The Voyage of Governor Phillip to Botany Bay, Arthur Phillip: Chapter XII.
Chapter XII.
May 1788 to June 1788
The Supply returns from Lord Howe Island--Some convicts assaulted by the natives--excursion of Governor Phillip to Botany Bay by Land--interview with many natives--the fourth of June celebrated--some account of the climate.
25 May 1788
On the 25th of May, the Supply tender returned from Lord Howe Island, but unfortunately without having been able to procure any turtle. She had met with squally weather, and had been obliged to cut away her best bower anchor, but suffered no other damage. The three transports bound for China had all appeared off the island while the Supply remained there.
About this time one of the convicts who, in searching for vegetables, had gone a considerable way from the camp, returned very dangerously wounded in the back. He said, that another man who had gone out for the same purpose, had been carried off by the natives in his sight, after having been wounded in the head. A shirt and hat were afterwards found, both pierced with spears, in one of the huts of the natives; but no intelligence of the man could be gained. There could be little doubt that the convicts had been the aggressors, though the man who returned strongly denied having given any kind of provocation.
30 May 1788
On the thirtieth of May, two men who had been employed in collecting rushes for thatch at some distance from the camp, were found dead. One of them had four spears in his body, one of which had pierced entirely through it: the other had not any marks of violence upon him. In this case it was clearly proved that the first injury had been offered by the unfortunate men, who paid so dearly for their dishonesty and disobedience of orders; for they had been seen with a canoe, which they had taken from one of the fishing places. These events were much regretted by Governor Phillip, as tending entirely to the frustration of the plan he had so much at heart, of conciliating the affections of the natives, and establishing a friendly intercourse with them.
As the rush-cutters tools had been carried away, the Governor thought it might be possible to discover the natives who had been concerned in this unfortunate affray; and to make them understand that the conduct of their assailants had been entirely unwarranted, and was very highly disapproved. He judged the attempt to be at least worth making, as it seemed the only way to restore that confidence which must have been interrupted by this affair. The next day, therefore, he went out with a small party, consisting altogether of twelve persons, and landed at the place where the men were killed. After traversing the country for more than twenty miles, they arrived at the north shore of Botany Bay, without having met with one of the natives.
In this place, at length, they saw about twenty canoes employed in fishing: and when the fires were made, and the party encamped to pass the night upon the beach, it was fully expected that some of those in the canoes would have joined them, but not one appeared. The next morning, though fifty canoes were drawn up on the beach, not a single person could be found belonging to them. Governor Phillip had now determined to return to Port Jackson; but as he went, keeping for some time near the sea coast, he discovered a great number of the natives, apparently more than could belong to that district, assembled at the mouth of a cave. The party was within ten yards of them before they were perceived, and the Governor had hardly time to make his people halt before numbers appeared in arms. The man who seemed to take the lead, as he advanced made signs for the English to retire, but when he saw Governor Phillip approach alone, unarmed, and in a friendly manner, he gave his spear away and met him with perfect confidence. In less than three minutes the English party found itself surrounded by two hundred and twelve men; but nothing occurred in this transaction which could in the least confirm the idea, that the natives were accustomed to act with treachery, or inclined to take any cruel advantage of superiority in numbers. The moment the offered friendship was accepted on their side, they laid down their spears and stone hatchets, and joined the party in the most amicable manner. Numbers of women and children remained at a small distance, some of whom the men afterwards brought down to receive the little articles which were offered as presents. Nothing was seen among these people which could at all prove that any of them had been engaged in the affray with the rush-cutters; and the Governor parted with them on the most friendly terms, but more convinced than ever of the necessity of treating them with a proper degree of confidence, in order to prevent disagreement. Had he gone up with all his party, or had he even hesitated a moment before he advanced himself, making the signals of friendship, a lance would probably have been thrown, after which nothing could have prevented a rencounter, which in such circumstances must have been fatal.
Here was seen the finest stream of water that had hitherto been discovered in the country, but the cove into which it runs lies very open to the sea. When the natives saw that the English were going forward towards the next cove, one of them, an old man, made signs that he might be allowed to go first. He did so, and as soon as he had ascended the hill, called out, holding up both his hands, (the usual signal of amity among these people) to signify to the natives in the next cove that they who were advancing were friends. The Governor's party did not, however, descend to that cove, but saw about forty men, so that, unless they had assembled themselves on some particular occasion, they must be more numerous in that part than had been before imagined. Governor Phillip had calculated before, from the parties he had seen, that in Botany Bay, Port Jackson, Broken Bay, and all the intermediate country, the inhabitants could not exceed one thousand five hundred. In crossing the hills at this time between Botany Bay and Port Jackson, smoke was seen on the top of Lansdown Hills, which seems to prove beyond a doubt, that the country is inhabited as far as those mountains, which are not less than fifty miles from the sea.
Further enquiries having given some reason to suppose, that one of the natives had been murdered, and several wounded, previously to the attack made upon the rush-cutters, Governor Phillip on his return, proclaimed the reward of emancipation to any convict who should discover the aggressors. This step, if it did not in this instance procure any information, seemed likely to prevent such acts of violence in future.
No very good fortune had hitherto attended the live stock belonging to the settlement, but the heaviest blow was yet to come. About this time the two bulls and four cows, belonging to Government, and to the Governor, having been left for a time by the man who was appointed to attend them, strayed into the woods, and though they were traced to some distance, never could be recovered. This was a loss which must be for some time irreparable.
4 June 1788
The fourth of June was not suffered to pass without due celebration. It was a day of remission from labour, and of general festivity throughout the settlement. At sun-rise the Sirius and Supply fired each a salute of twenty-one guns, and again at one o'clock, when the marines on shore also saluted with three vollies. At sunset the same honours were a third time repeated from the ships; large bonfires were lighted, and the whole camp afforded a scene of joy. That there might not be any exception to the happiness of this day, the four convicts who had been reprieved from death, and banished to an island in the middle of the harbour, received a full pardon, and were sent for to bear their part in the general exultation. The Governor, in his letters, with that humanity which so strongly distinguishes his character, says, he trusts that on this day there was not a single heavy heart in this part of his Majesty's dominions. His own house was the centre of conviviality to all who could be admitted to that society, nor was any thing neglected which in such a situation could mark a day of celebrity, consistently with propriety and good order. Perhaps no birth-day was ever celebrated in more places, or more remote from each other, than that of his Majesty on this day.
It was now, it seems, first generally known, that the name of Cumberland County had been given by the Governor to this part of the territory. This name had been fixed before the assembling of the first courts, for the sake of preserving regularity in the form of the public acts, in which it is usual to name the county. The boundaries fixed for Cumberland County were, on the west, Carmarthen and Lansdown Hills: on the north, the northern parts of Broken Bay; and to the southward, the southern parts of Botany Bay. Thus including completely these three principal bays, and leaving the chief place of settlement at Sydney Cove nearly in the centre.
On the 22d of June was a slight shock of an earthquake, which did not last more than two or three seconds. It was felt by most people in the camp, and by the Governor himself, who heard at the same time a noise from the southward, which he took at first for the report of guns fired at a great distance.
24 June 1788
On the 24th, a convict who had absconded on the 5th, having been guilty of a robbery, returned into the camp almost starved. He had hoped to subsist in the woods, but found it impossible. One of the natives gave him a fish, and then made signs for him to go away. He said, that afterwards he joined a party of the natives, who would have burnt him, but that with some difficulty he made his escape; and he pretended to have seen the remains of a human body actually lying on a fire, but little credit can be given to reports from such a quarter. He was of opinion that the natives were at this time in great distress for food, and said, that he had seen four of them dying in the woods, who made signs for something to eat, as if they were perishing through hunger. It is certain that very little fish could be caught at this time, and the convict seemed desirous to suggest the notion that they supplied their necessities occasionally with human flesh; but there seems to be no good foundation for such an opinion. This man was tried for his offence, pleaded guilty, and suffered with another criminal.
View in New South Wales
It was now sufficiently ascertained, that though the necessity of subsisting so long chiefly upon salt provisions, and of remaining encamped in very wet weather had produced the scurvy, and other disorders common in such circumstances, the climate itself wherein this new settlement is fixed is mild and salubrious. Heavy rains had generally attended the changes of the moon during the winter months, but there had not been any time that could properly be called a rainy season. The clearing away of the woods will of course assist the circulation of air, and continually increase the healthfulness of the place. Violent storms of thunder and lightning sometimes happened, and Governor Phillip observed the variation of his thermometer, in the shade, to amount frequently to thirty-three degrees, between eight in the morning and two in the afternoon. The report of the surgeon at this time is subjoined.
A RETURN OF SICK, ETC. JUNE 30, 1788. Marines sick in the hospital 4 Convalescents in the hospital 2 Marines sick in camp 18 Convalescents in the hospital 6 Wives and children of marines sick in the hospital 6 Total belonging to the battalion under medical treatment 36 Of marines dead from the time of embarkation to landing 1 Women dead from the time of embarkation to landing 1 Children dead from the time of embarkation to landing 1 Marines dead since landing 3 Women dead since landing 0 Children dead since landing 2 Total dead from the time of embarkation to the present date 8 Convicts sick in the hospital 20 Convalescents in the hospital 4 Convicts sick in camp 26 Convalescents in the hospital 16 Total of convicts under medical treatment 66 Male convicts dead from the time of embarkation to landing 36 Female convicts dead from the time of embarkation to landing 4 Convicts children dead from the time of embarkation to landing 5 Total 45 Male convicts dead since landing 20 Female convicts dead since landing 8 Convicts children dead since landing 8 Total dead, from the time of embarkation to the present date 81 Convicts unfit for labour, from old age, infirmities, etc. 52 JOHN WHITE, Surgeon. Sydney Cove, Port Jackson.
Chapter XIII.
June 1788 to July 1788
Particular description of Sydney Cove--Of the buildings actually erected--and of the intended town--A settlement made at the head of the harbour.
There are few things more pleasing than the contemplation of order and useful arrangement, arising gradually out of tumult and confusion; and perhaps this satisfaction cannot any where be more fully enjoyed than where a settlement of civilized people is fixing itself upon a newly discovered or savage coast. The wild appearance of land entirely untouched by cultivation, the close and perplexed growing of trees, interrupted now and then by barren spots, bare rocks, or spaces overgrown with weeds, flowers, flowering shrubs, or underwood, scattered and intermingled in the most promiscuous manner, are the first objects that present themselves; afterwards, the irregular placing of the first tents which are pitched, or huts which are erected for immediate accommodation, wherever chance presents a spot tolerably free from obstacles, or more easily cleared than the rest, with the bustle of various hands busily employed in a number of the most incongruous works, increases rather than diminishes the disorder, and produces a confusion of effect, which for a time appears inextricable, and seems to threaten an endless continuance of perplexity. But by degrees large spaces are opened, plans are formed, lines marked, and a prospect at least of future regularity is clearly discerned, and is made the more striking by the recollection of the former confusion.
Sketch of Sydney Cove
To this latter state the settlement at Sydney Cove had now at length arrived, and is so represented in the plan annexed. Lines are there traced out which distinguish the principal street of an intended town, to be terminated by the Governor's house, the main guard, and the criminal court. In some parts of this space temporary barracks at present stand, but no permanent buildings will be suffered to be placed, except in conformity to the plan laid down. Should the town be still further extended in future, the form of other streets is also traced in such a manner as to ensure a free circulation of air. The principal streets, according to this design, will be two hundred feet wide; the ground proposed for them to the southward is nearly level, and is altogether an excellent situation for buildings. It is proposed by Governor Phillip that when houses are to be built here, the grants of land shall be made with such clauses as will prevent the building of more than one house on one allotment, which is to consist of sixty feet in front, and one hundred and fifty feet in depth. These regulations will preserve a kind of uniformity in the buildings, prevent narrow streets, and exclude many inconveniences which a rapid increase of inhabitants might otherwise occasion hereafter. It has been also an object of the Governor's attention to place the public buildings in situations that will be eligible at all times, and particularly to give the storehouses and hospital sufficient space for future enlargement, should it be found necessary.
The first huts that were erected here were composed of very perishable materials, the soft wood of the cabbage palm, being only designed to afford immediate shelter. The necessity of using the wood quite green made it also the less likely to prove durable. The huts of the convicts were still more slight, being composed only of upright posts, wattled with slight twigs, and plaistered up with clay. Barracks and huts were afterwards formed of materials rather more lasting. Buildings of stone might easily have been raised, had there been any means of procuring lime for mortar. The stone which has been found is of three sorts: A fine free stone, reckoned equal in goodness to that of Portland; an indifferent kind of sand stone, or firestone; and a sort which appears to contain a mixture of iron. But neither chalk, nor any species of lime-stone has yet been discovered. In building a small house for the Governor on the eastern side of the Cove, (marked 1 in the plan) lime was made of oyster shells, collected in the neighbouring coves; but it cannot be expected that lime should be supplied in this manner for many buildings, or indeed for any of great extent. Till this difficulty shall be removed by the discovery of chalk or lime-stone, the public buildings must go on very slowly, unless care be taken to send out those articles as ballast in all the ships destined for Port Jackson. In the mean time the materials can only be laid in clay, which makes it necessary to give great thickness to the walls, and even then they are not so firm as might be wished. Good clay for bricks is found near Sydney Cove, and very good bricks have been made. The wood, from the specimens that have been received in England, appears to be good; it is heavy indeed, but fine grained, and apparently strong, and free from knots. The imperfections that were found in it at first arose probably from the want of previous seasoning.
The hospital is placed on the west side of the Cove, in a very healthful situation, entirely clear of the town; and is built in such a manner as to last for some years. On the high ground between the hospital and the town, if water can be found by sinking wells, it is the Governor's intention to erect the barracks, surrounding them with proper works. These were to have been begun as soon as the transports were cleared, and the men hutted, but the progress of work was rendered so slow by the want of an adequate number of able workmen, that it was necessary to postpone that undertaking for a time. The ground marked out for a church lies still nearer to the town, so that this edifice will form in part one side of the principal parade. The design which demanded the most immediate execution was that of a storehouse, which might be secure from the danger of fire. In a country exposed to frequent storms of thunder and lightning, it was rather an uneasy situation to have all the provisions and other necessaries lodged in wooden buildings, covered with thatch of the most combustible kind. On the point of land that forms the west side of the Cove, and on an elevated spot, a small observatory has been raised under the direction of Lieutenant Dawes, who was charged by the Board of Longitude with the care of observing the expected comet. The longitude of this observatory is ascertained to be 159° 19' 30" east from Greenwich, and the latitude 32° 52' 30" south. A small house, built by the Lieutenant Governor for himself, forms at present the corner of the parade; the principal street will be carried on at right angles with the front of this building. Instead of thatch, they now use shingles made from a tree in appearance like a fir, but producing a wood not unlike the English oak. This, though more secure than thatching, is not enough so for storehouses. For these, if slate-stone should not be found, tiles must be made of the clay which has been used for bricks. The principal farm is situated in the next cove to the east of the town, and less than half a mile from it. When the plan was drawn it contained about nine acres laid down in corn of different kinds. Later accounts speak of six acres of wheat, eight of barley, and six of other grain, as raised on the public account, and in a very promising way.
Sydney cove lies open to the north-east, and is continued in a south-west direction for near a thousand yards, gradually decreasing from the breadth of about one thousand four hundred feet, till it terminates in a point, where it receives a small stream of fresh water. The anchorage extends about two thousand feet up the cove, and has soundings in general of four fathoms near the shore, and five, six, or seven, nearer the middle of the channel. It is perfectly secure in all winds; and for a considerable way up on both sides, ships can lie almost close to the shore: nor are there, in any part of it, rocks or shallows to render the navigation dangerous. Such a situation could not fail to appear desireable to a discerning man, whose object it was to establish a settlement, which he knew must for some time depend for support on the importation of the principal necessaries of life.
It is supposed that metals of various kinds abound in the soil on which the town is placed. A convict, who had formerly been used to work in the Staffordshire lead mines, declared very positively, that the ground which they were now clearing, contains a large quantity of that ore: and copper is supposed to lie under some rocks which were blown up in sinking a cellar for the public stock of spirituous liquors. It is the opinion of the Governor himself that several metals are actually contained in the earth hereabouts, and that mines may hereafter be worked to great advantage: but at present he strongly discourages any search of this kind, very judiciously discerning, that in the present situation of his people, which requires so many exertions of a very different nature, the discovering of a mine would be the greatest evil that could befal the settlement. In some places where they dug, in making wells, they found a substance which at first was taken for a metal, but which proving perfectly refractory in a very strong and long continued heat, has since been concluded to be black lead. The kind of pigment called by painters Spanish brown, is found in great abundance, and the white clay with which the natives paint themselves is still in greater plenty. The Abbe le Receveur was of opinion, that this clay, if cleared from the sand, which might easily be separated, would make excellent porcelain.
The climate at Sydney Cove is considered, on the whole, as equal to the finest in Europe. The rains are not ever of long duration, and there are seldom any fogs: the soil, though in general light, and rather sandy in this part, is full as good as usually is found so near the sea-coast. All the plants and fruit trees brought from Brasil and the Cape, which were not damaged in the passage, thrive exceedingly; and vegetables have now become plentiful, both the European sorts and such as are peculiar to this country. In the Governor's garden are excellent cauliflowers, and melons very fine of their kinds. The orange trees flourish, and the fig trees and vines are improving still more rapidly. In a climate so favourable, the cultivation of the vine may doubtless be carried to any degree of perfection; and should not other articles of commerce divert the attention of the settlers from this point, the wines of New South Wales may, perhaps, hereafter be sought with avidity, and become an indispensable part of the luxury of European tables.
The rank grass under the trees, unfortunately proved fatal to all the sheep purchased by Governor Phillip, on his own and on the public account. Those which private individuals kept close to their own tents, and fed entirely there, were preserved. Hogs and poultry not only thrive but increase very fast; black cattle will doubtless succeed as well, and it will be easy in future to secure them from straying. The horses have not met with any accident.
The last dispatches from Governor Phillip bring an account of his having sent a small detachment up to that ground at the upper end of Port Jackson, which he discovered in one of his excursions to be so highly fit for cultivation. This party consisted of a captain, two lieutenants of marines, with twenty-five non-commissioned officers and privates: about fifty convicts were added as labourers. This spot is very pleasant, and has been named by the Governor, Rose-hill. The flax-plant, which was seen at the first arrival of our people, has not been found since in any great abundance. A most ample supply of this valuable article may, however, always be obtained from Norfolk Island. Governor Phillip, when he judged the seeds to be ripe, ordered them to be collected, but at that time very few of the plants were found, and not any in the places where the greatest quantity had been seen. It is thought that the natives pull up the plant when it is in flower to make their fishing lines.
On the whole, notwithstanding the difficulties and disadvantages at first experienced, which, though great, were not more than must naturally be expected to occur in such an undertaking; notwithstanding the sicknesses which from various causes prevailed for some time among the people, the settlement at Sydney Cove wore a very promising aspect at the time when the last accounts were sent; and there can be no doubt that it will be found hereafter fully to answer every expectation which was formed when the design was projected. The scantiness of the streams of fresh water was thought at first unfavourable, but good springs have since been found by digging. The house built for Governor Phillip stands about fifty-six feet above high-water mark, and there, by sinking a well about fifteen feet in the rock, an excellent spring of pure water has been obtained.