. Mr. D. was found dead on the main road; Mr. E. shot himself
through the head; Mr. F. fell asleep in the bush and never woke; and
Mr. G. was drowned in a waterhole. One officer was not quite so
unfortunate as some of his friends. His score at the Crook and Plaid
became so long that he began to pass that hotel without calling.
Polly, the venerable landlady, took offence at such conduct, and was
daily on the watch for him. When she saw him passing, which he
always did at a rapid pace, she hobbled to the door, and called after
him, "Hey, hey!" Then the gentleman twirled his cane, whistled a
lively tune, looked up, first to the sky, and then to the right and
left, but never stopped, or looked back to Polly behind him. At last
his creditors became so troublesome, and his accounts so
inexplicable, that he deserted the public service, and took refuge
across the Murray.

Mr. H. fell into the habit of borrowing his collections to pay his
gambling debts. He was allowed a certain number of days at the
beginning of each month to complete his returns, and send in his
cash. So he made use of the money collected during the days of grace
to repay any sums he had borrowed from the public cash during the
preceding month. But the cards were against him. One morning an
Inspector of Accounts from Melbourne appeared unexpectedly in his
office.

In those days there were no railways and no telegraphs. Their
introduction was an offensive nuisance to us. The good old times
will never come again, when we could regulate our own hours of
attendance, take unlimited leave of absence, and relieve distress by
having recourse to the Government cash. When Grimes was
Auditor-General every officer was a gentleman and a man of honour.
In the bush no bank account was kept, as there was no bank within
fifty or a hundred miles; and it was an implied insult to expect a
gentleman to produce his cash balance out of his pocket. As a matter
of courtesy he expected to be informed by letter two or three weeks
beforehand when it was intended to make an official inspection of his
books, in order that he might not be absent, nor taken unawares.

When the Inspector appeared, Mr. H. did not lose his presence of
mind, or show any signs of embarrassment. He said he was glad to see
him (which was a lie), hoped he had had a pleasant journey through
the bush; asked how things were going on in Melbourne, and made
enquiries about old friends there. But all t