Captain Lawes, of His Majesty's ship Satellite,) of natives of the East; ticket of leave men and convicts, who had served out their term of sentence in the settlement, being allowed to settle in a similar capacity.
As a penal colony, a settlement in the proposed locality could scarcely be unsuccessful in the attainment of its object, provided the grand errors and gross mismanagement, that have hitherto proved causes of failure in New South Wales and Van Dieman's Land, were carefully guarded against, and the dear-bought experience of the past converted into a useful lesson for the future. But even if it should prove unsuccessful in that object, as is scarcely to be anticipated, the loss would be comparatively small; as a settlement at Port Essington would, doubtless, prove the foundation of another noble superstructure of British power, British commerce, and British influence in the East. Should it prove successful as a penal settlement, a series of settlements could be formed successively on the same model all along the north coast of New Holland, from Cape Yorke to Cape Maria Van Dieman, as well as within the gulf of Carpentaria; the penal character of such settlements to be temporary only, and to prepare the way for future colonies of freemen.
