Page:A colonial autocracy, New South Wales under Governor Macquarie, 1810-1821.djvu/112

 help of his only law adviser, the Judge-Advocate, to ensure legal accuracy in the phraseology of his regulations. Macquarie claimed that when so called upon, the Judge-Advocate had no option but to obey. Bent held that he was bound to give advice, but that he might refuse to draw up any particular order desired by the Governor if he considered it illegal, since he might in such a case have to give judgment against it in the Courts. Wylde held a similar opinion but gave way on the Governor's insistence. Orders and Proclamations were published by insertion in the Sydney Gazette. As no Governor had ever considered himself bound by the laws of his predecessors, and no orderly record of them had ever been kept, Bent found in 1811 that no one really knew what laws were in force, and that many of them were quite inconsistent one with another. He began to collect and revise them, but was hindered by pressure of work, and in 1819 his successor, Wylde, was similarly prevented from completing the task.

The Gazette was under official superintendence and had been published weekly from the time of its establishment in 1803. It contained much news from English papers, of war, scandal and politics, as well as the chronicles of New South Wales and Government notices. Before going to press the whole contents were approved by the Governor's Secretary who was referred to as the "censor of the press". The price, three shillings a month, was admittedly high, but the price of paper was exorbitant. All Orders and Proclamations were published on three successive Saturdays and as much publicity as possible given to them. Probably they were posted in the towns and townships. Sometimes the chaplains were ordered to read them during service, an order disliked by several of them and disobeyed by Marsden. He declared that such a practice was "irregular and improper," and that the subjects