Temperance Hall and at various other places. Lodges have been also formed in many of the up-country towns, and two or three places, such as Cheltenham, have n o w Protestant Halls of their own. At present there are 73 Lodges in the colony, and the total number of their effective or paying members is about 4,000, of which nearly 2,000 are in Ballarat alone. It is claimed, however, that there are at least 80,000 Orangemen in the colony w h o are not attached to the Order. Presiding over all the Lodges is a Grand Lodge, which holds half-yearly meetings at Melbourne, Ballarat, Sandhurst, Castlemaine, and Geelong in rotation, and to this Grand Lodge the minor Lodges pay capitation fees to meet the general expenses." That this notice is saturated with exaggeration to an absurd extent admits of no reasonable doubt. In connection with this subject I may mention that through a sincere desire to be as correct as possible in data for the compilation of this sketch, I addressed a courteously written application to the Orange Secretary for the facts connected with the early Orangeism, and which he might consider himself justified in supplying; but I was denied the courtesy of even an acknowledgment of the receipt of m y letter; a marked exception to the manner in which similar applications for information had been received in other quarters.* However, what the Secretary would (or rather perhaps could) not give, has been obtained through a more authentic medium, for one of the staunchest Orangemen in the colony has placed at m y disposal a curious M S . tract. It was prepared by a veteran " true blue," a resident at Richmond, and one of the three or four still amongst us w h o assisted at the birth, and aided in the nursing and bottle-feeding of a bantling whose evil instincts always dominated its professedly good intentions. In a spirit of fair play I append the document in extenso without even taking an exception to a few somewhat inelegant expressions dropped into the dish as a condiment : — "A SHORT ACCOUNT OF THE ORIGIN OF THE LOYAL ORANGE INSTITUTION IN MELBOURNE."
"In the year 1843 an election took place for the return of a Representative to the Sydney Legislature, Melbourne returning one member. T w o candidates stood for election, viz. : Mr. Henry Condell, a brewer, and thefirstMayor of Melbourne; and Mr. Edward Curr, better known as ' Circular H e a d ' Curr; the former was a Protestant, the latter a R o m a n Catholic, w h o was defeated by a large majority. " T h e defeat so enraged the Catholic party that a m o b of them, low ruffians, assailed the Protestant party with sticks and stones, breaking their doors and windows, and endangering the lives of the inmates. Amongst those w h o suffered the greatest damage were M r . H . Frencham and Mr. J. Green, both auctioneers. T h e latter was prepared for the mob, and when his premises were attacked he fired on his assailants, wounding some of them. This repulse had the effect of causing the m o b to retreat out of the range of fire. T h e firing brought quickly into action a troop of mounted black police, under the c o m m a n d of Captain Dana, w h o charged the m o b in gallant style, making them fly in all directions ; but he was allowed to carry off the wounded, two of w h o m were taken to the doctor. T h e scene of this engagement was in Elizabeth street, opposite the present Telegraph Office. Captain Dana and his black police did good service in restoring order, for he patrolled the town the whole night, dispersing the Catholic m o b wherever they assembled. Mr. Green was brought up at the police office forfiring,but was honourably acquitted. " U p to this time a kindly feeling had existed between Protestants and Catholics. Open voting at elections then existed, so that each party knew h o w the other voted, and the conduct of the Papists at this election so aroused the Protestant party to action, that they resolved to band themselves together for mutual protection, and to resist in the future the lawless conduct of the Popish m o b . Accordingly a meeting was convened by a few Orangemen from Ireland, to be held at the Pickwick Hotel, Swanston street, kept by a Mr. Paterson. T h e meeting was well attended, presided over by M r . Alderman Kerr, and a resolution was carried unanimously that a Loyal Orange Lodge be formed on the same principles as the Lodges of Great Britain and Ireland. A Lodge of about 0
It is only just to the Secretary to add that he afterwards disclaimed any discourteous intention towards the Author.—Eu.
