[1] Arthur Morley Francis, his wife Angela and children Richard (Dick) and new born Clement, arrived in Moreton Bay Brisbane on the sailing clipper, Saldanha, with a full passenger list of 500 in February 1862.

At this time there was a deal of animosity between the pastoralists, who held vast landholdings and had a great say in politics and the farmers who tilled the land who had very little support.

As a good orator and one who understood the farmers’ plight, Francis was elected to the seat of East Moreton in the Queensland Legislative Assembly.

In February 1870, Arthur declared himself bankrupt, mainly due to this investment in his sugar mill and what he owed to his workforce which at one time employed 15 white and 10 Kanaka workers.

[6] After settling the conditions of his bankruptcy, Arthur in 1870 then chose employment as a Leader Writer for the Brisbane ‘Courier’ being the premier daily newspaper at the time.

In 1876 Arthur was appointed Police Magistrate at Banana township in the Dawson district, 160 klms approximately south-west of Gladstone.

[8] As a result of this appointment, the family split with his two sons, Richard (Dick) and Alexander, studying at the Brisbane Grammar School remaining in the Corinda district and his wife and daughter Charlotte, accompanying Arthur.

Arthur had a string of appointments as Police Magistrate in various frontier towns being in 1878, at Taroom, 1879 at Thargomingah,[9] February 1881 at Goondiwindi,[10] July 1884 at Pine Hill,[11] March 1889 at Southport[12] and finally 1895 at Cunnamulla.

[14] In 1898 in a newspaper article he declared his support for Women's Suffrage, probably inspired from the difficulties his wife had in convincing those in power at the time to back her worthy initiatives in improving conditions in the colony.