and the best time will
be the first Saturday after the arrival of any other vessel than
the Sirius. Most of the marines and free people will be
a-cabbaging*, and as Mr. King generally goes to the farm twice a
day, in his absence I will step into his house and hand out the
arms** to my men; then I will go out and take Mr. King, and after
that the other officers, and what marines are in camp, and the
rest as they come in from cabbaging: we will then put them all in
irons, two and two together, when they will be as helpless as
bees. We will then make the signal for a boat, and when she
lands, we'll _nab_ the boat's crew; then send the coble off
with Mr. King's compliments, and request another boat may be sent
to carry off plank, as the first boat was stove, and the coble
could not carry luggage: when the second boat comes, the people
belonging to it will be _nabbed_, and the two boats with the
coble will be filled with our people (the convicts) and the
women, and take possession of the ship. Three of the sailors
might remain, if they were willing, and one officer should be
kept to navigate the ship; the rest of the officers and ship's
company will be left on Nepean or Phillip-Island, with the coble,
from whence they might go to Norfolk-Island and liberate the
commandant.

[* Getting the wood-cabbages.]

[** The marines arms were kept in my
house.]

"Elizabeth Anderson then expressed her wishes that it might
succeed, and Francis left her."

The taking Webb and Anderson's depositions, and interrogating
them, took up two hours; and it being Saturday, most of the
convicts were out getting cabbages: there was a possibility that
the accusation against William Francis might be an invention;
yet, having received that information, it became necessary to use
every precaution against a surprize; I therefore ordered a
constant guard of three privates, to be commanded by Mr. Dunavan,
the serjeant, and corporal, and a guard-house was built between
my house and the surgeon's, in which the provisions and stores
were deposited. The store-house occupied by the marines, I
removed from the water side nearer to my house. Every person,
without exception, was ordered to live in the town, or camp, and
I recalled the party who had been sent to Ball-Bay.

Being still desirous to obtain fuller proof the criminality of
the parties concerned in this diabolical scheme, I desired
Messrs. Dunavan and Jamieson to watch the return of John Bryant,