King has had some successes as governor.…
December 1803 CE
King has had some successes as governor.
His regulations for prices, wages, hours of work, financial deals, and the employment of convicts have brought some relief to smallholders, and reduced the numbers 'on the stores'.
He has encouraged construction of barracks, wharves, bridges, houses, etc.
Government flocks and herds have greatly increased, and he has encouraged experiments with vines, tobacco, cotton, hemp, and indigo.
Whaling and sealing are becoming important sources of oil and skins, and coal mining began.
He has taken an interest in education, establishing schools to teach convict boys to become skilled tradesmen.
He encourages smallpox vaccinations, is sympathetic to missionaries, strives to keep peace with the indigenous inhabitants, and has encouraged the first newspaper, the Sydney Gazette.
Exploration has led to the survey of Bass Strait and Western Port, and the discovery of Port Phillip, and settlements will soon be established at Hobart and Port Dalrymple in Van Diemen's Land.