Page:History of New South Wales from the records, Volume 2.djvu/306

 262. GROSE AND THE LAND. 1798-4 in a very liberal manner. This liberality did not meet with the approval of the British Government. In a despatch dated 30th June, 1793,* the omission made in the first instance was repaired. The Lieutenant-Governor was informed that : — He fa " AH the civil and military officers may, as such, be allowed two instructed ., , . . , <. i i ,. . to reduce convicts each, to be mamtained out of the pubuc stores for two to two, years longer, but after that period they should themselyes maintain such as they are desirous of keeping. But where grants of lands are made to such officers as at the same time continue to receive their pay, it is but reasonable that they should maintain such con- victs as are granted for the cultivation of their land, exclusive of the two allowed to them as officers for two years, in the manner I have mentioned." Grose was placed by this communication in a very nn- but does not pleasant position. He got over the diflBtculty by temporis- ° '°* ing, and left to Hunter the disagreeable duty of taking from the officers the labour which they had first regarded as a privilege, but had come to look upon as a right. Replying on the 29th April, 1794, to Dundas's despatch of the 30th June, 1793, Grose intimated that as the concession had been made, and less than ten convicts each would be unequal to nfa reaaona the task of cultivating the farms of officers, he would defer carrying out the directions until further instructions on the point were received from England, adding that but little inconvenience resulted from these men being taken from the service of Government ; and expressing a hope that, as the produce raised by the officers had been of '^much He asiu for public utility,^' the matter would be reconsidered, and the ■ideration. System allowed to remain undisturbed. In the opinion of the authorities in England, the convicts should have been employed rather for the public advantage than for the profit of individuals. Under Grose's plan, however, the officers cultivated the land with the aid of convicts maintained at the public expense, and then sold A one-sided to the Government the produce which might have been ment raised by the same labour from the public estate. It was
 * HiBtorical Record^, vol. ii, pp. 49-51.