There also the Governor in the course of the month laid down the lines for a regular town. The principal street was marked out to extend one mile, commencing near the landingplace, and running in a direction west, to the foot of the rising ground named Rose Hill, on which his Excellency purposed to erect a small house for his own residence whenever he should visit that settlement. On each side of this street, whose width was to be two hundred and five feet, huts were to be erected capable of containing ten persons each, and at the distance of sixty feet from each other; and garden ground for each hut was allotted in the rear. As the huts were to be built of such combustible materials as wattles and plaster, and to be covered with thatch, the width of the street, and the distance that they were placed from each other, operated as an useful precaution against fire; and by beginning on so wide a scale the inhabitants of the town at some future day would possess their own accommodations and comforts more readily, each upon his own allotment, than if crowded into a smaller space.

The Governor had by these ships dispatches from the Secretary of State, containing, among other articles of information, instruetions respecting the granting of lands and the alloting of ground in townships. Soon after their arrival it was declared in public orders :

That, in consequence of the assurances that were given to the non-commissioned officers and men belonging to the detachment of marines, on their embarking for New South Wales (that such of them as should behave well should be allowed to quit the service on their return to England, or be discharged abroad upon the relief, and permitted to settle in that country), his Majesty had been graciously pleased to direct the following terms to be held out as an encouragement to such non-commissioned officers and private men of the marines as might be desirous of becoming settlers either at Port Jackson, or in any of the islands comprized within the government of the continent of New South Wales, on the arri

val of the corps raised and intended for the service of that country, and for their relief, viz.

To every non-commissioned officer, an allotment of one hundred and thirty acres of land, if single; and one hundred and fifty, if married.

To every private man, eighty acres of land, if single, one hundred, if married; and ten acres of land for each child at the time of granting the allotment; free of all taxes, quitrents, and other acknowledgments, for the term of five years; at the expiration of which term to be liable to an annual quitrent of one shilling for every fifty acres.

As a further acknowledgment, a bounty was offered of three pounds per man to every non-commissioned officer and private man who would enlist in the new corps, (to form a company to be officered from the marines); and an allotment of double the above proportion of land, if they behaved well for five years, to be granted them at the expiration of that time; the said allotments not to be subject to any tax for ten years.

And at their discharge, at either of the above periods, they were to be supplied with clothing and one year's provisions, with seed-grain, tools, and implements of agriculture. The service of a certain number of convicts was to be assigned to them for their labour when they could make it appear that they could feed and clothe them. In these instructions no mention was made of granting lands to officers; and to other persons who might emigrate and be desirous of settling in this country, no greater proportion of land was to be allotted than what was to be granted to a non-commissioned officer of the marines.

Government, between every allotment, reserved to itself a space equal to the largest grant, but leased only to individuals for the term of fourteen years.

Provision was made for the church, by allotting in each township, which should be marked out, four hundred acres for the maintenance of a minister; and half of that number was to be allotted for the maintenance of a school-master. If the

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allotment should happen to be made on the banks of any navigable river, care was to be taken that the breadth of each track did not extend along the banks more than one-third of the length of such track, in order that no settler should engross more than his proportion of the benefit which would accrue from such a situation. And it was directed, that the good and the bad land should be as equally divided as circumstances would allow. The original instructions (under which each male convict emancipated or discharged, if single, was to have thirty, if married, fifty, and ten acres for every child that he might have at the time of settling,) remained in force.

The particular conditions required by the crown from a settler were, the residing upon the ground, proceeding to the improvement and cultivation of his allotment, and reserving such of the timber thereof as might be fit for naval purposes for the use of his Majesty.

The Surprise sailed on the 1st of August, with the necessary supplies, for Norfolk Island, having on board 35 male and 150 female convicts, with two superintendants, a deputy commissary, and an assistant-surgeon; and in a few days both the Scarborough and Neptune sailed for China.

It having been found that the arms and ammunition which were entrusted to the convicts residing at the distant farms for their protection against the natives, were made a very different use of, an order was given, recalling them, and prohibiting any convicts from going out with arms, except those who were licensed game-killers.

The clergyman complaining of non-attendance at divine service, which, it must be observed, was generally performed in the open air, alike unsheltered from wind and rain, as from the fervour of the summer's sun, it was ordered that three pounds of flour should be deducted from the ration of each overseer, and two pounds from that of each labouring convict, who should not attend prayers once on each Sunday, unless some reasonable excuse for their absence should be assigned.

Governor Phillip, who had uniformly directed every undertaking in person since the formation of the colony, went down in the morning of the 7th of September, to the South Head, accompanied by two officers, to give some instructions to the people employed in erecting a column at that place. As he was returning to the settlement, he received information, by a boat which had landed some gentlemen in the lower part of the harbour, who were going on an excursion to Broken Bay, that Bennillong, the native who escaped in May, had been seen there among many others of his countrymen that had assembled to feast upon a whale, which after being attacked by our people in the harbour, and overturning a boat, whereby three lives were lost, had got on shore in Manly Bay. Anxious to see him again, the Governor, after taking some arms from the party at the Look-out, went down and landed at the place where the whale was lying. There he not only saw Bennillong, but Cole-be also, who had made his escape from the Governor's house a few days after his capture. At first his Excellency trusted himself alone with these people; but the few months that Bennillong had been away so altered his person, that the Governor, until joined by his companions, did not perfectly recollect his old acquaintance. This native had been always much attached to Captain Collins, one of the gentlemen then with the Governor, and testified with much warmth his satisfaction at seeing him again. Several articles of wearing apparel were given to him and his companions (taken for that purpose from the people in the boat, but who, all but one man, remained on their oars to be ready in case of any accident); and a promise was exacted from his Excellency by Bennillong to return in two days with more, and also with some hatchets or tomahawks. The cove was full of natives, allured by the attractions of a whale-feast; and it being remarked, during the conference, that twenty or thirty of them were drawing into a circle round the Governor and his friends, (who had most inexcusably exposed themselves), the Governor proposed retiring to the boat by degrees; but Bennillong, who had presented to him several natives by name, pointed out one, whom the Governor, thinking to take particular notice of, stepped forward to meet, holding out both his hands towards him. The savage not understanding this civility, and perhaps thinking that he was going to seize him as a prisoner, lifted a spear from the grass with his foot, and, fixing it on his throwing-stick, in an instant darted it at the Governor. The spear entered a little above the collar-bone, and had been discharged with such force that the barb of it came through on the other side. Several other spears were thrown, but happily no further mischief was effected. The spear was with difficulty broken by one of the gentlemen present; and while the Governor was walking down to the boat the people landed with the arms; but of four muskets which they brought on shore one only could be

fired.

This accident gave cause to the opening of a communication between the natives and the settlement; which, although attended with such an unpromising beginning, it was hoped would be followed with good consequences.

A few days after the accident, Bennillong, who certainly had not any culpable share in the transaction, came with his wife and some of his companions to a cove on the north shore not far from the settlement; where, by means of Boo-roong, the female who lived in the clergyman's house, an interview was effected between the natives and some officers, who, at considerable personal risk, went over with her.

At this time the name of the man who wounded the Governer was first known to be Wil-le-me-ring; and Bennillong made many attempts to fix a belief that he had beaten him severely for the aggression. Bennillong declared, that he would wait in that situation for some days, and hoped that the Governor would be able, before the expiration of them, to visit him. On the tenth day after he had received the wound, his Excellency was so far recovered as to go to the place, accompanied by several officers, all armed. Here he saw Ben