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PARRAMATTA -Past and Present.

PEN AND PENCIL SKETCHES BY ROAD AND RIVER.

In the last seven issues of THE ILLUSTRATED SYDNEY NEWS

we have been publishing a series of articles with the above heading. The plan of the series is to illustrate with Pen and Pencil the history of Parramatta and its surroundings during the past century. Starting-from the old Obelisk in Macquarie Place, Sydney (from which all the public roads in the colony were measured) we travel to Parramatta by road, find out what is to be known of the quaint old town itself, and then return to Sydney by the Parramatta River. On the 'round trip we gather up as we go all the old associations connected with the road, town and river, making a valuable résumé of the past rich in historical and biographical, memories ; replete with references to ancient landmarks now passing away ; abundant- in interesting anecdotes of men and places of the past, and containing many opinions and experiences of various writers of our first Australian half-century. In our former papers -we have given descriptive and anecdotal sketches of numerous interesting spots on the Parramatta-road, omitting nothing worthy of mention ; we now fully describe and illustrate the town of Parra-

matta itself.

PARRAMATTA having been made

at a very early date-the centre of convict population, and the seat of Grovernment, a number of sub-   stantial and roomy buildings were erected there, such as gaols, penitentiaries, hospitals, barracks for military, etc. Among these, one of the most pretentious, which always attracted the notice of visitors to the town, was the 'Female Factory'. This building was projected by the Rev. Samuel Marsden-the senior chaplain-and from its inception has been praised, and also roundly abused (chiefly the latter) by all who have written on the subject. One of the earliest references to it is by a surgeon in charge of convict ships. ' Crossing the bridge, and walking about a quarter of a mile to the left, you come to the Female Factory, sur- rounded by a twelve-feet-high wall, which, however, some of its liberty-loving inmates occasionally find no great difficulty in clambering over.' It was built about 1820, und the original structure is thus described : ' Among the other buildings that attracted my attention was the Female Factory-a splendid edifice of white squared stone, standing a little way off from the town in a low sandy flat of short underwood. It is in the middle of a yard, walled round to the height of some twelve feet ; in it are con- fined all the female convicts in the colony not actually assigned out to private service, together with such as are under imprison- ment, etc., for bad conduct. These last are generally punished by having their hair cut very short, by being confined in solitary cells, given inferior rations, etc.' A Dr. Reed describes the arrival of a ship of con- vict females in Port Jackson, and the de- portation of the criminals from Sydney gaol to Parramatta factory. ' On visiting the gaol in Sydney the morning after the prisoners had been landed, I found that many of them had spent the night in noise and indecent revelry, occasioned by beer and spirits which had been introduced, and that

could not have been done without the know-

ledge of their keepers.' Bonwick carries on the story : ' The next day the women were to be conducted to the female factory, or dépot, at Parramatta, some fifteen miles from Sydney. A boat excursion from one town to the other is one of ever-changing scenes of beauty. But to these unhappy creatures it was no romantic trip, nor were the associations of their progress calculated to strengthen such resolutions of reform or hopes of peace. They went in parties, rowed up in boats by convict constables, among the most brutal and abandoned of men. Often were they from eight to ten hours on the passage, exposed to all the temptations to which their own helplessness and wretchedness, and their guardians' force and licentiousness could leave them.' The Factory is pictured as ' not a mere gaol for jmnishment ; but part of the building was devoted to the reception of women out of service, or newly introduced from ship- board. This foul, dirty and miserable place bad its moral surroundings of even pro-

founder filthiness.'

Dr. Cunningham, speaking of the arrival of a convict vessel in the old days, says :- 'The women, after being mustered on board, are sent up by water to the Parra- matta factory, and assigned to service by the Council, every encouragement being given to marriage by the present Governor, who is aware that the best species of reform is that which the wants of the married state

bring about-the new ties and new duties thus brought into play being the likeliest of all possible incitements to produce amend- ment by impelling to labour and industry, in order to cherish and more effectually

fulfil them. The love matches among this portion of our population certainly often savour not a little of the romance of olden times. Not a few of our factory fair have been wooed and won by a sort of telegraphic courtship, carried on by means of hand and handkerchief signals from a commanding eminence overlooking the domicile of these nymphs ; the most puzzling point for the lovelorn swain being that of finding out the name of his pledged bride, in order to obtain her release from the police bench for the consummation of their nuptials.'

Tyerman and Bennett, the agents of the London Missionary Society, were in Parra- matta in 1824, and made the following note in their diary : ' Aug. 25.-"We have paid a visit to the factory for the reception of female convicts, in which they are usefully employed in dressing flax, sorting wool, and spinning both, to be woven into cloth- ing materials by the men at their quarters. This building is large and exceedingly well adapted for the convenience and comfort of the poor women. In the garden are four stone structures, each containing two solitary cells for the confinement of refractory in- mates. There are at present a hundred and eight females lodged and under strict but humane inspection here. As many more

THE FEMALE FACTORY AT PARRAMATTA.

are expected to be brought hither in the course of a few days. A respectable matron has the superintendence of the establishment. This house of refuge for the most forlorn of human beings was erected at the suggestion of Mr. Marsden, and has not been completed more than two years. Formerly, when convicts of their sex were landed from the transports, they were left to provide for themselves ; the horrible consequences of which in such anomalous society as exists here need not be detailed. "When the inhabitants of Sydney and Parramatta and the adjacent country want domestic servants they apply here, and frequently find themselves well supplied by those who have not only been preserved from becoming worse than they were when their native country cast them forth, but who have been morally, if not religiously, improved under this merciful roof.'

Backhouse in 1835 also describes the

place, at that time having 250 sentenced inmates, exclusive of those assignable, 'who, he says, it is to be regretted, are nearly destitute of employment. Formerly women of this character were employed in spinning and in weaving coarse woollen cloth, but this occupation has been abandoned. The rooms where it was carried on are empty, and, like other parts of the building, have the glass of the windows much broken. This is said to have been done by some of the women in unruly fits which they take, one exciting the other.'

Speaking of these destructive outbreaks, Judge Therry, in his ' Reminiscences,'

writes : ' Their violence at times was ex-

cessive. At their prison, known hy the name of the " Female Factory," at Parra- matta, they destroyed often the furniture of their cells, broke plates and dishes, and threw everything provided, even for their own convenience, over the walls of their prison yard. Occasionally their outrageous conduct assumed the aspect of a rebellion

on a small scale. On one occasion I ventured

to suggest that the keeping of these ladies on bread and water for three days would probably be the best mode of starving the garrison into a surrender. The beseiged warriors menaced the demolition of the

factory, and threatened to use up the

matron and her small band of assistants as materials for a bonfire. In this dilemma

a recourse was had to an ingenious, though not successful, expedient for frightening them. A sergeant's guard from the Grenadier company of the regiment in the town were marched into the gaol-yard of the Female Factory. It was supposed that the sight of formidable fur-caps, loaded muskets with mounted bayonets, would frighten the besieged half out of their wits. No such thing ! The insurgents, undaunted by their presence, and pretty confident, no doubt, that the military party would not touch a

1

hair of their heads, commenced, a volley of stones, and staves from their broken-up

furniture. In a few minutes the ' Battle

of the Amazons ' was fought (the only fighting being on their side), and won by the women. The soldiers fled, laughing and scampering back to their barracks, and left the conquerers in possession of the field. Other measures, however, were resorted to ; a strong body of police, without using unnecessary violence, got possession of the place ; the ringleaders were picked out and punished ; a reduction of the supply of the little comforts allowed them, in a few days broke the strength and spirit of the com- bination, and all again was peace.'

We present in this issue a view of another ancient Parramatta building associ- ated with many old-time memories-the parsonage attached to the parish of St. John's, and originally erected by the Bev. Samuel Marsden. Although this has been somewhat altered and modernised as the

years have rolled by, it still gives an idea of the roomy and substantial dwellings in the colony's early days. Cunningham, who looked at it over sixty-five years since,

describes it as ' the handsome brick house

of the Rev. Mr. Marsden, crowning a fine rising ground to the left, surrounded by thriving clumps of trees, and overlooking the whole town scattered loosely over the

hollow beneath.' The foundation-stone of

this old parsonage was laid by the daughter of the Rev. Mr. Marsden on the 5th of May, in 1816, so that the original portions of the house are more than 73 years old.

Pew men have been subjected to so much calumny and disparagement on the part of foes, and praises from the mouths of friends as the senior chaplain of the colony, who used this old residence as a dwelling-place during the last forty years of his eventful life. _ He has been charged with too much severity in his magisterial dealings, and too much devotion to secular pursuits in the raising of crops and the rearing of flocks and herds. It is almost unnecessary to re- mind an impartial reader that the disparage- ments uttered by a known enemy have always to be very largely discounted. Mr. Marsden was placed in a most peculiar position as a magistrate; he had to deal with a vicious and desperate class ; and in his anxiety to administer the law so as to check vice and encourage morality his keen sense of justice would not allow him to yield to softer feelings, as a man of less rugged nature might have done. He was not vindictive in his sentences, and if the impartial carrying out of law was, in truth, at variance with his gentler office of a minister of religion, those were to blame who laid incongruous duties on the shoul- ders of one man. As to his farming and other secular operations, self-preservation almost demanded that most, if not all, the early settlers should engage in the raising of food ; and he who succeeded in this was esteemed a public benefactor To show that the Rev. Samuel Marsden was not of a vindictive disposition, the following anec- dote is related of him : 1 He was one day walking by the banks of the Parramatta River, when a convict, as he passed, plunged

into the water. Mr. Marsden threw off his coat, and in an instant jumped in after him, and tried to bring him to land. He con- trived, however, to get the chaplain's head under water, and a desperate struggle for life ensued between them till Mr. Marsden, being the stronger of the two, not only suc- ceeded in getting safely to shore, but also in dragging the man with him. The man, struck with remorse, then confessed his in- tention of having planned to drown the minister, who, he knew, would be lured into the water at the sight of a fellow creature's apparent danger. This man was

afterwards taken into Mr. Marsden's house-

hold, and served him faithfully in this same old house for many years. The parsonage wras the scene of repeated acts of hospitality, especially towards those who

came from remote shores. All those who were

interested in missionary enterprise in the then somewhat unknown South Seas, were sure of. a special welcome. The agents of the London Missionary Society have re- corded . this hospitable feature of the Marsden family in several places in their

narrative : ' Mr. Marsden's residence occu-

pies an eminence, commanding an ample view of town and country, and possessing every other desirable local advantage. There our reverend and excellent friend received UB with Christian affection, which we returned most heartily, having long " esteemed him very highly in love for his works' sake." ... Por the present the Rev. Mr. Marsden considers us his guests, and under a more hospitable roof we could

not be entertained.'

Sometimes the old Parramatta Parsonage had some singular quests. The opening-up of missionary work in New Zealand by Samuel Marsden, and his intense zeal and interest in that work are well known. On more than one occasion several of the friendly Maoris returned with him and were his guests at Parramatta. Sometimes, it is true, they were but awkward guests, as the following anecdote related by one of Mr. Marsden's daughters will show : ' My father had sometimes as many as thirty New Zealanders staying at the parsonage. He possessed extraordinary influence over them. On one occasion a young lad-the nephew or a chief-died, and his uncle made immediate preparations to sacrifice a slave to attend his spirit into the other world. Mr. Marsden was from home at the moment, and his family were only able to preserve the life of the young New Zealander by hiding him in one

of the rooms. Mr. Marsden no sooner

returned, and reasoned with the chief, than he consented to spare his life. No further attempt was made upon it, though the uncle frequently deplored that his nephew had no

attendant in the next world, and seemed afraid to return to New Zealand lest the father of the young man should reproach him lor having given up this, to them, important point.'

A glance at one or two paragraphs from 4 writers who have made old Parramatta a

study are suggestive concerning buildings which still stand ; have long since passed away ; or have been altered and converted to other uses. One visitor of five-and-f orty years ago furnishes us a whole handful of these suggestions. He says ' Parramatta has been chosen as the site of several establishments of no small utility and interest in New South "Wales. On the banks of the river is^ the Female Orphan School. Here, likewise, is another estab- lishment of very different character, but, if less successful in its results, not less bene- ficial in its intentions - the Parramatta Factory, or rather penitentiary. At Parra- matta, likewise, is the noble insti- tution called the 'King's School,' which may, with judicious care, prove an invaluable blessing to the rising generation of the colony. There are also in tins town barracks -for it is the station of one of the three regiments upon duty in the colony-a hospital, an old gaol, and a new one lately erected, and intended to serve for the whole county of Cumberland, with the exception of the town of Sydney.'

Another observer, of over seventy years since, approaching the town riverwards, says : ' Further on is the Female Orphan School, occupying a commanding site on the right bank, surrounded by its lawns, gardens, and native shrubberies, while on your left the cottage of John Macarthur, and its adjoining yellow buildings, are seen at half a mile distant, perched upon a rising ground with a lawn in front, and an orchard and a garden crowded with fruit trees, flowers, and similar luxuries, stretching down toward the bank of the river-river, it is called, though more properly but a narrow arm of the sea, for the water is perfectly salt until just beyond Parramatta bridge, where a dam thrown across, by Governor Macquarie checks the further advance of the tide. Onwards to the left a large brick commissariat store occupies a situation close to the beach, permitting boats to go alongside, and have their cargoes hoisted up into its capacious granaries; while beyond this is a water-mill, a dam being here carried across to keep up the necessary supply to work it. Tou land at the commissariat store, and an agreeable quarter-of-a-mile's walk now carries you inte the very heart of Parramatta.'

Let us now refer more at length to some of these town features. The Female Orphar School has long been one of the institution of Parramatta, having been in existence foi between eighty and ninety years. It was one of the benevolent projects of the E-ev Samuel Marsden, and was founded in 1800 Por the first twenty years of its existence only 200 children had been admitted, these of course, coming from all parts of the colony. Mr. Marsden became treasurer

ST. JOHN'S PARSONAGE, PARRAMATTA.

and superintendent of various works in connection with this, and a similar building. The small fee, or clerical stipend, attached to these offices he allowed to accumulate until he resigned the position, when he presented the whole sum to the institution. The committee absolutely refusing to accept it, he purchased cattle from the Govern

ment to the full amount, and made a present of them to the Orphan Schools. Soon after his return from England it became necessary to erect new schools. The work was long and tedious, and owing to the want of labour in the colony, and the idle and drunken habits of the labourers of the period, nearly ten years elapsed before the

and the work was also often at a stand-still for want of funds. These, however, the Rev. Mr. Marsden-whom no pe-

cuniary difficulties could, daunt - supplied, in a great measure, out of his own purse, till his advances amounted to nearly £900, and his dis- interested conduct in the end occasioned him very

considerable loss.

Several old visitors, who have written hooks, made pleasing and com- mendatory references to the Protestant Orphan School; but we prefer quoting a remark of more modern date. It falls from the pen of the sis- ters Hill, two ladies who made a tour of the colo- nies in 1873, and who took a special interest in the various public insti- tutions. Accompanied by the Public Charity Com- missioners they inspected

tue Duiidmg under notice : ' It stands on the banks of the river-here a small and muddy stream - which we had to cross by a ferry. Both this school and the Catholic Orphanage - which was founded in 1836-were established for the reception of destitute orphans, and are the only charitable institutions in the colony of a sectarian nature which are under the direct control of the Government. Both are entirely supported by the State. The buildings of that we visited to-day are old, but they are commodious and well-situated. The instruction given is very good : the boys work in the garden, the girls in the house and laundry, and all appeared healthy and happy. "We were much amused by a group of very lively little girls, with their shoes and stockings taken off, scrubbing diligently the pavement of a verandah, each one cleaning her own particular flag-si one, and all seeming thoroughly to enjoy their work. Two hundred and fifty children can be accommodated, and they are received from three years old to thirteen, at which age they are apprenticed.'

A very old building is that originally erected as a military barracks. When the colony was garrisoned by home troops, two or three regiments would be herè at one time, and usually one regiment had its head- quarters at Parramatta. In 1824, three regiments were stationed in .the colony,

numbering one thousand five hundred and fifty-two men, of all ranks ; and of these, a detachment of the 39th Regiment were stationed at Parramatta, and occupied the old barracks. It is now converted into an

asylum for men who have fought the battle of life, and who have hardly come off victors in the fray. The Parramatta

Asylum is for men alone, and here is col- lected a large amount of that social wreckage which is always drifting on the sea of time.

The institution is-from the nature of the

buildings-hardly adapted to serve I its present purpose. It is supported entirely from State funds, and is under the control of the Colonial Secretary.

One of the earliest establishments in Australia for the free reception of the sick, was the hospital erected at Parramatta. Of course at the time it was built (1792) the proportion of free population in the colony was very small, and this and similar institu- tions were intended chiefly for the reception of sick convicts. Anyhow it was a laudable work, and the first G-overnor-Phillip-had the satisfaction of seeing its completion the month before his sailing for England, at the expiration of his term of office. Thirty years later, there were hospitals at Sydney, Liverpool, "Windsor, Bathurst, and New- castle, where convicts on the sick-list were received without any expense to the masters to whom they were assigned.

It is pleasant to turn from these old stone and brick records of the colony's early shame and suffering to those institutions which had for their object the banishment of ignorance and idleness-by the promotion of education and habits of industry. In early days ' the

schoolmaster was abroad' in Australia-so very much abroad, that in many places he couldn't be found at all ; and so it came to pass that such a woful lack of knowledge concerning even the ' three R's ' grew up with the young growth of the colony, and that ' Bill Stumps-his X mark ' became the sign-ma,nual of many an old-time document. In truth there was a dearth in the land re-

garding teaching element, and the task

_ J? _i J . _ _ _ _J_

oí conducting even tne most primary of all primary schools fell to the lot of a few who had been engaged in military, civil, or religious services under Government. At a remote period Parramatta became a centre of influence in this respect, and several of the missionaries who had been sent out to the South- ern Seas to instruct the islanders, having met with very intimidat- ing receptions, sought the more

civilized influences of the infant settlement of Port Jackson.

"With every prospect of becoming targets for the bow and arrow practice of the natives, and having neither taste nor ambition to be shot, they came to New South "Wales to ' teach the young idea how to shoot.' In the ñrst

thirty years of colonial life not more than 1,400 children were gathered into all the schools private and public. One Tull was schoolmaster in Parramatta from 1797 to 1817. In the Sydney Gazette of August 19, 1804, is an advertisement from Mr. Crook, of Parramatta, in

winch it is affirmée! that ' he undertakes to teach the English language, or to read, write, or speak, with propriety and accu- racy.' Mr. Cover and Mr. Henry, two

missionaries who came out to the South Seas in the 'Duff,' opened schools, the one at Kissing Point and the other at

Parramatta.

But one* of the grandest institutions of the colony, educationally, was the founding of the King's School, at Parramatta, under the episcopal authority of Bishop'Broughton, in 1832. It originated during the vice-regal reign of Sir Richard Bourke, and was opened under the Head-mastership of Rev. Robert Forrest. It has since then had many

THE FIRST BRICK HOUSE IN PARRAMATTA.

principals, one of the most popular and successful being the Rev. Gr. P. Macarthur, who introduced many improvements in the school. There is no doubt that the King's School, Parramatta, has been, and still continues to be, a power for good in the land. Many of those who have proved themselves not only talented men in various phases of professional life, but also good and sterling characters, were in old time, pupils at the King's School. It still holds its own among the very first of the educa- tional establishments of the colonies ; and although the numerous additions to the buildings have somewhat marred the architec- tural beauty of the original structure, there is still a good deal that is picturesque about the old place and its surroundings.

-?

Parramatta seems to be a natural educa- tional centre. In addition to the King's School, probably the best known college in the country, it has the Hayfield Preparatory School, presided over by Mrs. O'Reilly (widow of the late Rev. Canon O'Reilly). This is, we believe, the largest preparatory school for boys, as well as being in point of

organisation, comfort and efficiency, second

to none.

Mr. Anstey, in 'Tice Versa,' made a mistake when he painted the return of a middle-aged man to school-boy life as an event of woe and tribulation ; we should all like to be boys again, so much trouble is taken now to keep them, happy and healthy and fit them for life. Even if they do not grow wise they cannot help growing strong, for the provident schoolmasters of to-day think the lungs worth developing as well as the head. At the Hayfield School they even go so far as to keep a permanent branch establishment at Medlow, on the Blue Mountains, to which each form is sent in. rotation-masters, boys, school books, and all. Eifty years ago a dismal kind of barracks sufficed ; now the lads get a month of mountain "air ! Times have changed,, indeed, and Do-the-boys Hall is indeed.

extinct.

SKETTCHES AT PARRAMATTA.

{See article 'Parramatta Past and Present,' pages 14 and 15.)

1. VIEW LOOKING DOWN CHURCH STREET.

2. THE TRAM TERMINUS AND FERRY LANDING.

3. A. PICTURESQUE RELIC.  

4. THE RAILWAY STATION.

5. KING'S SCHOOL.

6. THE OLD WHITE HOBSE INN.  

7. THE MEST POLICE STATION AT PARRAMATTA.

8. THE RED COW INN".

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