s Bay, distant by land four or
five miles, by water ten or twelve. There is a bar at the entrance of
the river which prevents large ships from coming up close to Melbourne.
The town appears to be rapidly increasing; the commerce of Port Phillip
is yearly extending; its central position, the goodness of much of the
surrounding soil, and the fact of its being less encumbered than is
usually the case with wood, all these circumstances unite in rendering
this outpost, as we may term it, of New South Wales, an important and
interesting spot. Respecting its prospects of religious improvement
and pastoral care, it is gratifying to be able to quote the following
statement from a letter of the Bishop of Australia, of whose unwieldy
diocese Port Phillip forms a part. "At Melbourne the zeal of the
inhabitants has led them to undertake the erection of a church, the
estimated cost of which is nearly 7000_l._ Although the certain and
rapid increase of the town be such as will, at no distant period, call
for a church of that importance, I greatly fear that resources may be
wanting for its immediate erection." Meanwhile the Bishop expresses his
anxiety that temporary accommodation, at the least, should be provided
for the great numbers collected at Melbourne, who are desirous of
attending the church. "It is evident," continues he, "that within a
short interval there will be in the colony few stations, with the
exception, perhaps, of Sydney itself, which will demand more assiduous
care and attention on behalf of its spiritual interests, than the town
whose streets extend over a spot where, not more than three years ago,
the Yarra Yarra flowed through an almost uninterrupted solitude."[151]
The population of Melbourne is stated in a recent periodical to be 4479,
while that of the whole settlement of Port Phillip is 11,758. By the
same authority the numbers of the members of the Church of England in
this English colony are said to be 6194; that of the Presbyterians,
2045; of the Wesleyan Methodists, 651; of other dissenters, 1353; of
Roman Catholics, 1441; of Jews, 59; Mahommedans and Pagans, 10. The
mention of Jews, who are to be met with in almost all these remote
colonies of the southern ocean, can scarcely fail to recall to mind
God's threatenings to his chosen people (see Deut. xxviii. 64). We
shall conclude this notice of Port Phillip with mentioning two
important items in the estimates of its expenditure for 1842:--Police
and jails,