AMERICANS SENT TO AUSTRALIA

Press, Volume LXXI, Issue 21391, 6 February 1935, Page 12

AMERICANS SENT TO AUSTRALIA

+ TRANSPORTATIONS OF LAST CENTURY REBELLIONS IN CANADA (rROl£ OUR OWM COESESPOSDENT.) SYDNEY, January 24. Documents which had lain undiscovered for almost a century, and which described the transportations to the Australian convict settlements of a shipload of citizens of the United States and Canada, were found by Professor Ernest Scott, professor of history in the University of Melbourne, during his recent tour abroad. "Although I had suspected something like this," he said, "I had not previously been able to obtain any information. On this occasion I had the privilege of access to the archives of Ottawa and Quebec, the Congressional Library in Washington, and the Records Office of London." The citizens who were sent to Australia from North America were political prisoners, Professor Scott explained. Small revolutions occurred in Upper and Lower Canada between 1837 and 1839 as a protest against the abuse of power by a high-handed autocracy. The first rising was suppressed with severity and some of the leaders were hanged. Others escaped to the United States and were most sympathetically received. Indeed, an agitation developed that United States citizens should help the "Canadian patriots" to "sweep this murderous tyranny from the. western world." Rising Suppressed Many United States citizens Invaded Canada, some probably with pure motives and others with the hope that if the rebellions were successful they would obtain rich grants of land. Eventually at the battle of Prescott, in 1838, the rising was suppressed, and many prisoners were taken. Again some of the prisoners were hanged, and the then Lieutenant-Governor, Sir George Arthur, who had previously beer. Lieutenant-Governor of Van Diemen's Land, decided that the others should be transported to New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land. Accordingly, 141 prisoners, of whom 78 were United States citizens, and the remainder mostly French-Canadians, were transported from Canada to Australia in Sep tember, 1839. The French-Canadian prisoners were landed at Sydney and those from the United States at Hobart. Free pardons were granted to all of these political prisoners in 1844. A few had died in Australia in the meantime, and two had escaped in American ships. The remainder, with the exception of one man, returned to their homes in North America. The man who remained was a citizen of the United States. He married and settled at Hobart, and it is believed that he has descendants in New South Wales. Eight of the prisoners wrote accounts of their exile in Australia, and four of these works Professor Scott was able to acquire while abroad. He read the other accounts among official papers. Two of the books were very rare; and the only copies which Professor Scott was able to see were in the archives at Ottawa.