eight. But the improvement in sheep is especially
astonishing. Never was there a country so favourable to these animals as
the part of New Holland now occupied by the British. Whether it be the
effect of the climate or, as I think, the peculiar quality of the herbage
(almost wholly aromatic), certain it is that the flocks of sheep have
multiplied enormously. It is true that the finest breeds have been
imported by the Government. At first, the choicest kinds of English and
Irish sheep were naturalised. Then breeds from Bengal and the Cape of
Good Hope were introduced. Finally, the good fortune which seems to have
conspired with the enterprise of our rivals furnished them with several
pairs of merinos from Spain, which the Spanish Government at great
expense were sending to the Viceroy of Peru, upon a ship which was
captured upon the coast of that country by an English vessel out of Port
Jackson, and which were brought thither, much to the satisfaction of the
Governor, who neglected nothing to derive the fullest possible advantage
from a present valuable to the colony. His endeavours have not been in
vain. This species, like the others, has improved much, and there is
reason to believe that in a few years Port Jackson will be able to supply
valuable and abundant material for the manufacturers of England. What is
most astonishing is that the Indian sheep, which naturally produce short,
coarse hair instead of wool, in the course of three or four generations
in this country produce a wool that can hardly be distinguished from that
furnished by English breeds, or even Spanish. I have seen at the
Governor's house an assortment of these different kinds of wool, which
were to be sent to Lord Sydney, and I assure you that it would be
difficult to find finer samples. In my excursions with Mr. Paterson, Mr.
Marsden and Mr. Cox, I have seen their flocks, and really one could not
but admire in that regard the incalculable influence of the industry of
man, so long as it is encouraged and stimulated by enlightened and just
administrators.

Another source of production which appears to offer great advantages to
the English is that of hemp. In this country it is as fine in quality as
it is abundant, and several persons whose testimony is beyond suspicion
have assured me that New Holland, before many years have passed, will
herself be able to furnish to the British Navy all the hemp that it
requires, thus freeing England from the considera