MISCELLANIES. 



525 



The acquiescence of the coun- 

 cil would give popularity to the 

 measures of which it approved, 

 and its expressed disapprobation 

 might have the eft'ect of checking 

 such as were evidently inexpe- 

 dient. 



Tl^.e governor has the power of 

 making grants of land ; and your 

 committee have heard with sur- 

 prise, that this power has, in one in- 

 stance at least, been used in a 

 manner, to say the least of it, liable 

 to much observation. It has been 

 stated in evidence, that a grant of 

 land, to the amount of 1,000 acres, 

 was made by a governor to the 

 person appointed to succeed him, 

 who, immediately on assuming the 

 government, made a similar grant 

 to his predecessor. Upon this 

 your committee must suggest, that 

 no governor ought on his own ac- 

 count to enter into farming specu- 

 lations ; his salary ought to be 

 sufficient to support him ; he 

 ought never to look to other and 

 indirect means of enriching him- 

 self. 



For many years the governor 

 was restrained from granting longer 

 leases within the town of Sydney, 

 than for the period of 14 years. 

 This impolitic regulation, which 

 caused much discontent, and ma- 

 terially checked all enterprise in 

 building, has lately been rescinded. 

 Many settlers have been sent out 

 from this country by government, 

 to whom grants of land, sometimes 

 to a large amount, have been made ; 

 and in many instances their want 

 of capital, of character, and agri- 

 cultural knowledge, have exposed 

 them to difficulties on their arri- 

 val, and excited complaints against 

 them for misconduct. Your com- 

 mittee are glad to learn that 



greater precautions arc now taken 

 in the selection of these persons 

 than appears formerly to have been 

 the case. None are allowed to go 

 out as free settlers unless they can 

 prove themselves to be possessed 

 of sufficient property to establish 

 themselves there without the assist- 

 ance of government, and who can 

 produce the most satisfactory testi- 

 monials and recommendations from 

 persons of known respectability ; 

 the person allowed to go is then 

 recommended to the governor, to 

 whose discretion it is left to make 

 what grant of land he may think 

 expedient. The form of the answer 

 which is given to all applicants, 

 and one of the letters of recom- 

 mendation, upon the model of 

 which they are generally drawn, 

 are to be found in the Appendix. 

 Your committee wish however, to 

 suggest tliat it ought to be made a 

 principle, in selecting these per- 

 sons, to give the preference to 

 those who have been previously 

 accustomed to agricultural pur- 

 suits. 



Though the religious feeling in 

 the colony appears to have been 

 weak, latterly the erection of places 

 of worship, and the establishment 

 of clergymen, have not been neg- 

 lected. Churches have been built 

 at Sydney and Paramatta, and in 

 Hawkesbury the service was per- 

 formed in houses appropriated to 

 that purpose ; and to each of these 

 districts clergymen have been ap- 

 pointed, with a sufficient provision 

 from government. In governor 

 Hunter's time, theattendance of the 

 convicts was enforced at church. 

 This compulsion appears to have 

 been neglected during the govern- 

 ment of admiral Bligh ; though dur- 

 ing the hours of divine service all 



