Page:The founding of South Australia.djvu/100

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CHAPTER VII.

IMPERIUM IN IMPERIO.

The next step was to prepare a fresh draft of a charter to be submitted to Mr. Stanley, and having had an expression of his views, Mr. Gouger, and the sub-committee working with him, took special pains to enlarge upon those points which would tend to make things agreeable in the Colonial Department without altering any part of the scheme relating to the principles for which they were contending.

We continue our extracts from Mr. Gouger's Journal: —

"February 11th.—Called on Lefevre, who received me very well. I told him that my chief object in calling was to assure him that the intention of the committee was to found a colony wherein the system of colonisation they approved should be tried, free from any disturbing causes, and that no experiment in legislation was intended. The fact of the majority of the committee being Radicals depended upon two circumstances; first, that the Whigs were in office, and, therefore we could not hope to have them on the committee; secondly, that I was a Radical, and therefore knew more Radicals than any other class of men.

"February 22nd.—Sent Stanley the following letter with the signatures attached:—