[I am of opinion that such protection is always extended to children who may be left destitute.]

March, 1791.  The snow had but just sailed, when a very daring manoeuvre was carried into execution, with complete success, by a set of convicts, eleven in number, including a woman, wife of one of the party, and two little children.  They seized the governor’s cutter and putting into her a seine, fishing-lines, and hooks, firearms, a quadrant, compass, and some provisions, boldly pushed out to sea, determined to brave every danger and combat every hardship, rather than remain longer in a captive state.  Most of these people had been brought out in the first fleet, and the terms of transportation of some of them were expired.  Among them were a fisherman, a carpenter, and some competent navigators, so that little doubt was entertained that a scheme so admirably planned would be adequately executed*.  When their elopement was discovered, a pursuit was ordered by the governor.  But the fugitives had made too good an use of the intermediate time to be even seen by their pursuers.  After the escape of Captain Bligh, which was well known to us, no length of passage or hazard of navigation seemed above human accomplishment.  However to prevent future attempts of a like nature, the governor directed that boats only of stated dimensions should be built.  Indeed an order of this sort had been issued on the escape of the first party, and it was now repeated with additional restrictions.

[It was my fate to fall in again with part of this little band of adventurers.  In March 1792, when I arrived in the Gorgon, at the Cape of Good Hope, six of these people, including the woman and one child, were put on board of us to be carried to England.  Four had died, and one had jumped overboard at Batavia.  The particulars of their voyage were briefly as follows.  They coasted the shore of New Holland, putting occasionally into different harbours which they found in going along.  One of these harbours, in the latitude of 30 degrees south, they described to be of superior excellence and capacity.  Here they hauled their bark ashore, paid her seams with tallow, and repaired her.  But it was with difficulty they could keep off the attacks of the Indians.  These people continued to harras them so much that they quitted the mainland and retreated to a small island in the harbour, where they completed their design.  Between the latitude of 26 degrees and 27 degrees, they were driven by a current 30 leagues from the shore, among some islands, where they found plenty of large turtles.  Soon after they closed again with the continent, when the boat got entangled in the surf and was driven on shore, and they had all well nigh perished.  They passed rough the straits of Endeavour and, beyond the gulf of Carpentaria, found a large freshwater river, which they entered, and filled from it their empty casks.