A CLEARING LEASE. 321 



must give rise. I may here mention that the same 

 gentleman has deserved highly of his fellow-colonists, 

 by having been the means of bring good water from 

 some distance into Sydney. The importance of this 

 to the town was very apparent even to us transient 

 visitors, from the crowd of water carts we constantly 

 saw during the severe drought, patiently waiting 

 their turn to fill from the pump in Hyde Park. 



I was fortunate enouofh to find two gentlemen 

 to return with as companions, from Cam yr Allyn, 

 which we left early, under the guidance of a native, 

 mounted on one of Mr. Boydell's horses. We were 

 to have made a short cut by crossing the hilly 

 country ; but after going some distance we found 

 our guide at fault, and he very innocently acknow- 

 ledged himself to be, as he termed it, " murry 

 stupid." It was a long time, he said, since he had 

 travelled that way. Having however provided my- 

 self with a sketch of the country and a compass, I 

 was enabled to conduct the party out of this dilemma. 



On reaching the banks of William river, we 

 inquired our way at a cottage, whose occupants, 

 I found, held a small piece of land on what is 

 called a clearing lease — that is to say, they were 

 allowed to retain possession of it for so many years, 

 for the labour of clearins" the land. Manv an in- 

 dustrious poor man is raised to opulence by this 

 means, a pair of oxen being all that is necessary to 

 set them going. With them they drag away the 

 fallen timber, and afterwards plough the land. It 



VOL. I. Y 



