THE DEPOSITION OF BLIGH. 37 



considered Cooke " a northern bear " of autocratic principles. 

 Cooke was specially likely to be unfavourable to Macarthur 

 because he was a close ally of Sir Joseph Banks, one of Mac- 

 arthur's most powerful enemies. 



The new Ministers sought a fresh legal opinion, this time 

 from the Attorney and Solicitor-General. This was given in 

 November, 1809.* They suggested that Johnston might be 

 tried by court-martial in England for mutiny, as had already 

 been advised. With regard to the civilians concerned, their 

 crime was softened from "high treason "to mere "misde- 

 meanour," as in the case of the four members of the Madras 

 Council in 1779. The trials of these persons, however, must 

 take place in New South Wales. 



Meanwhile Macarthur was preparing for a great fight with 

 Bligh. At one time he thought of procuring a seat in Parlia- 

 ment to forward his cause. At another he proposed to bring a 

 civil action against him and claim .20,000 damages. All the 

 time he was vastly over-rating the interest felt by the British 

 public and the venom of his opponents. 2 The Colonial Office 

 bided their time. In the autumn of 1810 the New South Wales 

 Corps, now gazetted the iO2nd Regiment, arrived. Paterson 

 had died on the voyage and Johnston was ordered to rejoin and 

 take command. In October, 1810, Bligh reached England. 



In Bligh's absence in Van Diemen's Land, Macquarie had 

 taken over the government at once in accordance with the in- 

 structions entrusted to him in such a case. Bligh had come up 

 to Sydney in February, 1810, and from then until the middle of 

 May had busied himself collecting evidence and deciding what 

 witnesses he would take home with him. Government were to 

 pay their expenses, and of course those in Government depart- 

 ments could be ordered to go with him. Altogether he took 

 ten, six of whom were private individuals who went voluntarily. 

 He was eager to bring the civilians who had taken part against 

 him, and who were still in New South Wales, before the 

 Criminal Court on charges of treason. Intense, therefore, was 

 his disgust when the Judge-Advocate hesitated, doubting if the 



1 See H.R., VII., p. 229, I7th November, 1809. 



2 See H.R., VII., Macarthur's letters to his wife, p. 239, 28th November, 1803, 

 and p. 453, nth November, 1810. 



