March.] The dry weather which had so long prevailed, to the great detriment of the cultivated and pasture grounds, was succeeded by rain for two or three days, which greatly refreshed the gardens that were nearly wholly burnt up, and every where revived the perishing vegetation.  At the Hawkesbury, however, an accident occurred, which, although not so ruinous to the colony at large as the drought, proved most destructive to the settlers in that district.  This river suddenly, and in the course of a very few hours, swelled to the height of fifty feet above its common level, and with such rapidity and power as to carry every thing before it.  The government store-house, which had been erected at the first settling of this part of the country, was not out of the reach of this inundation, and was swept away, with all the provisions that it contained.  Many of the inhabitants were taken off from the ridges of their houses, by a few boats which they fortunately had among them, just in time to save their lives; for most of the dwellings were inundated, and the whole country appeared like an extensive lake.  Many hogs, other live stock, poultry, with much of the produce of the last unfortunate harvest, and the domestic effects of the people, were hurried away by the torrent.  Fortunately only one life was lost.

This was a most serious calamity; and, no cause having appeared to indicate an approaching overflow of the river, the settlers were not prepared for such a disaster.  It was said, that the natives foresaw it, and advised the inhabitants; but this wanted confirmation.  If true, the trait was a favourable one.  There could, however, be no doubt, that, unperceived by our people, a heavy fall of rain had taken place in the interior of the country, among the mountains, and which, from the parched state of the land for such a length of time, had in no part been absorbed, but ran down the sides of the hills, as from mountains of solid rock, filling all the low grounds, and branches of the river, which, being in form suddenly serpentine, could not give vent so fast as the waters descended.

It was hoped and believed, that this uncommon inundation would, in the end, prove highly beneficial to the grounds so overflowed, causing them for a season or more to produce with such abundance as to recover the loss which the sufferers had sustained.  In a few days this extraordinary collection of water had found its way to the sea, and, the river regaining its usual level, the settlers set about new cropping their grounds; for which purpose they made application for seed wheat, that certainly could not be refused; their other application, for bedding and clothing, it was not so easy to comply with, from the poverty of the public stores in these articles.

This fertile spot had, in some seasons, produced from fifteen to twenty thousand bushels of wheat, and might justly be termed the granary of New South Wales.

To relieve the inhabitants in some degree from the contemplation of these distresses, the Rebecca, a whaler, came into the Cove from the Cape of Good Hope, bringing authentic accounts of Lord Nelson’s memorable and brilliant victory over the French fleet at the mouth of the Nile.  This decisive battle was announced to the settlement in a public order, and by a discharge of all the artillery in the colony.