so that for months I had little time for
play. In addition a most interesting and difficult piece of work came my
way. The fixed defences, recommended by Sir William Jervois and General
Scratchley, consisted of three forts, one not far from the mouth of the
Port River, a second one approximately half-way between the mouth of the
river and Glenelg, and the third one near Glenelg. At that time there
were not sufficient funds to undertake the completion of the whole
scheme. The centre one, Fort Glanville, was considered the most
important, and had therefore been constructed first. The plans for the
other forts had been prepared at the same time as those for Fort
Glanville.

The coast from Glenelg to the mouth of the Port River is very low, a
continuous ridge of sandy dunes fringing a beautiful sea beach from which
the waters recede far at low tide. The mail boats anchored in the open
roadstead; passengers landed at the Semaphore jetty, cargo being placed
in barges and towed up the river to Port Adelaide. It was a most
unsatisfactory arrangement, and many have been the times that I got wet
through when meeting the steamers. In particularly rough weather baskets
had to be used to get on or off the ship. When it was too rough and
dangerous passengers had to be taken on to the next port of call. For
years the question of providing proper harbour accommodation had been
before successive Governments, but the vested interests at Port Adelaide
and other political reasons had successfully blocked the project. About
the beginning of 1882, however, a company was formed, which acquired a
large frontage to the sea from the boundaries of the Semaphore northwards
to the mouth of the Port River. This company obtained the right to
construct a harbour. It was called the Largs Bay Company. It built a
first-class up-to-date hotel on the foreshore, constructed a fine jetty,
and a railway leading into Port Adelaide, with the view of diverting the
landing of the passengers from the old Semaphore Government jetty to
Largs Bay. All this will probably be of little interest to you, except
that it supplies a reason for the influences that were brought to bear on
the Government to construct No. 2 Fort. If the outer harbour was to be
constructed, its protection was necessary. Hence I was instructed by the
general to revise the original plans of the Fort and adapt them to the
new fortress guns, which had superseded those existing at the time of the
con