18 A HISTORY OF THE COLONY OF VICTORIA 



any means by which 10,000 or 12,000 men could be taken into 

 custody, and maintained there at the public expense, until purged 

 of their contempt. 



Mr. Wright's despatch reached the Lieutenant-Governor on the 

 29th of August. The Legislative Council was to meet next day, 

 but the matter seemed so urgent that after a hurried consultation 

 the Executive decided to inform the miners, by means of a circular 

 to the Commissioners, that it was intended at once to submit to the 

 Legislature a proposal for another method of raising revenue in 

 lieu of the unpopular tax ; and as the matter would be dealt with 

 immediately, the officials were " instructed to adopt no compulsory 

 measures for the enforcement for the month of September of the 

 licence fee ". But the circular went on to say that, until the result 

 of legislative deliberation was known, the Governor had no power 

 to release the miners from the obligation of paying the fee prescribed 

 by law. Unfortunately, in transcribing these instructions, the last 

 clause was omitted in the copy sent to Bendigo. The shorter form 

 in which the announcement was made, and the distinct prohibition 

 of a resort to force, were hailed by the diggers as a triumph, and 

 when a few days later Mr. Wright was directed to qualify the 

 notice, he hastened down to Melbourne in alarm to expostulate. 

 A mild invitation to pay the licence fee after what had passed 

 was ludicrous. He could not, consistently with the pledge he 

 had felt his instructions justified him in giving, now resort to 

 compulsion. Even if he did, he had no power to make the com- 

 pulsion effective, and no military force that could be raised in 

 Australia would give that power. In this deadlock it only re- 

 mained to fall back on the Legislative Council. Immediately on 

 its meeting a special committee was appointed, of which Chief 

 Secretary Foster was chairman, to inquire into and report upon 

 the condition of the goldfields. As its sittings were to involve the 

 examination of a large number of witnesses, and would probably 

 extend over months, it brought up an interim report in the course 

 of a week, on which a temporary amending Act was passed, on 

 the 14th of September, reducing the licence fee to 30s. for the 

 three final months of the year. The miners were jubilant, and 

 peace reigned once more temporarily. 



