J. Giles Powell

“ When biscuit and flour are exhausted, will he good humouredly satisfy his hunger with rice? Will he who for his whole life has slept in a bed, and had a house to shelter him, contentedly lay down to rest on the ground with a tarpaulin to shelter him from rain and wind? ”

“ He may be permitted to acquire wealth—"to add house to house and field to field"—"to call the land after his own name," and "to have man servants and maid servants, and very much cattle ;"but whose shall all these things be when his soul is required of him? What will it avail him to be an Abraham in herds and dependents, if he have not the faith and the piety of Abraham? What will it avail him to be a Job in riches, if he be not a Job in patience and resignation to the will of God. Let him be industrious as a man, but let him seek after righteousness also. ”

“ The emigrant may consider how far it might answer his purpose to form an arrangement with some person in London, previous to his departure, to whom his wool may be consigned, and whom he could direct to purchase with the proceeds any articles he might require. Indeed, when cultivation has a little extended, and capital increased, it will be well worth the attention of the settler to import some of the very finest-woolled sheep he can procure, and to pay them that particular attention, without which the sheep will degenerate and their wool become coarse. ”

“ Now, either from forgetfulness or miscalculation, the settler may not have laid in provisions to maintain his party till he raises subsistence from his farm, and the remote distance which he may be situated from a market, and more than all, the want of cash, may prevent his obtaining a supply. In such cases the party must be maintained by the net and gun, and any wholesome substitutes for bread and meat which they can procure.
But when the beef-barrel is empty, will the English labourer willingly submit to live for a month upon fish and kangaroos? ”

“ If you do not know a good lock from a bad one, by all means make the purchase under the advice of some experienced friend; but, if it can be avoided, never send him to purchase one for you ; for in the choice of a gun or a wife, every one will be more satisfied to choose for himself.
A duck-gun should not be less than three feet in the barrel and of ten guage, and as it will have to carry not less than from two to three ounces of shot, and powder in proportion, it is needless to say that it ought to be heavy, or both cheek and shoulder will suffer from the recoil. ”

“ Till a field is properly fenced in (a work of time and labour, when trees are to be felled and posts and rails cleft and put down) it will unquestionably require one person to attend them, and his time, according to the usual wages of the Colony, is worth five shillings per day. Let the settler first erect a hut to dwell in; let him next sow corn for the subsistence of his family, and when he has enclosed some fields, if he must stock them with English cattle, let him purchase them from those who, having more money than experience, have brought them to the Settlement. ”

“ Gunsmiths may pretend what they please, but in a general way, a gun of two feet four inches in the barrel will hot kill so far as one of two feet eight or ten inches, unless the bore be less than a fourteen. Guns for the length of the barrel should always be in proportion to the bore, so says Col. Hawker. Light guns, with short barrels and small bores, may do very well in covers, or in well stocked preserves, but there is no doubt that at the Swan River they will be found far inferior to stout guns that will carry a large charge and bring down at a long shot. ”

“ I cannot listen in silence to those whose idleness and extravagance have reduced them to embarrassment, and now endeavour, by finding fault with their country, and railing against its administration and its laws, to excuse their own bad management and to conceal their imprudence and their vice. ”

“ Every hour which he wastes in idleness, or in unnecessary delay will inevitably be attended with loss, and certainly in many cases with privation and serious inconvenience, if his labours are retarded, or the sowing of his seed postponed to an unseasonable period. Let him be diligent, prudent, and frugal, at first, and in a little time he will be enabled to " rest upon his oars" with the pleasing reflection that he has acquired a competency, and can bequeath an estate to his children, daily increasing in value, which has been made what it is by his own honest and laudable industry. ”

“ It is an object to him that every farm should be occupied by persons of as much capital as possible. Although the maintenance of stock belonging to the labourer will cost nothing to the proprietor on whose land they are kept, still a remuneration could be paid him which he might honourably receive, and the labourer well afford to give. For instance, if he buys a breeding mare, the master might work her, except when she was suckling her colts. If he purchases a few sheep, the master might be allowed the fleeces and the wether lambs, or part of them, as might be agreed upon. ”

“ But as soon as the clearance of land invites superior culture, and abundant crops afford the means of speculation, the husbandry of the Colony will become extensive. Tobacco will be planted; and coffee and the sugar cane be made the subject of experiment. If the former herb has been introduced in Ireland with success, are we assuming too much in expecting that it will flourish in a climate so much more congenial to its growth? The temperature at Freemantle is the temperature of Virginia, equally celebrated for the excellence of its tobacco and the disasters of its first settlement. ”

“ The emigrant should by all means engage none but persons of approved good character, and tempt such with liberal offers, otherwise he will scarely prevail upon them to accompany him, for a respectable man finds employment at home, and as the daily wages of a labourer in the Colony are five shillings a day, and his maintenance, it needs no argument to prove the necessity of taking out as many of this class as the means of the employer will allow. ”

“ Though he sees his capital yearly decreasing, can we wonder that this man is the slave of circumstances and is fettered by necessity? If such a man should wish to make one effort to extricate himself from encreasing embarrassment and final beggary ”

“ It is usual for the employer to bind himself to grant the labourer a farm, say 100 acres, at the expiration of their agreement, for his life. The master is to lend the stock, corn, &c. which the man may require and actually employ in the cultivation of his farm on receiving his promissory note for the value of the same, without interest; but at the same time binding himself to pay a third of the annual produce of the farm as rent, into which the interest of the stock advanced will merge. ”

“ On the other hand, the Irish and Highland labourer, are perfectly contented with a hut hastily composed of turf and sticks, because it is as comfortable as the cabins they have lived in. They are well pleased to live upon rice and fish, who for months together have been supported by potatoes and oatmeal. The poverty as well as the habits of the lower order of Irish and Scotch have created in them those feelings of respect and submission to their employers which the English labourer never feels. ”

“ You will leave your country, your friends, your neighbours,—you will abandon the haunts of your childhood, and, what is harder still, the hearthstone of your fathers, in all human probability never to behold them again. ”

“ The Swan River is in the same latitude with the Cape of Good Hope; as at the latter place vines are cultivated with great success, there is reason to believe they would flourish in the neighbourhood of Freemantle. If the soil be as dry as it be represented, we may infer that it is adapted to the growth of the grape. In the event of wine being made in the Colony, we may be sure that Government will, perhaps by a bonus, but certainly by a lenient duty, give encouragement for its exportation to England ”

“ Even among those who form the most favourable opinion of the Colony, there are few who are aware that it affords the means of establishing a whale fishery with the certainty of success, and, comparatively speaking, small capital. The fishery in the North Seas requires the stoutest ships and the most able seamen. The length of time employed by the outward and homeward voyage and whale cruise is attended with a great consumption of provisions and stores. ”

“ But however excellent the guns of these farfamed makers may be, I would not recommend the emigrant to buy one, even if he can spare an extra ten pounds, for the pleasure of having a London built gun. For common purposes, one safe hard shooting gun is as good as another, and when he is upon his allotment, he will have matters of more consequence to attend to than to clean his Joe Manton every day that he shoots. A common gun will answer his purpose as well as the most highly finished, and for the same reason a flint will be much better than a percussion ”

“ It is commonly reported that the corn which has been hitherto sown in the Colony has not arrived at maturity, being scorched by the sun in its earliest growth. It is fully admitted that ninetenths of the settlers already arrived, knew very little of the farming of this country, [5] still less did they know the proper time and management necessary for the cultivation of corn in a climate and latitude very different from their native land. Can we wonder, then, that corn sown by strangers to the soil, and strangers to cultivation, should fail of success. ”

“ And in all probability his conviction of being able to maintain himself by his poaching practices will induce him to give his employer a few days chace in the woods to the rear of his estate, in grateful acknowledgment of his kindness in conveying him to a countiy where there is no gamekeeper to watch, and no constable within a day's ride. Those whom it would be most advisable to take out, are plain honest men, who, being of good principles, are willing to do a fair days work, and are not above being told how to perform it. Such persons are cheap at any wages ”

“ He will find a small borer of invaluable service in ascertaining the depth of the soil, and the nature of the substratum which may afford him the means of improving that land which is considered at present of very inferior quality, which, from its situation and contiguity either to river or town, may speedily become more valuable than the estates of those persons who have fixed upon land naturally more fertile, but deficient in the advantage of situation. ”

“ Because the farmer is of all others the least adapted, by previous habits and experience, to embark in any business but his own. And, in consequence of the extent of the population which is fast increasing, though the acre-age of England remains the same, it is a matter of extreme difficulty to find another farm (except either out of condition or at an enormous rent) , especially as his annual loss of property may excite the supposition that he no longer possesses the means of cultivating the farm to which he might wish to remove. ”

“ However necessary it might have been for the first settlers to take out with them every article which they might require on their arrival or location, the emigrant must remember that an ample supply of goods has been brought into the Colony, and consequently he will find it answer his purpose better to keep far the greater part of his money in his pocket, and on his arrival at the Settlement, he can purchase what he wants, and as he wants them. ”

“ But why not order a gun at once from a respectable maker? because a gun equally good (perhaps of his make) may be bought at half the price in a second-hand shop. There are many very respectable dealers in London, who have an extensive stock in hand, and good guns may be purchased from them at moderate prices. Many of those who have second-hand guris upon sale have places where they may be tried ”

“ The healthiness of the climate, the bracing atmosphere of night and morn, will recruit the shattered nerves and invigorate the debilitated constitution. Chalybeate springs have been already discovered, and hotels and lodging-houses will be erected as fast as the want of accommodation excites enterprize. And many who can neither spare the time or afford the expense of a voyage to England will gladly take a trip to Freemantle for the recovery of their health, or to place their children in an eligible school. ”

“ Katherine's Docks, and neither know the sort or quantity of provisions best adapted for their sustenance during the voyage, nor the medicines or treatment they require when seized with any of the distempers so common among cattle in a ship. Even supposing that they are all landed alive and well, and that both climate and pasturage agree with them, still the necessary avocations of a settler on his taking up his allotment, will prevent his paying proper attention to these animals which (including their freight) have cost him a considerable sum. ”

“ The labourer ought to be bound to serve his employer and his assigns, for the settler may be very glad to raise a little money, by sending the man to work for another settler. The labourer is to receive his wages either in money or provisions as the contracting parties may stipulate. ”

“ I know my countrymen well, and honour them for their many good qualities, but cannot deny that they are by no means calculated either by habit or inclination to submit to inconvenience or any change of system when in the service of another. ”

“ The "Saints," who pretend that it is a sin to kill game, but give evident proofs that it is none to enjoy its flavour, and those who either from want of qualification, opportunity, or inclination never take out a gun, may lift up their hands in holy indignation that a clergyman should think of guns, and with all pharisaic humility and meekness condemn him for writing about them. ”

“ As goods are liable to damage from salt water, or exhalations rising from it, it is worth while to have the boxes or cases lined with tin. By adopting this mode, and taking care to have all things in a thoroughly dry condition when packed, the passenger will have the satisfaction of landing them in good condition, while he who has been less careful and eager to save a trifle in the expence of his packages, will find to his dismay, all of his effects more or less injured, some totally spoiled. ”