ij8 



The Review of Reviews. 



Awjust 1. 1906. 



View of Melbourne, taken in 1839— the Year of Batman s Death. 



The proclamation set forth that divers of His 

 Majesty's subjects had taken possession of lands of 

 the Crown, within the limits of the colony, under 

 the pretence of a treaty, bargain, or contract for the 

 purchase thereof with the aboriginal natives : that 

 every such treaty, bargain or contract was \oid ; 

 and that all such persons found in possession of such 

 lands, without the license or authority- of His 

 Majestv's Government, would be considered as tres- 

 passers and liable to be dealt with as other intruders 

 upon the vacant lands of the Crown. 



Appeals were made during a number of years to 

 Downing Street to acknowledge the claims of the Port 

 Phillip A.'isnciation. Ultimately the sum of ^£7000 

 was allowed to be deducted from the purchase 

 money of lands in Victoria bought by the Association. 

 When Fawkiiers party settled on the north bank of 

 the Yarra thev were warned off by representatives 

 of the Association, and complaints were made to 

 the Government of Van Diemen's Land by Batman 

 of their refusal to leave. Governor Bourke's pro- 

 clamation showed Fawkner and his supporters that 

 Batman and his party had no more right to the 

 north side of the Varra than any others who chose 

 to settle there. Batman did not live to see much of 

 the growth of the population of the Port Phillip 

 district. 



He built a residence on the sheoak covered hill, 

 known in the early days as Batman's Hill, and was 

 the first storekeeper in the new settlement. When 

 Melbourne was being laid out he appealed in vain 

 to Lord Glenelg for a grant of 20 acres round his 

 home. Broken in health and spirits, he died of con- 

 sumption on May 6th, 1839. and was buried in the 

 old Melbourne cemetery. 



His widow's appeals for consideration met with 

 no favourable response. Batman lay in a nameless 

 grave until 1882, when a monument was erecte<l 

 over it by public subscription. 



His great rival — John Pascoe Fawkner — in the 

 claim to be the founder of Melbourne is remembered. 

 Fawkner's name is to be found in streets and park 



and in the site of thi necropolis for the northern 

 suburbs of Melbourne. Batman's Hill has been cut 

 down to make room for the railway offices and 

 works in Spencer-.stre<'t. Batman's Swamp has been 

 converted into the West Melbourne docks, and its 

 original name is knowii iv the few. .\ small street 

 in Xorth Fitzroy, and one of the Melbourne Harbour 

 Trust's steam hopper bartjes bearing his name, are 

 about all that exist to remind the inhabitants of the 

 seventh city in the British Empire of a braxe, ener- 

 getic and humanitarian early Australian, whose en- 

 terprise contributed so largely to the founding of 

 Melbourne. 



REAIl .ADMIRAL KlNCi 

 was the son of Governor King, the third Governor 

 of New South Wales. He was born in Norfolk 

 Island, in 1791, when his father was Lieutenant- 

 Governor there. His tirsc christian name of Phillip 

 was given out of the respect which his father had 

 for the first Governor of New South Wales. 



He was sent home to England to be educated, 

 and entered the navy at an early age, and saw ac- 

 tive ser\ice in the war tht-n raging bet\veen Great 

 Britain and France. 



Flinders' work of suneying the coast of New Hol- 

 land had been stopjjed by the un.'»eaworthy condi- 

 tion of the " Investigator." On his way home in 

 the small schooner, the ■ Cumberland," he had 

 called at Mauritius. The French authoritit-s of the 

 island, ignoring the understanding that existed be- 

 tsveen the British and French Governments, that in 

 times of war sur\-eying or discovery ships were not 

 to be interfered with, imprisonetl Flinders as a 

 spy, and sent home his charts, which were pub- 

 lished as French discovt-ries. Flinders, liberated 

 after vears of imprisonment, reached England with 

 a broken constitution, and died soon after. 



In 18 1 7 King, who had attained to the post of 

 captain, was selected by the British Government as 

 a seaman with such scientific attainments that emi- 

 nently fitted him for the work to continue the work 

 of surs-evins the coast of .\ustralia. He was com- 



