Australia, the last continent, was discovered by ships belonging to some European nations in the seventeenth century. These nations were less interested in changing it into a colony   than in exploring   it. As in the early history of the United States, it was the English who set up the settlements   in Australia. This history and the geography of these two British colonies have some other things in common as well. Australia and the United States are about the same in size, and their western lands are both not rich in soil. It was the eastern coast of Australia and American that the English first settled, and both colonies soon began to develop towards the west. However, this westward movement took place more because the English were searching for better land than because the population was increasing. Settlements of the western part of both countries developed quickly after gold was discovered in America in 1849 and in Australia two years later. Although the development of these two countries has a lot in common, there are some striking differences as well. The United States gained its independence from England by revolution while Australis won its independence without having to go to war. Australia, unlike the United States, was firstly truned into a colony by English prisoners and its economic development was in wheat growing and sheep raising. By 1922, for example, Australia had fifteen times more sheep than it had people, or almost half as many sheep as there are people today in the United States. Yet, in spite of these and other main differences, Australia and the United States have more in common with each other than either one has with most of the rest of the world. In the early history of America and Australia, both colonies developed towards the west firstly for her reaon that  _  .
the population was increasing rapidly in the east the English thought there might be richer land there gold was discovered there fewer people lived there