Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2018 with funding from Getty Research Institute https://archive.org/details/descriptionofvie00burf_11 explanation TtEnr of the TOW B4STOKAMA, LEICESTER 1 Woo lioo tonic/ollot ? J\ r eiv Gaol 3 (athsolic Chapel 4 (Entrar/r. v j to G-ove) 5 /Prisoners .Barcac¬ ti Gener -at Hasp ital 7 WestLeyan Chapel lh of August, 1793. This building was wilfully destroyed by lire in 1798, in conse¬ quence of an order enforcing the constant attendance of the convicts. The pre¬ sent substantial stone edifice was immediately commenced ; the tower had been erected a year previous, to hold a turret clock, which first proclaimed the time of day, January 31, 1798. The tower contains a peal of eight bells, and the church a fine service of communion plate, presented by his late Majesty, which arrived in October, 1803. No. 28. — Sydney Hotel. The “Sydney,” ,c Australian,” and “Hill’s,” the three principal hotels, may vie with the best establishments of the same kindin England, being provided with hot and cold baths, and every convenience, at easonable charge; as may the common pot houses with the lowest in St. Giles No. 29 .— Chief Justice's. Tile residence of Francis Forbes, esq. chief justice of New South Wales. No. 31. — Orphan School. This excellent and well endowed establishment for females has been removed to Liverpool, and the building pulled down; the plot of ground on which it stood, one acre and a half, has been sold by auction for 5,200 1. No. 32.— Sydney Gazette Office. The first printing-press used in the colony was for issuing government orders, &c. in 1795. The Sydney Gazette, the first newspaper, was printed in 1803, and is at present conducted with great ability in every department, by men of sound judgment; there are, at this time, eight newspapers and four literary periodicals published in the colony. No. 34.— Fort Phillip, On the highest point of the neck of land to the west of the town, nearly in the centre of what is called “The Rocks.” It is a regular hexagon, never quite finished, and is now so surrounded by houses as to be useless, excepting as a signal station. It was erected by Governor King in 1803, after an insurrection, caused by those persons transported for the share they took in the Irish rebellion. No. 35.— Blue Mountains. The elevation of the Blue Mountains above the sea is about 4000 feet; and their breadth, where the road crosses them to Bathurst, is fifty-eight miles. This road, commencing at Emu-ford, forty miles from Sydney, was discovered in 1813. It is by no means dangerous, waggons, carts, &c. passing at all times without accident. This, and several roads in the neighbourhood, have been improved and formed under the able superintendence of Capf. Duinaresq. The mountains for the first ten or twelve miles are well covered with timber; beyond this, they are very barren, covered with a thick brushwood, with occasionally a stunted gum. They are very rocky, composed principally of sandstone thickly studded with quartz, and a little freestone, but no granite, which afterwards is the only stone met with for 200 miles; beyond them the country is of a most fertile description to an amazing distance. No. 3 6 . — Mr. Underwood's. An elegant building, the residence of Mr. Underwood, a rich merchant, who iias been very successful in the oil and seal-skin trade. No. 37 ..— Bank of Australia, Established about five years since or. nearly the same plan as the New South Wales. No. 38. — Gaol. The original gaol log built in 1797, having been wilfully burned two years after its erection, the present stone edifice was commenced, and the expense defrayed by a voluntary tax, and an extra duty of is. per gallon on spirits. From the increase of the colony, it has become scarcely adequate to the safe keeping of the prisoners. No. 39 . — Australian Agricultural Company's Offices. The Australian Company have one million acres of land at Port Stephen’s, II ninety mile* north of Sydney, watered by the rivers Karuer aud Manning, th« one navigable twelve, the other twenty miles, from the fine harbour. The land is excellent, both arable and pasture, abounding in coal, and exhibiting such speci¬ mens of lime, as to leave little doubt that it will hereafter be found in ample quantities. The company have imported the finest bulls, cow's, stallions, and breeding mares, to be procured ; sheep from the choicest flocks of Europe: the olive, vine, tea, and fruit trees, with seeds and plants of all varieties; also two steam engines, iron railway, and every requisite for working the coals, &c. No. 40. — Governor's House, The back of which is towards the spectator, is built of brick plastered • although not a very handsome, it has become, by various alterations and enlarge¬ ments, a tolerably commodious bouse. A new one is about to be erected on the high ground from whence tho present Panorama was taken : the garden and shrubbery occupies about four acres. No. 41. — King's Wharf and Dock. The dock is small, but sufficient for the purposes of the colony; all the govern¬ ment vessels load, and unload, and undergo repair here ; the government boats are kept here, and it is also the depot of coals. The various works are performed by competent convicts, the gaol gangs doing the loading and unloading. The ware¬ houses and workshops are extensive: the wooden wharf is miserable, but is being improved. No. 43. — Mr. [I. Campbell's, One of the principal merchants of New South Wales ; be lias an excellent wharf, which, with his warehouses, dwelling, garden, &c. forms an extensive and very valuable property. No. 44. — Dawes's Battery. The battery on Dawes’s Point mounts fifteen guns, and commands the harbour, but is inadequate to the defence of the town against any respectable force. This place acquired its name from Lieutenant Dawes, who sailed with the first expedi¬ tion, and being charged by the Board of Longitude to make observations on au expected comet, erected his small observatory on the spot. No. 45.— Phoenix Hulk, Used as a place of confinement for prisoners of desperate character, and when the prison is full. No. 46.— H. M's Ship Success, Capt. Sterling, who is at the present time about to be employed in forming a new settlement on the western coast of New South Wales. No. 47 -—Macquarie Fort, Built, as its name imports, by Governor Macquarie ; but, having been designed by a civil architect instead of an engineer, it is erected in such a situation, and in such a style, that it is rather a picturesque object than a useful defence. It stands on Ben-ni-long’s Point, so called from a house having been erected on it for the residence of h chief named Ben-ni-long, the first native who became attached to the settlers; he was brought to England by Governor Phillip, and returned with Governor Hunter ; although he was in a great measure civilized, yet he could not altogether abandon his former pursuits; he would frequently discard his clothes, and pass several weeks at a time with his old companions in the woods. No. 48. — Government Stables, Erected by Governor Macquarie, and were intended to form part of the pro¬ posed new Government House. Gangs of convicts are employed in various parts; their usual dress is a white woollen Paramatta frock and trowsers, or grey and yellow jackets and duck overalls, the different style of dress denoting their length of residence ; the whole is thickly plastered over in black, white, and red, with the broad arrow, and the letters P.B. and C.B., Prisoners’ Barracks, or Carters’ Barracks : when first landed, they are termed Canaries, from their yellow clothing; they afterwards attain the more honourable distinction of Government Men, the word convict being entirely expunged from their vocabulary. The gaol gangs are always ironed on the legs; ihey are employed in mending the streets, making bricks, and various public works. The number which arrived from Eng¬ land during the year 1827, was 2801 males and 502 females. No. 4Q.— Port Jackson. The entrance to Port Jackson is between two high bluff points, called (lie North and South Heads, about three quarters of a mile apart, from which it gradually extend* into a noble and capacious basin, navigable fifteen miles for vessels of any 2 12 size ; it contains 100 small coves, formed by narrow necks of land, many running several milts into the country, whose projections afford protection from every w ind that blows, and possesses the best anchorage the whole way. The shores are bold, and often precipitous, and so rocky that it is not easy to conceive how the wide branching evergreen trees, and close brushwood, have found suffi¬ cient nourishment to bring them to so considerable a size. A few islands are scattered about, but none of any magnitude : after winding about twenty miles, the Hay loses itself in a small creek at Paramatta. Regular packets sail between Sydney, Newcastle, Hobart Town,' and Port Dalrymple. Ships are constantly in the Hay from England, India, China, Isle of France, Brazils, New Zealand, &c. New South Wales carries on a trade with the mother country in wool, timber, seal-skins, hides, New Zealand flax, and oil, at present the principal exportsj the imports are manufactured goods from England, sugar from the Mauritias, rum, and all kinds of India goods from Bengal; tea from China, and tobacco from the Brazils. No. 50. — II. M.’s Ships Fly and Volage. The Fly, Capt. Whetherall, and the Volage, Capt. Dundas, are beating down to the Warspite. No. 51. — Pinchgut Island. Tliis island obtained its singular name by having been the prison of the early offenders, who were placed here with a very scanty allowance of provisions ; several notorious malefactors have also been hung in chains on it: the three other islands of any importance, are Garden, Sharkes, and Clarke’s. No. 55.— Lighthouse. An elegant building of white freestone, called Macquarie Tower, on the southern side of the entrance to Port Jackson, the entrance to which it points out by day and night, the revolving light being visible at ten or twelve leagues dis¬ tance : by its side, is a telegraph and signal post, to communicate to Sydney every thing relating to vessels entering or leaving the harbour. The height of the point from the sea is 277 feet, and the tower 76, being together 353 feet; it stands lat. 33° 51' 40", south long. 151° 16' 50", east from Greenwich. The tower, from the softness of the materials, is supposed to be unsafe, and has been bound with iron. No. 56.— H. M.’s Ship Warspite. Commodore Sir J. Brisbane arrived, in 1826, in the Bay, with the Warspite, the lirst line-of-battle ship that ever sailed on these beautiful waters. No. 57. —Point Piper, The residence of Captain Piper, many years naval officer to the colony, whose elegant eastern-fashioned mansion, tastefully ornamented grounds, and far famed hospitality, have rendered the place remarkable. No. 58.-— -Kangaroo and Dog Dance. Between the ages of eight and sixteen, the youth of both sexes undergo the operation ofhaving the septum nasi bored, for the purpose of holding a bone or reed, considered a great ornament. On this occasion, amongst a variety of cere¬ monies, the kangaroo dance forms a prominent feature. A native of robust stature, carries a pat- ta-go-rang, or kangaroo, of grass, on his shoulders, followed by a second, with a load of brushwood, signifying its haunts, which they deposit at the feet of the young people, who are placed in a circle ; the remainder of the party, meanwhile, singing and beating time on their shields: a party then appears, with long tails of grass fixed to their girdles, jumping along, and occasionally lying down and scratching themselves as those animals do; others follow them, armed, pretending to steal upon them unobserved and spear them. This cere¬ mony is emblematical of their power of hunting and killing that animal. The dog dance is somewhat similar, excepting that the tails are shorter, and they crawl on all fours. No. Go .— Native climbing a Gum Tree. The rapidity with which tire natives ascend trees of enormous size, in search of llte opossum, flying-squirrel, &c. is truly astonishing ; this is effected by cutting, with their stone hatchets, notches in tire bark of the trees, of sufficient depth and size, to admit the ball of the great toe : the first notch being cut, the great toe is placed in it; and, while the left arm embraces the tree, a second is cut at a con¬ venient distance, sometimes above the shoulder, to receive the other foot, always cutting with the right hand, clinging with the left, and resting their whole weight on the ball of 011 c foot: they ascend very quickly trees of 80 or 100 feet in height. J. and C. Adlard, Printers, Bartholomew Close.