sional
engagement was made with Mr. Raven, to convey them to India, if no other
service should offer for his ship.']

Indeed, had it been adopted, the army in India could not have been much
benefited; since, if the recruiting officers were nice as to the point of
character, small would be the number of their recruits, and, if not
overnice in this particular, small would be the portion of morality that
they would introduce.

In order to encourage as far as possible the rearing of swine in the
colony, as well as of every other kind of live stock, a circumstance that
must not only prove a great benefit to the public, but be also highly to
the advantage of those who devoted a part of their time to this useful
purpose, and which, from the advanced state of the private farms, might
now be done with far less trouble and expense than formerly, the settlers
and others were informed, that when any individual should have prepared a
number of such animals fit for the public store, they might make the same
known to the commissary, who, in order to prevent any unnecessary expense
to the feeder, would give immediate notice of the day and place when and
where he would receive them. He was also at liberty to enter into an
agreement or contract for a certain length of time, and on such
conditions as should be agreed, with any person who would engage to
furnish the public store either at Sydney, Parramatta, or the Hawkesbury,
with any certain quantity at stated periods.

The commander of the _Hunter_ snow, Mr. Fern, having found, like
most of those who had preceded him, that a voyage to New South Wales was
not a bad speculation, resolved on deriving some profit from his return.
It was understood at his departure, which was on the 20th, that he was
bound for New Zealand, for the purpose of cutting spars to load with back
to Bengal.*

[* Mr. Robert Campbell, who returned some time after to Port
Jackson, mentioned, that Captain Fern proceeded to the river Thames in
New Zealand, where his people cut down a quantity of very fine spars,
sufficient to load his vessel; but, being rather short of hands, he could
not have shipped them, had not the natives with much alacrity and good
humour assisted his people in getting them to the water's side. See Vol I
Ch. XXVIII, viz: 'In the course of that time they cut down upwards
of two hundred very fine trees, from sixty to one hundred and forty feet
in length, fit for any use that the East India Compa