single Protestant. The silk here produced is inferior to that of Antioch and Suedia; and one great drawback to the furtherance of cultivation and commerce is the great scarcity of water: large wells are dug in the gardens, and these, with wheels worked by oxen, irrigate the land, though very insufficiently. In the very heart of the bazaars massive clusters of ruins are to be seen which clearly tell a tale of bygone greatness and splendour -a striking proof of the vanity of all earthly hopes or enjoyments:"We build with fruitless cost, unless

The Lord the pile sustain ;

Unless the Lord the city keep,

The Watchman wakes in vain." (Psalm cxxvii. 1.)

A VISIT TO AUSTRALIA AND ITS GOLD REGIONS (continued).

THE COLONY OF VICTORIA, ITS EARLY HISTORY, AND RAPID

DEVELOPMENT.

In the voyage out, as described in the first chapter, the journey terminated at the city of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia; but had the destination of our ship been Port Phillip, she would have taken a different course, and instead of wearing to the north for the Gulf of St. Vincent, would have continued to steer eastward till she reached Bass's Strait; bearing then to the northward, the land would come in sight on our left hand, and as we rapidly advanced, Cape Schank would soon make its appearance on the right, and our course would then lie between shores that stretched away on either side, bold and high, and everywhere surmounted by the evergreen forest that thence stretched inland. In the distance ahead the land gradually closes in to a narrow inlet, forming apparently the bottom of a deep and dangerous gulf, as the furious surf with which it is lined would lead us to believe. On a nearer approach, however, the rocky coast in front is seen to be parted by an opening whose smooth waters proclaim it to be the entrance to some inner haven. The contracted passage which thus comes into view so unexpectedly serves to separate two promontories scarcely three miles apart at the points nearest to each other: that on the west is called Point Lonsdale; while the other, Point Nepean, is a long strip of rocks and sand. Upon rounding the latter, we are at once shut out from the open sea, and transferred to the threshold of a magnificent bay. Port Phillip Bay, into which we have thus passed, is certainly one of the noblest of its kind; in reality it is an inland sea of considerable extent, about forty miles in length by thirty in breadth, along whose winding shores are to be found many inlets and bays, each one capable of sheltering whole fleets, the most conspicuous of which is the Bay of Geelong, a fine expanse of water running into its western shore, and called, from its extreme beauty, "the second Bay of Naples" At the upper extremity of the lake lies Hobson's Bay, the port of the city of Melbourne, which is the capital of that splendid pastoral country, formerly a district of New South Wales called the Fort Phillip District, but now the independent colony of Victoria.

Our knowledge of the existence of the Bay or Lake of Port Phillip is due to Lieut. Murray, of the Lady Nelson, who ascertained its existence in carrying out a series of exploring expeditions projected by Governor King. The description by the discoverer of the portion which he beheld, and especially of the shore, written, as it was, about fifty years ago, might nevertheless be copied by the traveller of to-day; without a word of

alteration, so exactly does it convey the principal features by which the surrounding locality is marked:-"The southern shore of this noble harbour is bold high land in general, and not clothed, as all the land of Western Port is, with thick brush, but with stout trees of various kinds; and in some places falls nothing short in beauty of appearance to Greenwich Park. Away to the eastward at the distance of about twenty miles the land is mountainous. There is one very high mountain in particular which in the meantime I named Arthur's Seat, from its resemblance to a mountain of that name near Edinburgh." Subsequently the enterprising Flinders made an accurate survey; and the report which he brought back was so favourably received as to induce the Government about a couple of years afterwards to choose it as a place for the establishment of a penal settlement. The spot, however, selected for the purpose was (fortunately) the worst within a wide circuit; it was upon Point Nepean, the headland of which, running out from the east, parts the bay in that direction from the sea. On further trial nothing was found to counteract its many disadvantages; water could only be procured at that point by digging wells in the sand, a source, however abundant at the time, far too limited to supply a growing population. The country in the immediate neighbourhood showed no prospect of being properly cultivated, and, at the same time, no vigilance could prevent the convicts from making their escape into the woods. Governor Collins therefore abandoned his original purpose, and set sail for Van Diemen's Land, and landing there on the shores of one of the finest bays in the world, laid the foundations of Hobart Town.

For many years subsequent to this attempt, the magnificent country of Port Phillip continued undisturbed by the foot of a white man; for of the many exploring parties sent out by private individuals, as well as by the Government of New South Wales, none followed the road to Port Phillip; probably deterred by the unfavourable circumstances under which the first expedition quitted it. In the year 1824, however, Messrs. Hovell and Hume, two influential settlers in the Sydney district, determined upon attempting to reach the abandoned settlement overland. The account of their journey affords one a tolerable idea of the difficulties of inland exploration, and of the indomitable energy required to overcome them. Their travelling equipage, at the commencement of their journey, consisted of two carts, containing supplies, drawn by four bullocks; these were accompanied by six men, each armed with a fowling-piece; and two horses ridden by themselves, with a spare horse, completed their outfit. Departing from Lake George, they left the last trace of civilation behind, and entered at once into the wide expanse of an unknown interior, guided only by a small compass and the calculations made with an imperfect

sextant.

At the distance of eleven miles they met the Murrumbidgee. This stream, thirty or forty yards wide, presented in its swollen waters a bar to their further progress for the space of two days; after which, finding delay useless, they contrived to form a punt out of one of the carts, by tying a tarpaulin tightly round the bottom of the vehicle. From this point, having transported themselves and their goods dry and in safety to the opposite shore, they pursued a W.S.W. course for four days, when, from the mountainous character of the country before them, it was judged advisable to abandon the carts and such quantities of the provisions as could most easily be spared, concealing them till their return. From this hastily constructed depôt they advanced for seventy miles over different ranges, precipitous

ravines, and opposing streams, relieved at intervals by strips of lightly wooded pastoral grounds, until they came suddenly and unexpectedly in view of a belt of stupendous mountains-the Australian Alps. Here their course was necessarily altered a few points to the westward, to enable them to avoid the diverging branches of this enormous chain; and after a journey of eighty-five miles, they discovered a river (the Hume), the breadth of which could not have been less than eighty yards. Two or three days were spent on the banks of this beautiful stream, in the endeavour to find a convenient crossing-place. Pursuing their course, they came, at the distance of thirty-four miles, to another, though much smaller river, which they called the "Ovens;" crossing which, they altered the course of their route to a more southerly direction, and at the distance of one hundred and nine miles they met with and crossed a fourth river, the Hovell (the Golbourn of Major Mitchell). The region passed over between these last two rivers had presented a very favourable aspect, being enriched with fertile plains, open or park-like forests, and numerous streams. The land contiguous to the Hovell was found to be of a quality fitted for every purpose, pastoral and agricultural.

The passage of this stream accomplished, they continued their journey in a S.W direction, through an agreeable and picturesque country, the soil good and the grass abundant, for eight days, when they were checked by the rugged, stony surface of a mountain they attempted to cross, and the dense and impenetrable nature of its brushwood and jungle grass. To this mountain they gave the name of Mount Disappointment; and, baffled in their attempt to find a breach in the rocky rampart which it formed across their path, they turned their steps, with the intention of passing round its flank. This they accomplished by making a long and tedious detour in a westerly direction; and then once more resuming their proper course, finally received the reward of all their toils by descrying the sea in the distance.

In thus bringing their attempts to a successful close, they had spent two months of hardship, of the severity of which none but those who enter these solitudes can form a conception, and had travelled a distance of three hundred and seventy-eight miles, reckoning in a straight line from the point of their departure. It was the misfortune of these energetic explorers, to have been guided by their anxiety to take the shortest and most direct route, and not that which presented the fewest impediments, and they thus entangled themselves amidst the lofty lateral ranges which the Australian Alps throw off to the westward. Times without number they had to climb with weary steps to the summit of a ridge, only to see Alps beyond Alps rising in the distance across their course, while on other occasions broad streams and dense jungles opposed scarcely less formidable barriers to their advance.

The road thus opened was seen to be practicable for man, though at the cost of immense labour; but it was far otherwise with regard to sheep and cattle, and no one at all acquainted with the difficulties of conveying these, especially in large numbers, through a wooded and mountainous region, would willingly pursue a track beset with so many obstacles. The expedition, therefore, was followed by no practical results, and the district of Port Phillip once more relapsed into obscurity.

The unexampled rapidity, however, with which the available land in Van Diemen's Land (situated immediately opposite to that part of the coast of Australia) had been occupied, and the necessity of finding new tracts of land for pastoral purposes, soon induced the colonists of that island to turn their atten

tion to the advantage of establishing a settlement in a district so proximate and accessible to them; and with this view an association was formed, which, in the month of May, 1835, despatched Mr. Batman as an agent to open up a friendly intercourse with the aborigines, and, if successful, to effect a purchase of as much land as it was possible to procure; and this gentleman succeeded in obtaining the consent of the aboriginal chiefs, the three brothers, "Jagajaga, Jagajaga, Jagajaga," to assign by deed (of the legal beauties of which they must have been excellent critics) a tract of land of about six hundred thousand acres, the present value of which is almost incalculable, "for and in consideration of" about forty pairs of blankets, one hundred and thirty knives, forty tomahawks, forty looking-glasses, forty pairs of scissors, twelve red shirts, four flannel jackets, four suits of clothes, one hundred and fifty pounds of flour, two hundred and fifty handkerchiefs, and half a dozen shirts, and an annual tribute of two tons of flour, and another "assorted collection" of knives, tomahawks, scissors, lookingglasses, &c., but making the proportion of handkerchiefs to shirts a little more equal. The treaty, however, was not destined to be carried out, for the Government refused to recognise it, as they considered it subversive of the sovereignty which the crown asserted over the ceded territory; and the natives were thus deprived of the opportunity of becoming acquainted with the excellence of our Sheffield cutlery, or of contemplating their beauties in any other mirrors than those natural ones which their own streams and "water-holes" presented to them.

But though compelled to relinquish their position as proprietors, the sociation were not inclined to abandon a country so valuable, and they therefore began to occupy the land as unlicensed squatters; and such was the eagerness with which their fellow-settlers in Van Diemen's Land appreciated the district, so soon as the veil which had shrouded its real merits had been drawn aside, that within twelve months the infant settlement had risen to the status of a village: gardens had been formed; about fifty acres of rich land prepared for tillage; thirty-five vessels had arrived, principally conveying live stock from Van Diemen's Land; the population amounted to upwards of two hundred; the number of sheep amounted to 20,000; and the country in the interior had been located to the distance of fifty miles.

This settlement, from its very commencement, exhibits a spectacle not to be found in the records of any other colony with which we are acquainted. Its founders not only carried with them their own servants and their own food-all, in short, that was necessary to their existencebut in the immense numbers of sheep transported, they conveyed the elements of a wealth at once boundless and self-productive. With a fair wind, a vessel may run over from Launceston to Port Phillip in twentyfour hours, and this easy and rapid communication gave to Port Phillip all the advantages of a mother-country, as it were, within that distance from which every aid might be furnished as soon as demanded.

The rapid progress of the settlement soon attracted the attention of the Sydney government, and Sir Richard Bourke despatched a police magistrate, accompanied by a small surveying staff, to lay the foundations of a local government; and to the personal exertions and sound views of this enlightened governor the colony owes a deep debt of gratitude. In May 1837 he proceeded in person to the settlement, and laid out the plans of two towns, to which were given the names of Melbourne and Geelong; and before the month of August in the following year, so rapid had been its

progress, as to render it impossible for the memory to keep pace with the movement; brick buildings were numerous, some boasting of two and three stories; little inns were transformed into handsome and commodious hotels; the lines of streets had been cleared, marked, and in some instances were undergoing a process of macadamization; branches of two Sydney banks were in active operation; the population had quadrupled; the country in the interior was occupied to a distance of 120 miles, and the settlers were still pushing on to regions still more remote; and in the month of October following, the first newspaper was published, under the title of the Port Phillip Gazette. Thus, in less than two years and a half from the time when the rich plains of Port Phillip were untrodden save by the foot of their aboriginal natives, or their verdure disturbed except by the leap of the kangaroo, the Saxon energy had planted all the elements of modern civilization, which had not only taken root, but were flourishing in full vigour.

It is not within our limits to trace the history of the colony through all its rapid phases. We will therefore pass over a period of fourteen years of rapid development, and by an extract from the Melbourne Herald we shall convey a better idea of the progress which the colony had made during that period than by a more lengthened description :—

"Yesterday, July 15, 1851, the first important epoch in our new-born colony was observed as a sort of gala-day in Melbourne, and from an early hour it was evident, from the closed shops and appearance of the citizens, that the hour when at length, after long and harassing years of expectation, their adopted country would be officially declared free, was looked forward to with heartfelt interest. According to previous notification, his Honour the late Superintendent would be sworn in to the public offices at eleven o'clock, and as that hour approached, groups might be seen hurrying towards the spot to witness the ceremonial. At the appointed time there could not have been less than two thousand persons in the area fronting the Government buildings, whilst the upper windows of the edifice were crowded with ladies, who manifested just as much curiosity, and perhaps a little more, to have a peep at the proceedings, as the other portion of the community. "The police and military shortly arrived, and filed in square, and some pieces of artillery were placed in an adjacent position to boom forth at the proper season the joyful intelligence. Just at eleven o'clock the new Governor, C. J. La Trobe, Esq. appeared in the porch of the building, attended by the resident Judge, the newly appointed Attorney-general, and all the principal officials, the Bishop of Melbourne, the Archdeacon of Geelong, and others of the clergy, and various members of the deputations appointed to wait upon his Excellency with addresses of congratulation.

"E. Bell, Esq., the Lieutenant-governor's private secretary and aide decamp, proceeded to read the commission of the Queen appointing Sir Charles FitzRoy the Captain-general and Governor-in-chief of the Australasian colonies; and next, the commission appointing Charles Joseph La Trobe, Esq., Lieutenant-governor of the colony of Victoria.

"The oaths of office were then read over to his Excellency by W. F. Stawell, Esq., the newly-appointed Attorney-general, and duly subscribed in the presence of his Honour the resident Judge.

"Captain Lonsdale next read the proclamation of the Lieutenant-governor appointing his executive council. As he commenced, a discharge of artillery commenced also, and continued at intervals until eleven guns were fired. The national anthem followed, the multitude remaining uncovered. This concluded the ceremony of inauguration.