80 DESPATCHES 1790 Official etiquette. Arrival of the Second FleeL An explanation. Obstacles to progress. Official oversight. of the settlement by the arrival in a few weeks of a thousand more convicts. It would not have been in accord- ance with the rules regulating official correspondence for the Governor to question the wisdom of the course pur- sued by Ministers in England ; but even if Phillip had felt inclined to say a few words in deprecation of the step that had been taken, it would have been useless to do so, for arrangements had been made for the despatch of the trans- ports, and when Phillip wrote his reply to Grenville they were expected to arrive every moment. They actually came into the harbour a week later. But although Phillip did not remonstrate with his official superiors, he endeavoured to educate them, by explaining the position of affairs, and pointing out the difficulties that had been encountered — difficulties which made the despatch of large bodies of convicts imprudent to the last degree. After urging for the fourth or fifth time that settlers, rather than convicts, should be sent out, men who possessed some means, as well as a knowledge of farming, Phillip wrote : — ^'As it may appear that we have not made that advance towards supporting ourselves which may have been expected, I will, sir, beg leave to observe that in addition to those untoward circumstances which have thrown the settlement so far back,* it never yet has been possible to direct the labour of more than a small part of the convicts to the principal object. A civil and military establishment form a considerable part of our numbers, which is increased by women and children, all of whom are undoubtedly necessary, but are a deadweight on those who have to render the colony independent for the necessaries of life. Stores, barracks, and houses have required time, and we have still stores and barracks to build in the stead of those temporary ones at first erected."! It does not seem to have occurred to the Minister and the officials at the Home Office that buildings for the accommo- dation of the people had to be erected, and that it would be
- Phillip alludes here to the loss of the Q-unrdian and the Sirius.
t Historical Records, toI. i, part 2, p. 847.
