f this month the thermometer rose in the shade above
eighty degrees. Once on the 8th, at one in the afternoon, it stood at 105
degrees in the shade.

February 2nd.] Captain John Shea, of the marines, who had been for a
considerable time in a declining state of health, died, and was interred
with military honours the day following; the governor and every officer
of the settlement attending his funeral. The major commandant of the
detachment shortly after filled up the vacancy which this officer's death
had occasioned by appointing Captain Lieutenant Meredith to the company;
and First Lieutenant George Johnston succeeded to the
captain-lieutenancy. Second Lieutenant Ralph Clarke was appointed a
First, and volunteer John Ross a Second Lieutenant; but their commissions
were still to receive the confirmation of the lords commissioners of the
Admiralty.

The convicts being found to continue the practice of selling their
clothing, an order was issued, directing, that if in future a convict
should give information to the provost-marshal against any person to whom
he had sold his clothes, the seller should receive them again, be
permitted to keep whatever was paid him for them, and receive no
punishment himself for the sale. It was also found necessary to direct,
that all stragglers at night who, on being challenged by the patrole,
should run from them, should be fired at; but orders, in general, were
observed to have very little effect, and to be attended to only while the
impression made by hearing them published remained upon the mind; for the
convicts had not been accustomed to live in situations where their
conduct was to be regulated by written orders. There was here no other
mode of communicating to them such directions as it was found necessary
to issue for their observance; and it was very common to have them plead
in excuse for a breach of any regulation of the settlement, that they had
never before heard of it; nor had they any idea of the permanency of an
order, many of them seeming to think it issued merely for the purpose of
the moment.

It was much to be regretted, that there existed a necessity for placing a
confidence in these people, as in too many instances the trust was found
to be abused: but unfortunately, to fill many of those offices to which
free people alone should have been appointed in this colony, there were
none but convicts. From these it will be readily supposed the best
characters were selecte