honor to the high and important trust our most gracious King has been pleased to depute to your charge; and we feel animated by a pleasing hope that, under your Excellency's auspices, agriculture will flourish, commerce increase, and we as British subjects enjoy our country's constitutional rights; and let us assure your Excellency that we are well aware that it is the indispensable duty of us all to hold a reverential regard to the laws under which we have been brought up, and to cheerfully acquiesce in such measures as your Excellency may adopt for the good of the colony and the true interest and happiness of all descriptions of its inhabitants. 1806 22 Sept. former We, with every due submission to your Excellency, beg to state No knowour ignorance of the former addresses* which appeared in the ledge of Sydney Gazette-one to the late Governor King and the other to addresses. your Excellency—at the foot of which appears the names of John McArthur, Esq., for the free inhabitants; nor do we hesitate in saying that it never was our intention to address the former; and that we consider such addresses being signed for us by a person undeputed and unauthorised as an infringement on our rights and privileges, as well as being contrary to justice and equity; and as it is not our general voice, we proclaim it to be (in our opinion) highly unconstitutional, as well as he, the said John McArthur's, Macarthur taking a liberty that we never have allowed, nor can or will not their sanction; and we beg to observe that had we deputed anyone, tive. John McArthur would not have been chosen by us, we considering him an unfit person to step forward upon such an occasion, as we may chiefly attribute the rise in the price of mutton to his withholding the large flock of wethers he now has to make such price as he may choose to demand. representa. lives and Convinced that our prosperity and happiness will be the great Will support objects of your Excellency's care, we earnestly hope your Excel- Bligh with lency will find your administration productive of real and per- property. manent satisfaction and honor to yourself; and we, the free inhabitants, most sacredly assure your Excellency that we will, at the hazard of our lives and property, protect and support you in the due administration of justice, and conduct ourselves as loyal subjects to our much beloved Sovereign as long as we shall live. [Among the 135 names are: S'n Lord, Ja's Jno. Grant, Signatories. Jesse Mulcock, George Guest, Wm. Regan, Isaac Nelson, John Shea James Ball, Thomas Burges, Thomas Bradley, Henry Shaffrey, Joseph Prosser, Aaron Burt. Michael Geary, James Aitken, Wm. Roberts, John Sparrow, Ab. Whitehouse, D. D. Mann, Adam Riley, George Gordon, Francis Cox, Henry H. Neale, John Lyster, Thomas Stubbs, Joseph Stubbs, Thomas Hartmann, &c.] * Ante, p. 165. 1806 settlers at HAWKESBURY SETTLERS' ADDRESS,* 1806. To His Excellency, W'm Bligh, Esq., Captain-General and Address of THE address of the settlers, landholders, and cultivators of land, and other principal inhabitants of Hawkesbury, whose names are hereunto written. the Hawkesbury. Congratula arrival. We congratulate your Excellency on your safe arrival in this tions on safe territory, and we think ourselves happy to express thanks to our most gracious Sovereign for the attention His Royal Majesty has shown to the people of this colony in appointing a person of your Excellency's superior understanding, knowledge, and ability to the government of this country. Causes of calamity. The Hawkesbury flood. Heavy losses. We consider ourselves the more fortunate in this at a time when the country is labouring under the greatest calamity in being brought to the near approach of a famine. To avert its advances at this period can only be attained by your Excellency's superior circumspection and wisdom. We state, with the deepest concern, the occasion of this threatened calamity to be (in some degree) by the great flood which it pleased Divine Providence to send in March last, the rise of the water being near ten feet perpendicular height greater than had been in this colony since it was first inhabited by Europeans. This disaster happened at a time when the landholders, settlers, and cultivators were struggling to overcome a still greater difficulty occasioned by the oppressions before in practice by a mistaken policy in oppressing the merchants and inhabitants in general by sending from this port ships that arrived with merchandize, of necessaries and comforts, by not suffering them to land their goods for sale, although the colony was in the greatest want of the articles they brought. In having for many years past reduced the price of grain and other articles, the produce of agriculture, to so low a price that the produce of the land would not pay the grower the expenses of cultivation, to the general ruin of the settler, and by not paying for such commodities in money, or such bills as would enable the settlers to purchase articles of necessity at a ready-money price, so that before this unfortunate flood (which gave the finishing stroke to the distresses of the inhabitants), the settlers were in general in that impoverished state that, exclusive of the great length of time it may take to restore the colony, a sum of £200,000 would scarcely restore it to the state it was when Governor Hunter left the colony in 1800. * This address is not dated; it was probably prepared at or about the same time as the preceding paper. We look up to your Excellency in wisdom to put in practice such means as may be for the salvation, honor, and interest of the colony, and for averting the approach of famine and distress to its inhabitants By restoring the freedom of trade. 1906 A bill of By permitting commodities to be bought and sold at a fair rights. open market (by all the inhabitants). By preventing that painful monopoly and extortion heretofore practised. By protecting the merchant and trader in their properties, and the people in general in their rights, privileges, liberties, and professions, as by law established. By suffering the laws of the realm to take their due course That justice be administered by the Courts authorized by His By causing payment to be made in such money or Govern- We most respectfully assure your Excellency we are ready on Profession all occasions to lay down our lives and fortunes for the protection of loyalty. and support of your Excellency in the good government, welfare, and prosperity of the colony, and to comply with every recommendation your Excellency may in wisdom propose for the government of this territory. We look up to the time when it may please His Majesty to authorize in such a manner as his justice may deem meet a legal authority to make local laws for the government of the colony. We subscribe this address, the loyal people, settlers, landholders, cultivators, and other principal inhabitants of Hawkesbury and parts adjacent. We, the free inhabitants who subscribe this address, request Deputies appointed. Messrs. John Bowman, Matthew John Gibbons, George Crossley, William Cummings, and T. M. Pitt, or any of them, as our deputies (in our names) to present this address, and, at the same time, to represent the infringement made on our rights, privileges, and liberties by John McArthur, Esq., who appears by the Sydney Gazette to have signed "For the inhabitants" without our previous knowledge, consent or authority, public or private. [Among the 244 names, nearly one-half are signed with a cross. Signatories, Some names may be given :-Edward Reynolds, Andrew Johnston, William Waring, John Austin, Jane Rose, Lazarus Graves, Tho's M. Pitt, R'd Hayman, W'm Hancey, W'm Rouse, Edward Pugh, John O'Hara, R'd Eldwright, Tho's Biggers, Adam Bell, Sam' Griffiths, Mich'l Connolly, George Crossley, W'm Mason, James Dunn, James Badgery, W'm Cummings, R'd Tuckwell, 1806 Disown any participation in address presented by Matth' J. Gibbons, H. T. Stockfish, Andrew Hume, Tho's Appledore, Israel Rayner, John Bowman, W'm Bowman, Sarah Stubbs, James Lowry, W'm Slaughter, James Dunlop.] In compliance with the general wishes of the settlers and other free inhabitants at Hawkesbury and parts adjacent, we are deputed to have the honor of presenting their address to your Excellency. And they require us in their names to represent, altho' they approve of the address to your Excellency which appear'd in the Sydney Gazette on the 17th of August instant, and had they been Macarthur. previously applied to for the purpose, would have given it their assent; yet they consider the act of John McArthur, Esq., in signing for them "the free inhabitants," with[out] previous application or authority, public or private, to be such an invasion of their rights and privileges as British subjects as to call for their pointed animadversion, and authorize us to say that had a public meeting been held they would by no means have authorized Mr. McArthur to have signed such address to Governor King as appears in the second paper. JOHN BOWMAN. GEORGE CROSSLEY. MATTHEW GIBBONS. 3 Oct. of the Britannia. "Breakers ahead!" WRECK OF THE BRITANNIA. 3rd October, 1806. The voyage THAT on August twenty-fourth, one thousand eight hundred and six, at noon, that latitude by observation was 30° 38′ south, and the longitude, by lunar observation at 3 p.m., was 156° 40′ east, by dead reckoning 157° 40' east. To the best of my recollection the course steered by compass from noon was west until 8 p.m., at the rate of four knots an hour. We then steered N.W., going nearly at the same rate until 2 a.m., when we discovered breakers ahead, close to the ship. We immediately put down the helm, the wind being nearly aft at the time; but, unfortunately, the ship did not answer her helm quick enough to clear the said breakers. ship striking aft first, she fell round off, and was hove bodily on The vessel a the said breakers, which proved to be a bed of coral rocks. After striking two or three times she broke her back, her stern and bow dropping down and midships hove up. The sea was then breaking violently upon the ship, so as rendered it impossible to have got wreck. Our *The officers were: Nathaniel Goodspeed, master; William Dyer, second mate; and John Douglas and John Curtis, boat-steerers, all of the Britannia. †This situation answers closely to that of Seringapatum Shoal. Findlay, in his Directory of the South Pacific Ocean, says that Elizabeth Reef, Seringapatam Reef, or Eliza Reef (as it has been variously styled) was discovered by the ships Claudine and Marquis of Hastings in 1820. It is situated 350 miles from the Australian coast, and has proved fatal to many vessels. The situation is 29° 55′ south latitude and 159° 6' east longitude. Findlay probably had no knowledge of the wreck of the Britannia. 1806 3 Oct. Lowering her off, or even were it possible to have got her off, she would have immediately sunk on account of the aforesaid disaster. We were then under the necessity of having recourse to our boats to save our lives. The first boat we attempted to lower into the the boats. water was unfortunately stove by a surge of the sea, and the lives of the crew was with difficulty saved. We then had recourse to the others, and at two and a half a.m. we were fortunate enough to get safe from the ship, clear of the breakers, with two boats, nineteen men being on board of them, myself included. There then remained on board the wreck five men, who could not get on board the boats time enough before we were obliged to push from Escaping the ship on account of the breakers; nor could we venture to from the approach the ship again until daylight. The people on board wreck, lowered a rope from the jibboom and into the water. We then ventured under the boom with one of our boats, when the second mate and one of the seamen were hauled on board, and with their assistance the people on board were enabled to launch another boat into the water and get safe thro' the breakers with about forty pounds of biscuit and ten gallons of water. The timbers of the ship at that time were sticking thro' her sides. At low water saw a quarter of a mile of dry sand, but at high The shoal water there was no part dry. The shoal lay N.E. and S. W. bare at low seven or eight miles, and about five or six in breadth. water. Australia. We left the ship with three boats, but four days after one of Make the them, in a gale of wind, separated from us, and has not been since coast of heard of. We were then steering for New South Wales. On the 29th of August we made the land, and on the 8th of September made Newcastle, where we were treated with kindness, and on the thirteenth of September we happily arrived at Port Jackson. Sworn before me this 3rd day of October, 1806. R. ATKINS, J.-A. and N.P. REGULATIONS RESPECTING VESSELS-FOREIGN AND ENGLISH. 4th October, 1806. 4 Oct. arrival to be Officer. (i.) The master, on his arrival, to make his report to the Naval Vessels' Officer and enter the ship, producing his muster-roll and agreement reported to with his ship's company; also his clearance from the port he Naval originally sailed from, and all other papers necessary to prove the legality of his cargo, together with his log-book and manifest of cargo, specifying the different articles for sale belonging to himself or any other person on board, and also for ship's use; then to give bond for £200 that neither himself or any other person send from the vessel any article for sale until permission be given; nor any spirits, wine, beer, or other strong drinks after such permission without a special permit signed by the Governor and countersigned VOL. VI-N |