the want of labour. The truth is, that the ignorance which
prevails in the inland counties as to any matters connected with foreign
parts, and the little means the labouring classes possess of defraying
their own expenses, has kept them, except in a few instances, from
seeking to go to that distant part of the world, which assuredly holds
out to them the brightest prospect, and is most like their own home. They
may however rest satisfied that the voyage to Australia is as safe as
that to New York, that it is far more pleasant as regards the weather,
and that little or no sickness has ever thinned the number of those who
have embarked for the Australian colonies. The expense of the voyage is
certainly greater than that of a passage to the Canadas, or to the United
States, but it is to be hoped that the means of transport will soon be at
their command. I would only in this place offer the remarks I
conscientiously think the case requires, as one who, having witnessed the
happiness of thousands in the land of which he is speaking, would gladly
be instrumental in opening the way for thousands more of his countrvmen
to the same happy destiny. Having been both to Canada and the Australian
colonies, if I were asked which of the two I preferred, I should
undoubtedly say the latter. I do not desire to disparage the Canadas by
this assertion, for I know that they have advantages in their soil and in
the magnificence of their rivers beyond comparison, but Australia, on the
other hand, has advantages over our transatlantic possessions, such as
her increased distance from England, cannot counterbalance. Her climate,
in the first place, is surpassing fine. There the emigrant is spared the
trouble of providing against the severities of a Canadian winter. That
season passes over his head almost without his knowledge, and the ground,
instead of being a broad sheet of snow, is covered with vegetation. Her
lands, unencumbered by dense forests, are clear and open to the plough,
or are so lightly wooded as to resemble a park, rather than a wild and
untouched scene of nature. Instead of having to toil with the saw and the
axe to clear his ground before he can cultivate it, and instead of
consuming a year's provisions before he can expect any return, he can
there run the plough from one end to the other of his enclosures, without
meeting a stone or a root to turn its point, and at once reap the produce
of the soil. These surely are advantages o