23 
Again, the Earl of Ripon in 1833, with regard more particularly 
to Western Australia, said: “The present settlement at Swan River 
owes its origin, you may perhaps he aware, to certain false rumours 
which had reached the Government of the intentions of a foreign 
power to establish a colony on the west coast of Australia. The 
design was for a time given up entirely on the ground of public 
economy, and would not have been resumed but for the offer of a 
party of gentlemen to embark in an undertaking of this nature, at 
their own risk, upon receiving extensive grants of land, and on a 
certain degree of protection and assistance for a limited period being 
secured to them by this Government.” 
[It is now generally accepted that the French expeditions of the 
period had one of two objects in view, either the advancement of 
science or the discovery of the fate of La PerouseJ 
Having thus discussed shortly the attitude of the British mind 
towards French activities, let me turn more particularly to the 
causes which led to the colonisation of Western Australia, and which 
are to be found in the statement noted above made by the Earl of 
Ripon -Firstly, the fear of French annexation; secondly, the offer 
to colonise on the part of a syndicate. 
It is not necessary to inform you that rumours existed early in 
the century that Admiral Baudin contemplated a settlement at West- 
ern Port in 1802, and that Freycinet, in 1818, had made an exhaus- 
tive examination of the north-west coast. In 1823 we find that a 
further French expedition, eonsitsing of the “Thetis” and “Fs- 
perance, ' commanded by Bougainville and Du Camper, was cruising 
about the southern coasts, and this seems to have made General 
Darling, who towards the end of that year had assumed the gover- 
norship of New South Wales, anxious that some steps should be 
taken to deprive France of the chance of gaining a foothold on Aus- 
tralasian soil. Recognising that, in case of dispute, Great Britain 
would have difficulty in establishing her claim to the west coast, he 
wrote to the Secretary of State for the Colonies regarding the mat- 
ter, and said: It will not he easy to satisfy the French, if they are 
desirous of establishing themselves here, that there is any objection 
to their doing so on the west coast, and I therefore beg* to suggest 
that the difficulty would be removed by a commission describing the 
whole territory as within the Government ” (The territory of Vew 
South Wales, it may he mentioned, extended westward only to the 
129° of F. Longitude.) On 1st March, 1826, the Secretary of State, 
joid Bathurst, addressed two despatches upon the subject to Gov- 
ernor Darling, and. at the same time, wrote a more or less private and 
confidential c-ommuneiation. The first of these despatches instructed 
.he Governor to commence immediate preparations for the forma- 
tion y a settlement at Western Port, using whatever means he might 
lniK best, hi the second despatch Darling was instructed to en- 
deavour to procure correct information respecting the country irn- 
