Page:History of New South Wales from the records, Volume 1.djvu/124

 26 THE EXPEDITION TO BOTANY BAY. 1786 6. A third expedition under the same commander was c^k^^nre ^^^^ ^^* ^ *^® Pacific Ocean in 1776, to make discoveries in the northern hemisphere. Peace of 7. By the Peace of Versailles in 1783, England recognised 1783. * the independence of the American colonies, which were thus finally lost to her. La p<jrouse, 8. The French Government sent out a third expedition in 1785, under the command of La Perouse, for the purpose of making discoveries and also examining portions of New Holland and New Zealand. Captain 9. In 1786 Botany Bay was fixed upon as the site of the Phillin 17S7 v y Jr ' intended settlement on the coast of New South Wales, and in May, 1787, the fleet sailed under the command of Gover- nor Phillip, whose last lines from England ^howed how thoroughly he appreciated the national importance of the work in which he was engaged. These events lead to the conclusion that, whether Lord Sydney and his colleagues confined their attention to the state of the gaols or not, there was a motive-power of a very different character at work, irresistibly impelling them to undertake the colonisation of New South Wales.* p. 103. Digitized by Google
 * Lucas, Introduction to a Historical Geography of the British Colonies,