WK8TBURY.ON.TRYM. 



AUSTRALIA. 



In 51* 50* X. Ut, y 24' W. long, distant 9 mile* S.W. from Gloucester, 

 n.1 111 milt* W. by N. from London. The popuUtion of the pariah 

 of \\ tl.ury-on-Svem in 1851 WM 249S. The living is a vicarage, in 

 UM archdeaconry of Gloucester and dioceM of Gloucester and Bristol. 

 Wrtbarr-on-S*vern 1'oor-Law Union contains 14 parishes and town- 

 ship*. with an area of 43,84 acres, and a population in 1851 of 18,124. 

 WoBtburr Undi at the north-eastern corner of the Forest of Dean. 

 Pssiiln toe psrUh church, there is a ch*pl for Independents. National 



scboob are supported partly from endowment 

 WBSTBURY-ON-TRYM. [OLOUCKKBSIHIUL] 

 WK8TCHESTKR. (PExxsnvASU.] 

 VTBSTKRAAa [SwBDM.] 



STKRHAM, Kent, a market-town, in the valley of Holmesdale, 

 near the western border of the county, in 51 15' N. lat, 4' E. 

 long, distant 21 miles W. from Maidstone, and 21 miles 8. by E. 

 from London. The population of the town of Westerham in 1851 

 Vas 1247. The living is a vicarage, iu the archdeaconry of Maidstouo 

 and diooese of Canterbury. The parish church is a handsome edifice, 

 chiefly in the perpendicular style, with a spire. In the interior is a 

 cenotaph to the memory of General Wolfe. The Independents have 

 a chaprl, and there are National schools. Wednesday is the market- 

 day. An annual fair is held on May 3rd. 



WESTERN AUSTRALIA, in its widest sense, extends over the 

 western portion of the Australian continent, and comprehends all the 

 countries lying west of 132 E. long., the boundary west of South 

 Australia and North Australia ; so tht the boundary-line between it 

 and the other parts of the continent joins the Indian Ocean east of 

 Cambridge Gulf, and the Southern Sea near the Australian Bight, nt 

 Cape Adieu. Thus Western Australia contains about one-fourth of 

 the whole continent, and lies between 35 and 14 S. lat., 115 and 

 13i E. long. The limits of the British colony, originally established 

 undrr the name of the Swan River Settlement, are much less, but the 

 boundary has not been definitely settled, and is constantly being 

 extended. It may be said to lie between 30 and 35 8' S. lat, 115 

 and 119 E. long., or about 400 miles from south to north, and about 

 250 miles in breadth. 



Ooatt. The coast-line presents a much greater variety than most 

 other parts of Australia. In some parts tlie sea to some distance 

 from the shore is covered with numerous islandx, islets, and rocks, 

 which render these countries difficult of access. From this cause an 

 extent of coast-line, about 500 miles in length, has not been surveyed. 

 Taman Land, between Point Gnntheaumo and Cambridge Bay, to the 

 northward, has a coast more broken than any other part of Australia, 

 and indented with wide bays, and some narrow inlets, which penetrate 

 a considerable distance into the interior. The coast of Tasman Land 

 has been but slightly examined, so that our information in respect of 

 the natural products of the country is very limited. Within the 

 confines of the colony there are numerous actuaries, each of which 

 receives several rivers. Of the few good harbours along this coast the 

 best are Rockingham in Cockburn Sound, Albany iu King George's 

 Sound, Bunbury in Port Lescheuhault, and Augusta, near Cape 

 Leeuwin, on the southern side of the south-western promontory of 

 the island. At the mouth of the Swan River, and at the head of the 

 Melville Water, which runs inland for nearly 80 miles, is the port of 

 Perth, the capital of the colony of Western Australia, The entrauce 

 is encumbered and rendered dangerous by several rocks. A light- 

 house is placed on Rottenext Island at the entrance, and on some of 

 the more dangerous rocks there are beacons. 



Mountain*, Ac. A range called the Darling Mountains extends along 

 nearly the whole length of the colony. Its distance from the coast 

 varies from 50 to 150 miles, and its height is from 800 to 3000 feet. 

 It is generally sterile ; the granite appears in some places in masses. 

 A profusion of coarse herbage appears on the surface, and plants 

 which resemble the English heath grow in considerable numbers. 

 There are forests of large mahogany and blue gum-trees. In the 

 Darling Mountains have been found roofing-slate, limestone, marl, 

 elenito, siliceous and calcareous petrifactions, magnetic iron-ore, 

 ohromate of lead, galena, and copper. Wide valleys bordered by 

 fertile plains occur where basaltic rock* are developed. Columnar 

 basalt is found around Qeographe Bay, and from thence to Shark Bay 

 a band of coal has been traced a distance of 600 miles. 



In that part of Western Australia which borders on the south coast, 

 there are three distinct parallel ranges of mountains running from 

 north to south. The highest and most eastern of these has its 

 southern termination near to King George's Sound, in 35 6' S. lat. 

 The second terminates at Cape Chatham, 35 S. lat. ; Cape Leeuwin, 

 in about 34 20' S. lat, is the southern termination of the third range, 

 which is inferior in altitude, as well as in extent to the other two : 

 it terminate* on the north at Cape Naturaliste, 33 27' S. lat. The 

 highest point is Tulbanop, which is stated to attain an elevation of 

 6000 feet On the mountains and higher hills the surface is rugged 

 and stony ; on the lower sides of both the soil is excellent ; but iu the, 

 principal valleys and the lower grounds, where the sandstone forma- 

 tion prevail*, it is of a very inferior description, except where the 

 rivers have brought down an alluvial deposit 



River*. The rivers on the west coast of Australia generally rise at 

 no great distance from the sea. Near their sources they are mountain 

 torrent*, but in th" lowlands they become slow sln-im*. They arc 



liable to rise suddenly, owing, it is supposed, to the rain which fulls 

 near their sources. At other times their channel, in some places many 

 feet deep, is quite dry. They offer little or no facility for internal 

 navigation. The Swan River rises on the western sido of the Darling 

 Range. At its mouth is a bar, after pausing which the river is navi- 

 gable, though with difficulty, for some distance. The other rivers are 

 the Avon, the Murray, the Cunning, the Harvey, the Preston, the 

 Collie, the Vasse, the Blackwood, the Donnelly, and the Kalgan. The 

 Canning rises in the Darling Range : it is smaller than the Swan, and 

 only navigable for a few miles. Shoals impede the navigation, and in 

 dry weather boato must be pushed over them for fully half a mile. 

 The Murray takes its rise also in tho Darling Range, and empties 

 itself into Peel's Inlet The Preston and the Collie unite about 

 50 miles south of the Murray, and the united stream runs into an 

 sestuary called Lescheuhault, and forms a bar, over which the river 

 is very shallow. 



For the botany and zoology of Western Australia, see AUSTRALIA. 



Climate. The climate of Western Australia has the same general 

 character as that of Eastern Australia. [AUSTRALIA.] It has not 

 generally been found prejudicial to Europeans, while in the case of 

 some persons it has proved highly favourable. Though variable, the 

 western part of this colony is not so uncertain as Now South Wales 

 in the supply of rain and moisture. The average winter temperature 

 is about 58, that of the summer about 76. 



The wet season begins generally in March and ends in November, 

 the rain being most abundant in August and September. The h i_;lit 

 of the dry season is during the harvest, in January, when the nights 

 are distinguished by heavy dews. The seed-time lasts from early in 

 May to the end of August. By December the grain is ripe; hay is 

 cut iu November. Tomatas, pumpkins, gourds, vegetable-marrow, 

 chillies, egg-plante, besides every English vegetable, ripeu iu the open 

 air ; and also the following among other fruits melons, bananas, 

 almonds, figs, grapes, peaches, and strawberries. The olive, pome- 

 granate, apricot, plum, mango, lemon, and orange; the mulberry, 

 apple, nectarine, pear, and several others are grown. Fig-cuttings 

 produce fruit the first year, and vines the second or third. 



Population. The aborigines do not amount to more than 1700. 

 The European population here increases very slowly. In 1852 it 

 amounted to 8711, including 705 enumerated among the military, 

 1432 bond, and 6574 free. Schools are provided at the govern im-fit 

 expense for children of all religious denominations, as well an tor 

 natives, those who are able paying a small sum ; and there are other 

 schools in connection with the Wesleyau Methodists. There are about 

 70 churches and chapels in the colony, of which 20 belong to the 

 Church of England, 4 to Presbyterians, and 3 to Roman Catholics. 



Government. There is a lieutenant-governor, with his staff of 

 officials. The colony ii divided for government purposes into 32 

 counties. On the first establishment of the colony in IS 29, it was 

 decided that no convicts should be sent thither, and a system of colo- 

 nisation was projected, to be carried forward by means of lan<! 

 but it did not work well. The labourers sent out became landowners, 

 and hired labour became excessively dear. Convict labour has since 

 been requested by the colonists, and has succeeded welt In X 

 ber 1854, four years after the formation of a convict department, 

 2930 convicts had been sent. Of these 553 were then in prison, either 

 as probation prisoners, or as reconvicted ticket-of-leave men ; but of 

 the last there were only about a. hundred. There were 1523 tiektt-of- 

 leave men, 622 employed on public works, 891 iu private service, and 

 10 in hospital. There had been 113 deaths, 723 conditionally par- 

 doned, and 18 either free by servitude, escaped, or missing. The 

 public works had been executed under the superintendence of the 

 Koyal Sappers and Miners, and consisted of the permanent prison at 

 Fremantlo ; commissariat stores and offices at Fremantle, Guildford, 

 York, Toodyay, and Bunbury ; jails at York, Toodyay, and Buubury ; 

 272 miles of road, 50 of which are 30 feet wide, and the remainder 

 18 feet, 27 miles graded and levelled, 5 milts macadamised, and 50 

 miles repaired ; 28 bridges built, one of which, over the Swan at 

 Quildford, is 480 feet long and 30 feet high, and several others of con- 

 siderable size ; a jetty 216 feet long, built at Fremantle as a landing 

 from the river, and another 455 feet long, as a lauding from the har- 

 bour, in progress ; tho lakes at the back of Perth drained, and tho 

 swamps in Fremautle filled up; with some minor works. The conduct 

 of the convicts had on the whole been good, and considerable improve- 

 ment had been developed iu their characters. 



Commerce. Though most of the English grains arc grown, and tho 

 soil is tolerably productive, the exertions of the settlers are chiefly 

 directed to the raisin? of stock. Wool is one of the chief articles of 

 export ; horses, which are sold to supply the cavalry at Madras, are 

 another largo article of export ; as is sandal-wood, and a species of 

 mahogany, of which there are large forests in the interior. < 

 has been found on the islets that lie around Shark's Bay. Attempts 

 have been made to prosecute the whale fishery ; and something is 

 done iu fishing off the coasts to furnish provisions for the inhu: 

 There are many salt-lakes and springs in the colony, and a considerable 

 quantity of salt is manufactured. The amount of tonnage inwards iu 

 1852 was 25,326. Tho imports in 1862 amounted to 97,30-1 /. The 

 colonial revenue for 1852 was 37,0222.; tho expenditure was 34,7772. 



Towm. Perth, the capital, is situated on the right ?!! ; of the 



