d, those who had merited by the propriety of their
conduct the good report of the officers on board the ships in which they
were embarked, and who had brought with them into those ships a better
name than their fellows from the prisons in which they had been confined.
Those also who were qualified to instruct and direct others in the
exercise of professions in which they had superior knowledge and
experience, were appointed to act as overseers, with gangs under their
direction; and many had given evident proofs or strong indications of
returning dispositions to honest industry.

There were others, however, who had no claim to this praise. Among these
must be particularised William Bryant, to whom, from his having been bred
from his youth to the business of a fisherman in the western part of
England, was given the direction and management of such boats as were
employed in fishing, every encouragement was held out to this man to keep
him above temptation; an hut was built for him and his family; he was
always presented with a certain part of the fish which he caught; and he
wanted for nothing that was necessary, or that was suitable to a person
of his description and situation. But he was detected in secreting and
selling large quantities of fish; and when the necessary enquiry was
made, this practice appeared to have been of some standing with him. For
this offence he was severely punished, and removed from the hut in which
he had been placed; yet as, notwithstanding his villainy, he was too
useful a person to part with and send to a brick cart, he was still
retained to fish for the settlement; but a very vigilant eye was kept
over him, and such steps taken as appeared likely to prevent him from
repeating his offence, if the sense of shame and fear of punishment were
not of themselves sufficient to deter him.

A person of the name of Smith having procured a passage from England in
the _Lady Penrhyn_, with a design to proceed to India in the event of his
not finding any employment in this country, on his offering his services,
and professing to have some agricultural knowledge was received into the
colony, and, being judged a discreet prudent man, was placed about the
provision store under the assistant to the commissary at Rose Hill, and
was moreover sworn in as a peace-officer, to act as such immediately
under the provost-marshal; a line wherein, from the circumstance of his
being a free man, it was supposed he might re