afety into harbour, when the emigrants
presented him with so handsome a testimonial that he resolved to settle
in the colony and lay it out to advantage. The governor had made him a
grant of a large extent of farm land, and assigned him some twenty
convict servants, land in those days being given away to free settlers,
and labour of the nature I have described found them gratis.

"Altogether I am in a fair way of some day becoming a rich man," he
observed, "the which I should never have been had I continued ploughing
the salt ocean. Besides," he added, with a twinkle in his eye, "how do
I know, if I did, that I should not some day fall into the clutches of
that fearful little monster La Roche? and if I did, I know that he would
not spare me. Do you know that even to this day I cannot altogether get
over my old feelings, and often congratulate myself as I ride through
the bush that I am far out of his reach."

O'Carroll kept to his resolution, and became a very successful and
wealthy settler. I frequently received letters from him after my return
home. In one of them he told me that he had had a surprise. The
governor asked him one day, as he could speak French, whether he would
like to have some French convicts assigned to him. He had no objection,
as he thought that he could manage them easily. What was his
astonishment, when the party arrived at the farm, to recognise among
them, in a little wizened-looking old man, his once dreaded enemy La
Roche! He determined to try and melt the man's stony heart by kindness.
At first he was almost hopeless in the matter, but he succeeded at
last. La Roche confessed that he had placed himself within the power of
the British laws in consequence of a visit he paid to England after the
war, for the purpose of carrying out a speculation which ended
unfortunately. It was satisfactory to hear that he lived to become a
changed man, truly repenting of his misspent life, and thankful that he
had been spared to repent.

I have not spoken of the would-be mutineer, Badham. It must be
remembered that he had committed no overt act of mutiny, and though
Captain Hassall was perfectly right in putting him in irons, he could
not have been brought to trial on shore. The day before we reached
Sydney he pleaded so hard to be forgiven, and so vehemently promised
amendment in all respects, that the captain resolved to give him a
trial. It must be confessed that he was not altogether disin