government had been keen to have land taken up in Western Australia and the Hentys had assumed no objections would be raised to their obtaining land in the Port Phillip district. The application was first made in 1834 and negotiations continued for many years. The father, Thomas Henty, died in 1839, and it was not until 1846 that the matter was finally settled, when the Hentys were allowed £348 for improvements at the port, and were granted of land valued at £1290. The remainder of their land they had to buy at auction. The attitude of the government at Sydney to new settlers may be illustrated by an extract from a dispatch of the governor, Sir George Gipps, to Lord John Russell, dated 11 April 1840. The thought that the many thousands of pounds spent by the Hentys in developing the country might eventually be of benefit to the state had apparently not entered into the minds of the authorities. Neither could they have anticipated that the first sale of crown lands which took place a few months later would yield the sum of £17,245. Edward Henty was determined to continue with his settlement; his brother, Francis, had joined him in December 1834, and during the next five years other members of the family joined him, and gradually all of their horses, cattle and sheep were transferred from Tasmania. On 29 August 1836 the exploring party headed by Major Thomas Livingstone Mitchell reached Portland Bay and were amazed to find the country already colonised. In later years Edward Henty was fond of telling the story of Major Mitchell when he came to a hut, from which blows of a hammer rang, saying, "Where is Mr Henty, my man," and the reply of the burly blacksmith, "Here he is at your service." From Major Mitchell Henty learned the character of the land to the north, and gradually he was able to acquire more land. In 1845 he had over 70,000 acres (280 km²). Sometimes the price of wool and sheep fell very low and it was impossible to sell either to advantage; but over the years the stations prospered. In 1855 Edward Henty was elected a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Normanby and was re-elected in 1859. He was defeated in 1861 and did not sit again in parliament. Henty's last years were spent in retirement at his Melbourne