Page:ChroniclesofEarlyMelbournevol.2.pdf/219

Melbourne. Captain Lewis was a Waterloo veteran, and a very determined man, as was shown by a circumstance that happened during his stay in Melbourne. A riot took place at the time when Mr. Henry Condell was elected a member of the N e w South Wales Legislature in 1843. A m o b attacked the premises of a Mr. Green, an ironmonger, in Elizabeth Street, opposite the Post Office, and he used firearms to protect himself, and the soldiers having been sent for, the 80th, under Captain Lewis, appeared on the scene with fixed bayonets, and charged up Elizabeth Street from the Post Office as far as St. Francis' Church. T h e m o b being thus dispersed, Captain Lewis told them to be careful and not bring them down a second time, otherwise he would have some of their lives. T h e warning had so much effect that no further trouble was given. This brave veteran eventually became Colonel of the Regiment, and saw m u c h service in India. Lieutenant Beers, the second in c o m m a n d of the Company, and a cadet of a distinguished North of Ireland family, died here, and was buried by his comrades early one morning in a very quiet manner. T h e detachment of the 80th Regiment was replaced by a Company of the 99th, the head-quarters of which had recently arrived in Sydney. T h e 99th Regiment, all told, numbered n 0 0 men, with an average height of 5 feet 7 inches. Several of their superior Officers were Peninsular veterans, and altogether they were a splendid Regiment. They had a capital band, which introduced the celebrated 'Railway Galop' to these colonies, and delighted the citizens of Sydney by playing frequently in the Domain. T h e 99th lost their Colour-Sergeant while stationed here. Going out duck-shooting in the swamp, near Batman's Hill, and catching cold, it settled on his lungs, and carried him off in a few hours ; he was buried with military honours. T h e Company of the 99th did not remain here long, and were relieved by a company of the 58th, only lately arrived from England, in N e w South Wales, and in about twelve months they in their turn were relieved again by another Company of the same Regiment, which arrived by the ' Shamrock' steamer from Sydney; and as there was not sufficient room in the barracks for two Companies, they were quartered in a store in Flinders Street. A number of juveniles were present to witness their landing, and as there were two Grenadiers with bearskins among the number, one of the boys was quite frightened by their appearance, and bolted off. T h e following Sunday the citizens were gratified to see two whole Companies of soldiers marching to church. They came along by Bourke Street to William Street, where the Protestants filed off to St. James', while the R o m a n Catholics, headed by Grenadier-Corporal M'Guinis (who afterwards joined the police), proceeded to St. Francis'. Sergeant Matthews, w h o was watch-house keeper for many years, also belonged to this Regiment. " T h e 58th did not remain long here, as owing to the Maori outbreak in N e w Zealand, the 58th and 99th regiments were ordered off there, and some hundreds of the soldiers lost their lives through the incapacity of the Colonel of the latter Regiment, w h o was the senior officer. T h e n t h Regiment, which, by this time, had arrived in Sydney, supplied a Company to replace the 58th, under the c o m m a n d of Major Blosse, and during their stay the Orange riot at the Pastoral Hotel took place, in reference to a dinner given by the Orange Lodge on the 13th July, 1846, when banners were hung out of the windows, occasioning an exciting popular tumult. A number of m e n broke into Blundell's (a gunmaker's shop in Queen Street), and carrying off all the arms they could lay hands on commenced a fusillade at the hotel. T h e soldiers were summoned, and paraded under the c o m m a n d of Lieutenant Wilton, a R o m a n Catholic (as Major Blosse, the C o m m a n d e r of the Company, was laid up with a broken leg). H e ordered them to load with ball, and if directed tofire,to fire low. They then marched off to the Pastoral Hotel, and on arriving there two sections were placed facing up and down Queen Street, and other two sections in Little Bourke Street. T h e Mayor then read the Riot Act, and requested the people to disperse, which they did very quickly, and thus the soldiers were saved the very disagreeable duty of firing on them. T h e n t h were succeeded by a Company of the 99th Regiment again, under the c o m m a n d of Major Reeves, and after remaining some time were again relieved by another C o m p a n y of the nth, under Captain Conran. T h e n t h were stationed here when the Prince's Bridge was opened in November, 1850, and fired a salute from some cannons placed on the south bank of the Yarra. They remained in Melbourne until the advent of the 40th Regiment in November, 1852. M u c h had been heard of this celebrated corps, so