Volume I Part 28 (1/2)
The Spanish s.h.i.+ps sail The _Chesterfield_ returns from Norfolk Island A contract entered into for bringing cattle from India to this country Provisions embarked on board the Bengal s.h.i.+p for Norfolk Island The _Daedalus_ arrives Cattle lost Discoveries by Captain Vancouver Two natives of New Zealand brought in Bengal s.h.i.+p sails Phenomenon in the sky The hours of labour and ration altered Lead stolen Detachment at Parramatta relieved Accident at that settlement Lands cleared by officers Mutiny on board the _Kitty_ The _Kitty_ sails for England His Majesty's birthday State of the provision store The _Britannia_ arrives Loss of cattle General account of cattle purchased, lost in the pa.s.sage, and landed in New South Wales Natives
April.] The Spanish officers having nearly completed the astronomical observations which the commodore thought it necessary to make in this port, that officer signified his intention of shortly putting to sea on the further prosecution of the instructions and orders which he had received from his court. Previous to their departure, however, the lieutenant-governor, with the officers of the settlement and of the corps, were entertained first on board the _Descuvierta_, and the next day on board the _Atrevida_, the lieutenant-governor being each day received with a salute of nine guns, with the Spanish flag hoisted on the foretopmast-head, being the compliment that is paid in the Spanish service to a lieutenant-general. The dinner was prepared and served up after their own custom, and bore every appearance of having been furnished from a plentiful market.* The healths of our respective sovereigns, being united in one wish, were drank with every token of approbation, under a discharge of cannon; and 'Prosperity to the British colonies in New South Wales' concluded the ceremonials of each day.
[* A small cow from Monterrey was sacrificed on the occasion]
The commodore presented the lieutenant-governor with two drawings of this settlement, and one of Parramatta, done in Indian ink, by F. Brambila; together with a copy of the astronomical observations which had been made at the observatory, and at Parramatta. From these it appeared that the longitude of the observatory which they had erected at the Point, deduced from forty-two sets of distances of the sun and moon, taken on the morning of the 2nd of this month, was 151 degrees 18 minutes 8 seconds E from Greenwich; and the lat.i.tude, 33 degrees 51 minutes 28 seconds S. The lat.i.tude of the governor's house at Parramatta was 33 degrees 48 minutes 0 seconds S; and the distance west from the observatory about nineteen miles.
The commodore left a packet with dispatches for the Spanish amba.s.sador at the court of London, to be forwarded by the first s.h.i.+p which should depart hence direct for England; and on the 12th both s.h.i.+ps sailed. Their future route was never exactly spoken of by them; but, from what the officers occasionally threw out, it appeared that they expected to be in Europe in about fourteen months from their departure. They spoke of visiting the Society and Friendly Islands, and of proceeding again to the coast of South America.
As it had been the general wish to render the residence of these strangers among us as pleasant as our situation would allow, we received with great satisfaction the expressions of regret which they testified at their departure, a regret that was at least equally felt on our part. Our society was very small; we could not therefore but sensibly feel the departure of these gentlemen, who united to much scientific knowledge those qualities of the heart which render men amiable in society; and the names of Malaspina, Bustamante, Tova, Espinosa, Concha, Cevallos, Murphy*, Robredo, Quintano, Viana, Novales, Pineda**, Bauza, Heencke***, Nee***, Ravenet****, and Brambila****, were not likely to be soon forgotten by the officers of this settlement. During their stay here, the greatest harmony subsisted between the seamen of the two s.h.i.+ps and our people, the latter in but few instances exercising their nimble-fingered talents among them; such, however, as did choose to hazard a display, and were detected, were severely punished.
[* This gentleman was of Irish extraction.]
[** Brother of D. A. Pineda.]
[*** The botanists.]
[**** The limner, and landscape-painter.]
A few days before these s.h.i.+ps left us, the _Chesterfield_ returned (after an absence of only thirty days) from Norfolk Island, where she landed safely every thing she had on board for that settlement. Mr. Alt anch.o.r.ed for some days in Cascade Bay, where Governor King had constructed a wharf, and had hopes of making the landing more convenient that could ever be practicable at Sydney Bay. This was truly a desideratum, as few s.h.i.+ps had gone to this island without having in the course of their stay either been blown off, or been in some danger on the sh.o.r.e. It was understood that scarcely any thing less than a miracle could have saved the _Kitty_ from being wrecked on a rock just off the reef.
The master of the _Shah Hormuzear_ having laid before the lieutenant-governor some proposals for bringing cattle to this country, they were taken into consideration; and as the introducing cattle into the colony was a most desirable object, and Bengal had been pointed out as the settlement from which they were to be procured, after some days a contract was entered into between Mr. Bampton on his own part, and the lieutenant-governor on behalf of the crown, wherein it was covenanted, that Mr. Bampton should freight at some port in India a s.h.i.+p with one hundred head of large draught cattle; one hundred and fifty tons of the best provision rice, and one hundred and fifty tons of dholl, both articles to be equal in quality to samples then produced and approved of, and one hundred tons of the best Irish cured beef or pork; or, in lieu of the salt provisions, fifty tons of rice. For the cattle, it was covenanted on the part of the crown that Mr. Bampton should receive at the rate of thirty-five pounds sterling per head for all that he should land in a merchantable condition in the colony; for the rice he was to be paid twenty-six pounds sterling, and for the dholl eighteen pounds sterling, for every merchantable ton which should be landed; and, lastly, for the salt provisions he was to receive four-pence halfpenny per pound for all that should be landed in proper condition. In this contract there were several conditions and restrictions, and the master was bound in one thousand five hundred pounds penalty to fulfil them.
The lieutenant-governor, wis.h.i.+ng to send a supply to Norfolk Island sufficient to place that settlement, as far as depended upon him, in a comfortable state in point of provisions, engaged the _Shah Hormuzear_ to carry two hundred and twenty tons of provisions thither for the sum of 220; and the quant.i.ty now sent, added to what the _Kitty_ and _Chesterfield_ had already conveyed, insured to Governor King provisions for more than twelve months for all his people at the full ration.
Mr. Bampton engaging the _Chesterfield_ to carry some part of these provisions, both s.h.i.+ps began taking them in, and by the 19th had quitted the cove, intending to sail the following morning; but the signal being made for a sail at daylight, they waited to see the event.
At the close of the evening of the 10th the _Daedalus_ stores.h.i.+p anch.o.r.ed in the cove, from the north-west coast of America. The _Daedalus_ left England with a cargo of provisions and stores, consisting chiefly of articles of traffic, for the use of the vessels under the command of Captain Vancouver, whom she joined at Nootka Sound on the north-west coast of America, and it was designed that she should, after delivering her cargo, be dispatched to this colony with such stock as she might be able to procure from the different islands whereat she might touch, and be afterwards employed as the service might require, should Captain Vancouver not make any application for her return; which was thought probable, as well as that he might require some a.s.sistance from the colony.
Captain Vancouver, after taking out as much of the cargo as could be received on board the vessels under his command, dispatched her according to his orders, although not so early as he could have wished, owing to particular circ.u.mstances; and he was now obliged to send with her a requisition for the remainder of the provisions and stores being returned to him, together with a certain quant.i.ty of provisions from the colony; the whole to be dispatched from hence so as to join him either at Nootka, or some of the Sandwich islands, in the month of October next.
The agent Lieutenant Richard Hergist, who left England in this s.h.i.+p, was unfortunately killed, together with a Mr. Gootch (an astronomer, on his way to join Captain Vancouver) and one seaman, at Wahool one of the Sandwich Islands, where they touched to procure refreshments. Captain Vancouver had replaced this officer, by Lieutenant James Hanson, of the _Chatham_ armed-tender, who now arrived in the s.h.i.+p.
On board of the _Daedalus_ were embarked at Monterrey, a Spanish settlement at a short distance from Nootka, six bulls, twelve cows, six rams, and eight ewes; and at Otaheite, Lieutenant Hanson took on board upwards of one hundred hogs (most of them, unluckily, barrows) of all which stock four sheep and about eighty hogs only survived the pa.s.sage.
The loss of the cattle was attributed to their having been caught wild from the woods, and put on board without ever having tasted dry food. The major part of the hogs, apparently of a fine breed, arrived in very poor condition.
Lieutenant Hanson, having touched at the northernmost island of New Zealand, brought away with him two natives of that country, having received directions to that effect for the purpose of instructing the settlers at Norfolk Island in the manufacture of the flax plant. They were both young men, and, as they arrived before the departure of the _Shah Hormuzear_, the lieutenant-governor determined to send them at once to Norfolk Island.
Captain Vancouver transmitted by Lieutenant Hanson a chart and drawings of a s.p.a.cious harbour, which he discovered on the southwest coast of this country, and which he named King George the Third's Sound. Its situation was without the line prescribed as the boundary of the British possessions in this country, being in the lat.i.tude of 35 degrees 05 minutes 30 seconds South, and longitude 118 degrees 34 minutes 0 seconds E. He also sent an account of the discovery of a dangerous cl.u.s.ter of rocks, which he named the Snares, the largest of which was about a league in circuit, and lay in lat.i.tude 48 degrees 03 minutes S and longitude 166 degrees 20 minutes East, bearing from the South-end of New Zealand S 40 degrees W true, twenty leagues distant; and from the southernmost part of the Traps (rocks discovered by Captain Cook) S 67 degrees W true, twenty leagues distant. The largest of these rocks, which was the highest and the northeasternmost, might be seen in clear weather about eight or nine leagues: the whole cl.u.s.ter was composed of seven barren rocks, extending in a direction about N 70 degrees E and S 70 degrees W true, occupying the s.p.a.ce of about three leagues.
The _Chatham_, being separated in a gale of wind from the _Discovery_, fell in with an island, which was named 'Chatham Island,' and along the north-side of which she sailed for twelve leagues. Its inhabitants much resembled the natives of New Zealand, and it was situated in lat.i.tude 43 degrees 48 minutes S and longitude 183 degrees 02 minutes East.
We learned from Lieutenant Hanson, that the _Matilda_ whaler, which sailed hence in the latter end of the year 1791, on her fis.h.i.+ng voyage, was wrecked on a reef in 22 degrees South lat.i.tude, and 138 degrees 30 minutes West longitude. The master and people reached Otaheite, from whence some were taken by an American vessel, and some by Captain Bligh of the Providence. Five sailors only remained on the island, with one runaway convict from this place, when the _Daedalus_ touched there in her route hither, and of that number one sailor only could be prevailed on to quit it.
We had now the satisfaction of learning that Captain Bligh had sailed for Jamaica in July last, with ten thousand breadfruit plants on board in fine order; having so far accomplished the object of this his second mission to that island.
The natives from New Zealand having been put on board the _Shah Hormuzear_ at the last moment of her stay in port, Lieutenant Hanson remaining with them until the s.h.i.+p was without the Heads, she sailed, together with the _Chesterfield_, on the 24th.
Mr. Bampton purposed making his pa.s.sage to India through the straits at the south end of New Guinea, known by the name of Torres Straits. Captain Hill, of the New South Wales corps, took his pa.s.sage to England by the way of India with Mr. Bampton.
But few convicts were allowed to quit the colony in these s.h.i.+ps; four men and one woman only, whose terms of transportation were expired, being received on board.