hat
Mr. Eyre will discover a country which may derive support from us, and
increase the prosperity of our Province. I must express my gratification
at the manner in which this enterprise, noble, let its results be what
they may, has been supported by our colonists at large. It is a greater
honor to be at the head of the government of a colony of enlightened and
enterprising men, than at that of an empire of enslaved and ignorant
beings in the form of men. I count it so. May the zeal which has been
exhibited in the colony in the promotion of every good and useful work
ever continue. Some ladies of Adelaide have worked a British Union Jack
for Mr. Eyre. Captain Sturt will be their representative to present it to
him. After that we will adjourn to the opposite rooms to invoke a
blessing on the enterprise. All here, and I believe the whole colony,
give to Mr. Eyre their best wishes, but to good wishes right-minded men
always add fervent prayers. There is an Almighty invisible Being in whose
hands are all events--man may propose, but it is for God only to
dispose--let us therefore implore his protection."

"The Hon. Captain Sturt then received a very handsome Union Jack, neatly
worked in silk; and presenting it to Mr. Eyre, spoke nearly as follows:--

"It cannot but be gratifying to me to be selected on such an occasion as
this, to perform so prominent a part in a duty the last a community can
discharge towards one who, like you, is about to risk your life for its
good. I am to deliver to you this flag, in the name of the ladies who
made it, with their best wishes for your success, and their earnest
prayers for your safety. This noble colour, the ensign of our country,
has cheered the brave on many an occasion. It has floated over every
shore of the known world, and upon every island of the deep. But you have
to perform a very different, and a more difficult duty. You have to carry
it to the centre of a mighty continent, there to leave it as a sign to
the savage that the footstep of civilized man has penetrated so far. Go
forth, then, on your journey, with a full confidence in the goodness of
Providence; and may Heaven direct your steps to throw open the fertility
of the interior, not only for the benefit of the Province, but of our
native country; and may the moment when you unfurl this colour for the
purpose for which it was given to you, be as gratifying to you as the
present."

"Mr. Eyre, visibly and deeply affected, r