required in
this arduous occupation. But the persons engaged were often wholly
disqualified by their past pursuits and personal character, to inspire
either awe or respect. The practical oversight was often committed to
the least responsible.

The religious instructors selected by the government, though chiefly of
the episcopal or catholic professions, were of miscellaneous origin. The
clergy of all persuasions were formerly admitted to the road parties;
their discourses were welcome, for they gave an interval from toil: some
performed service on the sabbath at their own charge. The new
instructors were strictly official: some, indeed, highly educated men,
of long standing in their respective churches; others were the
off-shoots of various sects, without education or personal dignity. Of
their qualifications, several high officers have spoken with
contempt.[258] These opinions were, however, partly the indirect result
of disputes, in which the instructors were very generally involved.
Several were known to convey accounts of evils within the stockades,
which it was the desire of the department both to conceal and to
suppress: notwithstanding, many were deficient in zeal and ability.
Their labors were strictly formal, and were soon considered hopeless.
Several exceptions must be understood; but to select them would be
invidious. The exclusive occupation of clergymen as teachers of
convicts, is generally unfavorable to their usefulness: the recognised
pastor of a congregation brings to the prison the reputation and
sanctity of his character among the free; the instructor of a gang is
soon considered but as the agent of penal government.

The basis of Lord Stanley's system was an imaginary demand for labor in
Van Diemen's Land. The home government was so confident in this
resource, that placards were suspended on the English prisons, holding
forth the prospect of high wages as the final stage of transportation.
The execution of public works in the colonies, except at an equivalent
price, was strictly prohibited. By improving the settled parts of the
colony, the crown might have increased its attraction to capitalists,
and by diverting an excess of laborers excited the competition of
masters. The governor was desirous of allaying colonial irritation by
some substantial boon: the orders of Lord Stanley were, however, rigid.
The comptroller-general was forbidden to adopt any detailed regulation
at variance with the scheme