Page:The Irish in Australia.djvu/214

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THE IRISH IN AUSTRALIA.

had been rewarded, and of commiseration for the dire distress and suffering with which it had pleased Providence to afflict their brothers in blood and affection in the old country. It was their anxious desire, they said, to make an effort to lighten the sorrow, to cheer the hopes and to invigorate the energies of their suffering brethren by making known to them a "land flowing with milk and honey," a land of refuge from the political and social evils under which Ireland groaned, a land of rest for their weary spirits, and of promise for their rising sons and daughters.

In this fraternal address, the colony of South Australia was described as "a country where the reward of steady industry, prudence, and sobriety, is certain, where the labour of comparatively few years will ensure a homestead and a competence to the working man and his family—even wealth, abundance, and social advancement to many; where the climate is generally salubrious and agreeable, and where none but freemen tread the soil." But every picture must have its due proportion of shade, and in accordance with that universal principle, the succeeding paragraph of the address intimates to the intending emigrant that "You must be prepared to labour hard, to endure privations, to toil occasionally under a burning sun and a scorching wind, and to suffer loneliness in the bush (for there you must rear your home or work out the means of purchasing one)." A rich recompense is predicted for the Irish emigrant who possesses the manly qualities of resolute perseverance, sobriety, and frugality. An Irishman of determination, undaunted by the inevitable difficulties of a newly-settled land, would be sure in the course of time to accumulate means, create a property, and attain a position of security and comfort, that would enable him to cheer the hearts, and close in comfort