4 4 destroyed, or the breeding season come to an end. Devoutly Hunter records that he might truly call them ** birds of Proridence," but adds that, *' we reflected with i^ain that they must have an end, and that in all probability this ^ would be the case before we got a relief." ^M ThuB the weary time passed, when on the 4th of Aug. ™ one of the seamen descried a saiL Rushing to his fellows, and crying as he ran, ** A. ship ! A sliip !" lie stirred the whole communit}^ into a paroxysm of liope. The ship had an English ensign flying, but bhe made no sigii of staying, nor even of making signals. The disappointment was crushing. '* Every one (sa,ys Hunter) agreed in opijiion that it would have been much better if no ship had been seen." By thiB time, too, to add to their anxiety, the
- birds of Providence" ** w^ere very scarce."
On the 7th of Aug, relief came to them. The Justinian and Surprise arrived from Sydney with provisions and more convicts, and poured into the ears of the islanders the same news from England which had been so welcome to the exiles in Sydney. Martial law was abrogated. The sliips discharged their cargoes in about three weeks and proceeded to China, and the islanders were again uninterup- ted in their water bound speck, until, i)i Jan, 1791, the Snpplif arrived to take back to Sydney the officers and crew of the Sirius, The ships which arrived wdth succour from England in 171>0 were long remembered as 'Hhe second fleet."*' They carried the th*st instalment of the New South Wales Corps, afterwards to become the 102nd Kegiment; and their arrival enabled Phillip to dispense wdth the doubtful services of Major Boss of the marines. The barren rocks which had been so niggardly in yielding food were to echo to the tramp of the soldier of the line, and it could not be 4 ^' The iimster of the Scarborough^ Mai-s^hall, had accoiiipy-iiluil the first tieet, iinil when leaving iSydney in I'JHH left with a Mr. Claik (an agent for the eontmctors who employed hlni) a NewfoumllaDtl dog, ColliDa reports :
- 0n the returiJ of hig old master (in 1790) Hector a warn off to the aliip,
and getting on board » recognized him, and inauifeattMl in every manner luttable to liiB nature hia joy at seeing him ; nor could the uniinal be f persuaded to quit him again, aecompanying him always when he went on ahore, and returning with him on board/' One is gratcfnl to those who did not sacrifice the dog wheti all were starving. 4 4
