48 A HISTORY OF THE COLONY OF VICTORIA 



was infinitely worse, and could never from any point of view be 

 considered fit for a settlement. They returned to Sydney with 

 their report, which was conclusive in one respect, namely, that the 

 two places named were the only ports on the north shore of Bass 

 Strait, and that both had grave disadvantages. Notwithstanding 

 the reiteration by Bobbins of his views about the advantages of the 

 Yarra site, no action was taken, and some twenty years passed 

 away before the King's ships were again put in requisition for 

 planting a settlement on the discredited Victorian territory. 



The exploration, however, of this period which had the most 

 important results on colonisation, and which was effected with 

 scarcely any aid from the Government, was not conducted by sea. 

 It was the journey overland of Messrs. Hume and Hovell from the 

 westernmost settlements of New South Wales to the shores of Corio 

 Bay. A vast amount of controversy has raged around the names 

 of these two men, affecting not only their respective capacity as 

 explorers but the facts of their journey, and the very destination 

 they were alleged to have reached. Hovell contended that their 

 journey culminated on the shores of Western Port Bay, while 

 Hume maintained that they passed to the west of the present site 

 of Melbourne, and struck the shore of Port Phillip near the site of 

 the town of Geelong. 



There is no need to disturb the dry bones of this controversy, 

 for the preponderance of evidence in every respect is in favour of 

 Hume, who was undoubtedly the real leader and superior bush- 

 man of the party. There is some documentary evidence, in the 

 shape of a report furnished to the Governor by Hume on his 

 return, dated 24th January, 1825, that he had at any rate for a 

 time believed the goal they had reached was Western Port, but in 

 all subsequent published statements he is emphatic in declaring for 

 Port Phillip, and alleging that he never had any other opinion. 

 While Hovell, when afterwards sent to Western Port by the 

 Government, was compelled to admit that he had never been there 

 before. 



During the twenty years that had elapsed since Eobbins and 

 Oxley had been sent to examine the southern coast of Victoria 

 many changes had occurred in the parent colony. Governor King 



