ATTEMPTED CAPTURE OF NATIVES.

It was not until exasperation, on either side, rose to its highest, that measures were taken to prevent the complete destruction of the aborigines. The first method selected was not characterized by prudence; being the result of the passionate counsels of the great body of colonists, who were smarting under evils entailed upon them by their own violent conduct. As is natural in all these cases, they looked only to the necessity of protecting their property and their lives; and did not take into account the massacres, the cruelties of every description, which had been at one time encouraged, or at least not condemned by the general voice. The casuistry of the human heart, in most instances, concealed the true state of the case, and many, if not the majority, felt the virtuous indignation which some only affected. At any rate, they set about the hunting down and capture of the aborigines, as a duty which they owed to themselves and their families. Government, with the best intentions, lent them every assistance in its power. The whole colony rose to a man; and military operations on a most extensive scale were undertaken. Cordons were established, marches and countermarches performed, complicated manoeuvres planned and executed, and every method resorted to, which in a different country and against a different enemy must have been rewarded with complete success. But in this instance, the impenetrable forests of Tasmania baffled the generalship and the tactics that were displayed; and an expedition attended with immense expense, and carried on with the greatest enthusiasm, ended in the capture of a single native.

REMOVAL OF ABORIGINES TO FLINDERS ISLAND.

It was now evident that means of another character must be tried, and the plan which Mr. Robinson had laid before Government for the capture of the natives in the meshes of persuasion was adopted. This enterprising person, accordingly, went alone and unattended among the aborigines, endured great privations, ran much risk, but finally, partly by his eloquence, partly by stratagem, contrived to bring in the tribes one by one, and to transport them quietly to the islands in the eastern entrance of Bass Strait. Mr. Bateman, commanding the colonial brig, Tamar, who took them across, describes them as reconciled to their fate, though during the whole passage they sat on the vessel's bulwark, shaking little bags of human bones, apparently as a charm against the danger to which they felt exposed.

They were first taken to Swan Island, but that not being found convenient, they were landed on the west side of Flinders Island, under the superintendence of Mr. Robinson. This place, also, was discovered to be ill-adapted for a permanent settlement; and a removal again took place to Vansittart or Gun-carriage Island, at the eastern extremity of Franklin Channel, where a number of sealers had been resident for some years; as, however, they could not show any title to the land they cultivated, except that of original occupancy--a title which I think should be respected, as it is the only true basis of the right of property--they were obliged to vacate, leaving their huts and crops to be laid waste. In the course of a few weeks, when considerable mischief had been effected, this position, likewise, was abandoned, and a location made once more on the west side of Flinders, about sixteen miles to the northward of Franklin Inlet.

SETTLEMENT.

The Home Government directed that in this their place of banishment every attention should be paid to the wants of the aborigines, and a liberal scale of necessaries provided. The officers of the establishment originally consisted of the superintendent, medical officer, catechist and storekeeper; but when the buildings, etc. for the settlement, were completed, the convicts were withdrawn, which diminished the number so much, that it was deemed practicable to reduce the staff of officers, and the whole duties of the four departments above alluded to devolved on one person, under the name of Surgeon-Superintendent. The combination of so many duties has, unfortunately, necessitated the neglect of some portion or another, possibly of the most material. The Sabbath afternoon is the only time that can be set apart for the religious instruction of the natives. This is to be regretted, as we have ample evidence of how capable they are of receiving it, in the lasting effects produced by Mr. Clarke, who sometime since filled the office of storekeeper; and for whom they all continue to feel great veneration, and to exhibit that respect which is due to a parent. On our visit in 1842 we heard all the natives of both sexes, old and young, sing several hymns, taught them by this excellent person. A few comprehended the full meaning of the words they uttered; and all, no doubt, might be brought to do so if proper instructions were again granted them.

Walter and Mary Ann, a married couple, who had recently returned from Port Phillip, where they had been living in the family of the former superintendent, Mr. Robinson, were so civilized, and proficient in all the plain parts of education, that they possessed great influence over their countrymen, who, incited by the contemplation of their superiority, were apparently desirous of acquiring knowledge. The barracks in which the natives dwell form a square of good stone buildings; but Walter and his wife have a separate cottage, with a piece of land attached. Mary Ann is a very tolerable needlewoman, and capable of teaching the others; some of whom, encouraged by the prizes that are awarded to industry, already assist in making their own dresses.

MORTALITY AMONG NATIVES.

The men, to whom inducements are also held out to labour in farming, etc., are, however, generally indolent. They still retain a taste for their original wild habits, taking to the bush, occasionally, for several days together; and in order to enjoy all the freedom of limb to which they had been accustomed, throwing off their European clothing. This practice has been expressly prohibited, as from the sudden resumption of savage habits, and the abandonment of the covering to which they had become accustomed, severe illness resulted. To this may in part be attributable the rapid mortality which exists among them, and which leads us to suppose that at no distant period their utter extinction must take place. Out of two hundred who were originally taken to Flinders Island, more than one hundred and fifty had perished in 1842, to replace which loss, an addition of only fourteen by births, besides seven brought in the Vansittart, had been made. It seems, in truth, impossible that a race transported from their country, suddenly compelled to change all their habits and modes of life, kept under restraint, however mild and paternal, obliged to repress all the powerful instincts which lead them to desire a renewal of their wild and unfettered life, tormented by the memory of the freedom they once enjoyed, and galled by the moral chain which they now wear, constantly sighing in secret for the perilous charms of the wilderness, for their hunts, and their corrobberies, for the hills and mountains and streams of their native land--it is impossible, I say, that a people whose life has undergone such a change, who cherish such reminiscences and such regrets, should increase and multiply and replenish the face of the land.