Guide 3 to NSW State Archives relating to Responsible Government - OCR - Flipbook - Page 139
A Guide to New South Wales State Archives relating to Responsible Government
The Governor laid before the Council two further despatches from
the Secretary of State relating to the projected separation. One of
these conveyed the decision of the British Government on the
boundary line between the two provinces, the division of the debt
and the form of constitution to be granted to the new Colony; the
second transmitted a copy of some observations on the boundary
question by Mr M H Marsh, an interested party.
Upon the question of boundaries the Secretary of State intimated
that
that Her Majesty Government have decided, in deference to the
wish expressed by the inhabitants of the Clarence, New England
and Gwydir Districts not to be included in the new Colony to
abandon the boundary of the 30th parallel of latitude originally
indicated as probable and are prepared to adopt a line of
demarcation suggested by the Governor General unless His
Excellency Should see fit to vary it in accordance with the views
propounded by Mr Marsh.
Following a review of the Governor's suggested boundaries,
Marsh's suggestions and an examination of maps from the
Surveyor General illustrating the boundaries, the Council
expressed themselves in favour of the following line of
demarcation: "a line commencing on the Sea Coast, at Point
Danger, in latitude about 28°, 8' south, by the Range therein,
which divides the waters of the Tweed, Richmond and Clarence
Rivers, from those of the Logan and Brisbane Rivers, Westerley to
the great dividing range ...".
By the adoption of this boundary, which did not materially differ
from that proposed by Mr Marsh, the whole of the Clarence, New
England and Gwydir districts would be preserved to New South
Wales with the exception of a small portion of the latter lying
north of the 29th parallel, which was largely unoccupied.
On 23 November 1857 the Executive Council gave its attention to
the question of the division of the new Colony into electoral
districts. The Governor laid on the table a scheme for such a
division (included with the Minutes) adopted to the line of
demarcation agreed to by the Council on 2 November. The Council
advised that this be approved and that the Governor should
transmit a copy of the scheme to the British Government for
insertion in the Order in Council constituting the Government and
Legislature of the new Colony.
The dates of the Executive Council meetings where the separation
of the Northern District was raised are — in [4/1534]:
24 November, 8 & 15 December 1856, 8 & 15 January 1857; in
[4/1535] 2 November 1857; and, in [4/1536] 23 November 1857.
State Records Authority of New South Wales
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