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 http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924030545739 
 
REPORT OF THE PROCEEDINGS 
 
 NATIONAL BANQUET, 
 
 HELD AT THE 
 
 PRINCE OF WALES THEATRE, SYDNEY, 
 ON THE 17th OF JULY, 1856, 
 
 TO CELEBRATE THE ESTABLISHMENT AND INAUGURATION OP 
 
 RESPONSIBLE GOVERNMENT 
 
 IN THE COLONY OF NEW SOUTH WALES. 
 
 EDITED BY 
 
 RICHARD THOMPSON. 
 
 SYDNEY: 
 THOMAS DANIEL, MARKET STREET. 
 
 1856. 
 
s sb net: 
 
 PRINTED BY TICKLE AND BOSS, NO. 9, MARKET-8THEET 
 
PRELIMINARY NOTE. 
 
 In a brochure which was published in Sydney seventeen years ago, 
 the authorship of which, we believe, is to be ascribed to Dr. Bland, the 
 following passages appear in defence of the great principle of 
 " Responsible Government" : — 
 
 The greatest improvement in political constitutions that has occurred, has heen 
 that of introducing into them the principle of responsibility to the people, and the 
 beautiful machinery by which this indispensable object is effected. It had not escaped 
 the attention of those interested in the moral and intellectual advancement of the 
 human race, that political freedom was invariably found to be the basis, as well as 
 principal actuating power, of all such improvement. With this principle in operation, . 
 the smallest communities had often outstripped the w ealthiest, and most extensive 
 empires in every attribute of human excellence. But the ancient formB of govern- 
 ment of this description, however excellent in their effects, were y et deficient in some 
 principle essential to their preservation ; and, until this .principle was discovered, it 
 was in vain to hope for permanent success from any of the free forms of government 
 that had been devised. The lapse of eighteen centuries has at length given to poli- 
 tical science, in this department, a degree of perfection which, as in some of our most 
 splendid discoveries in mechanical science, has rendered it practically applicable, and 
 that with a facility and effect which, but a few years since, would have been consi- 
 dered hopeless. The vital element to which we allude, and which it has required so 
 many years to reduce to practical perfection, is that of the responsibility of the 
 governing to the governed. This one principle, in respect to constitutional forms of 
 government, in its operation may not unaptly be compared to what steam is discovered 
 to be in mechanical science ; though, great as are the effects of the latter, it would 
 indeed be an injustice to the former to compare their respective results. That this 
 political principle is indispensable to the religious, moral, and intellectual advance- 
 ment of the human specie s, we have too many existing proofs to doubt : for which, we 
 
have to look only at those countries in which this principle ia in greater or less opera* 
 tion, and contrast the state of those countries with that of those other countries in 
 which it may be said not to exist. 
 
 This was the first public and bold expression of the opinion that the 
 people of New South Wales had a right to govern themselves. 
 
 The principle then asserted here, but contemptuously denied by the 
 Imperial Government, has, at length, been conceded ; and to consider 
 the best means of celebrating the Establishment and Inauguration of 
 Responsible Government in the Colony of New South Wales, a Public 
 Meeting was convened, at which Mr. John Fairfax presided. 
 
 It was agreed that a National Banquet should be given, to which 
 •His Excellency the Governor-General ; their Honors the Judges ; the 
 Members of the present, and the late, Ministry ; the Foreign Consuls ; 
 and Mr. James Macarthur ; should be invited to attend. And it was 
 also resolved, unanimously, that a Deputation wait upon Dr. Bland, 
 the earliest Champion in the cause of " Responsible' Government," 
 and request him to preside upon the occasion. 
 
 And thus was initiated, in the most appropriate and satisfactory 
 manner, the means of celebrating the concession of a boon for which 
 the colonists had, for so many years, struggled to obtain. And now 
 the Legislature of New South Wales will occupy a place in its Con- 
 stitution and in Public Confidence different from what it has yet 
 occupied; and which must point to a far different balance of the 
 counteracting powers from any which has hitherto existed here. 
 
 There are' abundant materials in this colony for Independent Legisla- 
 tion. That a very considerable proportion of our large settlers, our 
 professional men, our merchants, are the equals in education, and 
 general intellectual habits, of those who ordinarily find their way into 
 the British House of Commons, no one acquainted with the tone of our 
 society will deny. Having the strongest interests/ as capitalists, in 
 searching deep into the foundations of economical science, they have 
 also the best kind of school which can afford for such inquiries : — 
 namely, a young community, attaining, by degrees, to a more perfect 
 civilization as its different interests grow up, and become blended with 
 each other. With us it is as if Political Economy were being acted on 
 
a stage ; for we here witness the growth of human society as plainly as 
 we can observe the operation of bees through a glass hive 
 
 But, although we had the materials for independent legislation, that 
 great constitutional boon was long withheld from us. We were 
 governed by officers selected by the Parent State who were exempted 
 from all Eesponsibility to the Local Legislature ; and thus, although 
 we had a Representative Assembly given to us, possessing the usual 
 powers of such a body, domestic institutions to which we were not 
 attached were established amongst us ; and the Representatives of Pro- 
 perty, having no inducement to enter so anomalous an arena, did not 
 seek to become the " Representatives of the People." 
 
 " It seems plain to me," said Sir Henry Vane, " that all offices had 
 their rise from the people ; and that all should be accountable to them ; 
 and if this be monstrous, then it is monstrous to be safe and rational, 
 and to bear your own good." This is a maxim which we ardently hope 
 will be in full force for all posterity ; for, if Government is to be for the 
 good of the public — an axiom which even the advocates of Prerogative 
 will not deny, when put to them in what Burke calls the nakedness of 
 metaphysical abstraction, however unwilling they may be to apply it to 
 themselves — Government must be responsible to somebody — either to the 
 people themselves, or to some one who knows their interest and has it 
 at heart. If Irresponsible Government does not act for the good of the 
 people, this is not the result of its constitution but of a lucky accident. 
 The worst Responsible Government, therefore, is better than the best 
 Irresponsible. The question of Irresponsible Government is decided by 
 this consideration. The proposition is not to transfer the power of hold- 
 ing the Colonial Government responsible from the House of Commons 
 to the Legislative Council, but to free the people from a practically 
 Irresponsible Government. 
 
 The total absence of all Responsible Government in this colony was 
 thus alluded to in the Report of the Select Committee on " General 
 Grievances," which was laid upon the table of the former Legislative 
 Council in its session of 1844 : — 
 
 Nothing can more clearly evince the evil tendencies of that entire separation of 
 the Legislative and Executive powers which exists here at present, than the perfect 
 
6 
 
 indifference, if not contempt, with which the most important decisions and resolutions 
 of your Honorable House have been treated by the head of the Government during the 
 course of this Session. Notwithstanding the insignificant minorities — in which the 
 confidential servants and adviserB (if any such there be) of the Government have been 
 left on every important subject — which has engaged the attention of the House during 
 the present Session, the condemned policy and measures of the Executive are still per- 
 severed in, as if they met the fullest concurrence and support of overwhelming majo- 
 rities. Night after night the decisions of the representatives of the people — decisions, 
 in many of the most important of which some of the most experienced and influential 
 of the unofficial nominees of the Crown have concurred, have been utterly disregarded, 
 and every possible expedient resorted to — in order to deprive the Council of that con- 
 trol over the public purse which the Imperial Legislature on the one hand, and 
 successive Secretaries of State — with the sanction of the Lords of the Treasury — on the 
 other, have over and over again placed at its disposal. 
 
 * * * #* * * * 
 
 There is but one remedy for these evils — Kesponsible Government, in the sense in 
 which it is understood in England, and an absence of all interference on the part of 
 the home authorities, except on questions purely Imperial, or on matters referred to 
 them by way of appeal, where the Executive and Legislative bodies happen to differ. 
 
 Happily the application of this remedy, tardy though it was, the 
 colonists have at length celebrated at the National Banquet, whose 
 proceedings we are about to report. 
 
 In reference to this Report, we must observe, that in consequence of 
 the extremely crowded state of the Prince of Wales Theatre, where the 
 Banquet was held ; and the inconvenient distance at which the Re- 
 porters of the daily journals were placed from the chief speakers, it was 
 impossible to do full justice to their speeches. This, together with the 
 desire, very generally expressed, to have published in a more enduring 
 form than the columns of a newspaper, the record of a most important 
 event in the history of New South Wales, has suggested the present 
 publication. 
 
 To the various addresses (which have been revised as well as circum- 
 stances would allow) it is not necessary to advert in the spirit of strict 
 criticism. We quite agree with the remarks of the Sydney Morning 
 Herald, which are subjoined, that "brief and fragmentary as they were, 
 they form, combined, a fair exhibition of the sentiments of the colony 
 on the stirring topics suggested by the toasts." The tributes which 
 
the Governor-General and the chief speakers warmly paid to Dr. Bland 
 in respect to his untiring and devoted services in the arduous struggle 
 for the constitutional liberty which this country now enjoys, must have 
 been most gratifying to one who, foremost in the earliest field, was 
 called upon to preside at the Ovation which celebrated its crowning vic- 
 tory. This tribute paid to the patriotic labours of a long, and, in every 
 respect, a consistent career, proves that the true patriot — the benefactor 
 of his country and his kind — does not always suffer from the proverbial 
 inconstancy of the public gall ; nor always feel those vicissitudes of pub- 
 lic opinion to which public life is too generally exposed. The colonists 
 have not forgotten the emphatic words of Mr. Wentworth on a memo- 
 rable occasion, when he said — " I charge you never to forget your tried, 
 devoted, indefatigable friend, "William Bland. No man ever served a 
 country in a purer spirit of patriotism — no man ever more deeply 
 deserved the gratitude of a generous people than he has." 
 
 Before we describe the proceedings at the Banquet, it will assist those 
 in the Parent Country, who take a deep interest in the welfare of the 
 Australian colonies, if we invite ' their attention to the opinions ex- 
 pressed in reference to this great National Celebration, by the leading 
 journal of New South Wales, the Sydney Morning Herald, ; and that 
 of Victoria, the Melbourne Herald. 
 
 The former journal says : — 
 
 In another column will be found a full report of the Banquet. The task of the 
 reporters was not easy, and the gentlemen who spoke were hastened by u feeling of 
 justice to eaoh other. Still, brief and fragmentary as were the addresses, they form, 
 combined, a fair exhibition of the sentiments of the colony on the stirring topics sug- 
 gested by the toasts. 
 
 The Chairman of the evening — a veteran in the cause of Constitutional Government 
 
 was once well known in public life. His friends were happy to perceive that, since 
 
 his retirement, his affections had not cooled towards the cause of liberty, and that he 
 had not forgotten how to lead the rejoicings of his fellow-citizens in celebrating an 
 auspicious change. 
 
 Were we to select from the whole of the speeches which appeared most to interest 
 the company, we should place those of the Consuls high on the list. The cordial, 
 pungent, and epigrammatic speech of the French Consul was received in the British 
 style of applause. 
 
A deeper and more serious feeling welcomed the sentiments of Mr. Williams, the 
 Consul for the United States. There cannot surely exist any permanent causes of 
 alienation between two nations, one in blood and language, and heirs of one inherit- 
 ance of glorious traditions. The consular agents of great countries are representa- 
 tives of those material interests which are the sureties of peace ; and it is their 
 happiness often by a generous and fraternal word to neutralise prejudices which, 
 however contemptible, are yet sometimes the remote cause of internecine war. 
 
 The political speeches were in perfect correspondence with the object of celebration. 
 Still it was true that a strong sympathy revealed itself. The cheers were unmistakable 
 — they were in bold defiance of all prudential reserve. It must have been a one 
 party oheer. We all know the opponents of the present Ministry too well to suppose 
 they could for one moment lose sight of party, and receive a rival with magnanimity ; 
 they never relax. The welfare of civilized nations admits of courtesy even on the 
 eve of battle. No true soldier imagines that his loyalty to his own flag can be sus- 
 pected because he embraces a truce, and meantime salutes an opponent. It is the 
 savage who always looks fierce with ochre, and never meets his antagonist without 
 threatening gestures and insulting tongue. The cheers so long and loud which 
 greeted the guests were those of friends, and they may be taken as a pledge of support 
 should a time ever arrive when the true cause of ^Responsible Government shall be 
 carried to its last court of appeal — the primary assemblies of the people. 
 
 The compliment paid to the Judges was deserved. Until lately they were liable 
 to suspension at the pleasure of the Governor, and dismission by the Secretary of 
 State ; yet we believe that during their long tenure of office, they have escaped even 
 a suspicion of leaning to the Executive. The fact is indisputable, that both in the 
 general government and in our courts of law, the servants of the State have been in- 
 fluenced far more' by pervading British principles and tastes than by any particular 
 status of the colony, or its ti-ansitory institutions. Thus, Sir Francis Forbes, when 
 administering the law under conditions scarcely known to Englishmen in other 
 countries, hastened the establishment of a more desirable system, while he held in 
 check the tendency of that which existed to despotism and oppression. The name 
 of that gentleman is unknown to many, but others, like the Chairman, turn to his 
 memory with reverence. 
 
 The tenure of the judicial office now depends on Legislature. A judge may be re- 
 moved by an address from both houses — a formidable responsibility. Should the 
 division of the Legislature into separate chambers ever become merely nominal, and 
 should the judges be liable to the sudden attacks of a passionate majority, we believe 
 they may rely on the press and on the people. 
 
 We regretted that the committee had not included in their programme some 
 reference to the late official corps. We should do so the more, had not that course 
 been requested by the gentlemen immediately concerned. Mr. Thomson Jwill be 
 appreciated hereafter — at present, he has the warm regard of the colonists who have 
 
9 
 
 known him long. It has suited political warfare to couple his name with every epithet 
 of depreciation, but, when his general policy shall be traced by an impartial pen, he 
 will take a high place among the statesmen of the colony, and among the friends of 
 commercial, civil, and religions freedom. Were we disposed to be captious, we might 
 bring out two or three serious mistakes during an administration of twenty years, but 
 what are these compared with the enlightened and vigorous career of one of the ablest 
 functionaries under the British Government. 
 
 The last speech of the evening — that of Mr. Justice Dickinson — was distinguished 
 for its elegance. His allusions to Lady Denison were the more acceptable, because 
 fully justified by her amiable conduct from the moment she touched the shores of 
 Australia — (alas, how grey we get !) — nearly ten years ago. Her footsteps are always 
 to be traced where ignorance is to be instructed, and misery to be succoured. 
 
 The Melbourne Herald says : — 
 
 Our neighbours at Sydney — who are ^certainly more sanguine, or at least more 
 excitable and mercurial politicians than we are — have been glorifying themselves and 
 the rest of the great and good men, who have fought and won the battle of constitu- 
 tional reform and progress in this hemisphere. The banquet, which was held on 
 Friday last in the Prince of Wales Theatre, was intended to celebrate the establish- 
 ment of "Responsible Government, and was conducted on a scale that rivalled the im- 
 perial magnificence of festivals in the mother country. It was, in truth, a very superb 
 dramatic entertainment, got up with consummate skill and liberality by experienced 
 managers j and the result appears to have been so successful that it would be as imper- 
 tinent as thankless to pry behind the soenes and to explore, too curiously, the 
 machinery and the organization by which the effects were produced that charmed, so 
 powerfully and delightfully, the imagination of the public. Who cares about what 
 squabbles may have disturbed the green-room, or what jealousies or bickerings may 
 have prevented rival stars from joining in the performance ; when the stage itself did 
 not conspicuously suffer from these causes, — when the principal characters were sus- 
 tained by the most distinguished veterans, — and when the curtain fell amidst the 
 approbation of the audience and with thunders of applause. 
 
 The occasion was one that might have been expected to have congregated and con- 
 ciliated, for the moment, all classes of politicians ; whoj might at least have seen that 
 here was common ground, and that the bitterest antagonists might unite in celebrating 
 the advent of that system, and the establishment of that well-fenced and wide 
 arena, which rendered it possible for them to fight out, so conveniently and so plea- 
 santly, the factious and fratricidal warfare in which they so much delight. But for 
 Constitutional Government — the combativeness of " our lively neighbours " would 
 never have had such free scope as that in which it now indulges. It must bave con- 
 tented itself with the rattling of its chains and the hoarse monotonous growl with 
 which the discontent and impatience of the colonies was formerly made known to its , 
 
10 
 
 distant rulers. But now — the scene is changed ; and, when the very object of free 
 institutions — as a means to the great ends of public liberty and order — is to provide the 
 lists, and to give encouragement, within certain limits, to the jousts and tournaments 
 of party warfare — it was, we say, to be desired that the founding of such an institution 
 should have been celebrated by a gathering of all the chivalry on both sides of the 
 question, and by an interchange of those knightly courtesies which would have done 
 justice to the occasion and equal honour to all concerned. We do not inquire too 
 narrowly into the causes, and we do not seek for an explanation ; but the fact is too 
 glaring to be overlooked, that, whilst the object of the meeting was truly national, and 
 appealed to what should have been the common sympathies, the common triumph, and 
 the common glory of all the various sections of constitutional politicians, the assem- 
 blage seems to have contained too few of the leading members of the opposition, and 
 too large a preponderance of the adherents of the Government, to bear that comprehen- 
 sive character which ought to distinguish such occasions. There ought to have been 
 no sour and ill-conditioned sect to keep itself away from such a passover, — no insolent 
 and overbearing hierarchy to repel them from the common celebration. It ought to 
 have been the jubilee of the colony, and no Samaritan should have stood aloof or been 
 excluded from the temple. We do not know which party is to blame ; but it was a 
 bad beginning, and a bad omen for the spirit in which political struggles are to be 
 carried on hereafter, between men who are already so entirely and so fiercely com- 
 mitted t J hostility, that they cannot meet even at the festive board, and for such 
 purposes as were contemplated at the banquet. This is not English. This is not 
 constitutional. This is not the true theory or practice of Responsible Government. It 
 is throwing away the advantages — the immense advantages — of the monarchical element, 
 which provides for the unity and harmony of the state, as something greater and 
 more comprehensive than any faction ; and it is splitting up society itself into re- 
 pulsive masses like those in the old Greek democracies, or the Italian republics of the 
 middle ages. This is the danger of the colonies, that they should fall into that kind 
 of murderous antagonism which has almost invariably distinguished and disgraced 
 the little commonwealths and free cities, that have otherwise been the most illus- 
 trious in the annals of liberty. 
 
 To some, these observations will appear to be overstrained ; but, to those who 
 dwell incessantly on the aspects and symptoms of our political life, the caution will 
 not appear unnecessary nor the injunction too earnest and too solemn, if we implore 
 our fellow-colonists to beware of the demon of discord, and, for God's sake, not to 
 allow political animosity to extend one hair's breadth beyond the line of demarca- 
 tion, into any other sphere of either public or private life. Within that line we 
 would fight, intellectually, like Guelphs' and Ghibellines ; but let us have no daggers, 
 no lances, no libels, and — beyond it — all the charities and courtesies of life. 
 
 What has this to do, it will be said, with the dinner at the Prince of Wales 
 
11 
 
 Theatre? Too much, we fear; and time may show the accuracy of our presenti- 
 ment. The leaders of the opposition kept aloof, and the question is now mooted at 
 Sydney whether their conduct was justifiable, on the ground of some intrigue, some 
 artifice, or some studied insult, on the part of the ruling power, or must he ascribed 
 to some jealousy or misconception — too paltry to be suspected even, in men of such 
 capacity as those whose absence was remarked. Whoever was absent, however, 
 there were those present whose very names would be a tower of strength — as they 
 have been in many a day of trouble — in any cause that should appeal to the higher 
 and nobler sentiments of the people. It was a magnanimous and a gracious thing — 
 alike, honorable to both parties — when it was determined to celebrate such a 
 jubilee, as we have termed it, to call out William Bland from his retirement, to 
 invest him with the sacred stole, and to make him the high priest of so august a 
 ceremony. Many of our readers do not know him ; and, to some who do, the base- 
 ness of faction may have interposed a veil, that would conceal talents and virtues 
 never looked for and seldom found in this hemisphere. But, still there is a class 
 of men among the old colonists to whom those locks, whiter than the driven snow, 
 are «, crown of glory ; and who, when they shall follow him to his grave, will feel 
 that, whoever may come after him, none can ever assume his place, as one of the 
 earliest founders and patriarchs of liberty on this continent. For more than forty, 
 or perhaps fifty years, has this brave, consistent and accomplished man been strug- 
 gling, sometimes against imperial, and at other times against local tyranny, on 
 behalf of a people who at one moment appreciated his motives, and at another 
 joined with their own oppressors in disparaging, if not in vilifying, their greatest 
 benefactor. An elegant scholar, a man of science, and a gentleman of that antique 
 school of urbanity' aud refinement, which modern barbarism and ruffianism have 
 almost trampled into oblivion — William Bland, from almost the beginning of this 
 century, became the firm and incorruptible assertor of the people's rights— bearding 
 colonial despotism, when the gallows, the chain-gang, and the horrors of Norfolk 
 Island — that compendious and concentrated hell, of which governors and secretaries 
 held the key— were the ready answers to reclamations too loud, or protests too 
 daring for official ears. It was at that period, when his physiological attainments 
 and surgical inventions were exciting the admiration of the schools of Europe, 
 and when fortune seemed at his disposal, that William Bland — choosing that which 
 he thought better than all "the riches of Egypt" — cast in- his lot with that of a 
 persecuted people, and became their champion, against an oligarchy more cruel and 
 more profligate than the wretches that were entrusted to their power. It was a 
 proud day for such a man to outlive — not merely all the struggles and all the 
 violence, but all the feebleness of expiring despotism, and to preside on such an 
 occasion, supported by. the Denisons and the Macarthces, under a new dis- 
 pensation and system of law and government. It was the crowning glory of such 
 
12 
 
 » life, and a fitting bouquet for the public to lay upon the sepulchre that awaits' 
 him. 
 
 Mr. Spain, who acted as croupier, is not an untried man. He also was a labourer 
 in the cause of reform, in the old country, when reform was a passport to poverty 
 and ignominy, rather than to wealth or consideration ; and his claims as a colonist 
 are ratified, by the assignment to him of such a post of honour. 
 
 Upon the whole, the festival was most satisfactory in the demeanour and the 
 speeches of those present ; but most unsatisfactory and incomplete, when we reflect 
 upon the absence of so many who ought to have been there, — if they were not 
 absolutely precluded by a sense of honour. 
 
13 
 
 NATIONAL BANQUET. 
 
 Now wreaths of PEACE around each column twine, 
 And FREEDOM cries, the glorious prize is mine ! 
 
 In accordance with the arrangements made by the Committee ap- 
 pointed at a Public Meeting, which was convened for the purpose of 
 considering the fittest and most appropriate means of celebrating the 
 Establishment and Inauguration of Responsible Government in New 
 South Wales, a grand National Banquet was held at the Prince of 
 Wales Theatre, in Sydney, on the 17th July, 1856. 
 
 The capacity which the resources of this fine establishment afford for 
 an entertainment of the kind, provided ample space for the accommoda- 
 tion of the large number of guests, nearly six hundred of whom occu- 
 pied the tables. The pit was covered with a floor even with the stage. 
 The boxes were reserved for ladies, about 400 of whom graced the two 
 commodious tiers. The ordinary decorations of the Theatre, of them- 
 selves, with their superb chandeliers, and richly appointed boxes, upon 
 whose panels the Feathers of the Prince of Wales appear in boldly 
 embossed relievQ ; and the elaborate ornamentation of the proscenium, 
 upon which the Royal Arms of England appear in bright emblazonry ; — 
 these decorations, we say, are of themselves sufficient as regards orna- 
 ture upon ordinary occasions. But upon so important a celebration as 
 the present, the Committee, to whom was confided the decorative part, 
 determined that additional and appropriate embellishments should also 
 be introduced. Accordingly, from the gallery were displayed the flags 
 of the Allied Powers, and of the other nations of Europe, and America ; 
 " whose ensigns were hung up, whose peaceful drums were still." 
 Above the centre box was hung Mr. 0. R. Campbell's fine portrait of 
 
the late Speaker of the former Legislative Council, Sir Charles Nichol- 
 son, and which was painted at the desire, and by the public subscrip- 
 tion, of the colonists, previous to the honorable gentleman's departure for 
 Europe, with the view of its being placed in the Hall of the Sydney 
 Exchange. Above this fine specimen of art floated a banner, designed 
 by Mr. Torning, jun., displaying on a field argent the Crown of Eng- 
 land and the Rising Sun ; above and below which device were em- 
 blazed the words — " Advance Australia," and " God Save the Queen." 
 The arrangement of the choicest floriferous treasures of " fair Austra- 
 lie'' was entrusted to Mr. James Kidd, Superintendent of the Sydney 
 Botanic Gardens, whose appointment to this tasteful work was (we 
 need scarcely say) fully justified. The floral embellishments of the 
 various festins which for many years past have been held in Sydney, 
 have exhibited Mr. Kidd's artistical skill, and, on this occasion, he 
 summoned all the resources of his art, and they were obedient. Under 
 his hand, wreaths and spiral involutions, garlands, and festooned 
 draperies, entwined round and surmounted each pillar. On the- centre 
 table a beautiful trousseau of flowers, and plants interspersed with 
 fruit, was surrounded by a rich tortis, upon which the legend, " Onward 
 Australia ! thy Star shines brightly !" was gracefully emblazoned, 
 
 The musical arrangements were in admirable keeping with the rest 
 of the appointments. The band of Her Majesty's Eleventh Eegiment 
 was stationed in the upper circle ; whilst on the stage, opposite the 
 chair, a party of professional and amateur vocalists was grouped, led 
 by Mr. John Howson — Mr. Packer presiding at the pianoforte. 
 
 Shortly after eight o'clock, the bugles of the guard of honor stationed 
 outside the theatre announced the arrival of the Governor-General, and 
 as the whole house rose to receive him, at the first notes of the National 
 Anthem, the mise en scene was brilliant in the extreme. In the centre box 
 sat Lady Denison and her family, and surrounded as her Ladyship was by 
 nearly 400 ladies and their families, the fairest of Australia's daughters, 
 the effect was electric. His Excellency was accompanied by the in- 
 vited guests. Their Honors, the four Judges; the Members of the 
 present and past Ministry ; the Speaker of the Legislative Council ; 
 Dr. Bland ; Mr. James Macarthur, M. P. ; Colonel Bloomfield ; the 
 Brigade Major; and the whole of the Poreign Consuls. The visitors 
 included Members of the Legislative Council and Legislative Assembly; 
 Clergymen of the various denominations ; Members of the Bar ; and of 
 
15 
 
 the other learned professions; Representatives of the Banking, Mer- 
 cantile, and Maritime interests, — in a word, men of all classes, creeds, 
 and parties, were assembled at what, in the Roman sense of the word, 
 was in reality an Ovation, — for the victory had been won without blood- 
 shed. The sumptuous entertainment provided under the direction of 
 the Committee, was in every respect worthy of the occasion. 
 
 Upon Dr. Bland advancing to occupy the President's Chair, one 
 loud and long continued burst of applause, together with the waving of 
 handkerchiefs by the hundreds of fair hands in the beauty-adorned 
 boxes, welcomed Australia's venerable Patriot — the Philanthropist ; 
 the Founder of the earliest Educational and Charitable Institutions of 
 New South Wales. To quote the language of the Sydney Morning 
 Herald — " the applause was that of Gratitude, Respect, and Love." 
 
 The President was supported on his right by His Excellency, the 
 Governor-General j the Premier, Mr. Stuart A. Donaldson ; and Mr. 
 Justice Dickinson. On his left by Sir Alfred Stephen, C.J. ; and the 
 Colonial Treasurer, Mr. Holt. Mr. Spain occupied the Vice-President's 
 chair, supported on his right by Mr. Justice Therry ; on his left by the 
 Speaker of the Legislative Assembly, Mr. D. Cooper. 
 
 Dinner being ended, and Non nobis Domine having been chanted by 
 the musical party, 
 
 The President rose to propose the first toast of the evening, " The 
 Queen." He said : — 
 
 " This, gentlemen, is a toast which needs no comment in such an 
 assembly as the present. It is one that speaks for itself, and will be 
 drunk by all of us with devoted affection and loyalty." 
 
 The toast was drunk with all the honors, the National Anthem 
 being sung in excellent style, accompanied by the Military Band. 
 
 The Pbesident then proposed the second toast of the evening — 
 "Prince Albert, the Prince of Wales, and the Royal Family." He 
 said : — 
 
 "That in proposing a toast which included Prince Albert, he must 
 take occasion to call attention to the fact, that his Royal Highness had, 
 ever since the commencement of his connection with England, evinced the 
 warmest attachment to the country which was the native land of many of 
 those present. (Cheers.) This remark led him to a particular instance 
 
16 
 
 which it was impossible he could pass over — he meant the part which 
 Prince Albert had taken in connection with the industrial Exhibition of 
 1851. (Renewed cheers.) It would be inpossible, in point of fact 
 to record the many instances which were to be found of the deep 
 interest which his Royal Highness had ever shown in the welfare of our 
 fatherland. He (the President) would pass over other circumstances 
 which might be mentioned, because important as those others were, the 
 one instance which he had adduced was in itself amply sufficient to 
 establish the claims of the Royal Personage in question to their highest 
 consideration. (Cheers.) As to his Royal Highness the Prince of 
 Wales, and the other juvenile members of the Royal Family, he must 
 admit that as yet he could not speak as to their meritorious deeds, 
 because at so early a period of their lives no opportunity could have 
 been afforded them for distinguishing themselves ; but he felt assured 
 all present would agree with him in thinking that they could not but 
 expect the best fruits from such a source as that from which the royal 
 children derived their origin. (Cheers.) 
 
 The toast was drunk with all the honors. ' 
 
 Band— "Prince Albert's March." 
 
 Vocalists — " To the Green "Woods Inviting." 
 
 The President next proposed the third toast of the evening, " The 
 Governor-General," which was received with three times three. He 
 said : — 
 
 " His Excellency had been only a short time, comparatively speak- 
 ing, among them ; but he had been sufficiently long to convince them 
 that the ability, as well as the zeal and industry with which he was 
 gifted, were ever at the service of the colonists for the advancement 
 of their interests. At the present period that talent and industry 
 were peculiarly adapted to advance the general happiness and welfare 
 of the colony. (Cheers.) Not only indeed were his Excellency's 
 talents valuable at this juncture in the history of the colony, but his 
 practical acquirements were such as would with the greatest ad- 
 vantage to the colony be called into requisition at the present junc- 
 ture. (Renewed cheers.) Short as was the period during which his 
 Excellency had been among them, it had been sufficiently long to 
 make his services extensively felt ; but one of the most effective marks 
 of the value of his Excellency's service had been the admirable 
 
17 
 
 manner in which he had assisted in the establishing among the 
 colonists of the great boon of Responsible Government. (Cheers.) He 
 (the President) felt assured that few men would have performed 
 the critical duties which devolved upto the Governor of the colony, 
 in this matter, in a manner at once so useful to the country, and so 
 satisfactory to the colonists as his Excellency had done. He would 
 not trespass further on their time, but would give the ' Governor 
 General.'" 
 
 The toast was drunk with all the honors. 
 
 Band— "Fine Old English Gentleman." 
 
 The Governor-General rose to respond. After the cheering with 
 which his Excellency was greeted had subsided, he said : — 
 
 "I cannot deny, Mr. President and gentlemen, that I feel really grati- 
 fied with the very kind manner in which you have drunk my health. I 
 feel I have done my best to fulfil those duties, for the performance of 
 which I have been sent to the colony. (Cheers.) The people of the 
 colony have always done me justice by giving me credit for my good inten- 
 tions. Now, however, they have given me credit for the performance of 
 good and useful acts. I certainly am rejoiced for the part which it had 
 been my good fortune to play in a performance which can only happen once 
 in a man's life ; namely, the inauguration of Responsible Government. 
 (Cheers.) If I may be permitted to draw an anology between a country 
 and an individual, you will find a colony in its youth, like an inidvidual 
 before he has attained his majority, is subject to control and direction; 
 but you will also find that the period of the matured growth of a colony, 
 as in the case of an individual, is a period of rejoicement (loud ap- 
 plause) ; and, as in the case of the individual, none rejoices more than 
 the parent who has watched over its youth. (Renewed applause.) 
 Now I, as the representative of the Queen, can say that her Majesty is 
 rejoicing at the advent of Responsible Government to this magnificent 
 colony — rejoicing to think that you, as a colony, have passed your period 
 of childhood and youth, and are now in the enjoyment of those advantages 
 and privileges which belong to the period of majority. (Cheers.) 
 It does not follow, from your rejoieing in the privileges which you 
 have received, that you are aspiring to what is elsewhere called ' inde- 
 pendence.' The child who, having passed the period of his minority, 
 is relieved from the direct control of his parent, does not seek to cast 
 
18 
 
 off all the ties of filial affection ; and so it is with a colony. (Cheers.) 
 When the propel* period arrives, the parent gives the child the freedom 
 of action and the independent use of all those faculties with which he 
 is endowed. Carrying out the comparison, this it is which the mother 
 country had done in the case of. the colony ; and I feel assured you will 
 fiud that, so far from the ties which bind you to Great Britain being 
 weakened by the concession of Responsible Government, they will be 
 strengthened. (Cheers.) Heretofore you may have had reason to com- 
 plain — hereafter you will have none. (Renewed cheers.) In conclu- 
 sion, I can assure you that you may depend upon my ever being ready 
 to give you the best assistance which lies in my power in carrying into 
 full effect the great boon which has been conferred upon you. I again 
 thank you for the kind and hearty manner in which you have drunk 
 my health. (Applause.) 
 
 The Governor-General again rose, and said : — 
 
 "It fell to his lot to propose the nest toast of the evening, and he 
 felt assured it was one which would be drunk with all the honours. 
 The toast was — 'The powers allied with Great Britain in the recent War.' 
 (Cheers.) The duty of proposing it had taken him somewhat by sur- 
 prise, for it was only since he entered the room that he was requested 
 to undertake the task. Such a toast on the present occasion, just after 
 the colonists had celebrated the advent of peace, must be received 
 with peculiar satisfaction. (Cheers.) Those who had aided England 
 in carrying her through all the phases of a war unparalleled in intensity 
 for the period during which it lasted — a war which had brought for- 
 ward a development of might almost unparalleled in the annals of war 
 on the part of all concerned, but on the part of none more than their 
 glorious Allies the French — those Allies who, throughout the entire 
 contest, had acted in the most perfect harmony with the armies of 
 England. In this war there had been, in fact, a development of union 
 which must be most satisfactory to all concerned. (Cheers.) They at 
 this part of the empire had not suffered much by the war ; but to those 
 who had endured with their countrymen the dangers, toils, and 
 difficulties of all phases of the contest, they would be generous ; and to 
 those who had suffered so much in their service, they would give all 
 honor. They had borne the brunt of the struggle, and it was not for 
 those who had benefitted by their gallantry and devotion to forget 
 
19 
 
 their services. (Cheers.) Without farther preface he would give — 
 'The Powers Allied with Great Britain in the recent War.'" 
 
 The toast was drunk with all the honors. 
 
 Chorus — " Bright Sword of Liberty." 
 
 Monsieur Sentis (the French Consul) responded. He said : — 
 " He had the honor to thank them on behalf of the Allied Powers, 
 and more especially on behalf of France. The warm manner with 
 which the toast had been received was a mark that all of them believed, 
 like Lord Palmerston, that the alliance between England and France 
 was but beginning ; and that those two great nations would every day 
 be more and more firmly cemented together. If the union of the two 
 nations had been so successful in war, what greater good might it not 
 effect in peace ? The world was informed henceforth that justice and 
 morality were the international laws, and that England and France 
 "Would oppose, in future, all encroachments upon the freedom of Europe. 
 It was the immortal glory of England and France that the principles 
 put forward at the beginning of the war were sanctioned by the peace of 
 which the terms were all that was necessary to stop the power of Russia, 
 and no more. Let them not say that Russia was going out of the 
 struggle without being enfeebled. Was it the Allied Powers or Russia 
 who were compelled to do away with any military arsenal or any fleet 
 in the Black Sea ? (Cheers) Was it the Allies or Russia who were 
 prevented to build again the fortresses pulled down by our cannon in 
 the Crimea and in the Baltic ? (Cheers.) Was it the Allies or Russia 
 who had consented to yield a part of their territory, and thus to lose 
 the mouth of one of the most important rivers of the globe — the 
 Danube ? (Continued applause.) It was said, by the continuation of 
 war, they could have got more, perhaps; but at the same time 
 they could lose their advantages. It was not enough in war to be 
 brave and skilful ; it was also necessary to be lucky. (Cheers and 
 laughter.) Was it possible to be more brave than the English troops 
 have been in the attack of the Redan, or the French in the first attack 
 of the Malakoff ? but still they did not succeed. To neglect the good 
 in order to get the better was a great mischief in every thing ; but, in 
 this matter, no one must forget that war was carried on with the blood 
 of the people, and that it was the duty of any honest government to 
 
20 
 
 be sparing of it. (Loud cheers'.) He had the honor to thank thetn 
 again for the Allied Pow t (H:s. (Applause.)" 
 
 The Vice-President, in rising to propose the next toast of the 
 evening, " The Army and Navy," said : — 
 
 " It was one which appealed to the ladies, and he felt assured that 
 the sympathies of the brilliant assemblage he saw occupying the boxes 
 would not be withheld. (Cheers.) The Committee, he must say, had 
 been very kind in allotting this toast to him. He was relieved from 
 expressing the usual wish that the toast had fallen into better hands, 
 because it was one which so far commended itself to every Englishman, 
 and to every Englishwoman too, that he felt confident, however he 
 introduced it, every heart would respond to the appeal which it con- 
 tained. (Cheers.) The only difficulty he experienced arose from the 
 fact that in putting the toast he was compelled to place one service 
 before the other — not because they valued one more than the other, 
 because both were equally deserving their confidence and thanks — but 
 because it was impossible that it could be otherwise. He would, how- 
 ever, compound the matter by giving the toast as the two services. 
 (Cheers.) If they went back to English history, he felt assured there 
 was not a heart that would not leap with pride in contemplating the 
 deeds which the army and navy of England had accomplished. Begin- 
 ning with Marlborough, and coming down to the great Iron Duke, and 
 descending from Exmouth to Codrington, history was full of the great 
 achievements of the army and navy in guarding the liberties of Eng- 
 land, and in promoting the freedom of the world. (Renewed cheers.) 
 The army of England, instead of being the dread of the people, had 
 ever done the best service in the cause of the people and of the Consti- 
 tution. If, he repeated, they went back to history, they would find 
 that their achievements were such as would never be forgotten ; but 
 he felt bound to refer to what the army and navy had done on late 
 occasions, and he would first allude to some instances in order to show 
 the feeling which existed between the sovereign and her forces. At 
 the commencement of the war, when the Guards — perhaps the finest 
 in existence — repaired to her Majesty's palace to take leave, they found 
 her, on a cold winter's morning, accompanied by her royal consort, and 
 by the royal children- too, ready to take leave. (Cheers.) They re- 
 ceived the farewell of the sovereign, and certain he was that in the day 
 
21 
 
 'of battle not a man forgot the waive of his sovereign's hand which 
 greeted him as he left his country. (Renewed applause.) He would 
 advert to another occasion in which the sympathy between the sovereign 
 and the defenders of the nation was manifested. When the fleet 
 went forth to do battle in the cause of England in the recent war, where 
 did they find her Majesty ? Why, they found her in her yacht, leading 
 forth the ships on their way. (Cheers.) Had it been the fate of that 
 fleet to be engaged in active service, not a sailor on board, he felt as- 
 sured, would have forgotten that he had been led forth to the contest 
 by his sovereign. Whether they looked to the achievements in the 
 Baltic — in the Mediterranean — to Balaklava or Inkerman — it was im- 
 possible to say which deserved best at the hands of their country in the 
 recent war — the army or the navy. (Cheers.) He could not conclude 
 Without remarking that those troops stationed in this colony, and their 
 gallant commander, although they were not afforded an opportunity for 
 distinguishing themselves in the field of battle, should not be forgotten 
 on an occasion like the present. (Cheers.) Nor could he sit down 
 without adverting to that excellent lady, Florence Nightingale (loud 
 applause), who, actuated by the most humane and patriotic feelings, 
 led forth a staff of ladies to succour and attend those soldiers and 
 Sailors, who, in the midst of the contest, were visited by wounds, sick- 
 ness, and unhappiness. (Loud cheers.)" 
 
 The toast was drunk with all the honors. 
 
 Band—" British Grenadiers and Hearts of Oak." 
 
 Colonel Bloomfield, who was received with general applause, pro- 
 ceeded to respond on behalf of the army. He said : — 
 
 " It was a proud thing to consider that the army of England should 
 in the recent war have fought side by side with the troops of one of the 
 greatest military powers in the -world — joined in fellowship too with 
 those against whom they had 'often fought in deadly but fair fight. 
 (Cheers.) This was a proud consideration, and it was a pleasing con- 
 sideration ; the pleasure was heightened too by the reflection that those 
 brave fellows, the soldiers of England and of France, not only fought 
 side by side against a common enemy, but throughout the entire cam- 
 paign vied as to who should be most civil, one to the other. (Cheers.) 
 Every soldier must know, indeed all must be aware of the fact, that an 
 attack on a fortress was the most diffie ult of all warlike operations, and 
 
22 
 
 Having this feet in view, he thought it must he admitted that the army 
 had done its duty in the war which was just terminated. (Cheers.) 
 Eor himself and the regiment which he had the honor to command, 
 he would express his regret that he had not enjoyed the privilege of 
 taking a part in the war. (Cheers.) He would assure them, in con- 
 clusion, that in whatever part of the world it might he his lot to live 
 hereafter, he would always remember with pleasure and with gratitude 
 to his friends the many happy days he had spent iii the eolony. 
 (Cheers.) He begged to thank them in behalf of the army." 
 
 Captain Moeiakty, R.N., who was warmly received, responded on 
 behalf of the navy. He said : — 
 
 " He would not deny he felt happy that it, had fallen to his lot to 
 respond on behalf of a branch of the service with which he had been asso- 
 ciated from his earliest infancy. (Cheers.) Not only, indeed, had he him- 
 self been always associated with the navy, but members of his family for 
 many generations had belonged both to the army and navy ; among 
 others he might mention that he had a brother-in-law who held the 
 post of admiral. He could not add much to what had been said by a 
 previous speaker who had alluded to the services rendered both by the 
 army and navy, but this he would say, that wherever the naval force 
 were engaged they had always endeavoured to do their duty, and in 
 doing so, were influenced only by a sense of their responsibility to their 
 _ sovereign and their country. (Cheers.) In the recent war they were 
 not found wanting, and the fact that some of his own family were en- 
 gaged in the war just terminated, added to the pleasure he felt in bear- 
 ing testimony to the good service which the fleets and armies had 
 rendered their country. (Cheers.) 
 
 Vocalists—" This night we'll merry be." 
 
 The President then rose to propose the toast of the evening, — " The 
 Prosperity of New South Wales under Kesponsible Government," and 
 spoke as follows : — 
 
 "In this toast we indirectly express what we all feel— what the 
 entire colony feels — our deep sense of the wisdom and justice of the 
 Home Authorities in granting to us ' Responsible Government,' — the 
 second great political co: cession which the fatherland has been pleased 
 to confer on this noble colony. The first was in the year 1843, that of 
 
23 
 
 our late Constitution ; — a Constitution devised by ourselves, and which 
 had the full sanction and approval of one of our most esteemed and 
 distinguished Governors, the late Sir Richard Bourke; as well as 
 of the Chief Justice of that time, the eminently talented Sir 
 Francis Forbes; a Constitution deemed well fitted to meet all the 
 political wants of this colony for many years to come ; in fact, until 
 our population should have considerably exceeded a million ; and such, 
 doubtless, with slight modification, it would have proved but for one 
 unfortunate well-known flaw in its construction. I advert to this cir- 
 cumstance solely as to an important suggestive fact, — and no more. 
 The present great concession of Responsible Government is not only 
 that of an inestimable boon, but of a boon immeasurably enhanced in 
 value by the considerate spirit in which it has been made : the boon 
 itself, solicited as it was by ourselves, having been actually referred to 
 ourselves for reconsideration, and, if necessary, for amendment. A 
 generous permission on the part of the Home Government, which we are 
 aware will be responded to by our own legislative authorities with a 
 care and circumspection worthy of so important a privilege. But to 
 come more immediately to the subject of the toast which I shall have 
 the honor to propose. Free institutions are a part of every one of us, 
 or we are a part of them. They are interwoven, and have been from 
 time immemorial, in the very hearts of our countrymen. An English- 
 man is born a Constitutienal Politician. We begin, intuitively, with 
 the Romance of Freedom in our boyhood and our youth ; and this, at 
 first little more than an affair of the imagination, becomes realized as 
 we advance by actual observation and long-tried experience ; until, if 
 anything could add to our convictions, its truthfulness is finally demon- 
 strated by science. Ample proof of the inestimable value of those free 
 institutions which our fatherland has now so nobly conferred on us, — 
 Institutions, the plasticity and elasticity of which is such that, by the 
 most obvious modifications — so that the great principles on which they 
 are based be not infringed, — they can be adapted with immense advan- 
 tage even to the smallest of our colonies. If further recommendations 
 be required to show the full value of the vast boon, the establishment 
 of which in this colony we are now met warmly to acknowledge and 
 to celebrate, we may finally have recourse to contrast, — and compare 
 the state of those countries which are without such institutiong with 
 that of our parent country ; -the prosperity, the happiness, the content- 
 
24 
 
 ment ; the internal peace, and the perpetual progress of the latter with 
 the grievances of the former — grievances attested by the numerous 
 noble, sanguinary, but hitherto ineffectual struggles to obtain redress; 
 together with the stationary — or rather, — in some respects — retro- 
 gressive state of man in those countries, — which, but for the stimula- 
 tion of the free nations of the earth, would most probably ere this have 
 been reduced to the barbarous condition of our neighbours of the Celestial 
 Empire. Who, while fighting under what they may be pleased to desig- 
 nate fixed principles, are unmindful of the fact that man cannot con- 
 tinue in one and the same stay, — but that he must be perpetually mak- 
 ing progress — aye, and in the present state of the world, rapid progress 
 — or be receding, in effect, quite as rapidly. But, gentlemen, the 
 indirect benefits derived from free institutions are scarcely, if at all, 
 inferior to those which I have enumerated. Gentlemen, if we wish to 
 extinguish war we can do it only by the full spread of free institutions, 
 including, as they do and always will and must, the unlimited spiead 
 of Education, — the unlimited spread of every species of Knowledge with- 
 out exception. If we wish to strengthen and render perpetual the tie 
 between our parent country and her colonies, it can be done only by 
 the same means. If we wish to improve to the utmost the whole 
 human race, to raise the entire human family infinitely above their 
 present level — whatever the additional means required — the world-wide 
 spread of institutions, similar to those the establishment of which 
 we are now met to celebrate, will ever be an indispensable element, — 
 and that in their most perfect form, — such as that which the 
 paternal Home Government has so nobly shown itself desirous 
 that we should at once enjoy. Gentlemen, I know not in 
 what terms to express the feelings which this wise and just act of the 
 Imperial Government excites. To those little versed in British 
 motives and reasonings it may appear more like Romance than Reality. 
 We, on the contrary, better acquainted with the doings of the British 
 Government, particularly of late years, should simply class this great 
 Act (extended as it is to all our colonies) with those noble, those 
 splendid, those wise Measures — the Reform Bill, the Emancipation Bill, 
 the Abolition of Slavery, and the Repeal of the Corn Laws, with the in- 
 auguration of Free Trade, acts the brightest of Britain's bright trophies; 
 Victories gained by herself over herself, for her own honor and benefit ; 
 — the epic poetry of history ; true with the utmost exactitude, both to 
 
25 
 
 sentiment and to reason; deeds of chivalrous generosity, — based as firmly 
 on highly cultivated and enlightened intellect as on the highest refine- 
 ment of sentiment. I will now beg to conclude; but not without express- 
 ing my regret, Gentlemen, that you should have been detained so long by 
 so indifferent an orator, — by merely reiterating the toast, to which I feel 
 assured you will be disposed to do every honor. Gentlemen, ' The 
 Prosperity of New South Wales under Responsible Government.' " 
 
 The toast was received with the utmost enthusiasm, the President, 
 during his speech, being frequently interrupted by bursts of the 
 warmest applause. 
 
 The band having played the Australian Anthem, 
 
 The Peemiee (Mr. Stuart A. Donaldson), who was received with 
 great applause, rose to respond. When the cheering, which lasted 
 for some time, had subsided, he said : — 
 
 " The life of man is three score years and ten, — an age of which the 
 colony cannot yet boast ; but who, among the crowds of friends and 
 fellow citizens who hear me, remembering its early days, could have be- 
 lieved that Australia, inhabited as it was seventy years ago almost ex- 
 clusively by the ' blackfellow,' and , by the indigenous creatures of the 
 country, could, within so short a period of time, have been the theatre 
 of a scene such as this — (cheers) — surrounded as we are by all the 
 attributes of wealth, happiness, and prosperity, accompanied by all the 
 accessories of a highly advanced state of civilisation ? (Applause.) If 
 we look below us, on this brilliant entertainment, what could the world 
 produce more elegant than the banquet which we have enjoyed ? 
 ( Cheers. ) If we look above at that galaxy of beauty — ( cheers ) — at 
 that halo of light which, like the double ring around the planet Saturn, 
 beams upon us two stories high — (cheers) — who could have dreamed, 
 sixty-nine years ago, of such an assemblage as this ? ( Continued ap- 
 plause. ) We are now met at the festive board to celebrate the intro- 
 duction of Responsible Government — of that form of Government 
 which has been the aim and object of every man of intelligence and 
 weight in the colony for the last thirty years. (Cheers.) And 
 if the contrasts just drawn between the physical condition of 
 Australia then and now, are striking and curious, not less interest- 
 ing is the comparison between the venerable antiquity of the 
 institution of self-government, and the youth and ardent spirits of this 
 
26 
 
 youthful and noble country, who are met here to-night to celebrate its 
 inauguration. (Cheers.) And when I speak of prosperity to New 
 South Wales under responsible government, having been the aim and 
 object of every leading man in New South Wales, I do not allude only 
 to that body of gentlemen in whose hands the popular voice has for the 
 present placed the reins of power ; but I say that it has been 
 the guiding star of all men of intelligence, of all parties, and of all 
 opinions. (Cheers.) The time, too, is so recent, that many will 
 remember the commencement of the movement which has proved so 
 felicitous, who now share in the triumph of its completion. (Applause.) 
 Well, if we allow imagination to have its sway — when we consider these 
 things, and look backward to the nonage of this now almost mature 
 manhood, and forward to the stupendous changes now advancing and 
 improving which wait upon our future, over what a country does 
 the mind wander- —into what a prospect does the spirit of young hope 
 and prophesy delight to stray ! (Cheers.) For my part I trust that 
 this commemorating may be repeated, in order that we may from time 
 to time review the annals of the country, and retrace the stages of its 
 growth from infancy to maturity, and strive to find in the experience 
 of generations passed away lessons which may be useful to generations 
 yet unborn. (Cheers.) If we have at this moment no Herodotus to 
 immortalize our history, time will produce him ; and if we ever suffer 
 a Pelopennesian war between the Sparta of that Victoria and the Athens 
 of this Sydney — (which, God forbid ! for I hope that our intercolonial 
 interests will be identified by our roads of iron, and our links and chains 
 of gold, that no difference can possibly arise between us) ; — but I say, 
 if ever we suffer a Pelopennesian war we shall not want a Thucidides 
 to chronicle it. (Cheers ) I have said there are statesmen — natives 
 of the soil — patriots of the country, who have looked upon the 
 prosperity of New South Wales under Eesponsible Government as the 
 object of their lives (Hear, hear, and cheers.) May I here mention 
 one name? If I do so I only anticipate what history must do, in spite 
 of us all. (Cheers.) I will only mention the name of one gentleman, 
 for I do not desire to trespass upon the province of those who may suc- 
 ceed me, and who may delight to dwell upon individual titles to dis- 
 tinction among our Australian patriots. Moreover, I might infringe 
 upon the delicacy of feeling of some now present. (Cheers.) But 
 shall I name one, the very corner-stone of the building whose apex, 
 
27 
 
 almost, stands visibly before us — who laboured strenuously for the eon- 
 cessions which we now enjoy. That person is William Charles Went- 
 worth. (Continued applause.) No doubt, many of us have done our 
 ' little possible,' and thus humbly assisted in the bringing about of a more 
 popular system of government ; but we must not be forgetful of others. 
 (Cheers.) And, in thus referring to them, I know full well that Aus- 
 tralia — -rich, prosperous, and happy — is, nevertheless, grateful ; and 
 the time will come when, for her patriots and statesmen, we may use 
 the words of the Boyal Harry, before the battle of Agincourt — 
 
 Then shall our names 
 
 Familiar in their mouths as household words — 
 Harry the King, Bedford, and Exeter, 
 Warwick and^ Talbot, Salisbury and Glo'ster, 
 Be in their flowing cups freshly remembered : 
 This story shall the old man teach his son. 
 
 (Loud applause.) No doubt in times to come these events — nay, this day 
 and its jubilee — will be freshly remembered (cheers), and in the future, 
 so great as it must be, due recognition will be thus afforded to the 
 aristocracy of talent — (cheers) — that aristocracy the guerdon of whose 
 reward is the very privilege of a new country — for it wears its laurels in 
 its own day, but writes its 'blazon in posterity.' (Loud and continued 
 cheers.) Truly this is a bright and golden day in the country's annals. 
 (Applause.) But, while we say this, let us not forget how much we 
 owe to a higher power. 'Non nobis, truly we may exclaim, non nobis, 
 Domine, sed tibi detur Gloriam.' (Cheers.) Surely no country has 
 ever been more blessed than this. (Applause.) The ink of the despatch 
 which conveyed to us the vast amount of liberty we now possess was 
 hardly dry when Providence showered down upon us fresh advantages 
 and blessings in the conclusion of peace — (applause) — of peace the very 
 safety and sure prosperity of a new and rising country which lives by 
 the arts of peace and dreads the horrors of war. (Cheers.) At the 
 same time, in addition to peace, our gold fields are developing them- 
 selves, and I hope good policy will develope them more fully still. 
 (Applause.) This recognition of the goodness of Providence makes good 
 politicians, good subjects, and good men. (Applause.) I hope this 
 country will ever continue to bear a character not only of virtue as a 
 country, and advancement in a political point of view, but acknowledge 
 religion as its guiding principle, and. goodwill towards all men as its 
 
28 
 
 leading characteristic. (Applause.) And no goodwill will ever be 
 more cordial in the hearts of Australians than good will towards the dear 
 old mother country. (Loud applause.) I will now conclude. It is 
 unnecessary for me to descant further on the merits of the toast, and I 
 am anxious to avoid being led by my own feelings into a single political 
 allusion. (Cheers.) We have prosperity, and as far as human vaticina- 
 tion can go we have reason to expeet its continuance. Then, while we 
 are thankful let us be careful; and rejoicing in 'Prosperity under 
 Kesponsible Q-overnment,' let us by the blessing of Providence guide 
 it wisely, and use it well. (Loud and long°continued applause.) 
 Chorus — " Spring is forth returning." 
 
 The President then rose to propose the next toast, " The Judges." 
 He said : — 
 
 " I rise utterly unprepared to do* justice to this toast — which, for 
 the first time, has only this moment been put into my hands. The 
 Bench, as now constructed, had its origin some ten or eleven years 
 after my arrival in the colony, and it may well be proud of its origin, as 
 well as, in great measure, of its originator, our first Chief Justice, Sir 
 Francis Forbes ; — who had been not only consulted, but who no doubt 
 had a large share in its construction, — and then came to these shores to 
 establish it amongst us ; a Judge who, whether viewed as a Judge or 
 as a Member of our Government, evinced, as far as it was possible in this 
 then narrow field, talents and acquirements as well as moral qualities, 
 which by any community in any part of the world would have been 
 pronounced of the highest order, and which obtained for him here, not 
 only the admiration of the Bar and of all who had the happi- 
 ness to know him, but the respect and confidence of the 
 entire colony. Sir Francis Forbes, it is my gratifying duty to add, 
 was ably and nobly supported by his two brother judges, Mr. Justice 
 Stephen, the father of our present Chief Justice, and Sir James 
 Dowling, who subsequently became Chief Justice, — and continued to 
 adorn the Bench many years ; and it is no small satisfaction to have 
 to add that the present incumbents of the Judgment-seat have shewn 
 themselves in every way worthy of their honorable predecessors. Per- 
 haps it would be improper for me to say more on the present occasion; 
 — most happy as I am to see that the whole of those high functionaries 
 
29 
 
 are now present, — a circumstance of itself which will no doubt be 
 universally and duly appreciated by the public. Gentlemen, 'The 
 Judges/ with all the honors." 
 Air — " Balance a straw.'' 
 
 Sir Alfred Stephen, C.J., rose to respond, and was received with 
 enthusiastie cheering. His Honor said : — ■ 
 
 I return you very sincerely my own thanks, and those of my friends 
 and colleagues, for the honor you have done us. (Cheers ) It cannot 
 be a matter of indifference to us, and it ought not to be, with what 
 feelings we are regarded by those among whom we live ; and I conceive 
 it to be not wholly unimportant to the public, that the judges should 
 possess the good opinion and good will of the community. I may 
 frankly say, speaking here not for myself merely, but for others, that I 
 do not disclaim all title to the good opinion which the toast, and the 
 cordiality with which you received it, may be presumed to imply ; but 
 that affords no reason why, when expressions of esteem and regard are 
 tendered to us, we should not feel deeply gratified by them. (Applause.) 
 There is, however, on occasions of this kind, it has always occurred to 
 me, too little account taken of those who are associated with us in our 
 duties. (Cheers.) It should not be forgotten that the judges are but 
 part of a system, the perfection of which depends much on others. 
 (Applause.) It is that system and the success which attends it, and 
 not alone the character of those who preside in our tribunals, which 
 have rendered them the boast and honor of our country. (Hear, hear.) 
 And, when I remember the high judicial qualities of those with whom 
 I have been associated on the bench, the ability, industry, zeal, and 
 integrity, of the solicitors of our court, the great talent and learning 
 of the Australian bar, and the intelligence and rightmindodness of 
 juries, I mean not to arrogate to myself, and I attribute no more than 
 what is just to others, in avowing my belief — and why should I be 
 ashamed to express it ? — that in no part of the Queen's dominions is 
 justice more faithfully administered than in New South Wales. 
 (Applause.) Sir, it is a great pleasure to me to be present here this 
 evening with my brethren. I reject and repudiate the idea, by whom- 
 soever it may be entertained, that a judge ought to be isolated from his 
 fellow citizens. (Cheers.) To me it appears, on the contrary, that he 
 
30 
 
 may desirably mingle with them, and as one of them — becoming ac- 
 quainted with their wants, their feelings, their opinions, their habits, 
 and that he is not likely to be the worse, but that he will probably be a 
 better judge for the knowledge — that he ought to taJie an interest in 
 all that effects their interests ; and that, participating as he must do in 
 any general distress, he may reasonably on such an occasion share with 
 them in the general joy. (Applause.) It is this that brings us here, 
 as your guests to-night. I know no reason why we should not, as 
 Britons, render publicly our homage to a great principle, for which our 
 ancestors have contended in all ages, and which is dear to our fellow 
 subjects in every part of the world. Why we should not, as members 
 of the community, rejoice in your having at length obtained the privi- 
 lege and the right of self-government ; that your judges are now by 
 law rendered absolutely independent of the Crown, and yet are 
 removable at the pleasure of the Legislature; that you have Ministers 
 who cannot retain office for an hour without your consent ; that you 
 may now raise and expend your revenue in your own way, and in all 
 other respects manage your own affairs for yourselves. (Applause.) 
 I believe that there is no class of men among you, however enthusiastic 
 in the cause, by whom these auspicious events are more heartily 
 welcomed than by myself and my learned colleagues. (Cheers.) And 
 we earnestly trust that they will largely tend, nor do we see any reason 
 to doubt that they will tend, to advance the best and highest interests 
 of the colony. (Applause.)" 
 
 The Vice-President proposed— 
 
 "'The President and Members of the Legislative Council : the 
 Speaker and members of the Legislative Assembly.' He preferred 
 giving the toast, however, as 'The New Parliament of New South 
 Wales.' (Cheers.) He observed : The Constitution of this colony is 
 as nearly assimilated to that of England as circumstances will admit of, 
 and I think that is a matter of great congratulation to us all. (Applause.) 
 The electors having done their duty, not the least satisfactory feature 
 of the present assembly is, that men of all political opinions have 
 cordially met together, setting aside party feeling, in order to celebrate 
 the advent of Responsible Government. (Continued cheering.) When 
 I look to the blood and treasure one 'new Constitution ' cost not very 
 
31 
 
 many years ago, it is a matter of still greater congratulation that 
 we have so pacifically been blessed by the Constitution we now possess. 
 (Applause.) " 
 
 Catch — " Mr. Speaker, though, 'tis late." 
 
 The President of the Legislative Council (Sir Alfred Stephen, 
 C.J ) rosi amid loud cheers to respond to the toast. He said : — 
 
 "lam ashamed so soon again to present myself to you; but, on 
 behalf of the Legislative Council, the privilege and the duty devolve on 
 me, of acknowledging our share in the toast to which you have just done 
 honor. (Cheers.) The toast, as I apprehend, gentlemen, apart from 
 the compliment to ourselves which the courtesies of the evening would 
 naturally claim, implies the opinion that, as a principle and apart from 
 other questions which admit of a controversy, two seperate Houses 
 are desirable for legislative purposes ; since this is a portion of the Con- 
 stitution which we all meet to celebrate. (Applause.) This is a 
 principle, gentlemen, which, so far as my own reading has extended, 
 has in all countries where freedom in any degree exists, and by politi- 
 cians of every grade, been considered an axiom in political science. 
 There is, therefore, I believe, no member of the House over which I 
 have the honor to preside, who, in thanking you for the honor done him 
 by the toast, will hesitate to express his concurrence in the opinion 
 conveyed by it. (Cheers.) With the particular constitution of the 
 Council as one of those two Houses, we have I am happy to think, 
 nothing to do this evening. We gladly accept the constitution as we 
 find it ; but we offer no pledge, that, as there is the power to amend it, 
 we may not think it susceptible of improvement. (Cheers.) One 
 pledge, however, we will give ; one assurance we venture to hold out to 
 you. It is this : that we shall devote ourselves to the important and 
 sacred duty which we have undertaken, of assisting in the task 
 of legislating for this great colony, with one single object — that of pro- 
 moting the general welfare of all classes, without preference or distinc- 
 tion of rank, or social position, or employment, or creed, or country, or 
 party. It is my own most fervent aspiration — it is on the part of each 
 of us our most earnest desire, as it will ever be our aim, in the perform- 
 ance of that duty, that the Council and its members may at all times 
 and under all circumstances be found in harmony with the Assembly, 
 collectively and as individuals. That the two Houses will occasionally 
 
32 
 
 and, on important subjects, widely differ in opinion, is to be expected ; 
 for where is the example of a people who all think alike on any 
 subject ? (Hear, hear.) But, if we are mutually true to ourselves and 
 to our country, we shall never permit these differences to extend 
 beyond. Remembering that whether members of the one House or the 
 other, we are all members of one commonwealth, we shall never sacrifice 
 her interest to unnecessary misunderstandings, or to petty rivalry. 
 (Applause.) I hope, that we may all of us — the members of both 
 Houses — live to see many more such gatherings as the present ; and 
 that at each we may entertain the same friendly feelings towards each 
 other that we reciprocate now. (Continued cheering.)" 
 
 The Speaker (Mr. D. Cooper) returned thanks on behalf of the 
 Legislative Assembly. When the cheering had subsided, he said : — 
 
 " Many momentons questions require the attention of the Parliament 
 from time to time. (Hear, hear.) Its members, therefore, require all 
 the support their fellow-colonists can give them to discharge their duties 
 effectively, for they can do but little unless the public opinion is in 
 ■ their favour. (Cheers.) Much might be done in carrying out the 
 details of Responsible Government by non-members of the Legislature, 
 in the promotion of works of public utility, and in the organization of 
 municipal institutions, as members of which many might_prepare them- 
 selves for the more important duties of Parliament. (Cheers.) But more 
 than this, every one can assist the Legislature in its exertions to advance 
 the interests of the colony, by the weight of his moral example, and 
 his temperate and religious habits. (Applause.) The hon. gentleman 
 concluded his address by returning thanks on his own behalf, and on 
 behalf of the members of the Legislative Assembly, for the kind 
 manner in which their healths had been drunk." 
 
 The Colonial Treasurer (Mr. Holt) proposed, " The Foreign 
 Consuls." 
 
 Band — National Airs. 
 
 The American Consul (Mr. J. H. Williams) responded. The 
 cheering having subsided, he said : — 
 
 "On behalf of the Foreign Consuls in this city and myself, I return 
 thanks for the honor done us in the proposing the toast, also for the 
 
33 
 
 Very hearty manner in which it has been received. (Cheers.) In this 
 colony English hospitality has been very largely extended to the Foreign 
 Consuls, and I may say, that in no part of the world are there fewer 
 obstacles in the way of the performance of consular duties than In 
 Sydney. (Applause.) After thanking the head of the late Government 
 (alluding to Mr. E. Deas Thompson) on his own behalf, and on the 
 behalf of the other consuls in this colony, for the facilities afforded them 
 by him in the discharge of their official duties, Mr. Williams continued : 
 In the name, and on behalf of the countries we severally represent, but 
 more especially in the name and on behalf of the United States 
 Government, I most heartily extend the hand of fellowship to the colony 
 of New South Wales this day. (Applause.) After eulogising the 
 country from which he came, and congratulating the colony on the pos- 
 session of its New Constitution, without a seven year's war ; and ex- 
 pressing his gratification that the Celebration of its Inauguration was 
 presided over by one of the earliest Champions of Constitutional Freedom 
 in New South Wales, Mr: Williams resumed his seat amidst loud 
 applause* 
 
 Mr. Justice TheertT, on being called upon by the President, was 
 warmly cheered at rising, and said : 
 
 " I rise to propose a toast which has been intrusted to me for no reason 
 that I can imagine, except that it is one so simple, so coming home to 
 the bosoms of all here to-day, that it requires no enforcement of elo- 
 quence to recommend it to a favourable reception. The sacred and 
 venerated word of 'Fatherland' (cheers) speaks trumpet-tongued 
 to the hearts of all men ; for there ' breathes no man with soul so dead' 
 in whom this word does not awaken feelings of endearment and of love for 
 his native land. (Cheers.) It revives sentiments and associations of the 
 liveliest sympathy — the land in which, at the dawning of reason, we 
 first lobked out upon the world, with an eye of simplicity, sincerity and 
 truth — the land in which our earliest friendships, and our tenderest 
 affections were formed, — the land where we lisped in infancy, — where in 
 boyhoood our hopes and fears were freely told ; — and where, in riper 
 years, our manhood joined our hearts in one with those whom, from 
 childhood until then, we had known and loved. (Loud cheers.) 
 'Tis true we are now far from that land, but ' distance only lends enchant- 
 ment to the view,' and the language of poetry never more truly spoke 
 
84 
 
 and interpreted the language of the heart, than in the expression of the 
 sentiment — 
 
 Where'er we roam — whatever realms to see, 
 Our hearts untravelled fondly turn to thee. 
 Still to our country turn with ceaseless pain, 
 Aud drag at each remove a lengthening chain. 
 
 It may he the lot of some amongst us to revisit that country j"jfit may 
 he the hope and wish of a portion of us that where ' trod our first footsteps 
 may totter our last.' (Hear, hear.) Or it may be that others, delighted 
 with our golden clime, and enriched with our golden fleece and our 
 golden ore, may take root in the land in which they have prospered, and 
 transmit the rewards of their toil as an inheritance to their children 
 here. (Cheers.) Be this as it may — present or absent — whether tread- 
 ing the land that bore us, or that of our adoption, we will, each and all, 
 recognise and feel towards the respective countries of our birth the sen- 
 timents beautifully expressed by a favourite bard towards his native 
 Caledonia — 
 
 Land of my sires ! what mortal hand 
 Shall e'er untie the filial band 
 That hinds me to thy rugged strand? 
 
 (Loud cheers.) Proud as we may well be of our country on all 
 occasions, her recent conduct has established a new claim to our pride 
 and admiration. England has of late not only fully equalled the most 
 boasted instances of Grecian or Roman heroism, but also rivalled them 
 in other respects, in which Rollin, in his Ancient History, holds up 
 the conduct of ancient Athens to peculiar commendation. After 
 having introduced the notice of Pericles' oration, in which, in a solemn 
 manner, a tribute of applause was paid to the memory of the brave men 
 who had sacrificed their lives for the liberties of their country, the his- 
 torian adds, that the ' public did not confine their gratitude to empty 
 ceremonies and tears, but maintained the widows and orphans of the 
 slain.' (Loud cheers.) This noble example has been nobly imitated 
 by England, and in swelling the tribute of this magnificent benevolence, 
 it may be truly said that Australia (and no part of Australia more than 
 New South Wales) has acted well her part ; and in the merit of assuaging 
 the widows' woes and orphans' wants, become a large and generous 
 partaker. (Cheers.) And, whilst we are proud of our native land,. 
 
35 
 
 it may be permitted us to say that our Fatherland has some reason to 
 be proud of us — (cheers)— the noblest scion that ever formed an off- 
 shoot from the parent oak of England. We illustrate the truth of a 
 great political doctrine, that it is the genius of a country that emigrates. 
 The shepherd-kings and merchant-princes whom we have sent home, 
 and the many more of the same class who remain amongst us, attest that 
 they who have come hither do not belong to the idle or indulgent classes 
 of society at home. (Applause.) They transplanted here the best 
 abilities and energies — toil and perseverance, prudence and frugality,; — 
 which distinguish the most eminent and successful men at home. It is, 
 therefore, that the character of our fellow-countryman at home, in its 
 most admirable features, is nowhere more faithfully represented than in 
 the success which has crowned the enterprise of those who have settled on 
 the shores and sought the pastoral plains of Australia. (Cheers.) The 
 growth of this country is truly the most wonderful event in the history 
 of the nations of the world. (Hear, hear.) It was an unknown land 
 when America was rising into notice and achieving her independence. 
 In one of the eloquent outbursts of the immortal Edmund Burke, he 
 figures the genuis of England, pointing out to a young nobleman — (I 
 think Lord Bathurst) — a little speck then scarce visible in the mass of 
 national interests, and telling him, 'Young man! there is America — 
 which at this day serves for little more than to amuse you with the 
 stories of savage men and uncouth manners, yet shall, before you taste 
 of death, show itself equal to the whole of that commerce which now 
 attracts the envy of the world. Whatever England has been growing 
 to by a progressive increase of improvement, by a succession of civilising 
 conquests and civilising settlements in a series of 1700 years, you will 
 see as much added to her by America in the course of a single life.' 
 (Cheers.) A single life ! why, in less than half the period of an ordi- 
 nary single life, have we not seen Australia advance and grow to an equal 
 height in political attitude and commercial greatness ? (Loud cheers.) 
 If, as Mr. Burke says, America in his day 'only served for little 
 more than to amuse us with stories of savage men and uncouth man- 
 ners/ did not Australia in the early days of most of us, serve to alarm 
 us with tales of terror of a similar sort ? But all this apprehension of 
 alarm is now dissipated, as though it were more than a hundred years 
 ago since such a state of things existed; and at this national banquet — 
 inaugurating our free institutions — we meet as free, prosperous, 
 
36 
 
 and united fellow-citizens as could be gathered together any where 
 throughout the whole range of the British dominions. (Cheers ) In 
 proposing then the toast of Fatherland, I repeat, long may we be proud 
 of England, and England reciprocate a feeling, of pride in us — and long 
 may our destinies be united, prosperous, and happy. (Loud cheers.)" 
 Chorus — " Should auld acquaintance be forgot." 
 
 The Governor-General responded : — 
 
 " The toast embraced the United Kingdoms of Great Britain and 
 Ireland. (Applause.) He was sure the toast had been drunk with one 
 heart. (Cheers.) His Excellency concluded by expressing his wish 
 that three cheers should be given for the fatherland." Three cheers and 
 one cheer more, were enthusiastically given. 
 
 The Attorney-General (Mr. Manning) was received with much 
 cheering. He said : — 
 
 " I feel proud in having been selected to propose the toast — ' The 
 land we live in." (Cheers.) I cannot but think that such a toast at 
 a national banquet should be one of the principal toasts of the evening. 
 (Cheers.) I feel much embarrassed, however, by the task imposed upon 
 me, for I cannot do justice to the toast without being long, and I can- 
 not be long without being tedious. (Cries of ' No, no,' and applause.) 
 I know not what it may be that induced gentlemen to select me to dis- 
 charge this particular duty, but I have a vague suspicion it was because 
 on a late occasion I stated that although not a native of this country 
 I stood in the relation of father or uncle to no less than 28 young 
 Australians. (Laughter and cheers.) The time was when the colony 
 was looked upon merely as a place to procure riches, but now it was appre- 
 ciated in other respects. (Cheers.) I believe, although it may be my 
 privilege once more to revisit my native land — see old familiar faces, 
 and learn from monuments of antiquity lessons of wisdom — that this, 
 * the land we live in,' will be my final home and resting place. (Ap- 
 plause.) I believe this is not the land for the rich and selfish ; but for 
 those who are contented with the substantial blessings of life — those 
 who sympathise with their kind — those who desire to take a paTt in 
 promoting the well-being of their fellow men. (Cheers.) Men in my 
 
S7 
 
 own position, if they went home, could hardly aspire to anything beyond 
 the high honor of a parish vestryman (Cries of ' no, no') ; but here I 
 have the opportunity of playing my part, be it small or great, in pro- 
 moting the honour and welfare of a country destined to be great — 
 ' The land we live in.' (Applause.) I feel that among the great ad- 
 vantages of the land in which we live is that of membership with the 
 great family of Britain. (Cheers.) The Consul for the American 
 States has alluded to the imperishable monument of England's glory, 
 yet what a speck does Britain appear on the map. (Applause.) In 
 course of time, as nations change in greatness, she may sink, though 
 God defend her from it. (Cheers.) But her people have been so estab- 
 lished that ' England' must live for ever, for the world could hardly 
 outlive her fame and glory. (Applause.) I feel this colony, being a 
 younger brother to our American States, brother to so many other 
 States scattered about the world> and twin brother to the other Australa- 
 sian colonies, that we ought to glory in the circumstance as one of the 
 advantages of the land we live in. (Applause) I feel also that to 
 inherit her memories, to be the child of a parent so mighty in war — so 
 great in peace — so great in intelligence — so great, above all, in freedom 
 — to have the protection of Great Britain (we perhaps but little appre- 
 ciate it sometimes, but let us reflect what we should be, had we not 
 England for our friend and protector) (cheers) — when we think of 
 these this is another great advantage of the land we live in. (Ap- 
 plause.) Here we have so much of plenty and happiness as to con- 
 trast with many other and much older countries. (Hear, hear.) This 
 is another advantage of the .land we live in. (Cheers.) Thousands 
 who would perish in other countries may find plenty here. (Applause.) 
 I will not enlarge upon those more common topics — our wealth, or our 
 mineral resources, not even upon our coal, our copper, or our iron ; per- 
 haps a more lasting source of wealth than our gold. (Cheers.) I will 
 not dwell on our commercial advantages, the impartial administration 
 of justice, our means of education, or facilities for the administration of 
 the ordinances of religion : with good laws, or the means of making 
 them ; with a constitution nearly assimilated to that of England (if it 
 has all her faults it has also the elements of improvement) ; with mem- 
 bership to the great family in the fatherland — with all the elements of 
 material wealth and all the principles of intellectual advancement — 
 this country must be a prosperous and a happy one. (Applause.) If 
 
38 
 
 true to ourselves, we must stand pre-eminent among the nations." 
 (Cheers.) The hon. gentleman then concluded by requesting that the 
 toast be drunk with all the honors. 
 Glee — " Home, sweet home." 
 
 The Third Minister of the Crown (Mr. Nichols) was enthusiasti- 
 cally received. After remarking that he felt much pleased we were 
 called upon to show our approval of the Government of the fatherland, 
 Mr. Nichols continued : — 
 
 " Although an Australian by birth, I claim to be an Englishman, 
 and I claim for the Englishman, the Scotchman, and the Irishman 
 the rights J claim for the Australian. (Continued applause.) We all 
 belong to one nation, and 1'ong may we continue united. (Cheers.) 
 Previous speakers have uttered all I intended to say, and therefore I 
 shall be very brief. (Cheers.) None in this assemblage feel the 
 presence of our honored guests, including the Foreign Consuls, more 
 than Australians. We feel it is the duty of every man in the com- 
 munity, whatever may be his political creed, to come among us on an 
 occasion so national. (Cheers.) I hope the powers conceded by the 
 New Constitution may be so exercised as to render this country the 
 happy home of millions." (Applause.) The hon. gentleman concluded 
 by expressing his sincere gratification at the Banquet being presided 
 over by so old and esteemed a laborer in the vineyard as Dr. Bland. 
 (Cheers.) 
 
 Mr. Maoarthue, M.LA., rose amid loud applause. He said : — 
 " Mr. President, ladies, and gentlemen — the occasion, as has been 
 already observed, is a most memorable one. (Cheers.) It is indeed 
 the most so of any which has yet graced the historical annals of 
 Australia. (Applause.) I cannot therefore but prize the more highly the 
 distinction which has been conferred upon me of proposing the toast of 
 ' Our sister colonies.' (Continued cheering.) I feel that I can the 
 more appropriately address myself to the ladies on this occasion from 
 the very terms of the toast itself, the ' sister colonies' (cheers), and I 
 am happy to see this assemblage graced by the fair presence of the 
 matrons and daughters of Australia, who have deigned on this occa- 
 
39 
 
 sion to extend over us their chastening and benign influence. (Con- 
 tinued applause.) The preceding speakers have so fully exhausted the 
 subjects of civil and religious liberty, and the due exercise of political 
 institutions, that upon those topics nothing remains for me to say. I 
 congratulate the meeting, however, upon the generous spirit which has 
 characterised the remarks of all who have spoken on these subjects, and 
 the freedom from every thing in the shape of party feeling and political 
 partizanship. (Continued applause.) Like my friend Mr. Nichols, I 
 may perhaps owe somewhat of the distinction now conferred upon me 
 to the circumstance of my being a native of Australia. (Cheers.) Like 
 him also, if I pride myself on being an Australian, I pride myself still 
 more on being a Briton. (Continued applause.) I am happy also to take 
 this opportunity of expressing my entire concurrence in the meed of 
 applause and approbation which he has expressed, and which is so emi- 
 nently due to our worthy President, and his tried associate — William 
 Charles Wentworth. (Cheers.) But there is one theme to which I 
 desire to address myself, if I may so far trespass upon the patience of 
 the meeting at this late hour. (Cheers.) I allude to that of maritime 
 and commercial enterprise. (Applause.) And I am the more anxious 
 to enter upon this topic (as briefly as possible) because it seems the one 
 most appropriate to the toast I am now to recommend to you. The sis- 
 ter colonies of Australia are generally known throughout Europe, and 
 throughout the civilised world, by the name of the Australian group. 
 They may all, in fact, be blended under the name of Australia, a name 
 which we derive from the happy genius of the French language. Aus- 
 tralia is the original word from which we derive our Australia. (Cheers.) 
 The resources of this quarter of the globe are so rich and so diversified 
 that it would be impossible on an occasion like the present to enumerate 
 them. (Cheers.) I feel confident, however, that the practical good 
 sense and Anglo-Saxon character of the inhabitants of this great group 
 will turn these resources to the utmost advantage. (Applause.) I 
 would ask you to bear with me in diverting your attention somewhat 
 from the present scene and turning your recollections upon the past. I 
 would invite your attention to what I may term the great historic 
 names which are so familiar to us that we are scarcely sensible of their 
 import. I allude, in the first place, to the great Dutch navigators — 
 Tasman and Van Biemen. (Cheers.) Among those of France, I 
 would mention La Perouse and B'Entrecasteaux, with our own Cook, 
 
40 
 
 Slanders, and Banks. (Applause;-) Their achievements upon the peri- 
 lous field of maritime discovery are too well known to require more 
 than a passing notice. (Cheers.) At a period more recent, and within 
 the recollection of the majority of those present, come the names of 
 Owen Stanley and Phillip Parker King. (Cheers.) All these I may 
 justly term citizens of the world, benefactors of Australia, and of the 
 human race. They are names which will go down to the history of all 
 time — 
 
 (Applause.) 
 
 A tomb is theirs on every page, 
 An epitaph on every tongue, 
 
 The meanest rill, the mightiest river, 
 Roll mingling with our fame for ever. 
 The woods are peopled. with their fame, 
 The waters murmur of their name. 
 
 (Continued cheering.) Yet, if I may be permitted, 
 
 One would I select from that prond throng . 
 
 I am the more anxious to do so from the fact that he was a native of 
 Australia. (Cheers.) That he was well known to most of us, "and 
 that but a short time ago we might have hoped for his presence amongst 
 us on this occasion — I allude to my lamented friend and distinguished 
 countryman, Admiral King — (applause) — one who rose in his pro- 
 fession by his services, more especially in the geographical department, 
 to the high rank he held in the Navy, and whose services as a naval 
 explorer are acknowledged to be of the greatest practical benefit to the 
 world at large, but more especia ly to this portion of it. (Applause.) 
 I am satisfied that there is but one sentiment as regards the character 
 of my gallant and lamented friend — that in the highest ranks in the 
 British navy there was no one more eminently deserved the favour of 
 his sovereign, or the distinction to which he had attained. (Applause.) 
 To revert to the immediate subject, the resources of the Australian 
 colonies from which their future commercial and general prosperity is 
 to be derived, I ask you to join with me in no cramped or isolated 
 spirit. (Cheers.) I wish to avoid every thing in the shape of com- 
 parison between the different colonies of the Australian Group — still 
 less will I say anything in the shape of contrast. (Cheers.) Each 
 colony is largely endowed with the elements of future greatness and 
 
41 
 
 prosperity. I trust that the commercial policy which distinguished 
 the career of the late Colonial Secretary, Mr. Deas Thomson, will he 
 mantained in our intercourse with each other, and with the world at 
 large, and that no attempt will he made to introduce class legislation, 
 or restrictive principles. (Continued cheering.) Union amongst 
 ourselves, and unity of action, is what will best accomplish these great 
 ends, for which Providence has evidently designed them — that politi- 
 cally, commercially, and in every other respect they should form one 
 great hrotherhood, — or rather, to follow out the terms of the toast, one 
 great sisterhood. (Applause.) I prefer the latter term as the most ' 
 appropriate on this occasion, and especially looking at the fair assemblage 
 above me ; and while concurring in the just tribute which has been 
 paid by my honorable and learned friend, Judge Therry, to those who 
 now represent the men of Australia in our parent land — I might say 
 in Europe— fully concurring with them that they are well qualified to 
 be our representatives — (applause) — I am satisfied that he and all 
 present will give equal praise to the gentler sex, and will at once not 
 only admit, but strongly urge their claim to take a distinguished 
 position in any society. Among the gentlemen now present I trust 
 there are representatives of each of the sister colonies. A worthy 
 representative of one of them — I mean New Zealand, I am happy to see 
 in the person of Mr. Ludlam, a member of the Legislature of that 
 colony. We must bear in mind at this epoch, so interesting to all the 
 Australian colonies equally with ourselves, that our four sisters are now, 
 if I may use the expression, 'straining in the leash,' ready to start with 
 ourselves in the glorious rivalry who shall be foremost in the race of 
 improvement. (Applause.) To each and all we pledge success and 
 prosperity in the toast we are about to drink. (Cheers.) And how 
 can we so well attain the great ends for which we are strivng as under 
 the protecting iEgis of Britannia ? (Cheers.) Long may we continue 
 under that time-honored flag, of which it is, perhaps, the ^.'highest 
 attribute that no human being, however abject his condition, however 
 servile his position, can come under its broad shade without being free. 
 (Cries of ' bravo,' and loud cheers.) I conclude by proposing the toast, 
 and by requesting permission to embrace within it our two sisters, if 
 not so by blood, yet so by alliance — the French colonies of Tahiti and 
 New Caledonia." 
 Chorus — " Australia, hail !" 
 
42 
 
 Mr. Ludlam, a member of the Wellington (New Zealand) Legisla- 
 ture, responded. 
 
 The Solicitor-General (Mr. Darvall) then rose. He said : — 
 "I have been requested by the Committee to propose a toast, — it is 
 'the Press;' the Australian Press. (Cheers.) A more agreeable duty 
 could not have been assigned to me (Cheers.) The occasion is most 
 appropriate to do honor to the Press, whose exertions have so largely 
 contributed to the achievement of that political success which this vast 
 and influential assembly have met together to celebrate ; and it is a 
 happy omen that the first fruits of our political freedom is a cordial and 
 unanimous expression of thankfulness from men of all classes and 
 opinions, sanctioned and adorned by the presence of the fair and vir- 
 tuous matrons and daughters of Australia. (Applause.) From the 
 time when the inhabitants of this colony, led by our President and 
 other patriotic men, demanded, under an absolute military Government, 
 the first elements of social liberty, freedom of thought, speech, and 
 writing, and enforced their just demands ; from that time the Press of 
 this colony has toiled in the common cause of freedom and social liberty 
 and improvement, with unwearied diligence and courage, and at last 
 all powers of self-government have crowned one common effort in one 
 common cause. (Cheers.) During the most bitter party conflicts the 
 Press of Australia has for the most part preserved a tone of prudence 
 and moderation ; and if occasionally some private calumniator or disloyal 
 scribbler, from a desire of notoriety or innate corruption, has been per- 
 mitted to defile the pages of the Press, it has but served to provoke an 
 universal feeling of indignation and disgust in the public mind, and to 
 prove that, as a commercial speculation, the labours of the Press are 
 only profitable when the Press is what it ought to be — the organ of 
 public opinion. (Hear, hear.) It is by keeping that in view that the 
 Press is truly useful and powerful. It is by writing in harmony with 
 the general feelings and opinions of the country, that the Press really 
 exercises power, and even appears to govern and direct, when in reality 
 it only follows or keeps pace with the tide of public opinion. (Cheers.) 
 Thus it is that the Press, in a free country, when public opinion is freely 
 expressed, and when the will of the people is fairly represented, is an 
 institution conferring great benefits on the community, little liable to 
 abuse, and dangerous only to bad Government. It isjfor the tyrant or 
 
43 
 
 the corrupt statesman to fear the Press, to exaggerate its pernicious 
 tendencies, to charge it with being subversive of good government and 
 destructive of social order ; — it is for such as these, in countries where 
 such things are permitted, to impose a censorship on the Press, to bind 
 men's thoughts and fetter their tongues ; but in australia the only cen- 
 sorship of the Press is exercised by the good taste and sound sense of a 
 free and enlightened people, and long may the Press of Australia 
 worthily fulfil its high duties ; watch with jealous scrutiny all govern- 
 ments, public men, and public measures ; denounce fearlessly all 
 imbecility, corruption, and bad government, promote reform, protect 
 the weak, repress the strong, expose unworthy motives, and encourage 
 truth and virtue ; so will the freedom of the Australian Press endure 
 so long as the name of freedom is cherished in Australia; and this 
 fourth estate will always be as now, identified with all the great and 
 growing interests of Australia, and a toast which Australians will 
 always desire to honor. ' The Press, then j' ' the Press of Australia.' 
 (Continued applause.) 
 Band— "Galop." 
 
 The Rev. J. West rose amid loud cheers. He said : — 
 " I cordially respond to the toast ' The Press,' but at this late hour 
 I will not detain you with any lengthy observations ; nor is it neces- 
 sary that I should do so. (Cheers.) The importance of the Press has 
 long been recognised. (Applause.) Its labours in the cause of Aus- 
 tralian freedom are well known to all. (Applause.) It has now how- 
 ever other duties to perform — not only to protect the liberties of the 
 people, but to explain them ; to unite the ideas of order and liberty. 
 To secure permanently the freedom of any country there must be a cor- 
 dial submission to the laws. (Cheers.) To prevent the powers of the 
 State becoming oppressive, their constitutional division must be care- 
 fully preserved — (cheers) — to prevent as far as possible any one branch 
 of the State usurping the functions of another. (Continued applause.) 
 It is from misconception of the importance of this careful division that 
 danger may be apprehended. (Hear, hear.) Our liberties are sure so 
 long as they depend upon the so-called sovereign will of the people. 
 (Cheers.) But it is necessary that the people should carefully exercise 
 the power vested in them, and that they should confide authority to 
 
44 
 
 the hands of men really interested in the prosperity of the country, and 
 ' who are capable of managing its affairs. (Cheers.) In a word, it is 
 the duty of the Press to use its influence on the side of liberty, order, 
 and law. (Continued applause.)" 
 
 Mr. Justice Dickinson was loudly cheered on rising to propose the 
 next toast. He said :— 
 
 " I solicit gentlemen to charge their glasses to the brim, while I have 
 the honour to propose a toast which will be responded to with the fullest 
 honors. That toast is, ' Lady Denison and the ladies of the colony.' 
 (Continued applause.) The time of night compels me to be extremely 
 brief, although speaking to the most interesting toast of this festivity, 
 the health of our beloved Queen excepted. (Hear, hear.) The gallantry 
 of all the gentlemen will doubtless induce them to sympathise, even 
 should they not agree with me in my feelings that the existence among 
 us of so refined and so high-minded a body as the ladies of New South 
 Wales is of far higher interest and more practical importance than that 
 of any constitution, however perfect, or of any Government, however 
 appointed. (Renewed eheering.) Equal laws and liberal institutions 
 lead to the production of heroes, orators, and philosophers — the society 
 of refined ladies alone can fashion and perfect gentlemen. (Applause.) 
 Fortunate, therefore, at this momentous crisis in the history of this 
 great, loyal, and prosperous colony of New South "Wales, to have among 
 us a body of ladies excelled by those of no other community in grace, 
 elegance, and refinement. (Cheers.) Thrice fortunate are we that 
 ladies of such accomplishments are presided over by such a personage 
 as Lady Denison, a lady whose dignity in her public station is rivalled 
 only by her benevolence towards her poorer brethren in the exigencies 
 of their obscure affliction and distress — whose intelligence, zeal in all 
 good works and unwearied devotion "to all and every duty, compel our 
 respect and admiration ; while her unaffected grace, invariable kind- 
 ness, and unsurpassed urbanity ensure to her the regard of all admitted 
 to her society or who are benefitted by her bright example. (Continued 
 applause.) Gentlemen, I beg you will drink, with all the honors and 
 with fervid acclamation, ' Lady Denison and the ladies of New South 
 Wales.' " 
 
 Glee — " Here's a Health to all good Lasses." 
 
45 
 
 The Governob-General was greeted with continued cheering when 
 he rose to respond to the toast. He facetiously alluded to the advan- 
 tages he possessed over bachelors in performing this duty, and in the 
 course of his brief response passed several compliments on the ladies of 
 the colony. Lady Denison had been " a blessing to him " (Applause.) 
 
 His Excellency, when silence was restored, again rose and said : 
 
 " There is only one toast remaining to be drunk, that is, the health of 
 the gentleman on my left, who has so well performed the duties that 
 devolved upon him as President this evening. Having had the pleasure 
 of the acquaintance of the President but for a short time, I cannot 
 speak, from my own knowledge, of his past career or the influence of his 
 example on the destinies of the country; but I must say that he de- 
 serves the hearty thanks of this meeting for the manner in which he 
 has performed the duties imposed upon him. I, myself, cannot 
 speak of the former career of this gentleman, or of his past services in 
 the struggle for the liberty which the country now enjoys, or of Kis 
 efforts for the attainment of that Government which they have now met 
 to commemorate. (Applause.) I am sure, however, that the toast will 
 meet with the hearty assent of all who remember those services, and 
 that they will respond to the toast in favour of one, to whom thanks 
 are due, not only as President, but as one who has done so much towards 
 securing the liberties of the colony. I therefore propose the health of 
 the President, Dr. Bland, with all the honors. " (Prolonged applause.) 
 
 The toast was responded to with great unthusiasm, the band playing 
 "For he's a jolly good fellow." 
 
 The President briefly expressed his acknowledgements for the honor 
 done to him, and for the more than kind manner in which the toast 
 had been received. 
 
 His Excellency retired shortly after Eleven o'clock, the band 
 playing the National Anthem. The assembly then dispersed. 
 
 Tickle and Koss, Printers, 9, Market-street, Sydney. 
 
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