lying-in women
in that country.

The bark of the tea-tree is thick in proportion to the size of
the tree, and is composed of a great number of layers of very
thin bark, in appearance not unlike the bark of the birch-tree;
but it is so very soft, that nothing this country affords can be
better calculated for the purpose for which it was intended:
Bannelong, however, desired to have a blanket for the child,
which was given him, and the next day, a net made in the English
manner, which appeared more acceptable to his wife than the one
she had parted with. He told Governor Phillip that his wife
intended doing him the honour of being brought to bed in his
house; but the governor at length persuaded him that she would be
better accommodated at the hospital.

The women do not appear to suffer any great inconvenience,
while in this state, and they all seem best pleased with having
boys: Bannelong often said his was to be a son.

A disorder had frequently been seen amongst the natives, which
had the same appearance as the itch, and yielded to the same
remedies; it was now so common, that nearly the whole of them
were infected with it, and several boys were cured at the
hospital by rubbing in of brimstone. Bannelong was a perfect
Lazarus, and though he was easily persuaded to go to the hospital
and rub himself, yet it was not possible to make him stay there
till he was cured.

On the 28th of August, the William and Ann transport anchored
in the cove. This vessel brought out stores and provisions, with
a serjeant and thirteen privates belonging to the New South Wales
corps, and several of their wives and children; also one hundred
and eighty male convicts: seven died on the passage, and
thirty-six were sick when they landed.

The continuance of the dry weather gave our colonists reason
to fear that their crops would suffer more this year than they
did the last: it was now the season for putting the maize into
the ground, which was so extremely dry that there was little
probability of its vegetating, if sown, before some rain fell:
the sun also began to have great power, and several ponds,
adjoining to which Governor Phillip had placed several settlers,
were losing their water very fast.

It has already been observed, that on some particular days,
the winds were heated to such a degree as to be almost
insupportable, which had always been imputed to the country round
the settlement being fired by the natives. Early in th