Two Voyages to New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land

by Thomas Reid

The convicts are now transferred to the care of the principal Superintendent, to whom all persons who want servants must apply. Some demur regarding the assignment of the individual for whom the application is made, not unfrequently occurs in this quarter. Persons of the first respectability, well informed regarding matters of this kind, have assured me, that the settlers have frequently complained of the difficulty they experienced in obtaining the acquiescence of the Superintendent of convicts to allow them servants of their own particular choice, and that there was, under such circumstances, only one way of procuring what they desired. Having no personal knowledge of the manner in which this extraordinary agency is effected, I do not pledge myself for the correctness of the statement; but I am well aware that the difficulty complained of does exist. Every settler to whom a convict servant is assigned, is required, by authority of the local Government, to pay as wages ten pounds sterling per annum to a male, and seven pounds to a female, besides board and lodging.

The male convicts not disposed of as servants, or by tickets of leave, are formed into gangs, which are stationed in different parts of the country in Government employ, such as making and repairing roads, and various other public works, and are maintained from the stores. Those employed at Sydney and its vicinity are lodged in a barrack, which has lately been erected, and is fitted for the accommodation of about eight hundred persons. There is another building of the same kind, at Emu Plains, but on a smaller scale, which want of time prevented me from visiting. The barrack at Sydney is spacious and lofty, erected in a healthy and appropriate situation; it is thoroughly ventilated, is kept exceedingly clean, and has many other advantages.

I visited this building several times, and could not avoid remarking the cleanliness of the different wards, and the respectful attention of the persons who showed me over them: the great objection I observed in the management was the entire want of classification, an obvious evil in every such establishment, and that nothing appeared of the nature of an organized system of morality. It was truly shocking and disgusting to hear the oaths, execrations, and language the most indecent, which issued from every side; nor did any of them appear to be intimidated by the presence of those in authority over them: indeed quite the contrary was observable; they seemed to me rather to be encouraged by those persons in practices so utterly repugnant to order and decency. Mr. Hutchinson, principal Superintendent of convicts, was with me on one of those occasions; but so far was he from checking with rebuke what, to say the least of it, was want of respect to one in his situation, that his own expressions outstripped and completely eclipsed theirs in wickedness and revolting filthiness.

Endless would be the task of commenting on the deterioration, if not total ruin, of moral principle, that must result from this want of classification and religious care among a community so constituted as this just noticed. How futile then must be every undertaking to reclaim men of this description under circumstances so inauspicious! I fear the hope of their reformation, therefore, is extremely distant, unless some means of an efficient nature like that alluded to be soon adopted. Sanguine indeed must be the mind that can expect improvement in a mass so heterogeneous, composed of delinquents of every age; a commixture of guiltiness of every shade and degree,—without any controlling influence over depravity however extravagant,—without any humane friend to warn against error, or direct to the paths which alone lead to peace and happiness.

Until the erection of this barrack, the convicts had to provide their own lodging, for which purpose they were allowed half of each day to work for themselves, or employ that time otherwise as they thought fit; but this was attended with manifest inconvenience both to themselves and their neighbours. The advantages of having them locked up at night, which is done regularly at eight o’clock, are incalculable, and it is as highly applauded by the sober part of the community as regretted by themselves, the public-house keepers, thieves, and receivers of stolen goods. Their labour must now be much more productive to Government than formerly, as they are obliged to work from six in the morning till six in the evening, Saturday excepted, when they are allowed half a day to receive their weekly rations of provisions.

Regarding the issues from the stores a salutary ordinance exists, making it criminal to purchase any part of a convict’s rations; which is a means of preventing many bad consequences: it cannot be denied, however, that circumstances often occur which render a breach of this order unavoidable. When fresh meat, for instance, is served out in hot weather, which embraces two thirds of the year, it will become putrid in a time inconceivably short: consequently the convict would want or starve during the greater part of the week, were he not to make some such arrangement privately, as must by its abuse have occasioned the present regulation. In general the male prisoners live well, if they conduct themselves properly, and observe sobriety; the regulations adopted for the maintenance of good order among them being efficient in a remarkable degree, when their great numbers, and also their former and present modes of life, are considered.

The convict Superintendents, and their numerous followers, as well as most of the constables, and many of the settlers of the inferior class, have adopted a practice of compounding with convicts assigned them as servants, by which they derive a certain income from those convicts for allowing them respectively the free disposal of their own time. This compromise is usually productive of a revenue amounting weekly to a sum varying from five to twenty shillings per head, or even more, as the circumstances may allow; as, for instance, when the convict is a mechanic, who, by being apparently on his own hands, can easily earn more than double the sum he pays in consideration to his master, who, from a necessary connexion with the Superintendent, generally knows the surest way to have those of any trade he chooses assigned him.

In such cases, it is always understood that the person to whom the convict is assigned, is responsible for the conduct of his servant; but, generally speaking, this responsibility is worse than nominal. Hence great inconvenience to society is the almost certain result; for many of those so assigned are known to levy contributions on the industrious inhabitants; and in this respect some of them exercise their wonted arts with surprising and successful dexterity. There can be little doubt that many support themselves wholly in this manner, as idle fellows are to be met with constantly prowling about, under various pretences, but notoriously intent on plunder, or mischief of some kind, which is still dear to their hearts. Of this description chiefly were the wretches whom I noticed skulking around the Factory at Parramatta, corrupting some of the women there, and persecuting others.

Various means have been adopted to restrain the irregularities of convicts thus at large, and punishments of a summary kind are frequently inflicted. Of these, the most severe next to that of death is transportation to the Coal River, which is ordered usually by His Honour the Judge Advocate, or a Bench of Magistrates, for a term of years, or for life, as the enormity of the offence may require. Convicts dread this mode of punishment very much, because they are there compelled to work in chains from sun-rise till sun-set, and are subject also to other restrictions of a highly penal description. The rigour of this sentence is, however, frequently relaxed in degree, as the criminal shows signs of amendment; and in very few cases is it found necessary to subject any of the convicts to a repetition of that sentence. Punishment by flogging is sometimes resorted to, and the infliction, which may be ordered by any Magistrate on conviction, seldom exceeds twenty-five lashes.

For females, it is considered sufficiently severe to confine them for a limited time to constant labour in the Factory at Parramatta; but enough has been said on that subject to satisfy that they can benefit but very little from such a discipline. The restraint produced by those punishments generally has some effect in preventing crime; but that of sending offenders to the Coal River, to which punishment females as well as males are liable, appears the most dreaded, and crimes are evidently less frequent than might be expected in a population composed of such mischievous materials.