyond description, and could not

be surpassed in any part of the world--it may readily be imagined,

therefore, that the intermediate fruit trees, such as the peach, the

nectarine, the pear, the cherry, the greengage, and others, are of the

most vigorous habits. All of them, indeed, are standards, and the wood

they make during one season, is the best proof that can be given of their

congeniality to the soil and climate of the province.

There are in South Australia two periods of the year which are equally

deceptive to the stranger. The one is when the country is burnt up and

suffering under the effects of summer heat--when the earth is almost

herbless, and the ground swarms with grasshoppers--when a dry heat

prevails in a calm still air. The other when vegetation is springing up

under the early rains and every thing is green. Arriving at Adelaide

during the first period, the stranger would hardly believe that the

country, at any other season of the year, would be so clothed with

herbage and look so fresh; arriving at the other, he would equally doubt

the possibility of the vegetable kingdom being laid so completely

prostrate, or that the country could assume so withered and parched an

appearance; but these changes are common to every country under a similar

latitude, and it would be unjust to set them down to its prejudice, or

advantage.

The following mean of heat at 2 p.m. throughout the year, will give the

reader a correct idea of the range of the thermometer. I have taken 2

p.m. as being the hottest period of the day, and, therefore, nearest the

truth.

January 85 106 1/2 70

February 79 94 71

March 77 103 1/2 68 1/2

April 67 1/2 85 55 1/2

May 62 76 53

June 58 67 49

July 55 60 49

August 59 68 52

September 61 72 1/2 55 1/2

October 68 1/2 94 1/2 55

November 74 94 59

December 83 100 68

The west and south-west winds are the most prevalent, blowing for 130 or

140 days in the year. During the summer months the land and sea breezes

prevail along the coast, but in the interior the wind generally commences

at E.N.E., and going round with the sun settles at west in the afternoon.

I need not point out to the reader, that the above table only shews the

mean of the thermometer during a certain hour of the day; the temperature

during the night must necessarily be much lower; the coolness of the

night, indeed, generally speaking, makes up for the mid-day heat. There

are some days of the year when hot winds prevails, which are certainly

very disagreeable, if not trying. Their occurrence, however, is not

frequent, and will be easily accounted for from natural causes. They

sometimes continue for three or more days, during which time clouds of

dust fill the air, and whirlwinds cross the plains, but the dryness of

the Australian atmosphere considerably influences the feelings on such

occasions, and certainly produces a different effect upon the system from

that which would be produced at a much lower temperature in a more humid

climate; for, no doubt, it is to the united effects of heat and moisture,

where they more or less exist, that the healthiness or unhealthiness of a

country may be ascribed. In such countries, generally speaking, either

teaming vapours, or malaria from dense woods or swamps naturally tries

the constitution, but to its extreme dryness, and the absence of all

vegetable decay, it appears to me that the general salubrity of

South-east Australia is to be attributed. So rarified, indeed, is the

atmosphere, that it causes an elasticity of spirits unknown in a heavier

temperature. So the hot winds, of which I have been speaking, are not

felt in the degree we should be led to suppose. Like the air the spirits

are buoyant and light, and it is for its disagreeableness at the time,

not any after effects that a hot wind is to be dreaded. It is hot, and

that is all you can say; you have a reluctance to move, and may not rest

so well as usual; but the spirits are in no way affected; nor indeed, in

the ordinary transactions of business does a hot wind make the slightest

difference. If there are three or four months of warm weather, there are

eight or nine months of the year, during which the weather is splendid.

Nothing can exceed the autumn, winter, and spring of that transparent

region, where the firmament is as bright as it would appear from the

summit of Mount Blanc. In the middle of winter you enjoy a fire, the

evenings are cold, and occasionally the nights are frosty. It is then

necessary to put on warmer clothing, and a good surtout, buttoned across

the breast, is neither an uncomfortable nor unimportant addition. Having

said thus much of the general salubrity of the climate of South

Australia, I would observe, in reference to what may be said against it,

that the changes of temperature are sudden and unexpected, the

thermometer rising or falling 50 degrees in an hour or two. Whether it is

owing to the properties I have ascribed, that the climate of this place

as also of Sydney should be fatal to consumptive habits, I do not know,

but in both places I have understood that such is the case, and in both I

have had reason to regret instances. It has been said that influenza

prevailed last year in Adelaide to a great extent, and that it carried

off a great many children and elderly persons. An epidemic, similar in

its symptoms, may have prevailed there, and been severe in its progress,

but it hardly seems probable that the epidemic of this country should

have been conveyed through constant change of air, the best cure for such

a disease, to so distant a part of the world. With all its salubrity,

indeed, I believe it may be said, that South Australia is subject to the

more unimportant maladies like other countries, but that there are no

indigenous disorders of a dangerous kind, and that it is a country which

may strictly be called one of the healthiest in the world, and will, in

all probability, continue so, as long as it shall be kept clear of

European diseases.

Having thus endeavoured to give a description of the general character

and climate of this limited but certainly beautiful portion of the

Australian continent, without encumbering my description with any remark

on the principal and particular sources of wealth it possesses, which not

being usual, could not, or rather would not, have been considered

applicable. I hope the object I have had in view will be sufficiently

clear to the reader. I have endeavoured to point out with an impartial

pen, the real capabilities of the province, and the nature of those

productions which are most congenial to her soil. Without undue praise on

the one hand, or unjust depreciation on the other, it has been my desire

to present a faithful picture of her to my readers, and I hope it will

appear from what I have said, as is really and truly the case, that both

in climate and other respects it is a country peculiarly adapted to the

pursuits and habits of my countrymen. That its climate so far approaches

that of England, as to be subject to light and partial frosts, which

render it unfit for the cultivation of tropical productions, but make it

essentially an agricultural country, capable of yielding as fine cereal

grain as any country in the world, of whatever kind it may be--that at

the same time the greater mildness of the climate makes it favourable to

the growth of a variety of fruits and vegetables, independently of

European fruit trees and culinary herbs, which put it in the power of the

settler to secure the enjoyment of greater luxuries and comforts, than he

could possibly expect to have done in his own country, except at a great

expense, and that as far as the two great desiderata go, on which I have

been dwelling, it is a country to which an Englishman may migrate with

the most cheerful anticipations.

CHAPTER III.

SEASONS--CAUSE WHY SOUTH AUSTRALIA HAS FINE GRAIN--EXTENT OF

CULTIVATION--AMOUNT OF STOCK--THE BURRA-BURRA MINE--ITS

MAGNITUDE--ABUNDANCE OF MINERALS--ABSENCE OF COAL--SMELTING ORE--IMMENSE

PROFITS OF THE BURRA-BURRA--EFFECT OF THE MINES ON THE LABOUR

MARKET--RELUCTANCE OF THE LOWER ORDERS TO EMIGRATE--DIFFERENCE BETWEEN

CANADA AND AUSTRALIA--THE AUSTRALIAN COLONIES--STATE OF SOCIETY--THE

MIDDLE CLASSES--THE SQUATTERS--THE GERMANS--THE NATIVES--AUTHOR'S

INTERVIEWS WITH THEM--INSTANCES OF JUST FEELING--THEIR BAD

QUALITIES--PERSONAL APPEARANCE--YOUNG SETTLERS ON THE MURRAY--CONCLUSION.

It was my object in the last chapter, to confine my observations strictly

to the agricultural and pastoral capabilities of the province of South

Australia, which I thought I could not better do than by describing the

nature of its climate and soil, for on these depend the producing powers

of every country. In speaking of the climate, however, I merely adverted

to its temperature, leaving its seasons out of question for the time,

intending to close my remarks on these heads, by a short review of the

state of the agricultural and pastoral interests of the colony at the

present date.

It will be borne in mind that the seasons of Australia are the reverse of

our own; that when in England the ground is covered with snow, there the

sun is hottest, and that when summer heats are ripening our fruits, in

Australia it is the coldest season of the year, December, January,

February, and March being the summer months; June, July, August, and

September the winter ones. An experience of ten years has shewn that the

seasons of South Australia are exceedingly regular, that the rains set in

within a few days of the same period each successive year, and that

during the winter the ground gets abundantly saturated. This regularity

of season may be attributed to the almost insular position of the

promontory of Cape Jarvis, and may be said to be almost local, in

elucidation of which, I may refer to what I have stated in the former

part of my work, of the state of the weather in the valley of the Murray

when the expedition was proceeding up its banks in the month of August,

1844. For some time before there had been heavy rains in the hills, and

it was with some difficulty the drays crossed them. During our stay at

Moorundi, the ranges were covered with heavy clouds, and the mountain

streams were so swollen as to stop one of my messengers; but the sky over

the valley of the Murray was as clear as crystal, morning mists it is

true curled up at early dawn from the bosom of its waters, but they were

soon dissipated, and a sharp frosty night was succeeded by a day of

surpassing beauty.

The regularity, however, both in its commencement and in the quantity of

moisture that falls during the rainy season in the colony, enables the

agriculturist to calculate with certainty upon it, and the only anxiety

of the farmer is to get his grain into the ground sufficiently early, if

possible, to escape the first hot winds. In a region, portions of which

are subject, it must be confessed, to long continued drought, this is no

inconsiderable advantage, although South Australia is not singular in

this respect, for the rainy seasons in the Port Phillip districts are, I

believe, equally regular and more abundant, whilst the climate of Van

Diemen's Land almost approaches to that of England; neither, indeed,

fairly speaking, is South Australia more favoured than those of her

immediate neighbours in the quality of her soil. Van Diemen's Land is the

granary of the southern seas, and there is unquestionably a very great

proportion of the very best soil in the Port Phillip district.

Nevertheless that of South Australia has yielded a finer and a heavier

grain than has ever been produced in those colonies, but the reason of

this is, that with a naturally rich soil to work upon, the agriculturists

of South Australia have spared no pains in cultivating their lands, but

there can be no doubt that with equal care and attention both the

Vandemonians and the settlers of Port Phillip would produce an equally

fine sample. The farmers of South Australia have enhanced the value of

their colony by their energy and skill in cultivating it, and can boast

of having sent the finest sample of wheat to England that has ever been

exhibited in her market.

South Australia, in its length and breadth, contains about 300,000 square

miles, or in round numbers more than 190,000,000 acres. The limits of

location, however, do not exceed 4000 miles, or 7,000,000 acres. In this

area, however, a great portion of desert country is included, or such, at

least, as at the present moment is considered so. Of the more available

land, 470,000 acres have been purchased, but the extent of country

occupied by sheep and cattle stations is not known.

It may be necessary here to observe, that the returns of the land under

cultivation last year were published after I left the colony; but the

comparison between the two previous years will shew the increase and

decrease of the different grains, sufficiently to establish the progress

of agricultural pursuits in the colony. In the year 1845, the number of

acres of wheat sown was 18,848. In 1846 it was 26,135. Of barley, there

were in the former year 4,342 acres, in the latter only 3,490. Of oats,

there were 1,485 in the first year, which, in 1846, increased to 1,963.

It would thus appear, that the increase of cultivated land in the course

of one year amounted to between 6000 and 7000 acres, and that more than

400 agriculturists were added to the list of landed proprietors. The

necessary consequence of such extensive farming operations is that the

produce far exceeds the wants of the settlers, and that there is a

considerable surplus for exportation; the price of the best flour being

from 12 pounds to 13 pounds per ton, whereas for a short period in 1839

it was 120 pounds!!!

Whilst the agriculturists have been so earnest in the development of the

productive powers of the colony, another class of its inhabitants were

paying equal attention to its pastoral interests. The establishment of

stock stations over its surface followed its occupation, and a mild

climate and nutritive herbage equally contributed to the increase of

cattle and sheep that had been introduced. In 1844 the number of sheep

assessed was 355,700, in the following year that number had increased to

480,669, or an addition of 120,000. At the present moment there cannot be

far short of a million of sheep in the province, with an increase of

200,000 annually, at a moderate computation. The number of other kinds of

stock in the possession of the settlers, at the close of last year, was

as follows:--of cattle, 70,000; 30,000 having been imported during the

two previous years from New South Wales. The number of horses was

estimated at 5000, and of other smaller stock, as pigs and goats, there

were supposed to be more than 20,000.

It is impossible to contemplate such a prosperous state of things in a

colony that has only just completed the eleventh year of its existence,

without feeling satisfied that some unusually favourable circumstances

had brought it about. Had South Australia been as distant from the older

colonies on the continent as Swan River, the amount of stock she would

have possessed in an equal length of time, could not have amounted to a

tenth of what they now number. It is to the discovery of the Darling and

the Murray that South Australia owes the superabundance of her flocks and

herds, and in that superabundance the full and complete establishment of

her pastoral interests. I stated in the course of my preliminary

observations on the progress of Australian discovery, that when I was

toiling down those rivers, with wide spread deserts on either side of me,

I had little idea for what purposes my footsteps had been directed into

the interior of the Australian Continent. If I ever entertained even a

distant hope that the hilly country from which I turned back at the

termination of the Murray, after having floated on its broad waters for

eighty-eight days, might ever be occupied, I certainly never hoped that

the discoveries I was then making would one day or other prove of

advantage to many a friend, and that I was marking the way for thousands

of herds and flocks, the surplus stock of New South Wales, to pass into

the province of South Australia.

If then such consequences have resulted from enterprises, apparently of

almost as hopeless a character as the one from which I have so recently

returned, why, I would ask, should I despair, as to its one day or other

being instrumental in benefiting my countrymen. There may yet be that in

the womb of time which shall repay me for all I suffered in the

performance of that dreary task--when I shall have it in my power to say,

that I so far led the way across the continent as to make the remainder

of easy attainment, and under the guidance and blessing of Providence

have been mainly instrumental in establishing a line of communication

between its northern and southern coasts. I see no reason why I should

despair that such may one day be the case. The road to the point which

may be termed my farthest north is clear before the explorer. That point

gained, less probably than 200 miles--a week's journey with horses less

jaded than mine unfortunately were, and with strength less reduced--would

place him beyond the limits of that fearful desert, and crown his labours

with success. I believe that I could, on my old route, make the north

coast of Australia, to the westward of the Gulf of Carpentaria, before

any party from Moreton Bay. If it is asked what practical good I should

expect to result from such an undertaking, I would observe, that nothing

would sooner tend to establish an intercourse with the inhabitants of the

Malay archipelago, than the barter of cattle and sheep, that in truth

there is no knowing what the ultimate results would be. The Malays who

visit the northern coasts of Australia to collect the sea slug, have

little inducement to keep up an intercourse with our settlements in

Torres Straits, but there can be no doubt of their readiness to enter

into commercial intercourse with us, which, if Torres Straits are to be

navigated by steamers, would be doubly important.

When the stock from New South Wales was first brought down the Murray,

the journey occupied from three to four months. Latterly it did not take

half that time. In less than fifty days, from the Murray, on his way to

the north, the stock-holder would find that he had passed the centre, and

an equal number of days from that point would, it appears to me, take him

to his journey's end. This, however, would depend on the nature of the

country beyond where it is at present known, and the nature of the season

during which it was undertaken, but experience alone, as in the instance

of the journey down the Murray, would be the best guide and the best

instructor.

In the early part of the year 1840, I had occasion to address a number of

the colonists at the conclusion of a public entertainment and availed

myself of the opportunity to state that whatever prospects of success the

pastoral capabilities of the province appeared to hold out, I felt

assured it was to the mountains, the colonists would have to look for

their future wealth, for that no one who pretended to the eye of a

geologist could cross them as I had done, without the conviction that

they abounded in mineral veins. There is something, in truth, in the

outline and form of the Mount Lofty chain that betrays its character.

Rounded spurs, of very peculiar form, having deep valleys on either side,

come down from the main range, the general outline of which bears a

strong resemblance to that of the Ural chain.

In the year 1843, the first discovery of copper was made, but even this

was scarcely sufficient to rouse the colonists to a full sense of its

importance, and it was only by degrees, as other mines were successively

discovered, that the spirit of speculation burst forth, and the energies

of the settlers were turned for a time from their legitimate channels. A

short time before this, their circumstances had been reduced to the

lowest ebb. There was no sale for agricultural produce, no demand for

labour, the goods in the shops of the tradesmen remained unsold, and the

most painful sacrifices of property were daily made at the auction mart.

The amount of distress indeed was very great and severe, but such a state

of things was naturally to be expected from the change that had taken

place in the monetary affairs of the province. It was a change however

which few anticipated, and for which few therefore were prepared.

It is a painful task to advert to past scenes of difficulty and distress,

such at least I feel it to be, more especially where there is no

immediate object to be gained by a reference to them; let me therefore

turn from any inquiry into the causes which plunged South Australia into

difficulties that threatened to overwhelm her, to those which raised her

from them.

Notwithstanding the spirit and firmness with which the colonists bore

their reverses, there could not but be a gloom over the community where

every thing seemed to be on the brink of ruin. Men's minds became

depressed when they saw no relief in the present, and no hope in the

future. But Time, with a rapid wing, brought about changes that appear

permanently to have altered the circumstances of the colony, and to have

placed it at once as one of the most flourishing of the British

possessions. The first circumstance, I have understood, which partially

cheered the drooping spirits of the settlers, was a slight rise in the

price of wool, in the year I have mentioned. The discovery of the mines

following soon upon this, the sun of prosperity burst at once upon the

province, and gladdened every heart. From this period, mine after mine of

copper and lead continued to be discovered. Every valley and hill-top was

searched for hidden treasures, and the whole energies of the colonists

seemed to be turned to this new source of wealth. I was absent in the

interior when the Burra Burra mine was secured, but the excitement it

created had not subsided when I reached Adelaide.

I do not know whether the presence of mineral veins is indicated in other

countries as in South Australia by means of surface deposits. The opinion

I formed that ores would be discovered in the Mount Lofty ranges did not

rest upon the discovery of any such deposit myself, but on the peculiar

form of the hills, which appeared to me to have settled into their

present state from one of extreme fusion. The direction of the ranges

being from north to south, these deposits lie also in the same direction.

Those of iron are greater than those of copper, and it is impossible to

describe the appearance of the huge clean masses of which they are

composed. They look indeed like immense blocks, that had only just passed

from the forge. The deposits at the Burra Burra amounted, I believe, to

some thousand tons, and led to the impression that where so great a

quantity of surface ore existed, but little would be found beneath. In

working this gigantic mine, however, it has proved otherwise. I was

informed by one of the shareholders just before I left the colony, that

it took three hours and three-quarters to go through the shafts and

galleries of the mine. Some of the latter are cut through solid blocks of

ore, which glitter like gold where the hammer or chisel has struck the

rock, as you pass with a candle along them.

It would be out of place in me, nor indeed would it interest my readers,

were I to enter into a statistical account of the profits of the Burra

Burra mine. A general notice will convey every necessary information on

that head, and enable the public to judge as well of its value and

importance as if I entered into minuter details. It will give the reader

some idea of the scene of bustle and activity the Burra mine and road

must present, and the very great amount of labour it requires.

The quantity of ore sent weekly from the mine to the port is from 430 to

450 tons, employing from 150 to 160 drays, and more than double that

number of men. The total quantity of ore received at the port in December

last was 10,000 tons, the average value of which at 20 pounds per ton,

amounts to 200,000 pounds, and the price of shares, originally of

5 pounds, had, by last advices, reached 160 pounds.

Considering the gigantic scale of the Burra Burra mine, it was supposed

that few other mines would be found in the colony that would at all

approach it, that indeed, it had been the principal deposit, and that

whatever indications other mines might give, they would soon cease in

working, or produce so little as to be valueless. I confess that such was

my own opinion--surprised at the immense size of this magnificent mine, I

hardly thought it possible that in mountains, after all of limited range,

mines of great value would still be found, and that discoveries of new

mines were frequently taking place, and that too in situations where no

such feature would be supposed to exist. On York's Peninsula for

instance, immediately across St. Vincent's Gulf, opposite to Port

Adelaide, and directly on the sea shore, there are two sections, on which

copper ore is abundant. The position of this mine can at once be

determined by the reader, on a reference to the map. The land is very

low, and the rock formation, tertiary fossil, but the various and

anomalous positions in which copper is found in South Australia, baffles

all ordinary calculations--as likely to exist in the valley, as on the

hill--at the sea side as well as inland: there is not a locality in which

it may not be looked for and found.

The whole of the mountain chain indeed, is a mass of ore from one end to

the other, and it is impossible to say what quantity, or how many of the

richer metals will ultimately be found in a country through which the

baser metals are, without doubt, so abundantly diffused. The quantity of

gold hitherto discovered has not been important, but it is reasonable to

suppose, that where a small quantity has been found, large deposits must

be at no great distance. This gold however, like the baser metals of

South Australia, is very pure, there being few component parts mixed with

it.

From the various examinations of the hills that have at different times

been made, it would appear that precious stones, as well as metals, exist

amongst them. Almost every stone, the diamond excepted, has already been

discovered. The ruby, the amethyst, and the emerald, with beryl and

others, so that the riches of this peculiar portion of the Australian

continent may truly be said to be in their development only.

With such prospects before it, there can be but little doubt that the

wealth of South Australia will, one day or other, be very great, neither

can there be any doubt but that the discovery of the mines at the

critical period, made a complete revolution in the affairs of that

colony, and suddenly raised it from a state of extreme depression to one

of independence, even as an individual is raised to affluence, from

comparative poverty by the receipt of an unlooked-for legacy. The effect,

however, which the discovery had on its present prospects, and the effect

it must have on the future destinies of that colony, can hardly, it

appears to me, be placed to the credit of any ordinary process of

colonization. It has rather been in the shape of an unexpected auxiliary,

that this immense and valuable supply of ore has been brought to bear

upon its fortunes, for the condition to which the colony was reduced at

one time, was such, that it would have taken many years to have acquired

the appearance of returning prosperity, but the discovery of the mines

was like the coming up of a rear-guard, to turn the tide of battle, when

the main army had apparently been all but defeated. The assistance the

colony received was complete and decisive, and has seemingly placed her

beyond the hazard of failure or reverse: but, admitting the state of

depression to which it was reduced, and the length of time it would have

taken to bring about a healthy change, I yet believe, that the favourable

position of the province as regards its connection with the other

colonies, the character of its climate and soil, and the energies of its

inhabitants, would have ensured its ultimate success. Before the

depression in 1841, South Australia had become a pastoral country, in

consequence of the number both of cattle and sheep that had been

imported. In 1838, the city of Adelaide had scarcely been laid out, no

portion of it had yet been sold, when flocks and herds were on their way

to the new market, and from that period, even to the present, there has

been no cessation to their ingress--first of all, as I have stated, the

Murray, and then the Darling, became the high roads along which the

superfluous stock of Port Phillip and New South Wales were driven to

browse on South Australian pastures, and to increase the quantity and

value of her exports.

However low therefore the price of wool might have kept, the natural

increase of stock would still have gone on, and if we may judge from the

unflinching energies of the agricultural portion of the community, their

efforts to develop the productive powers of the soil, would rather have

been stimulated than depressed by the misfortunes with which they were

visited. I do them nothing more than justice when I assure the reader,

that settlers in the province from the neighbouring colonies, could not

help expressing their surprise at the state of cultivation, or their

admiration of the unconquerable perseverance, that could have brought

about so forward and creditable a state of things.

I have already stated that the general outline and form of the Mount

Lofty chain, bears a strong resemblance to the outline and form of the

Ural mountains. But it is of trifling elevation, running longitudinally

from north to south, with a breadth of from 15 to 20 miles. The

metalliferous veins crop out on the surface of the ground, preserving the

same longitudinal directions as the ranges themselves, and the rock in

which the ores are imbedded, generally speaking, is a compact slate. As

the Mount Lofty ranges extend northwards, so does the Barrier or Stanley

range, over which the recent expedition crossed on leaving the Darling;

no copper ores were found amongst those hills, but an abundance of the

finest ore of iron, running, as the out-croppings of the copper ores,

from north to south, and occurring in depressed as well as elevated

situations, the rock formation being very similar to that of the more

western ranges.

If we are to judge from these facts, it is very evident that strong

igneous action has influenced the whole, nor can I help thinking, from

general appearances, that the continent of Australia has been subjected

to a long subterranean process, by which it has been elevated to its

present altitude, and it appears to me that that action, though

considerably weakened, is still going on. The occurrence of two slight

shocks of earthquake felt at Adelaide, since the establishment of the

colony, would further strengthen this opinion.

The copper ores of South Australia fetch a higher price at the Swansea

sales than those from any other part of the world, not only because they

are intrinsically rich, but because they are generally composed of

carbonates, which are necessary to facilitate the smelting of the ores of

sulphuret of copper from Cuba and other places. The necessity for sending

the ores from Adelaide to some foreign port to undergo the process of

smelting, will probably exist for a considerable length of time; until

such time, indeed, as the electric process shall be found to answer on a

sufficiently large scale to be profitable, or, until smelting works are

established; but, the great difficulty to be apprehended in carrying on

such operations would be the want of fuel, which scarce even at the

present moment, would soon be more so--for there is not sufficient wood

in the vicinity of any of the mines to keep up the supply for such a

consumption as that which would be required; besides which, the cartage

of the wood, and the expenses attending its preparation for the furnace,

would materially diminish any profits arising from the smelting of the

ores. In such a view of the case I cannot but think that the

establishment of works at the mines will be found to be as unprofitable

to their proprietors as to the smelter, and that such works will only be

remunerative when carried on under more favourable circumstances--for it

would appear that coal is the only mineral South Australia does not

possess, and I am apprehensive that no bed of it will ever be found in

the colony. I have ever thought the geological formation of the country

unfavourable to the presence of coal, but, still, it is said to exist as

a submarine formation close to Aldingi Bay. The discovery of this mineral

in the province would immediately give to it, within itself, the means of

the most unbounded wealth, and would undoubtedly fill up the measure of

its prosperity to the brim.

By a late report of the Directors of the Burra Burra mine, it would

appear, that they had made several successful attempts to smelt the ore,

but, that the cost, having exceeded that of cartage to the port, and

freight, the process has been abandoned. Parties, however, had offered to

enter into an engagement to smelt the whole of the ore from the mine at

about Swansea prices; notwithstanding the unfavourable circumstances

under which such smelting would necessarily be carried on.

As I understand the nature of this arrangement, the ore will be smelted

at the mine, and the remuneration to the smelter will be between fifty

and sixty shillings per ton perhaps, by way of "return charges," or we

will say between sixty and seventy shillings, which is a sum exactly

equal to the cartage of the ore to the port. If then the Directors

abandoned their intentions, because they found they could not smelt at so

low a sum as the price of cartage and freight, how will the contractor

make it pay under more unfavourable circumstances? No doubt, if he should

find it remunerative, the shareholders of the Burra Burra would find it

still more so, and it would be the interest of the proprietors of the

larger mines to enter into similar engagements; but, on a due

consideration of this important subject, I am led to believe that to make

smelting works successful in South Australia, Companies must purchase the

ore, and carry it off to localities suitable for the operation. Such an

arrangement would still considerably increase the profits to the

proprietors of the mine, nor would there be any difficulty in determining

the value of the ore, by processes similar to those adopted at Swansea,

by which the interests of both parties are equally protected.

In the South Australian Register of the 27th of November of last year, it

is stated that a Mr. Hunt, one of the auctioneers in Sydney, offered for

sale thirteen tons of pure copper ore of colonial manufacture, from ore

the produce of the Burra Burra, in ingots weighing 80 lbs. each; the ore

having been smelted by Mr. James at Mr. Smith's foundry at Newtown. This

copper was however bought in at 80 pounds, the limit being 85 pounds

per ton.

It will give the reader some idea of the character of this prodigious

mine, and of the profits arising from it, to know, that during the four

months preceding the 23rd October, 1847, the directors declared and paid

three dividends, amounting to 200 per cent. on the subscribed capital,

and that the credits of the Association on the 30th September were

104,694 pounds 4 shillings 8 pence. The Burra Burra mine however is not

the only one of importance. Several others have of late been discovered,

and South Australia may be said to be a thriving country in every sense of

the word, and one in which those profitable interests will rapidly

increase.

We have hitherto been speaking of the mines of South Australia as the

sources of wealth, and as the sudden, if not the remote cause of the

prosperity of that province. It now becomes our duty to consider how far

the discovery of the mines has benefited or interfered with the other

branches of industry and sources of wealth; and as regards both these, it

must be admitted that their discovery has had an injurious effect. The

high rate of wages given by the proprietors of mines, not only to the

miners, but to all whom they employ, draws the labourers from every other

occupation to engage with them. The consequence has been a general want

of labourers throughout the whole colony, still more severely felt by

reason of the previous want of labour in the labour market. Every man who

could obtain sufficient money to purchase a dray and team of bullocks,

hurried to the mines for a load of ore to take to the port, and disdained

any ordinary employment when by carting ore he could earn 6 or 7 pounds in

a fortnight. The labourer was quite right in going where he received the

best remuneration for his services; but the consequences were in many

instances fatal to their former employers. Many farmers were unable to

put in seed or to cultivate their land; many, after having done so, were

unable to gather it, and had it not been for the use of Mr. Ridley's

machine, the loss in the crops would have been severely felt. Not only

did the farmers suffer, but the stock-holders, and the colonists

generally. The want of hands, indeed, was felt by all classes of the

community, since the natural consequence of the high wages given by the

mining proprietors to the men they employed, tended still more to depress

the labour market, and to increase the demand upon it by leading many of

the more frugal labourers to purchase land with the money they were

enabled to save. As landed proprietors they not only withdrew their

labour from the market, but in their turn became employers; but I feel

called upon to say at the same time, that equal distress was felt in the

neighbouring colonies for working hands, where no mines had been

discovered, and where they could not therefore possibly have interfered.

From what has been said of the province of South Australia, and setting

its mines entirely out of the question, the description that has been

given of its pastoral and agricultural capabilities, of its climate, and

of the prospects of success which present themselves to the intending

emigrant, it will naturally be inferred that the impression I have

intended to convey is, that, as a colony, it is most peculiarly adapted

for a British population, whether rural or other. The state of the colony

is now such, that the way of the emigrant in landing is straight before

him, for with honesty, sobriety, and industry, he cannot lose it. When I

stated, in a former part of my work, that I would not take upon myself to

give advice, which if followed, and not successfully, might subject me to

the reproach of any one, I referred to those who have similar means of

acquiring information to myself, and whose stakes, being considerable,

make the responsibility of giving advice the greater. With the lower

orders--the working classes--the case is different. They have not the

means of acquiring information on these matters, and it becomes the duty

of those who can promote their welfare to do so. I am quite aware that

there are many of my poor countrymen who would gladly seek a better home

than they possess at this moment, but who, clinging to the spot where

they were born, disheartened at the thought of abandoning their hearth,

and bound by early recollections to their native country, cannot make up

their minds to turn their backs on the companions of their youth, and the

haunts of their childhood.

Such a feeling undoubtedly claims our sympathy and respect. It is that

very feeling,--the love of Home,--the belief that they can no where be

happier, which has been the strength of England, and has given her sons

the heart to love, and the spirit to defend her. But the period however,

when those feelings were so strong, has passed away,--more general ones

have taken their place, and the circumstances of the times have so

changed, that neither hearth nor home have the same attractions; a

restlessness pervades the community, and a desire to escape from those

scenes, and that spot which they or their forefathers once thought the

most hallowed upon earth. But two circumstances have militated against

the migration of the rural population in this country, to the Australian

colonies, at all events.

The one has been an apprehension as to the length and nature of the

voyage; the other the expense, more especially to a family man. Had it

not been for these causes, the Australian colonies would not have had to

complain of the want of labour. The truth is, that the ignorance which

prevails in the inland counties as to any matters connected with foreign

parts, and the little means the labouring classes possess of defraying

their own expenses, has kept them, except in a few instances, from

seeking to go to that distant part of the world, which assuredly holds

out to them the brightest prospect, and is most like their own home. They

may however rest satisfied that the voyage to Australia is as safe as

that to New York, that it is far more pleasant as regards the weather,

and that little or no sickness has ever thinned the number of those who

have embarked for the Australian colonies. The expense of the voyage is

certainly greater than that of a passage to the Canadas, or to the United

States, but it is to be hoped that the means of transport will soon be at

their command. I would only in this place offer the remarks I

conscientiously think the case requires, as one who, having witnessed the

happiness of thousands in the land of which he is speaking, would gladly

be instrumental in opening the way for thousands more of his countrvmen

to the same happy destiny. Having been both to Canada and the Australian

colonies, if I were asked which of the two I preferred, I should

undoubtedly say the latter. I do not desire to disparage the Canadas by

this assertion, for I know that they have advantages in their soil and in

the magnificence of their rivers beyond comparison, but Australia, on the

other hand, has advantages over our transatlantic possessions, such as

her increased distance from England, cannot counterbalance. Her climate,

in the first place, is surpassing fine. There the emigrant is spared the

trouble of providing against the severities of a Canadian winter. That

season passes over his head almost without his knowledge, and the ground,

instead of being a broad sheet of snow, is covered with vegetation. Her

lands, unencumbered by dense forests, are clear and open to the plough,

or are so lightly wooded as to resemble a park, rather than a wild and

untouched scene of nature. Instead of having to toil with the saw and the

axe to clear his ground before he can cultivate it, and instead of

consuming a year's provisions before he can expect any return, he can

there run the plough from one end to the other of his enclosures, without

meeting a stone or a root to turn its point, and at once reap the produce

of the soil. These surely are advantages of no ordinary kind, and, if the

expense of a voyage to the Australian colonies is greater than that to

America, I cannot but think that the contingent expenses to which the

Canadian or Union emigrant is put, before he can consider himself as

finally settled down, must necessarily exceed those of the Australian.

As before observed, the aspect of South Australia, and indeed of many

parts of the neighbouring colonies, is essentially English. There, as in

England, you see the white-washed cottage, and its little garden stocked

with fruit trees of every kind, its outward show of cleanliness telling

that peace and comfort are within. To sever oneself from our kindred, and

to abandon the dwelling of our fathers, is a sacrifice of no imaginary

magnitude, whether we are rich or poor, and the prospects of reward

should be bright indeed to compensate for it. I conclude that it has been

to combat the reluctance in the lower orders to leave their homes, that

inducements too highly coloured in many instances, have been held out to

them, the consequence of which has been that many, whose expectations

were excited, suffered proportionate disappointment at the outset of

their career as emigrants. Convinced of the injurious tendency of such a

practice, and regarding it as a culpable and cruel mockery of

misfortunes, which, having been unavoidable, claim our best sympathies, I

should not have said so much as I have done on this important subject,

had I not felt justified in so doing. The reader may rest assured that to

the sober, the honest, and the industrious, the certainty of success in

South Australia is beyond all doubt. An individual with these qualities

may experience disappointment on landing, but he must recollect that this

is always a period of anxiety, and the circumstances in which he first

finds himself placed, may not come up to his expectations; his useful

qualities and regular habits cannot be immediately known, and we seldom

alter our condition, even for the better, without some trouble or

vexation.

I have, in the course of my remarks, in my recommendation of the

Australian colonies as being favourable to the views of emigrants, given

a preference to South Australia. I have done so because I am better

acquainted with its condition than with that of either of the other

settlements. Of it I have spoken as to what I know; but, of the others,

to a great extent, from hearsay. The character however of those colonies

needs no recommendation from me. As far as its pastoral and agricultural

capabilities go, I believe Port Phillip to be as fine a district as any

in the world. The advantages indeed of the Australian colonies must be

nearly equal, from the fact that the pursuits of their respective

inhabitants are so nearly the same. Local circumstances may give some

parts of the continent a preference over others, but, as points of

emigration there is little choice. The southern portions are not subject

to the withering droughts to which parts of the eastern coast are liable,

and may be preferred on that account, but still there are districts in

New South Wales as unexceptionable as any in Port Phillip or South

Australia.

It now remains to make some observations on the present state of society

in the last-mentioned colony; for it appears to me, that in order to give

a correct picture of it, some notice on that head is required. I think

too, I am the more called upon to do so, because many very mistaken

notions are held of it. As in most of Her Majesty's possessions, so in

South Australia, the Government officers form a prominent, and I may say,

distinct class. Colonel Robe, the late Governor of the province, made

Government House the seat of the most unmeasured hospitality, which he

exercised beyond the point to which there was any public call upon him.

His table was covered with every delicacy the season could afford, his

wines were of the very best, and there was a quiet but effective manner

about him, which gained universal esteem. As a soldier, he was

exceedingly particular in the order and appearance of his establishment,

nor was there anything wanting to complete the comfort of it. The number

of the colonists who assembled round him occasionally, was from 50 to 60;

on more public festive occasions they exceeded 300, and I may add, that

on both, the scene differed not in the slightest degree from that of

similar parties in this country, save that there was less of formality in

the interchange of friendly communications between the visitors. Except

also in giving a tone to society, and setting an irreproachable example

to the community, the officers of the Government are exceedingly retired,

their salaries are too limited to enable them to follow the example of

their chief.

They live quietly, and as gentlemen, are ever happy to see their friends,

but public parties are seldom given by any of them. Prudence indeed calls

upon them to refrain from those displays, which they cannot reasonably

afford, and the consequence was, that a warmer intimacy existed in their

quiet intercourse with each other, than could have sprung from more

formal entertainments.

The truth is, the salaries of the Government officers, bear no proportion

to the means of the majority of the settlers, who have risen into

affluence from a combination of circumstances, that have been

unprecedented in the history of colonization. There are few private

individuals in the province, who have not, at one time or other,

benefited by some speculation, but I am not aware that any one of the

Government officers have any private interests in the colony, if I except

the possession of a section or two of land, on which they have built and

reside, nor do I know that any of them have allowed a spirit of

speculation to interfere with public duties.

Amongst the leading or upper classes of society, there are many very

estimable persons. I do not mention names, but my recollection will bear

me back to the many happy days I have spent with them, and certainly any

one not desiring an extended circle of acquaintance could no where,

whether amongst gentlemen or the ladies, find individuals more worthy of

his regard or friendship than in the still limited society of South

Australia.

Many of the tradesmen having succeeded in business, or acquired an

independence from their interests in the mines, have retired, and live in

suburban residences, which they have built in well selected situations,

and with considerable taste. Attached to the customs of Home, many of the

citizens of Adelaide possess carriages of one kind or another, and are

fond of devoting their Sunday evenings to visiting places in the

neighbourhood. As regards the lower classes, I do not think there is in

any of Her Majesty's possessions, a greater amount of mechanical genius

and enterprise than amongst the mechanics of South Australia. I speak

confidently on this head, since I have had very many points referred to

me, which have long satisfied me of this fact.

There are many societies in South Australia, of which the lower orders

are members, all of them tending to promote social interests. The order

of Odd Fellows is prominent amongst these, and spreads a feeling

throughout all classes which cannot fail of doing good, for the charities

of this order are extensive, and it supports a well-attended school.

Taking then the lower orders of the province in the aggregate, they may

be said to be thoroughly English, both in their habits and principles.

In speaking of the upper classes I did not notice a portion of them

included under the denomination of the "Squatters." It is a name that

grates harshly on the ear, but it conceals much that is good behind it;

they in truth are the stockholders of the province, those in whom its

greatest interests would have been vested if the mines had not been

discovered. Generally speaking, the squatters are young men who, rather

than be a burthen on their families, have sought their fortunes in

distant lands, and carried out with them almost to the Antipodes the

finest principles and feelings of their forefathers. With hearts as warm

as the climate in which they live, with a spirit to meet any danger, and

an energy to carry them through any reverse of fortune, frank, generous,

and hospitable, the squatters of the Australian colonies are undoubtedly

at the head of their respective communities, and will in after days form

the landed, as they do now the pastoral interests, from whom every thing

will be expected that is usually required of an English country

gentleman. Circumstanced as they are at the present moment, most of them

leading a solitary life in the bush, and separated by such distances from

each other as almost to preclude the possibility of intercourse, they are

thus cut off as it were from society, which tends to give them feelings

that are certainly prejudicial to their future social happiness, but I

would fain hope that the time is coming round when these gentlemen will

see that they have it very much in their own power to shorten the

duration of many of the sacrifices they are now called upon to make, and

that they will look to higher and to more important duties than those

which at present engage their attention.

The views taken by the late Sir George Gipps of the state of society in

the distant interior of New South Wales is perfectly correct, nor can

there be any doubt but that it entails evils on the stock-holders

themselves which, on an abstract view of the question, I cannot help

thinking they have it in their power to lessen, or entirely to remove,

when an influx of population shall take place; but, however regular their

establishments may be, they cannot, as single men, have the same

influence over those whom they employ, or the settlers around them, as if

they were married; for it is certainly true, that the presence of females

puts a restraint on the most vicious, and that wherever they are,

especially in a responsible character, they must do good. I do not know

anything, indeed, that would more conduce to the moral improvement of the

settlers, and people around them, than that squatters should permanently

fix themselves, and embrace that state in which they can alone expect

their homes to have real attractions. That they will ultimately settle

down to this state there cannot, I think, be a doubt, and however

repugnant it may be to them at the present moment to rent lands, on the

occupation of which any conditions of purchase is imposed, I feel assured

that many of the squatters will hereafter have cause to thank the

Secretary of State for having anticipated their future wants, and enabled

them to secure permanent and valuable interests on such easy terms.

Nothing, it appears to me, can be more convincing in proof of the real

anxiety of Earl Grey for the well being of the Australian provinces than

the late regulations for the occupation of crown lands.

I believe I am right in stating that every word of those regulations was

penned by Earl Grey himself, and certainly, apart from local prejudices,

I am sure a disinterested person would admit the care and thought they

evince, and how calculated they are to promote the best interests of the

squatters, and the future social and moral improvement of the people

under their influence. There seems to me to run throughout the whole of

these regulations an earnest desire to place the stockholder on a sure

footing, and to remove all causes of anxiety arising from the precarious

tenure upon which they formerly held property.

There is another division of the population of South Australia I have

hitherto omitted to mention, I mean the German emigrants. They now number

more than 2000, and therefore form no inconsiderable portion of the

population of the province. These people have spread over various

districts, but still live in communities, having built five or six

villages.

The Germans of South Australia are quiet and inoffensive, frugal and

industrious. They mix very little with the settlers, and, regarded as a

portion of the community, are perhaps too exclusive, as not taking a due

share in the common labour, or rendering their assistance on occasions

when the united strength of the working classes is required to secure a

general good--as the gathering in of the harvest, or such similar

occasions. Their religious observances are superintended by different

pastors, all of them very respectable persons. The oldest of these is Mr.

Kavel, to whom the Germans look with great confidence, and hold in

deserved esteem. Many of the Germans have been naturalized, and have

acquired considerable property in various parts of the province, but very

few have taken to business, or reside in Adelaide as shopkeepers. The

women bring their market or farm produce into the city on their backs,

generally at an early hour of the morning, and the loads some of them

carry are no trifle. Here, however, as in their native country, the women

work hard, and certainly bear their fair proportion of labour. The houses

of the Germans are on the models of those of their native country, and

are so different in appearance from the general style, as to form really

picturesque objects. There is nowhere about Adelaide a prettier ride than

through the village of Klemzig, on the right bank of the Torrens, that

having been the first of the German settlements. The easy and unmolested

circumstances of these people should make them happy, and lead them to

rejoice that in flying from persecution at home they were guided to such

a country as that in which they now dwell, and I have no doubt that as a

moral and religious people, they are thankful for their good fortune, and

duly appreciate the blessings of Providence.

My anxiety to raise the character of the natives of Australia, in the

eyes of the civilized world, and to exhibit them in a more favourable

light than that in which they are at present regarded, induces me, before

I close these volumes, to adduce a few instances of just and correct

feeling evinced by them towards myself, which ought, I think, to have

this effect and to satisfy the unprejudiced mind that their general ideas

of right and wrong are far from being erroneous, and that, whatever their

customs may be, they should not, as a people, occupy so low a place in

the scale of human society, as that which has been assigned to them. I am

quite aware that there have been individual instances of brutality

amongst them, that can hardly be palliated even in savage life--that they

have disgusting customs--that they are revengeful and addicted to theft.

Still I would say they have redeeming qualities; for the first, I would

fain believe that the horrors of which they have been guilty, are local;

for the last, I do not see that they are worse than other uncivilized

races. Treachery and cunning are inherent in the breast of every savage.

I question, indeed, if they are not considered by them as cardinal

virtues; but, admitting the Australian native to have the most unbridled

passions, instances can be adduced of their regard for truth and honesty,

that ought to weigh in any general estimate we may form of their

character. No European living, not even Mr. Eyre, has seen so many of the

Aborigines of the Australian continent as myself; and that, too, under

circumstances when strife might have been expected; and no man certainly

has had less reason to complain of them. If my party has ever been

menaced by these people, if we have ever had their spears raised in

hundreds against us, it has been because they have been taken by

surprise, and have acted under the influence of fear. If I had rushed on

these poor people, I should have received their weapons, and have been

obliged to raise my arm against them, but, by giving them time to recover

from their surprise, allowing them to go through their wonted ceremonies,

and, by pacific demonstrations, hostile collisions have been avoided. If

I had desired a conflict, the inclination might have been indulged

without the fear of censure, but I saw no credit, no honour to be gained

by such a course, and I therefore refrained. I can look back to my

intercourse with the Australian aborigines, under a consciousness that I

never injured one of them, and that the cause of humanity has not

suffered at my hands;--but, I am travelling out of my proper course, and

beg the reader to excuse me, it is for him, I allow, not for me, to draw

such conclusions.