In the course of this month several convicts came in from the woods; one in particular dangerously wounded with a spear, the others very much beaten and bruised by the natives. The wounded man had been employed cutting rushes for thatching, and one of the others was a convalescent from the hospital, who went out to collect a few vegetables. All these people denied giving any provocation to the natives: it was, however, difficult to believe them; they well knew the consequences that would attend any acts of violence on their part, as it had been declared in public orders early in the month, that in forming the intended settlement, any act of cruelty to the natives being contrary to his Majesty's most gracious intentions, the offenders would be subject to a criminal prosecution; and they well knew that the natives themselves, however injured, could not contradict their assertions. There was, however, too much reason to believe that our people had been the aggressors, as the governor on his return from his excursion to Broken Bay, on landing at Camp Cove, found the natives there who had before frequently come up to him with confidence, unusually shy, and seemingly afraid of him and his party; and one, who after much invitation did venture to approach, pointed to some marks upon his shoulders, making signs they were caused by blows given with a stick. This, and their running away, whereas they had always before remained on the beach until the people landed from the boats, were strong indications that the man had been beaten by some of our stragglers. Eleven canoes full of people passed very near the _Sirius_, which was moored without the two points of the cove, but paddled away very fast upon the approach of some boats toward them. The curiosity of the camp was excited and gratified for a day or two by the sight of an emu, which was shot by the governor's game-killer. It was remarkable by every stem having two feathers proceeding from it. Its height was 7 feet 2 inches, and the flesh was very well flavoured. The run of water that supplied the settlement was observed to be only a drain from a swamp at the head of it; to protect it, therefore, as much as possible from the sun, an order was given out, forbidding the cutting down of any trees within fifty feet of the run, than which there had not yet been a finer found in any one of the coves of the harbour. April.] As the winter of this hemisphere was approaching, it became absolutely necessary to expedite the buildings intended for the detachment; every carpenter that could be procured amongst the convicts was sent to assist, and as many as could be hired from the transports were employed at the hospital and storehouses. The long-boats of the ships still continued to bring up the cabbage-tree from the lower part of the harbour, and a range of huts was begun on the west side for some of the female convicts.