The History of Tasmania [Paperback]

A history of Tasmania by an English-born minister who fought to end its status as a penal colony.English-born minister John West (18091873) moved to Tasmania in 1838 and became a critic of convict transportation. A supporter commissioned him to write this history, and the two volumes were published in 1852. Volume 2 discusses the Aboriginal Tasmanians and the arrival of British convicts.English-born minister John West (18091873) moved to Tasmania in 1838 and became a critic of convict transportation. A supporter commissioned him to write this history, and the two volumes were published in 1852. Volume 2 discusses the Aboriginal Tasmanians and the arrival of British convicts.John West (18091873) was an English-born minister who received a Colonial Missionary Society post in Tasmania in 1838. West became an outspoken opponent of the ongoing government policy of transporting convicts from Britain to Tasmania. Around 1847 a wealthy supporter approached West to write the colony's history, although it had been a British territory only since 1803. West accepted the task and, amid his campaigning and other responsibilities, completed this two-volume work which was published in 1852. It is divided between a straightforward narrative of events and thematic issues such as the treatment of the Aboriginal peoples and the issue of the convict transport system. In Volume 2, the first ten sections discuss the early encounters with Europeans and the subsequent mistreatment of the native people in Tasmania. The remainder of the volume considers the island's development as a penal colony.Part I. The Aborigines: 1. Tasman's account of the natives; 2. Conflict at Risdon; 3. Causes of conflict; 4. Proclamation against them; 5. Murders committed by natives; 6. Conciliation; 7. Mr. Robinson's efforts; 8. Disposal of the natives; 9. Rapid extinction; 10. Origin of the natives; Part II. Transportation: 1. Exile; 2. State of English gaols; 3. Bentham's project; 4. Voyage; 5. Early difficullCx