themselves from the class of daily labourers or obscure artizans to which by birth they belong. There is nothing in these histories to dazzle, but there is much to instruct us. In them we observe not only examples of men rising from humble life to influential positions, but in the characters collectively of such men we behold the source of our national greatness. It is to the collective wisdom, the silent industry, the native energy of men like these, that the great middle class of Britain owes its moral power. By their intellect and commercial enterprise, they have raised their country to the pre-eminent position she holds in the scale of nations, and endowed her with that power which influences the destiny of the world. T. S. J. [These are not the correct initials of the author, who acknowledged to the writer that he was convicted under an assumed name. He was a native of the quiet rural village of Carnwath, aged forty-five, well-educated, and, from his manners and appearance, a man who had moved in a respectable sphere of society. The commencement of his criminal career was traced to pecuniary disappointments, then intemperance, succeeded by bankruptcy. From this time his downward course had been steadily progressive, although occasionally arrested by remorse, and by the influence of domestic ties, and by the anxious interference of friends. The loss of his wife by death appeared to give an irresistible impulse to his dominant vice, that of intemperance; and consequently to numerous irregularities, if not crimes. He was convicted of trivial violations of the law three times, on each occasion suffering a temporary imprisonment. He again succeeded, notwithstanding these blots on his character, in obtaining a situation of trust. This gave him a fresh opportunity of recovering himself; but his mind, brutalised by previous indulgence and association with the depraved, was in no condition to exert that wholesome restraint on his appetites, which is necessary to moral health. He violated the confidence reposed in him, by committing a fraud on his employers. This he managed so artfully, that his conviction was with difficulty obtained. He was sentenced to seven years' transportation, and had on embarkation already passed two years and three months of this time in "separate confinement" and on "public works," acquiring a character for obedience and order, which entitled him to a ticket of leave on landing in Van Dieman's Land. Prison discipline appeared to have exerted a most salutary effect upon this individual. There was a subdued earnestness manifested in the manner in which he conducted himself as a monitor, or in performing any other duty assigned to him. He was humbled to a degree that left none of the pride of caste, and which led him to view with a brotherly feeling his less accomplished fellow-priIt is probable that remorse and forced abstinence had fostered in him a resolution equal to resist fresh temptations. If this supposition was in reality well founded, there was no one on board who possessed in an equal degree the capability of engaging in the struggle of life. We indulge, then, the hope, that T. S. J. is now a virtuous and useful member of colonial society.] soners. TO THE MEMORY OF A BROTHER PRISONER, WHO WAS FORMERLY A SOLDIER IN H. M. S. IN INDIA. 'Twas night, and fiercely blew the wind, Delivered from this transient scene, No fond one kneeled beside his couch, Oh, hadst thou in thy country's cause, But, ah, a hapless fate was thine; And on the wide and trackless deep Engulfed within thy watery tomb, There soon to be forgot! No comrades here for thee will mourn, But there is one who for thee sighs, Beneath affliction's rod, Who hopes to join thee once again, J. G- M. [Some hesitation was at first felt in admitting these verses into the Journal, but as the writer positively declared them to be original, and as they contain some characteristic marks, the fact of their containing a few plagiarisms was not deemed an insuperable objection. The author, J. G- -m, was a native of Ayrshire, aged twentyeight, by his position in life a labouring man, but by service a soldier. His education, so far as regarded reading and writing, had been sufficiently attended to; and he appears to have conducted himself with propriety previously to the perpetration of the crime-wilful fire raising— for which he was suffering the punishment of seven years' transportation. When embarked, he had already undergone two and a half years' imprisonment, of which one year had been passed in "separate confinement." During this punishment his conduct had at first been below the standard of perfect propriety, but he appears to have improved under discipline and instruction, until, in the latter portion of it, he was considered an exemplary character. On board he conducted himself entirely in accordance with the regulations; but the fact of his attempt subsequently to impose on us a contribution to the Journal known to be copied, made us suspect the sincerity of his motives. How far this judgment was correct we are unable to determine, but it is hoped that an individual who was so markedly alive to the consequences of meritorious actions, will be very guarded in committing any crime which contracts civil liabilities.] WEEKLY RECORD. IT is now more than ten weeks since we left the shore of dear Old England, and although our time has been most usefully occupied, and nothing has occurred to disturb the peace and harmony on board, yet we feel all painfully anxious for the termination of the voyage. "When will it end?" "How far are we from Van Dieman's Land?" "When shall we get there?" are questions that are asked, speculated upon, and repeated every hour in the day. Every change in the wind is observed with interest, and many an anxious eye is watching the speed with which the vessel glides through the water. Let us hope that a similar anxiety has induced all to prepare their minds for the new life which awaits them on landing. If any have failed to do this, the end of the voyage will be but the beginning of their misery. It would be better for such to continue all their lives even in these stormy latitudes, than expose themselves again to the deplorable consequences of crime; not only the evils they lay on themselves, but those they inflict on their fellow-men. The former every one appears sufficiently sensible of, but few are magnanimous enough to consider the latter. There exists, alas! a lamentable indifference to the sufferings of others, which would probably be converted into a generous sympathy, even in the breasts of the most |