SOMETHING ABOUT TASMANIA

Temuka Leader, Issue 235, 19 February 1880, Page 2

SOMETHING ABOUT TASMANIA

[By Capttano.] It may not be uninteresting to tlm numerous readers of The lejiuka Leader to have written fur their especial ediii ation a narrative, bearing on one of the prettiest and most healthy colonies in the Australias : I allude to Tasmania. T.Jy reason for doing so are because several o the l eaders of this journal have, from tim i to time, requested the editor to devote a little space to the subject, so I, hearing; of tbit by chance, hasten to give, as far as my personal knowledge of some years will allow, the information asked for co .corning the"island of Tasmania. THE Cl OLT), OLD DAYS.” I should not think it was necessary to go back to the time when the aboriginals, kangaroos, wallabys, ’possums, kangaroo rats, and other like animals, comprised the greater portion of the inhabitants, and wheii the convicts were first landed ; but, in case some of my perusers should not be acquainted with the first part of Tasmania’s history, I shall make a start at the commencement. Tasmania, as will be seen on reference to the map, is situated at tins south-east extremity of the Continent of Australia. It was discovered by Tasman, a celebrated Dutch navigator, in 1042, He named the island after Anthony Van Diemen, who at that time was governor of the Dutch possessions in the East Indies. In 1883, the British Government took formal possession of Yan Dieman’s Land (its original name), and in 1804 it was proclaimed a British penal colony. People who do not know the real meaning of the expression, “penal colony,” will probably be surprised when I tell them that it comprised the most horrible tortures ever thought of by man. For the slightest offence (ho unlucky prisoner was subjected to the most degrading cruelly, which, for refinement, could not have been surpassed by Hie (Spanish Inquisition. Nor insulting a gaoler, shooting was considered too good ; and if the governor of the gaol disliked one of his chaiges, he had simply to give a gaoler ‘'the wink,” a-d his death would soon follow, as a matter of course. Van Dieman’s Land ceased to he a penal colony—or, more appropriately, “hell upon earth,” for such it was from 1820 to ’s2 in 1 852. POUT ARTHUR, The principal convict establishments were situated at Port Arthur, on Tasman’s Peninsula ; and at Macquarie Harbour. It was at Port Arthur that such notorious fallows as Marlin Cash, Ben Bolt, and a few others of a like character, “ served their apprenticeship ” previous to entering upon their bnshranging career. Port Arthur (named, I believe, after Governor Arthur) was the safest prison, as it was situated near a narrow neck of land, and the prisoners, to escape from their gaolers, had to swim across a bay which then, as now, literally swarmed with the most voracious sharks inhabiting Australian waters, I have it heard it sai r ' by gentlemen who atone time were connected with the prison, and whoso voracity could not be doubled, Liat the gaolers were in the habit of feeding some of these monsters of the deep with meat once a day, which, of course, had the effect of whetiing their bloody appetites. Pet. in tho fare of theso hardly-to-be-credited dangers —adding the chance of being shot down by o e of the numerous sentinels on the isthmus, and then risking death by starvation in the bush—many of (ho prisoners lh:uic.;d the consequences* rather than continue under the charge of their brutal k epees. As a matter of course, ttie escapees, if they managed to reach an aboriginal settlement, al.vav.s took to bnshranging. Tins is not to be wondered at, when what they had to si;Tor is taken into consideration. Unless known for a fact, it would he almost impossible to believe that the convicts suffered such terrible punishment : balls of iron, weighing about imlf-a-cwt. each, were fastened to their feet, another suspended rn’md their necks, and one to each hand. Flogging was-a mild form of punishment, and hanging a piisoncr up by the thumbs was considered fi jo sport by the gaolers. The branding-iron was looked upon as an effective wav of punishing a pri ;oner. After flogging a prisoner till ho was senseless, • and the blood streamed from his body, they u.-ed to bring him round again by “ salting ids woiiiKuJ.” ABOUT BUSHRANGERS. I first of all como to Mar.in Cash, who w.i« styled the “ poor nun’s f: lend.” He had to suffer at Port Arthur No tortures alluded to above, a d, seeing ids chance, ho escaped from .he gaol, running innumerable dangers before reaciiingsome of his dark-skinned friends. lie soon took (o bnshranging, and it was during that period that he earned me appellation allud.ed to above by robbing tbe rich man and giving what he had taken from him to the poor, hard-working man. It could nevi.r be said of Cash tmit he killed any one except m self-defence. Cash however shot several “ bobbies ” before lie was captured. Ho wus taken back to gaol, but, after sowing a sentence, be was released, a form being provided for mm by tbe Got vein..met at Now Norfolk, where be took

to farming operations, and soon after entered the marriage state, becoming what is t‘rmed a '“respectable member of society ” Ho departed this life about two years ago, Paving a son to mourn his loss. Next comes the bloodthirsty villain, B-u Bolt, who was the reverse in character o r Martin Cash. He took from all. and a te 1 upon the principle that “ Dead men tell no taPs. There was another outcast of society who was as bad, if not worse, than Ban Bolt. I cannot think of his name, but perhaps some of my readers will when I mention an incident in conne' tion with nis early career. In escaping from Port Arthur, he was helped by a young girl who idolised him. \V;enhe got beyond immediate danger, be turned upon her and, without, a moment’s warning, deliberately dashed out her brains with the gun she had provided him with. He however met w th liis richly-deserved death, for lie was soon after mercilessly shot down by a posse of police. Another penal establishment in the island was MA.CQUA.niE HARBOUR. This was the stonghold of the convicts, the worst of them being sent there. Toe prison was surrounded on every side hut; one by an impenetrable forest. to enter which was certa ; n dca hto the escap e. Par sooner however would the prisoner (he from starvation in the'bush than suffer a prolonged life of torture in.the gaol. GENERAL VIEW. After the island ceased to he a receptac’c for the criminals of England, things wen! • n more brightly, and the tone of society began to improve wonder”ul!y, People of a in re ac'optab'e class than convicts now flocked to Tasma ia. The emigrants—who were mostly men with capital —turned their alteuUO!) to sheep-farming and agricn’tur"l pursuits ; gold was discovered in the north in largo quantities, and this opened up a new source cf industry ; soon after the discovery of gold, tin was found in largo quantities. Tin-mining is one of the best paying schemes in Tasmania. The iv hest company is Hie Mount Bischnff, which, annually sends home metal to the value of LBO,OOO. The scene of operatiolia of the company is Mount Bisclmtl'—truly described as a “mountain of tin.” Very large dividends are paid to the lucky shareholders, some of whom li re ia luxury upon their shares alone.

THE WEST COAST. The latest discovery of tin and gold was made on the "West"'Coast about two years ago. It was here that Richall Richardson —a gentlemen to whom Tasmania owes so much —was drowned. His name will long be remembered in the backwoodsman’s hut and, the squatter’s homestead. - On it being made known that precious minerals could be got in payab'e quantities at the Pieman, several companies were at once formed to work the ground. They all started in their respective boats, but they did not, with one exception, get further than Recherche Hay (about a third of the distance), where they anchored for a time, hoping to get to their destination, but they had to return to port after an absence of two months. The exception mentioned however got as far as Macquarie Harbour, where they were detained by okl Boreas for six weeks. They also bad to return to port, after experiencing several dangers. Since then some parties have gone overland to the Pieman, and mining operations are going ahead there steadily. The West Coast is as bad in winter as is the coast of Ne w Zealand. The scenery is grand, and will compare favorably with the much-talked-of Mackenzie Country. Snow lies sever.l feet deep, and the livers are swollen to such an extent that it is impossible to cross them in a boat, litany of the readers of this narrative will perhaps think that Tasmanian rivers are like New Zealand livers —mere mountain torrents. This would be a mistaken idea, and if any of my readers should think so, they should pay a visit to the ever-bcauliail

RIVER DERWENT, which,taken as a whole,is one of the finest rivers in the colonies. Fishes of all kind abound in it : from the worthless leatherjacket to the useful porpoise, and from the delic’otta trout to the famous salmon. The latter fish was introduced into Tasmanian waiters three years ago, and being protected by law, are now very plentiful. The river along its course -is bounded on each side by hills, the grand scenery of which cannot be surpassed in any part of the Australias. At its broadest part (near Hobart Town) its width is not less than 10 miles, and its depth is of such a nature that vessels of any tonnage could ride upon its expansive bosom with safety. Ferry boats ply daily between Hobart Town and Bellerive, and there is a large twin steamer us ,’d for conveying horses, carts, etc.

A REGATTA is, of course, held annually at Macquarie Point to celebrate Hie discovery of the island, and I need not say that it is of the most successful nature,crews from Sydney and Melbourne very often competing in the events. The sailing races are considered to be the best events of the day. Of course there are plenty iown on the programme—such as yacht,boat,barge and ketch races. Racing clubs abound along the banks of the river, and four-oareds, pairoareds, and skiff* are daily seeu out for practice. SHIPBUILDING.

There is in Hobart Town alone four shipyards, which emp'oy together about 100 men, while there sre several yards down at the Huon—a town situated about 30 miles from the “ great city.” Some of the grandest and fastest sailing barques in the colonies are turned out at these shipyards. To prove this, the Harriet McGregor, Ja barque of 700 tons, often sails the passage from England to Tasmania under 70 days. Next week I shall continue my narrative and tell the readers of the Leader about the climate, towns, whale fishery, public buildings, the habits, etc., of the people, an ! wind up, with a general review of the colo ly. _