[TITLE PAGES]
[Image of page i]
THE RISE AND PROGRESS
OF
AUSTRALIA, TASMANIA,
and
NEW ZEALAND.
IN WHICH WILL BE FOUND
A COLONIAL DIRECTORY;
INCREASE AND HABITS OF POPULATION;
TABLES OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURE:
COMMERCIAL GROWTH AND PRESENT POSITION OF EACH DEPENDENCY;
INTELLECTUAL, SOCIAL & MORAL CONDITION OF THE PEOPLE, &C,
GATHERED FROM
AUTHENTIC SOURCES, OFFICIAL DOCUMENTS, AND PERSONAL OBSERVATION
IN EACH OF
THE COLONIES, CITIES, AND PROVINCES
ENUMERATED.
BY AN ENGLISHMAN.
[Daniel Puseley ]
AUTHOR OF "COMMERCIAL BEFORE MILITARY GLORY," "SKETCHES OF ENGLISH AND SCOTTISH SCENERY," "A TRAVELLER'S DIARY,", "FIVE DRAMAS," ETC., ETC.
LONDON:
SAUNDERS & OTLEY, CONDUIT STREET.
1857.
[Image of page ii]
By the annual exclusion of old matter, and the introduction and description of every important event connected with, and every change caused by, the Progress of the Australian Colonies; and by perfecting, as nearly as possible, the Colonial Directory up to the time of publication, it is hoped that this may ultimately become a still more useful work of reference.
LONDON:
CAXTON STEAM PRINTING OFFICES, CAMDEN TOWN.
[PREFACE]
[Image of page v]
PREFACE.
The production of the following pages may be attributed to one of those accidents in life, by which the future course of individuals is sometimes determined. The fate of some early poetical works failed to inspire the writer with any very elevated opinion of his own imaginative powers. In place of an expected bank draft, he found, with his unsold poems, a little of that disappointment which, at the time, made him resolve that, in the publication of a prose composition on which he was then engaged, he would make his last appearance before the public as an author --at least on his own account.
Success, it appears, may influence little minds as well as great ones. The demand
[Image of page vi]
for the work alluded to having greatly exceeded both the merit of the composition and the author's expectation, a wider field for exertion has here been selected; and, instead of confining his pen to particular localities, the writer has attempted to embody entire colonies and communities. Had the difficulty of the task presented itself at the outset, the work would probably not have been undertaken. The accomplishment of such an undertaking, in countries where a traveller's best conveyance and his only assistant are to be found in the strength of his legs and the length of his purse, has been anything but an easy one. If, however, two voyages round the world in prosecution of the design, excessive toil and personal inconvenience in collecting materials for the same, and strict impartiality and a rigid adherence to truth in the execution thereof--if such features in the character of a work have any claim on public favor, the humble artist may reasonably anticipate some little return for his past labor.
[Image of page vii]
During the last few years countless books on Australia have made their appearance before the British public. The merits or demerits of such publications are not becoming subjects for discussion here., This volume was composed and compiled for the purpose of supplying what the author believes has been, and still is required by the intending emigrant--not a voluminous history of the Colonies in the South Pacific from the period of their foundation, but a work of reference, in which the rise, progress, and present position of the respective settlements, together with the commercial, social, and moral habits of the people, may be ascertained and compared at a glance. Such was the original design of the work. The manner in which it has been executed is a subject for the consideration of others.
But as a long preface can neither add merit to a good work nor value to a bad one, it will only be necessary further to observe, that the following pages are entirely free from imaginary sketches, either of places or
[Image of page viii]
persons. Each colony, city, or province, mentioned, has been personally inspected, although imperfectly described; and the habits and peculiarities of the inhabitants have been taken from actual observation, however feebly they may have been drawn. With regard to statistics--which necessitated a second voyage to the colonies, for the purpose of obtaining assistance from the respective governments, --the copy of a letter from the Colonial Office will satisfy the reader of accuracy on that head:--
DOWNING STREET,
29th Dec, 1854.
SIR,
I am directed by Sir George Grey to forward you the enclosed letters of introduction to the Governors of Victoria, New South Wales, Van Diemen's Land, and New Zealand, in compliance with the request contained in your letter of the 19 th instant.
I am, Sir,
Your obedient Servant, (Signed) SAM. WHITEHEAD.
To
D. P----, Esq.
[Image of page ix]
For the valuable aid rendered by Mr. Archer, the Registrar General of Victoria, and for the kind assistance afforded by gentlemen in other colonies, the writer's warmest thanks are due.
Finally, a sense of duty prompts the author to acknowledge, briefly but gratefully, the interest taken in this work by a large circle of subscribers--whose early orders, rather than any known merit in the composition ordered, will account for a considerable and immediate issue.
D. P.
[Image of page x]
[Page x is blank, pages xi and xii not found]
[CONTENTS]
[Image of page xiii]
GENERAL INDEX.
VICTORIA. page
First Impressions of Victoria..... 3
Melbourne in 1853 ...... 5
Wealth of the Colony--early effects of... 7
Land Mania....... 10
Sudden acquirement of wealth--effect of .. 12
Intellectual condition of Settlers.... 15
Colonial Magistrates and Civic honors... 20
Melbourne and Geelong--description of 25
Australian Climate....... 32
Unwholesome Literature--evil effects of 39
Influence of early example...... 52
English Casinos, &c....... 55
Betting--books and betting--practice of... 56
First Impressions--conclusion of... 60
Second Impressions of Victoria..... 63
Intemperance in the Colony--diminution of. 65
Universal Suffrage....... 68
High wages and high prices--effect of. 69
Orders from the Colonies--want of attention to.. 79
Improvements in Melbourne and Geelong.. 80
Former opinion of climate confirmed.... 81
Newspaper Press of Victoria..... 83
Chinese Immigration--speech of Quang Chew..92
Public reception of, and subsequent dislike to, the Governor.....98
[Image of page xiv]
Improvements in Gold Fields..... 103
Decrease of Native Population.... 104
Mrs. Emma Waller.......105
Official and Statistical information.... 106
Concluding remarks.......127
The Governor of Victoria.....130
NEW SOUTH WALES. ......135
Description of the Colony.....137
Sydney Mint........147
Society in New South Wales..... 152
Responsibilities of Sir William Denison... 154
Colonial Banks.......162
Actors and audiences...... 172
Disease through the use of ardent spirits.. 177
Statistical information......178
Australian debtors and English creditors.. 187
The Governor of New South Wales.... 191
TASMANIA (late Van Diemen's Land)... 193
Description of the Colony...... 197
Attack on the Governor by the English Press.. 203
Statistical Information...... 206
List of chief places...... 214
The Governor of Tasmania..... 221
NEW ZEALAND.......223
Introduction........225
The Governor's address......226
Introductory description of the Colony... 231
[Image of page xv]
AUCKLAND, ........257
Town, district, climate, &c. --description of.. 259
Population of the Province..... 273
Native Flax of New Zealand..... 274
Taranaki, or New Plymouth..... 279
Land in the Colony--value of... 280
Mr. Earp's description of the Province... 283
Statistical Information...... 289
NELSON.. ....... 291
Climate of the Province--description of 292
Characteristic feature of inhabitants.. 293
Description and Statistics of Province... 297
Nelson Amateur Musical Society.... 301
Concluding Remarks....... 302
The Mineral Riches of New Zealand... 302
Black Ball Line of Packets from Liverpool to New Zealand--Liverpool Ships and Liverpool Merchants 310
WELLINGTON.........313
Characteristic feature of inhabitants... 313
Earthquakes--periodical shocks of ... 314
Society in the Province--description of... 317
Description and Statistics of Province... 318
CANTERBURY........ 329
Introductory description of Province.... 330
Capabilities of the land, &c, in New Zealand.. 332
Society in the Province--description of 342
Progress and Statistics of the Province.. 343
Akaroa--description of...... 348
Lyttelton Coast Directory..... 349
[Image of page xvi]
OTAGO.......... 351
Social condition of the Province.... 352
Progress and Statistics of the Settlement... 357
The Bluff........ 363
The Bishop of New Zealand..... 364
The Governor of New Zealand.... 367
Concluding remarks....... 368
New Zealand Import Duties..... 374
Ships, Shipowners, and Ship Agents.... 383
English Insurance Companies.... 393
COLONIAL DIRECTORY...... 417
Geelong Trade Directory..... 419
Melbourne Directory...... 425
Melbourne Imports, 1854-5 ..... 436
Sydney Directory....... 441
NEW ZEALAND DIRECTORY...... 447
Auckland........ 448
Wellington........ 456
Nelson........ 461
Canterbury........ 466
ENGLISH DIRECTORY--London... 473
........ Provincial.... 490
ADVERTISEMENTS...... 507
