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memorial dated November 4, 1828, they offered to send out and settle in the neighbourhood of the Swan River 10,000 persons chosen from England, Scotland, and Ireland, and to find them in provisions and other necessaries usually allowed to emigrants; also to bring to the settlement 1,000 head of horned stock, and to arrange for three small vessels to run subsequently between Sydney and Swan River as occasion might require, the undertaking to be completed within four years. In payment of their expenses, which they estimated at £30 per head of the people taken out, they expressed themselves willing to take grants of land at a valuation of 1s. 6d. per acre, and they further promised to provide proper surveyors for the purpose of allocating to every male not less than 200 acres of land from the quantity they were to receive. The objects of the proposed scheme were stated in the memorial in the following terms:—

"It is well known that the soil of Swan River, from its moist state, is better adapted to the cultivation of tobacco and cotton than any other part of Australia. Both of these articles are intended to be cultivated upon a large scale; as also sugar and flax, with various important articles of drugs that the climate is peculiarly adapted to the growth of.

"The undersigned [the members of the syndicate] are satisfied that should they succeed in sending home to the Mother Country that produce which at this moment the Government are indebted to powers which it would be their policy to suppress, were they in a condition so to do, they will have forwarded not alone the views of His Majesty’s Government, but effected a national good which neither time nor circumstances can erase from the annals of British history.

"Their grazing operations will go very extensively into the rearing of horses for the East India trade, with the most important establishment of large herds of cattle and swine, for the purpose of supplying His Majesty's or other shipping with salt provisions, as the proximity of salt mines, of the best description, holds out a great inducement towards its success."

The English Government looked favourably upon the proposals, but was not inclined to accede to the whole of the requests made by the syndicate. After some delay through further correspondence the following reply to the memorial was sent by the Colonial Office to Mr. Peel on December 6, 1828:—

"I am directed by Secretary Sir George Murray to acquaint you, in answer to your memorial dated the 14th of last month, that the terms upon which the free grants of land will be made in the proposed settlement of Western Australia are those contained in the paper, a copy of which I enclose. His Majesty's Government, however, are desirous that the experiment should not be made, in the first instance, upon a very large scale, on account of the extensive distress which would be occasioned by a failure in any of the objects expected from the undertaking; and they therefore consider it their duty to limit the grant which you request to a maximum of 1,000,000 acres. Half a million of these will be allotted to you as soon as possible after the arrival of the first vessel taken out by you, which may contain not less than 400 persons of both sexes, in the proportions of not less than five female to six male settlers; and if you shall have covered this grant by investments, in accordance with the enclosed terms, before the expiration of the year 1840 the remaining 500,000 will be allotted to you by degrees, as fresh importations of settlers and capital shall be made, in accordance with the terms already mentioned. But in order that you may suffer no ultimate loss by any reasonable retardation of your investments, His Majesty's Government intend that the allowance of 40 acres for every £3 invested shall not be reduced on your second 500,000 acres, although your claim to such second 500,000 may not arise before the expiration of next year, which is the period limited to other settlers applying for free grants. But they will reserve your claim at the original rate of 1s. 6d. per acre until the expiration of the year 1840, after which time no part of your grant will be held binding upon which the whole required sum of 1s. 6d. per every acre shall not have been actually invested. A convenient allotment of land will be reserved for the town and harbour, for public buildings, and