BY CLIVE E. LOKD. 47 



from a geograpliical standpoint was past and Commerce 

 was following quickly upon the heels of Discovery. From 

 now onward the island was continually visited by sealing 

 and other vessels, both from the mainland and from the 

 settlement at the Derwent. (-6) 



In the early years of the colony's history Maria, Island 

 was mainly used by those engaged in the whaling and seal- 

 ing industi-y, and several localities are now pointed out 

 which in the early days were the resort of "bay whalers." 



In 1825, however, a new era began. The Government 

 considered tliait the island would make an excellent con- 

 vict station, as not only was it a "natural penitentiary" 

 but appeared to be a suitable locality in which to grow 

 fl.ax. Particular attention was being paid to the cultiva- 

 tion of that plant at this time. Accordingly on the 4th of 

 March, 1825, the first vessel sailed from Hobart with a 

 draft of prisoners. The firsti Commandant was Lieutenant 

 Peter Murdoch of the 35th Regiment, and he held office 

 until the 26th of August, when he was succeeded by T. D. 

 Lord, who had charge of the station for some years follow- 

 ing. Among the early offi-cers at the settlement may be 

 mentioned Assistant-Surgeon J. Griffith, Storekeeper T. J. 

 Lempriere, and Principal Overseer R. Dodsworth. The 

 guard was composed of men of the 40th Regiment. The 

 island, however, did not come up to expectations as far as 

 being a natural penitentiary was concerned, for there were 

 numerous escapes. In one instance six men vacated the 

 island by means of a rough raft of bark, etc. 



The settlement, which had been named Darlington (27) 

 was, however, extended, and several oiut stations were 

 created. In 1830 a woollen factory was erected for the 

 manufacture of rough cloth. Two years later the cloth 

 was one of the main productions of the station, which, it 

 was considered, was about self-supporting. The cloth pro- 

 duction was valued at 8si. per yard, and as on an average 

 100 yards were woven weekly the value, per annum, was 

 about £2,000. In addition 4,000 pairs of shoes were made 

 each year, which at 5s. per pair added another thousand 

 pounds to the revenue. However, the aiuthorities did not 

 seem satisfied with the station, and soon after the founda- 

 tion of Port Arthur (28) the settlement at Maria Island wasi 

 vacated. (^^) 



(26) First settlement at the Derwent— September 7th, 1803. 



(27) Mr. H. Wright, Librarian of the Mitchell Library, Sydney, 

 to whom I am indebted for certain information in this paper, considers 

 that Darlington was probably named after Governor Darling. 



(28) The Port Arthur Settlement was founded in 1831. 



(29) Maria Island was vacated as a penal establishment, for the 

 first time, in 1832. 



