AUS-PT-JACKSON-CONVICTS-L Archives

From: "Lesley Uebel" <>
Subject: Government Domain
Date: Sat, 5 Mar 2005 17:43:34 +1100

In 1816 Governor Macquarie issued an order that nobody was to trespass in the
Government Domain at Sydney. His main reasoning was that he had made
improvements to the garden by planting and general ornamentation and in order to
secure these from being stolen, injured or destroyed he enclosed it with a stone
wall.



Part of a letter from the disgruntled Reverend Benjamin Vale (and that's another
story) to Earl Bathurst in
1818 complaining about Governor Macquarie


"Two thoughtless girls of honest repute who were sauntering about with their
mistress' or mother's children, stepped over a part of the wall belonging to the
government domain, (which is a full quarter of a mile to the Government House
and was not above seven or eight inches high occasioned by a breach in the wall
which had been there to my knowledge several weeks) merely as they said to show
the children the pretty daisies, were seized by two constables and conveyed to
Sydney Gaol, where they were received without any ceremony. The constables
received two bottles of rum for their exertions, and the poor girls were
compelled to spend a night or two in gaol, exposed to all the insults which the
worst of convicts chose to offer them."

A number of people were flogged for trespassing and following is a deposition of
William Blake of Sydney, Blacksmith

New South Wales to Wit
On Thursday, the eighteenth April, One thousand eight hundred and sixteen, about
ten o’clock, I walked down the road towards Mr Allan’s; I live near the new
Hospital; as I was going along there was a woman or two and I wanted to do my
business; and for decency’s sake, I got through the wall of the Government
Domain, seeing the wall was down, and no sooner than I was over I was taken by
Constables; they said my friend, I am sorry to inform you that it is the
Governor’s Orders to take everyone that comes here to the gaol; I was much
alarmed for seeing everyone passing there I thought it no harm: I was taken to
gaol from that time till the next day; I was not taken before a Magistrate nor
the Governor; on Friday morning about eleven o’clock as I believe Mr Cubitt came
with a Warrant, which I read, and it said that I and two others were to have
twenty five lashes each for getting over the wall of the Government Domain; I
was in such a fright that I did not mind exactly what was in the Warrant; I was
very much alarmed and trembled very much to think of such a thing; Mr Cubitt
took back the Warrant and ordered this execution to take place almost
immediately; they ordered the Flogger to get the triangles directly; when the
triangles were came, the other man was flogged first, Henshall next, and I was
flogged last, we then paid the Gaol Fees and out we came.

I came to this country in the ship Northampton, Captain Tween in July, One
thousand eight hundred and fifteen; I am a Blacksmith by trade; I came out a
free man; my wife had been sent a prisoner in the ship; I was never taken before
a Magistrate and had no hearing at all.
Wm. Blake

Taken and Sworn before me at Sydney in the Territory aforesaid this twenty
second April one thousand eight hundred and sixteen
Jeffery Hart Bent
Judge of the Supreme Court.

Source: HRA

Lesley Uebel
mailto:

CLAIM A CONVICT
http://users.bigpond.net.au/convicts/index.html
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