Captain Brown, having arranged his ship concerns, weighed anchor this afternoon, and made sail for Port Jackson, two men having been previously embarked by the Lieutenant-Governor’s order to work the ship in place of the others who remain at Hobart Town, until they can be sent to Sydney by the first conveyance. Circumstances not having tended to excite greater confidence than before, I proceed to keep my accustomed watch in the prison.
7th.—The weather during the last day or two has been delightfully fine, and the tranquillity of my little community has not experienced any further disturbance. At noon this day I proceeded to the prison with the Reverend Mr. Reddall, and read a sermon of Dr. Blair’s, “on the misfortunes of men chargeable to themselves;” after which Mr. Reddall made some explanatory observations, placing their situation in a light so clear, and in a manner so impressive, yet so consoling, that not one present could withhold the tribute of a painfully joyous tear. The good man himself was not unmoved;—hard indeed must be the heart that could be insensible to a scene so affecting. I viewed with peculiar pleasure the seven females received at Hobart Town mingling their tears with the rest. On visiting them within half an hour afterwards in the hospital, I found that the impression had not been momentary or transient;—they were still in tears, which their efforts to hide from me left little doubt of believing unfeigned.
Throughout the whole of this voyage I have uniformly found good effects to result from conferring some mark of approbation on every meritorious action the moment it came under my notice:—in addition to some little necessary articles, such as needles, thread, scissors, and the like, which I distributed amongst the seven, I permitted them to walk on deck some hours, and had no cause to be displeased with their behaviour. This morning I served out to the women the remainder of a small quantity of thread put on board for their use by order of Government.
10th.—Contrary winds and calms, since leaving Van Diemen’s Land, have protracted the voyage beyond expectation; but the same cause has given me additional opportunities of witnessing the most satisfactory conduct in the women destined for the settlement at Sydney and its neighbourhood. Although a great number of those left at Hobart Town were of exemplary character, besides those of a less steady description, yet those now proceeding with me behave themselves in a manner so discreet and quiet, that one would suppose there were not more than ten women in the ship;—no noise,—no romping, nor any trace of indiscretion observable. Even the seven recently received have in a great degree coalesced in the discipline established: the four offenders also remain in strict confinement, overwhelmed with shame and sorrow, appearing more afflicted by their own sense of bad conduct, than the restraint imposed on them by forbidding every communication with their fellow prisoners.
