Page:The Boy Travellers in Australasia.djvu/520

496 for his clothing, and his whole appearance denoting destitution and despair.'

"'What was done with him?'

"'The squatter was a gentleman of influence; he realized that the convict could easily have murdered his wife and children, and in gratitude for his forbearance he became interested in the man's case, and obtained his pardon. The man afterwards became a prosperous farmer, and led a strictly honest life.

"'Not only were the convicts valuable as servants or laborers for the squatters and employers generally,' continued the gentleman, 'but they were also useful for the public works that are needed in a new country. There is a fine wagon-road from Launceston to Hobart, one hundred and twenty miles, which was built by gangs of convicts working under overseers and guards. There isn't a better road in Europe than this; and the same may be said of other roads that were built by convict labor in the early days of the colony. Before the railway was built, the stage-coaches used to run through from one place to the other in thirteen hours, or at the rate of nine miles an hour.

"'When you reach Hobart, the capital of Tasmania, you will find a handsome town of twenty thousand inhabitants, with good streets and substantial buildings, the Government House being one of the best belonging to a British colony anywhere. Hobart was largely built by convict labor; and so, you see, we have many things to remind us that transportation was not by any means a detriment to the country.'"