9. Corruption grew in the first decade of the 19th century
By 1805, the officers of the New South Wales Corps were well-established in the trading of rum, a word which was used generically to refer to all distilled spirits. The importation of rum, most of which came from India, was illegal. The prestige and power wielded by the Corps, and the ineffective governance of Gidley King, allowed the officers to enrich themselves through the trade. King was also ineffective at restraining the ambitions of John Macarthur. Macarthur was a shepherd and farmer who claimed over 5,000 acres of land along the Nepean River. The tract included lands which had been reserved for the communally owned cattle of the colony. Governor King protested, but Macarthur ignored him.
In 1806, severe flooding occurred in the settlements along the Hawkesbury River. The officers of the Corps, as well as several more prominent men of the colony, including Macarthur, took advantage of the situation by granting loans to the victims. The loans were in the form of food, supplies, and other necessities, as part of the colony’s barter economy. Rum was also used as a form of payment within the colony. Several of the larger landholders and officers of the Corps profited from the difficulties encountered by the Hawkesbury settlers. Such were the conditions in the colony when a new governor, William Bligh, arrived in August, 1806.