Launceston, in and about 1828. H e was afterwards lost in the sad-fated 'Britannia.' T h e whaling party went, and built comfortable huts on shore (in one of which I afterwards lived), under the charge of Mr. William Dutton, w h o received the Hentys hospitably on their arrival (his own words). H e had over 30 m e n employed there, and some could not return. I was in charge of the whalingstation when Major Mitchell arrived in 1836 with not less than 24 men.
" T h e late Captain Mills and others were sealing there before the arrival of the whalers. Mr. Edward and M r . Stephen Henty commenced whaling in 1837. " It is impossible to tell the correct history of thefirstWestern Victorian pioneers without mentioning the n a m e of the energetic, enterprising shipmaster and shipbuilder John Griffiths. H e fitted out all the early whalers to that part out of Launceston, and built ' T h e Brothers,' a schooner, in 1847, at Port Fairy, and a punt in 1837 for cutting in whales. H e was born in N e w South Wales in 1801, a pioneer of our native youth." A correspondent under the signature " A Portlander," dated 17th August, 1885, furnished m e with the following :—" William Dutton undoubtedly earned on Bay whaling at Portland prior to the arrival of any of the Hentys; but it m a y reasonably be inferred, from experience in other localities, that had the existence of the T o w n of Portland depended on the whalers w h o frequented its shore, the site would, in all probability, have been abandoned with the decline of the whale-fishery which embodied their staple interests. Edward Henty left Launceston with the intention of settling at Portland, and founding a h o m e there, as the following oft-quoted extract from the Launceston Advertiser of the 13th October, 1834, should conclusively prove:—Departures.—'Thistle,' schooner, Liddle, master, for Portland Bay. Passengers— E. Henty and five servants, together with a full cargo of agricultural implements and building materials. O n the 29th November, 1834, the 'Thistle' returned from Portland Bay in ballast, and afterwards was continued for a time taking stock across from Launceston to Portland. Edward and Stephen. Henty m a y not have commenced whaling until 1837, but the settlement took place some three years prior to this, and the fishery was only added as a branch industry to their already established farming operations. T h e foregoing m a y not be of any interest to the general community, but to those w h o value historical correctness, these few remarks should be of more importance, and this must be m y excuse for tendering them." Mr. Francis Henty, in a recent communication to a Melbourne newspaper, makes the annexed correction : "It was in September, 1835, o n m >' w a Y back from Launceston to Portland in the small cutter, the ' Mary Ann,' that Ifirstsaw the site of Melbourne. W e called in at Port Phillip and removed Batman and his party from Indented H e a d to the Yarra Yarra Falls, n o w the Queen's Wharf. Batman had been round the coast to this spot before, and I found Mr. Fawkner's party located on the south bank of the river, but not Mr. J. P. Fawkner himself, he not having arrived till about the middle of October, as his o w n signature to the old colonists' address to Prince Alfred will testify." MY -FIRST AND LAST TRIP TO THE RACES.
An "Old Colonist," whose courtesy I have acknowledged elsewhere, has supplied the following scrap of reminiscence which is worth publishing, though considering that he has been in the colony since before the first race meet was held at Flemington up to the present, his turf experiences are of the most limited character. Nevertheless, the particulars of his two ventures upon the forbidden ground are both reliable and readable. " In the olden times the annual races on the metropolitan course took place usually in the month of March, and, as it was the only meeting of that kind in the colony, many country people visited Melbourne during the race week. T h e sole means of access to the course by land was riding on horseback or in a dray—no lighter vehicles being used then; and, as there was no road, it was rather rough on travellers. But there was a much pleasanter way of getting to the same destination by water, as the steamer 'Aphrasia,' which traded to Geelong, was laid on for the racecourse direct; and, as the T o w n Band was announced to play on board, this was an additional attraction to lovers
