Page:The State and Position of Western Australia.djvu/80

 are raised here. Augusta is peculiarly adapted for a whale-fishing establishment, as the whales frequent this part of the coast in great numbers; the beach also is well suited for cutting them up, and the bay sheltered from the prevailing winds in winter. The fur seal also abounds. Near Augusta there is a fine stream of fresh water, sufficient to turn a mill, and constant all the year round, which is rarely the case with the streams in that country. There are some enterprising settlers located here, especially Captain Molloy, on half-pay of the Rifle brigade; in which distinguished corps he served in the Peninsula, and at Waterloo, where he was severely wounded. This gentleman has a fine and productive garden, in which he takes great interest. He has been Government Resident at Augusta since the formation of the settlement.—There is likewise a Mr. Turner, who, after many years of successful occupation in London as a builder, has become an energetic settler here; also Messrs. Kellum, and others. About a dozen miles up the Blackwood are located a respectable and amiable family of the name of Bussell, consisting of a lady, the widow of a clergyman, and five sons and three daughters grown up. The eldest of the sons is a graduate of Oxford, and an accomplished scholar. These gentlemen do not neglect their literary pursuits, while they find time to attend to all the various occupations required from settlers. Several miles above where this family is situated, are the Messrs. Chapman. The population of this district, including a small detachment of military, is about a hundred souls. At this station, the settlers have had the happiness of living in almost uninterrupted friendship with the natives: some of the former have extensive grants at the Vasse (where there is an estuary with a river running into it), and are said to be on the point of removing thither, on account of its being much more eligible than the banks