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Magistrate, or that he could be certain of their respectability." T h e passengers were not to bring any golden luggage, unless they paid the i per cent, on it. From time to time fresh orders were issued, amending the original Regulations. T h e principal modifications enjoined are for the convenience of the reader here grouped, irrespective of date. Persons wishing to deposit their gold in a temporary place of safety might deliver it to the custody of the Colonial Treasurer, in which case duplicate statements of the contents of the deposited bag and name and description of owner, should be prepared, one of them for retention at the Treasury, T h e officer in and the other by the owner, to be presented by him when the gold was claimed. charge of the escort was never to lose sight of the treasure during transit, and his m e n were not under any pretext, to be allowed to leave the immediate vicinity of the horses bearing it, and at night it was to be deposited "in the room where the officer himself is," and a sufficient guard was to be kept constantly over it. During the night the whole of the escort should rest in the mmediate vicinity of where the gold was, and on reaching Melbourne it was to be handed over to the Treasurer, for which purpose the escort should arrive in town not later than 2 p.m. O n the 25th November very precise injunctions were promulgated with reference to the Mount Alexander escort then established. T h e escort was to consist of four armed m e n , besides an armed m a n in the cart under the charge of Mr. A. Templeton. It was to leave the M o u n t every Tuesday morning, at six o'clock, and proceed that day, with a change of cart-horse at Carlsruhe, to the Mount Macedon Police Station. T h e boxes containing the gold were then to be placed in the watch-house, being still under the charge of the escort, w h o were invariably to remain there at night, having one m a n constantly on sentry. Next morning the journey to Melbourne was to be resumed, and, with another horse change at the Deep Creek, the destination was to be reached by 1.30 p.m. Resting for a day in Melbourne, the escort left for its return trip at an early hour on Friday. A s it was evident, from the quantity of gold likely to be forwarded, that the arrangement existent of carrying it in saddle-bags would not answer, it was determined to procure a convenient cart with iron boxes fitted to it, which was to be sent up as soon as possible, and until this vehicle was available the saddle-bag system was to remain. T h e cart-driver was to be a trooper, and under any circumstance to be armed; whilst another armed trooper was to sit by him. T w o of the escort were to ride at a convenient distance in the rear, whilst two others should be a short distance in advance of the cart as a precaution against sudden attack. T h e m e n were to be kept together day and night, and the leader was to be always on his guard to prevent the ill effects of a sudden attack. A full relay of horses was to be kept in a paddock at M o u n t Macedon, under charge of a constable; and no further relay was deemed necessary, except of a cart-horse at Carlsruhe; the change of the cart-horse between Mount Macedon and Melbourne being m a d e by a horse to be sent from Melbourne to the Deep Creek early on Wednesday morning for the purpose. T h e m e n composing the escort need not be relieved on the road, and they were to return to M o u n t Alexander in precisely the same manner as directed for their route to Melbourne. T h e first gold escort from Buninyong, or, as it was more generally termed, from Ballarat, arrived at Geelong on the 28th September, in charge of an officer of mounted police, two white and two black troopers, and accompanied by a Commissioner. It left the diggings on the morning of the 27th, and, though intimation of its departure was publicly given, but few of the miners availed themselves of it. T h e officer in charge brought a few parcels, most of it the property of the Government, and valued at ^ 2 0 0 0 . At the time of leaving, great harmony prevailed on the gold-fields. T h e diggers, with few exceptions, were well disposed towards paying the license fee, and licenses were applied for almost as fast as they could be issued. S o m e extraordinary "finds" were reported, such as 16 lbs. by one party, and £^o worth of a morning, in a dishful of washing stuff. The Commissioner roughly estimated the takings at from % oz. to 2 ozs. per m a n per diem, whilst the population was reckoned at between 1500 and 2000, not counting the prospecting or outlying parties, numbering some 500. T h e escort passed between 700 and 800 persons on the road, whilst three or four times as m a n y were supposed to be moving from Melbourne. T h e population was streaming to the diggings from all quarters, and it was calculated that before a week the digging