518 ANNUAL REGISTER, 1813. 



importance to the north of Sweden 

 that Gottenburg is of to the south ; 

 and Gustavus the third, who never 

 forgot Norway, would hardly have 

 founded the new town of Oesterby 

 in Jamteland without some parti- 

 cular view. But these dangers to 

 Drontheim are now past, at least 

 from the part of Sweden. 



Report of a Select Committee of the 

 House of Commons on Trans- 

 portation. 



(As ordered to be printed July 10^ 

 1812.) 



The comniittee appointed to in- 

 quire into the manner in which 

 sentences of transportation are 

 executed, and the effects which 

 have been produced by that 

 mode of punishment ; and who 

 were empowered to report their 

 observations, and the minutes 

 of evidence taken before them, 

 to the House;— have agreed 

 upon the following report. 



The principal settlement on the 

 eastern coast of New South Wales, 

 was formed in 1788. It is situated 

 in latitude 33 south, longitude 170 

 east. The most considerable dis- 

 trict is that of Sydney, containing, 

 by the return dated the 1st of 

 March, 1810, 6,158 inhabitants. 

 Paramatta contains 1,807: Hawkes- 

 bury, 2,389; and Newcastle, 100. 

 Of the total number lOj^S-t, 5,513 

 are men, 2,220 women, and 2,721 

 children. Of these, from one quar- 

 ter to one-fifth are convicts ; but 

 the returns of their number have 

 been so irregular, that your com- 

 mittee have not been able pre- 

 cisely to aEcertain it. But they 



hope that this neglect will be cor- 

 rected by the orders lately sent 

 out from this country. The troops 

 are about 1,100 in number, aod 

 the remainder are free persons. In 

 addition to these, are the settle- 

 ments of Port Dalr3miple and Ho- 

 bart's Town, in Van Diemen's 

 land, about five degrees to the 

 south of Sj'dney ; containing 1,321 

 inhabitants ; and at the date of the 

 last returns, 177 persons were liv- 

 ing in Norfolk island, but orders 

 have been since sent out for its 

 total abandonment. The settle- 

 ment in New South Wales is 

 bounded on the north west and 

 south by a ridge of hills, knovvn 

 by the name of the Blue Moun- 

 tains, beyond which no one has 

 yet been able to penetrate the 

 country ; some have with difficulty 

 been as far as 100 miles in the in- 

 terior ; but beyond 60 miles, it ap- 

 pears to be no where practicable 

 for agricultural purposes; and, in 

 many places, the diameter of the 

 habitable country is much less : in 

 length, it extends from port Ste- 

 phens to port Jervis, comprising 

 from north to south about four de- 

 grees ; beyond these, it is stated, 

 that the colony will not be capable 

 of extension ; and of the land 

 within these boundaries, about one- 

 half is said to be absolutely barren. 

 The ground actually in cultivation, 

 amounts to rather more than 2 1,000 

 acres, and 74',000 acres are held in 

 pasture. The stock appears to be 

 considerable ; by the return in 

 1810, the amount was^horscs, 

 521 ; mares, 593 ; bulls, 193 ; 

 cows, 6,351; oxen, 4,732; sheep, 

 33,818; goats, 1 ,732 ; hogs, 8,992. 

 Of these, a small proportion is kept 

 by government ; of which, part is 

 killed for the supply of the public 



