Page:Narrative of a Visit to the Australian Colonies.djvu/187

1833.] having washed their clothes on the Saturday; this too springs entirely from themselves. The men dress every Sunday morning in clean, duck frocks and trowsers, and every one of them washes himself."

We remained in Launceston a month; in the course of which we held some religious meetings with the inhabitants, and with the prisoners in the Penitentiary, and had also a meeting for the promotion of temperance. We likewise visited the inhabitants of Patersons Plains, an open grassy district, on the North Esk, to the eastward of Launceston.

During this period, the weather was frosty at night, the thermometer frequently falling to 25°. From the adjacent hills, the town, in a morning, often appeared as if it were based on clouds, as the fog, to which it is liable, dispersed. The days were generally clear and warm.

On the 11th of 6th month, we set out on a more extended visit than the former, to the settlers on Norfolk Plains and the Macquarie River, which occupied us till the 1st of 7th month, when we returned again to Launceston.

In the course of this journey, we visited an interesting boarding-school for girls, at Ellenthorpe Hall; and one for boys, on Norfolk Plains; and also inspected one of four Government day-schools, under the care of R. R. Davies, the Episcopal chaplain at Longford.

While in Launceston, we joined several other persons in organizing a Temperance Society, which was attended with good results, notwithstanding, several who originally united in it, relapsed into drinking practices, and one of them fell into the commission of a crime, through the influence of strong drink, for which he forfeited his life.—We also paid some attention to the state of the prisoners in the Penitentiary, and other places where they were under the charge of the Government. On one occasion, I saw fourteen men sent into the Penitentiary, from Nottmans Road Party, to be flogged, for not executing their full quota of work.

We left Launceston again on the 13th of 7th month, and went by Patersons Plains, the Cocked Hat Hill, Perth, the South Esk, Campbell Town, Ross, Oatlands, Jericho, the