"Sir,--By the return of the HERO from Fowler's Bay, I have the honour to

acquaint you, for the information of his Excellency the Governor, and the

colonists interested, with the unsuccessful termination of the expedition

placed under my command, for the purpose of exploring the northern

interior. Since my last report to his Excellency the Governor, containing

an account of two most disastrous attempts to head the Great Australian

Bight, I have, accompanied by one of my native boys, made a third and

more successful one. On this occasion, I with some difficulty advanced

about fifty miles beyond the head of the Great Bight, along the line of

high cliffs described by Flinders, and which have hitherto been supposed

to be composed principally of chalk. I found the country between the head

of Fowler's Bay and the head of the Great Bight to consist of a

succession of sandy ridges, all of which were more or less covered by a

low scrub, and without either grass or water for the last sixty miles.

This tract is of so uneven and heavy a nature that it would be quite

impossible for me to take a loaded dray across it at this very

unfavourable season of the year, and with horses so spiritless and jaded

as ours have become, from the incessant and laborious work they have gone

through during the last seven months. Upon rounding the head of the

Bight, I met with a few friendly natives, who shewed me where both grass

and water was to be procured, at the same time assuring me that there was

no more along the coast for ten of their days' journeys, (probably 100

miles) or where the first break takes place in the long and continuous

line of cliffs which extend so far to the westward of the head of the

Great Bight. Upon reaching these cliffs I felt much disappointed, as I

had long looked forward to some considerable and important change in the

character of the country. There was, however, nothing very remarkable in

their appearance, nor did the features of the country around undergo any

material change. The cliffs themselves struck me as merely exhibiting the

precipitous banks of an almost level country of moderate elevation (three

or four hundred feet) which the violent lash of the whole of the Southern

Ocean was always acting upon and undermining. Their rock formation

consisted of various strata, the upper crust or surface being an oolitic

limestone; below this is an indented concrete mixture of sand, soil,

small pebbles, and shells; beneath this appear immense masses of a coarse

greyish limestone, of which by far the greater portion of the cliffs are

composed; and immediately below these again is a narrow stripe of a

whitish, or rather a cream-coloured substance, lying in horizontal

strata, but which the impracticable nature of the cliffs did not permit

me to examine. After riding for forty-five miles along their summits, I

was in no instance able to descend; their brinks were perfectly steep and

overhanging, and in many places enormous masses appeared severed by deep

cracks from the main land, and requiring but a slight touch to plunge

them into the abyss below. As far as I have yet been along these cliffs,

I have seen nothing in their appearance to lead me to suppose that any

portion of them is composed of chalk. Immediately along their summits,

and for a few hundred yards back, very numerous pieces of pure flint are

lying loosely scattered upon the surface of the limestone. How they

obtained so elevated a position, or whence they are from, may admit,

perhaps, of some speculation. Back from the sea, and as far as the eye

could reach, the country was level and generally open, with some low

prickly bushes and salsolaceous plants growing upon it; here and there

patches of the gum scrub shewed themselves, and among which a few small

grassy openings were interspersed. The whole of this tract was thickly

covered by small land shells, about the size of snail shells--and some of

them somewhat resembling those in shape. There were no sudden depressions

or abrupt elevations anywhere; neither hills, trees, or water were to be

observed; nor was there the least indication of improvement or change in

the general character of this desolate and forbidding region. The natives

we met with at the head of the Bight were very friendly, and readily

afforded us every information we required--as far as we could make them

comprehend our wishes.

"We most distinctly understood from them, that there was no water along

the coast, westerly, for ten of their days' journeys; and that inland,

there was neither fresh nor salt water, hills or timber, as far as they

had ever been; an account which but too well agreed with the opinion I

had myself formed, upon ascertaining that the same dreary, barren region

I had been traversing so long, still continued at a point where I had

ever looked forward to some great and important change taking place in

the features of the country, and from which I had hoped I might

eventually have accomplished the object for which the expedition was

fitted out. Such, however, was not the case; there was not any

improvement in the appearance of the country, or the least indication

that there might be a change for the better, within any practicable

distance. I had already examined the tract of country from the longitude

of Adelaide, to the parallel of almost 130 degrees E. longitude; an

extent comprising nearly 8 1/2 degrees of longitude; without my having

found a single point from which it was possible to penetrate for into the

interior; and I now find myself in circumstances of so embarrassing and

hopeless a character, that I have most reluctantly been compelled to give

up all further idea of contending with obstacles which there is no

reasonable hope of ever overcoming. I have now, therefore, with much

regret completely broken up my small but devoted party. Two of my men

returned to Adelaide in the WATERWITCH, five weeks ago.

"Mr. Scott and another of my men proceed on Monday in the HERO; whilst

myself, my native boys, and the overseer (who has chosen to accompany me)

proceed hence overland to King George's Sound, as soon as our horses are

a little recruited by the abundant supply of forage we received by the

HERO.

"In this undertaking, my young friend Mr. Scott--with his usual spirit

and perseverance--was most anxious to have joined me; but painful as it

has been to refuse, I have felt it my duty, from the nature of the

service, not to comply with his request. It now only remains for me to

return my most sincere thanks to the many friends to whose kindness I

have been so much indebted during the continuance of this long and

anxious undertaking. To his Excellency the Governor I feel that I can

never be sufficiently grateful for the very kind, prompt, and liberal

support and encouragement which I have invariably experienced, and to

which I have been mainly indebted for the means of accomplishing even the

little I have done. To yourself, as chairman, the committee, and the

colonists, by whom the expedition was fitted out, I return my most

sincere acknowledgments for the very great honour done me in appointing

me to the command of an undertaking at once so interesting and

important--for the liberal and kind way in which I have been supported,

and my wishes complied with; and, above all, for the flattering and

encouraging confidence expressed in my abilities and perseverance. To a

conviction of the existence of this confidence in the minds of those by

whom I was appointed, I feel that I owe much of the stimulus that has

sustained and encouraged me under difficulties and disappointments of no

ordinary kind. Deeply as I lament the unsuccessful and unsatisfactory

result of an undertaking from which so much was expected, I have the

cheering consciousness of having endeavoured faithfully to discharge the

trust confided to me; and although from a concurrence of most unfortunate

circumstances which no human prudence could foresee or guard against, and

which the most untiring perseverance has been unable to surmount, I have

not succeeded in effecting the great objects for which this expedition

was fitted out, I would fain hope that our labours have not been

altogether in vain, but that hereafter, some future and more fortunate

traveller, judging from the considerable extent of country we have

examined, and the features it has developed, may, by knowing where the

interior is not practicable, be directed to where it is.

"In concluding my report of our endeavours to penetrate the northern

interior, I beg to express to all who have been connected with the

expedition, my sincere thanks for their zeal and good conduct. In my

young friend, Mr. Scott, I have had a cheerful companion and useful

assistant; whilst in my overseer and men, I have met with a most

praiseworthy readiness and steadiness of conduct, under circumstances and

disappointments that have at once been trying and disheartening.

"I have the honour to be, Sir, your most obedient servant,

"EDWARD JOHN EYRE.

"The Chairman of the Committee for promoting the Northern Expedition."

We were now alone, myself, my overseer, and three native boys, with a

fearful task before us, the bridge was broken down behind us, and we must

succeed in reaching King George's Sound, or perish; no middle course

remained. It was impossible for us to be insensible to the isolated and

hazardous position we were in; but this very feeling only nerved and

stimulated us the more in our exertions, to accomplish the duty we had

engaged in; the result we humbly left to that Almighty Being who had

guided and guarded us hitherto, amidst all our difficulties, and in all

our wanderings, and who, whatever he might ordain, would undoubtedly

order every thing for the best.

Our time was now entirely taken up, in the daily routine of the camp,

attending to the sheep and horses, and in making preparations for our

journey. We had a large supply of corn and bran sent for our horses, and

as long as any of this remained, I determined to continue in depot.

In the mean time, the overseer was thoroughly occupied in preparing

pack-saddles, (all of which we had to make) extra bridles, new hobbles,

and in shoeing all the horses. I undertook the duty of new stuffing and

repairing the various saddles, making what extra clothes were required

for myself and the native boys for our journey; weighing out and packing

in small linen bags, all the rations of tea, sugar, etc. which would be

required weekly, preparing strong canvas saddle-bags, making light

oilskins to protect our things from the wet, etc. etc. These many necessary

and important preparations kept us all very busy, and the time passed

rapidly away. On one occasion, I attempted with one of my native boys, to

explore the country due north of Fowler's Bay, but the weather turned out

unfavourable, the wind being from the north-east, and scorchingly hot; I

succeeded, however, in penetrating fully twenty miles in the direction I

had taken, the first ten of which was through a dense heavy scrub, of the

Eucalyptus dumosa, or the tea-tree. Emerging from this, we entered an

open pretty looking country, consisting of grassy plains of great extent,

divided by belts of shrubs and bush; as we advanced the shrubs became

less numerous, the country more open, and salsolaceous plants began to

occupy the place of the grass. Had we been able to continue our

exploration for another day's journey, I have no doubt, from the change

which appeared gradually to be taking place as we advanced north, that

the whole country around would have been one vast level open waste,

without bush or shrub of any kind, and covered by salsolae. I felt

strongly convinced, we were gradually approaching a similar kind of

country to that I had been in between Lake Torrens and Flinders range;

the only difference was that as far as we had yet gone from Fowler's Bay,

the elevation of the country did not appear to have been diminished; its

average height above the level of the sea, I judged to be about 300 feet,

and forming doubtless a continuation of the table land, I had found

existing at the head of the Great Bight. The weather, however, was as

unfavourable as the country, for such researches, at this season of the

year, and the horses I had taken out with me suffered a good deal, even

in the short space of two days, during which I was engaged in this

attempt.

On some occasions the thermometer was 113 degrees in the shade, and

whenever the wind was from the north-east, it was hot and oppressive

beyond all conception. The natives, though occasionally seen, generally

kept away from us during the time we were in depot. One old man alone

(called Mumma) came up to our camp, and remained with us for

several days; he was one of the few who had accompanied us so far from

the neighbourhood of Denial Bay, and seemed to have taken a great fancy

to us. We now endeavoured to reward him for his former services, by

giving him a red shirt, a blanket, and a tomahawk, and whenever we got

our meals he joined us, eating and drinking readily any thing we gave

him--tea, broth, pease soup, mutton, salt pork, rice, damper, sugar,

dried fruits, were all alike to him, nothing came amiss, and he appeared

to grow better in condition every day.

At last he too got tired of remaining so long in one place; the novelty

had worn away, and packing up his things he left us. During the time this

man had been with us, I took the opportunity of ascertaining whether the

King George's Sound native, Wylie, could understand him, but I found he

could not. There were one or two words common to both, but the general

character, meaning, and sound of the two languages were so very different

upon comparison, that I could myself understand the old man much better

than Wylie could.

Whilst remaining in depot, the whole party were one day suddenly seized

with a severe attack of illness, accompanied with vomiting and violent

pain in the stomach, and I began to fear that we had unknowingly taken

some deleterious ingredient in our food, as all were seized in the same

way; this attack continued for several days, without our being able to

discover the cause of it, but at last by changing the sugar we were

using, we again got well. It appeared that a new bag of sugar had been

broached about the time we were first attacked, and upon inspecting it,

we found the bag quite wet--something or other of a deleterious character

having been spilled over it, and which had doubtless caused us the

inconvenience we experienced. Fortunately we had other sugar that had not

been so injured, and the loss of the damaged bag was not of great

consequence to us.

By the 23rd of February our preparations for entering upon our journey

were nearly all completed, the horses had eaten up all their bran and

corn, and were now in good condition; all our pack-saddles, saddles, and

harness were ready, our provisions were all packed, and every thing in

order for commencing the undertaking; there remained but to bury our

surplus stores, and for this the hole was already dug. On the afternoon

of the 24th I intended finally to evacuate the depot, and on the evening

of the 23rd, to amuse my natives, I had all the rockets and blue-lights

we had, fired off, since we could not take them with us, our pack-horses

being barely able to carry for us the mere necessaries of life.

Chapter XV.

RETURN OF MR. SCOTT IN THE HERO--MR. SCOTT AGAIN SAILS FOR

ADELAIDE--COMMENCE JOURNEY TO THE WESTWARD--OPPORTUNE ARRIVAL AT THE

SAND-HILLS--LARGE FLIES--TAKE ON THE SHEEP--LEAVE THE OVERSEER WITH THE

HORSES--REACH YEERKUMBAN KAUWE--JOINED BY THE OVERSEER--TORMENTING FLIES

AGAIN--MOVE ON WITH THE SHEEP--LEAVE OVERSEER TO FOLLOW WITH THE

HORSES--CHARACTER OF COUNTRY ALONG THE BIGHT--SCENERY OF THE

CLIFFS--LEAVE THE SHEEP--ANXIETY ABOUT WATER--REACH THE TERMINATION OF

THE CLIFFS--FIND WATER.

February 24.--THIS being the day I had appointed to enter upon the

arduous task before me, I had the party up at a very early hour. Our

loads were all arranged for each of the horses; our blankets and coats

were all packed up, and we were in the act of burying in a hole under

ground the few stores we could not take with us, when to our surprise a

shot was heard in the direction of Fowler's Bay, and shortly after a

second; we then observed two people in the distance following up the dray

tracks leading to the depot. Imagining that some whaler had anchored in

the bay, and being anxious to prevent our underground store from being

noticed, we hastily spread the tarpaulins over the hole, so that what we

were about could not be observed, and then fired shots in reply.

As the parties we had seen gradually approached nearer I recognised one

of them with the telescope as being Mr. Germain, the master of the HERO;

the other I could not make out at first from his being enveloped in heavy

pilot clothes; a little time however enabled me to distinguish under this

guise my young friend Mr. Scott, and I went anxiously to meet him, and

learn what had brought him back. Our greeting over, he informed me that

the Governor had sent him back with letters to me, and desired me to

return in the HERO to Adelaide. As Mr. Scott had not brought the letters

up, I walked down with him after luncheon, and went on board the cutter,

where I received many friendly letters, all urging me to return and give

up the attempt I meditated to the westward, and which every one appeared

to consider as little less than madness. From the Governor I received a

kind letter to the same effect, offering to assist me in any further

attempts I might wish to make round Lake Torrens, or to explore the

Northern Interior, and placing absolutely at my disposal, within the

colony, the services of the HERO, to enable me either to take my party

back overland, or to follow out any examinations I might wish to make

from the coast northerly. As a further inducement, and with a view to

lessen the feelings of disappointment I might experience at the

unsuccessful termination of an expedition from which such great results

had been expected, the assistant commissioner had been instructed to

write to me officially, communicating the approbation of His Excellency

and of the Colonists of the way in which I had discharged the trust

confided to me, and directing me to relinquish all further attempts to

the westward, and to return in the HERO to Adelaide.

Added to the numerous letters I received, were many friendly messages to

the same effect, sent to me through Mr. Scott. I felt deeply sensible of

the lively interest expressed in my welfare, and most grateful for the

kind feeling manifested towards me on the part of the Governor and the

Colonists; it was with much pain and regret, therefore, that I found

myself unable to comply with their requests, and felt compelled by duty

to adopt a course at variance with their wishes. When I first broke up my

party and sent Mr. Scott back to Adelaide, on the 31st January, 1841, I

had well and maturely considered the step I felt myself called upon to

adopt; after giving my best and serious attention to the arguments of my

friends, and carefully reconsidering the subject now, I saw nothing to

induce me to change the opinion I had then arrived at.

It will be remembered, that in stating the origin and commencement of the

Northern expedition, it was remarked, that a previously contemplated

expedition to the Westward, was made to give way to it, and that I had

myself been principally instrumental in changing the direction of public

attention from the one to the other; it will be remembered also, what

publicity had been given to our departure, how great was the interest

felt in the progress of our labours, and how sanguine were the

expectations formed as to the results; alas, how signally had these hopes

been dashed to the ground, after the toils, anxieties, and privations of

eight months, neither useful nor valuable discoveries had been made;

hemmed in by an impracticable desert, or the bed of an impassable lake, I

had been baffled and defeated in every direction, and to have returned

now, would have been, to have rendered of no avail the great expenses

that had been incurred in the outfit of the expedition, to have thrown

away the only opportunity presented to me of making some amends for past

failure, and of endeavouring to justify the confidence that had been

reposed in me, by carrying through the exploration which had been

originally contemplated to the westward, now it was no longer possible to

accomplish that to the north, for which it had given place; I considered

myself in duty and in honour bound, not to turn back from this attempt,

as long as there was the remotest possibility of success, without any

regard to considerations of a personal or private nature. Under these

feelings, therefore, I resolved to remain only another day in depot, to

reply to the letters I had received, and return my best thanks to the

many friends who had expressed such kind interest on my behalf.

February 25.--Having finished my letters, and buried all the spare

stores, I sent the native boys away early with the sheep, that they might

travel more slowly than we should do with the horses. About two we loaded

the pack animals, and wishing Mr. Scott a final adieu, set off upon our

route. The party consisted of myself, the overseer, three native boys,

nine horses, one Timor pony, one foal, born at Streaky Bay, and six

sheep; our flour which was buried at the sand-hills to the north-west,

was calculated for nine weeks, at an allowance of six pounds of flour

each weekly, with a proportionate quantity of tea and sugar. The long

rest our horses had enjoyed, and the large supply of oats and bran we had

received for them, had brought them round wonderfully, they were now in

good condition, and strong, and could not have commenced the journey

under more favourable circumstances, had it been the winter instead of

the summer season.

Two of the native boys having gone on early in the morning with the

sheep, there remained only myself, the overseer, and one native, to

manage ten horses, and we were consequently obliged to drive some of the

pack-horses loose; at first they went well and quietly, but something

having unluckily startled one of them, he frightened the others, and four

out of the number set off at full gallop, and never stopped for five

miles, by which time they had got rid of all their loads except the

saddles. Sending the black boy back to the depot with the four horses

that had not got away, I and the overseer went on horseback after the

others, picking up the baggage they had been carrying, scattered about in

every direction; luckily no great damage was done, and at sunset we were

all assembled again at the depot, and the animals reloaded. Leaving a

short note for Mr. Scott, who had gone on board the cutter, we again

recommenced our journey, and, travelling for five miles, halted at the

well in the plains. I intended to have made a long stage, but the night

set in so dark that I did not like to venture amongst the scrub with the

pack-horses now they were so fresh, and where, if they did get frightened

and gallop off, they would cause us much greater trouble and delay than

they had done in the daytime.

February 26.--Moving on very early, we arrived at the grassy plain under

the sand-hills, a little after three in the afternoon, just in time to

save the gun and clothes of the black boys, which they had imprudently

left there whilst they took the sheep to water, a mile and a half away.

At the very instant of our arrival, a native was prowling about the camp,

and would, doubtless, soon have carried off every thing. Upon examining

the place at which we had buried our flour on the 31st December, and upon

which we were now dependent for our supply, I found that we had only just

arrived in time to save it from the depredations of the natives; it

seems, that having found where the cask containing it was buried, and

being unable, from its weight, to get it out of the ground, they had

broken a square hole in one of the staves (by what means I could not

discover), and though, as yet, every thing was safe and uninjured inside,

I have no doubt, that, had we been one day later in coming, they would

have enlarged the opening in the cask, and scattered or destroyed the

contents, and we should have then had the unpleasant and laborious task

of returning to that we had buried at Fowler's Bay for a fresh supply. A

bucket, which we had also left buried, was broken to pieces, a two gallon

keg carried off, and a twenty-five gallon cask full of water had been dug

up, and the water drank or emptied, so that we were very fortunate in

arriving when we did to prevent further loss.

The black boys, who had gone a-head with the sheep, returned soon after

our arrival, tired and hungry, having only had one meal since they left

us on the 25th. They had been over the sandhills to fetch water, and were

now coming to try and find the flour which they knew we had left buried

at these plains. After dark, accompanied by the overseer, I took the

horses down to the water, but the sand had slipped in, and we could not

get them watered to-night.

February 27.--Sending the overseer and two boys down with the horses to

the well this morning, I and the other boy set to work, and dug out the

cask with the flour, which we then weighed out, and subdivided into

packages of fifty pounds each, for the convenience of carrying. The

native I had seen about the camp, on our approach, yesterday, had

returned, and slept near us at night; but upon inquiring from him this

morning, where our two-gallon keg was, he took the very earliest

opportunity of decamping, being probably afraid that we should charge him

with the robbery, or punish him for it. The natives, generally, are a

strange and singular race of people, and their customs and habits are

often quite inexplicable to us. Sometimes, in barely passing through a

country, we have them gathering from all quarters, and surrounding us,

anxious and curious to observe our persons, or actions; at other times,

we may remain in camp for weeks together without seeing a single native,

though many may be in the neighbourhood; when they do come, too, they

usually depart as suddenly as their visit had been unexpected. Among all

who had come under my observation, hitherto, along this coast, I found

that every male had undergone the singular ceremony I have described as

prevailing in the Port Lincoln peninsula; each, too, had the cartilage of

the nose perforated, but none had lost the front teeth, nor did I see any

(with one exception) having scars raised on the back, breast, or arms, as

is frequently the case with many tribes in Australia.

For the last few days, the weather had been tolerably cool, and we had

not been much troubled with musquitoes; instead, however, we were

persecuted severely by a very large greyish kind of horsefly, with a huge

proboscis for sucking up the blood. These pests were in great numbers,

and proved a sad annoyance, lighting upon us in every direction, and

inflicting very irritating wounds even through clothes of considerable

thickness.

February 28.--As we had a long distance to travel to the next water, and

the sheep could not keep pace with the horses, I left the overseer and

two natives to bring the latter after us, whilst I and the younger boy

set off with the sheep. At fifteen miles, we passed the place where the

nine-gallon keg of water had been buried on the 5th January. Upon digging

it up, and taking out the bung, the water appeared discoloured and

offensive in smell. It was still clear, however, and the sheep drank

hastily of it, and we did the same ourselves, but the horses would not

touch it. Leaving the cask out in the air with the bung out that it might

sweeten a little against the overseer came up, we went on with the sheep

to the undulating plains, arriving there between ten and eleven at night.

After hobbling the horses, and making a brush-yard for the sheep, we laid

down, tired with the labours of the day.

March 1.--Travelling through the plains for a mile, we came to our former

encampment, where we had left some stores, and a large cask of water; the

latter had dried up to about two quarts, and was very horrible, both in

smell and flavour; but still we were glad to take it, for, calculating

upon finding an abundance in this cask, we had imprudently brought but

little with us. After breakfast, I dug up some of the provisions buried

here; and leaving a note for the overseer, proceeded onwards with the

boy, and the sheep, for twenty-four miles. The stage was a long one, and

over heavy ground, so that the sheep began to get tired, as we did

ourselves also, one of us being always obliged to walk whilst the other

was riding. We had two horses with us, but required one exclusively to

carry our coats, blankets, and provisions, the other one we rode in turn.

March 2.--A hot day, with the wind north-east. Between eleven and twelve

we arrived at the first water, at the head of the Bight, and had a long

and arduous task to get the sheep and horses watered, no natives being

here to help us now, and the sand rushing in as fast as we could throw it

out. By great exertion we effected our object, and then getting some tea,

and leaving a note to tell the overseer not to halt at this difficult

watering-place, if he could possibly avoid it, we pushed on again, and

took up our position at Yeerkumban kauwe, in time to dig holes, and water

the sheep, before dark.

March 3.--Having got up and watered the horses and sheep, I sent the boy

out to tend them at grass, whilst I commenced digging two large holes to

water the pack-horses, that there might be no delay when the overseer

came up with them. I had nothing but a shell to dig with, and, as a very

large excavation was required to enable a bucket to be dipped, my

occupation was neither a light nor a short one. Having completed my work,

I killed a sheep, well knowing the party would be fatigued and hungry,

when they came up. About three they made their appearance, and thus, upon

the whole, we had very successfully got over this our first push, and

were soon very comfortably established at "Yeerkumban kauwe." The holes I

had dug enabled us easily and speedily to water the horses, and the sheep

I had killed afforded a refreshing meal to the overseer and boys, after

their harassing journey. In the afternoon the sand blew about in a most

annoying manner, covering us from head to foot, and filling everything we

put down, if but for an instant. This sand had been our constant torment

for many weeks past; condemned to live among the sand-hills for the sake

of procuring water, we were never free from irritation and inconvenience.

It floated on the surface of the water, penetrated into our clothes,

hair, eyes, and ears, our provisions were covered over with it, and our

blankets half buried when we lay down at nights,--it was a perpetual and

never-ceasing torment, and as if to increase our miseries we were again

afflicted with swarms of large horse-flies, which bit us dreadfully. On

the 4th, we remained in camp to rest the horses, and I walked round to

reconnoitre. Upon the beach I found the fragments of a wreck, consisting

of part of a mast, a tiller wheel, and some copper sheathings, the last

sad records of the fate of some unfortunate vessel on this wild and

breaker-beaten shore. There was nothing to indicate its size, or name, or

the period when the wreck occurred.

No recent traces of natives having been either at Yeerkumban kauwe, or

the more distant water, were visible anywhere, and I imagined they might

perhaps have made an excursion to the westward. A large flight of

red-winged cockatoos were seen today hovering around the sand-hills, and

appearing quite disconcerted at finding us in possession of the water; we

had not before seen them in the neighbourhood, and I can hardly

conjecture where they go to from this place, for generally they are birds

fond of water.

Knowing from the accounts of the natives that upon leaving Yeerkumban

kauwe, I should have a task before me of no ordinary difficulty to get

either the sheep or the horses to the next water, I determined to proceed

myself in advance, with the sheep, that by travelling slowly, at the same

time that we kept steadily advancing, every chance might be given to them

of accomplishing the journey in safety. I was anxious too to precede my

party, in order that by finding out where the water was, I might be on

the look out for them, to guide them to it, and that thus when in their

greatest difficulty, no time should be lost in searching for water.

Having given the overseer orders to keep the tracks of my horses, when he

had travelled about seventy miles along the coast, I set off on the 7th

March, with the youngest of the natives to assist me in driving the

sheep, leaving the two elder ones with the overseer, to aid in managing

the pack-horses. As before we took two horses with us, one to carry our

provisions and water, and the other to ride upon in turn, the boy

however, being young, and incapable of much fatigue, the greater portion

of the walking naturally fell to my share. The day was cool and

favourable, and we accomplished a stage of twenty-four miles; the

afternoon became dark and lowering, and I fully expected rain, but

towards sunset two or three drops fell, and the clouds cleared away. Our

horses fed tolerably upon the little withered grass that we found, but

the sheep were too tired to eat, and lay down; we put them therefore into

a yard we had made for them for the night.

March 8.--Having turned the sheep out of the yard three hours before

daylight, I was in hopes they would have fed a little before we moved on,

but they would not touch such food as we had for them, and at six I was

obliged to proceed onwards; the morning was dark and looked like rain,

but as was the case yesterday, a drop or two only fell. We made a stage

to-day of twenty-six miles, through a level country, generally open, but

near the sea covered with a very low dwarf tea-tree, small prickly

bushes, and salsolae, and having the surface almost every where sprinkled

over with fresh-water shells; further from the coast the plains extending

to the north were very extensive, level, and divided by belts of scrub or

shrubs. There was no perceptible inclination of the country in any

direction, the level land ran to the very borders of the sea, where it

abruptly terminated, forming the steep and precipitous cliffs, observed

by Captain Flinders, and which it was quite impossible to descend

anywhere. The general elevation of this table land, was from three to

four hundred feet.

The day turned out fine and clear, and the effect produced by refraction

in these vast plains was singular and deceptive: more than once we turned

considerably out of our way to examine some large timber, as we thought

it to be, to the north of us, but which, upon our approach, proved to be

low scrubby bushes. At another time we imagined we saw two natives in the

distance, and went towards them as carefully and cautiously as we could;

instead, however, of our having seen the heads of natives, as we

supposed, above the bushes, it turned out to be only crows. Yet the

native boy, whose quickness and accuracy of vision had often before

surprised me, was equally deceived with myself. Upon halting in the

evening our sheep again were very tired, and refused to eat. The horses

too were now beginning to feel the want of water, and fed but little. I

therefore sat up and watched them until half past eight, after which I

tied them up to some bushes. At one o'clock I again got up and let them

loose, hoping they might feed a little better in the cool of the night.

The scud was rapidly passing the moon, and I watched for hours the clouds

gathering to the south and passing to the north, but no rain fell.

March 9.--Moving on early we passed through a similar country to that we

had before traversed; but there was more of the tea-tree scrub, which

made our travelling more difficult and fatiguing. This kind of scrub,

which is different from any I had seen before, is a low bush running

along the ground, with very thick and crooked roots and branches, and

forming a close matted and harassing obstacle to the traveller. The sheep

and horses got very tired, from having to lift their legs so high to

clear it every step they took. To the westward we found the country

rising as we advanced, and the cliffs becoming higher; they now answered

fully, where we could obtain a view of any projecting parts, to the

description given by Flinders--"the upper part brown and the lower part

white;" but as yet we could not find any place where we could descend to

examine them. The lower, or white part, appeared soft and crumbling, and

its decay had left the upper, or harder rock, fearfully overhanging the

ocean. Upon the summits we again found flints in the greatest abundance

lying loosely scattered over the surface.

The day was cloudy and gathering for rain, but none fell. After

travelling twenty-five miles we halted for an hour or two to rest the

sheep and horses, feeding was out of the question, for they were too much

in want of water to attempt to cat the dry and withered grass around us.

We now lay down to rest ourselves, and the boy soon fell asleep; I was

however feverish and restless, and could not close my eyes. In an hour

and a half I arose, got up the horses and saddled them, and then, awaking

my companion, we again pushed on by moonlight. At ten miles we crossed a

well beaten native pathway, plainly discernible even then, and this we

followed down towards the cliffs, fully hoping it would lead to water.

Our hopes however had been excited but to render our disappointment the

greater, for upon tracing it onwards we found it terminate abruptly at a

large circular hole of limestone rock, which would retain a considerable

quantity of water after rains, but was now without a single drop.

Gloomily turning away we again pushed on for eight miles further, and at

three in the morning of the 10th were compelled to halt from downright

exhaustion and fatigue. The horses and sheep were knocked up. The poor

boy was so tired and sleepy that he could scarcely sit upon his horse,

and I found myself actually dosing as I walked: mechanically my legs kept

moving forwards, but my eyes were every now and then closed in

forgetfulness of all around me, until I was suddenly thrown down by

getting entangled amongst the scrub, or aroused by a severe blow across

the face from the recoil of a bough after the passage of the boy's horse.

I now judged we had come about ninety-three miles from Yeerkumban-kauwe,

and hoped that we could not be very far from water. Having tied up the

horses for an hour or two, and without making a fire, or even unrolling

our cloaks to cover us, we stretched ourselves on the ground, and were in

a few moments fast asleep.

March 10.--At five we were again on our route, every moment expecting to

see a break in the line of cliffs along which we had now travelled so

far. Alas! they still continued stretching as far as the eye could see to

the westward, and as fast as we arrived at one point which had bounded

our vision (and beyond which we hoped a change might occur), it was but

to be met with the view of another beyond. Distressing and fatal as the

continuance of these cliffs might prove to us, there was a grandeur and

sublimity in their appearance that was most imposing, and which struck me

with admiration. Stretching out before us in lofty unbroken outline, they

presented the singular and romantic appearance of massy battlements of

masonry, supported by huge buttresses, and glittering in the morning sun

which had now risen upon them, and made the scene beautiful even amidst

the dangers and anxieties of our situation. It was indeed a rich and

gorgeous view for a painter, and I never felt so much regret at my

inability to sketch as I did at this moment.

Still we kept moving onwards and still the cliffs continued. Hour after

hour passed away, mile after mile was traversed, and yet no change was

observable. My anxiety for the party who were to follow behind with the

pack-horses became very great; the state of doubt and uncertainty I was

in was almost insupportable, and I began to fear that neither sheep nor

horses would ever reach the water, even should we suceeed in doing so

ourselves, which now appeared to be very doubtful. At noon I considered

we had come one hundred and ten miles from the last water, and still the

country remained the same. The cliffs indeed appeared to be gradually

declining a little in elevation to the westward, but there was nothing to

indicate their speedy termination. Our sheep still travelled, but they

were getting so tired, and their pace was so slow, that I thought it

would be better to leave them behind, and by moving more rapidly with the

horses endeavour at least to save their lives. Foreseeing that such a

contingency as this might occur, I had given the overseer strict orders

to keep the tracks of my horses, that if I should be compelled to abandon

the sheep he might find them and bring them on with his party.

Having decided upon this plan we set to work and made a strong high yard

of such shrubs as we could find, and in this we shut up the sheep. I then

wrote a note for the overseer, directing him to bury the loads of the

horses, and hastening on with the animals alone endeavour to save their

lives. To attract attention I raised a long stick above the sheep-yard,

and tied to it a red handkerchief, which could be seen a long way off. At

one we again proceeded, and were able to advance more rapidly than we

could whilst the sheep were with us. In a few miles we came to a

well-beaten native road, and again our hopes were raised of speedily

terminating the anxiety and suspense we were in. Following the road for

ten miles it conducted us to where the cliffs receded a little from the

sea, leaving a small barren valley between them and the ocean, of low,

sandy ground; the road ceased here at a deep rocky gorge of the cliffs,

where there was a breach leading down to the valley. There were several

deep holes among the rocks where water would be procurable after rains,

but they were now all dry. The state of mind in which we passed on may be

better imagined than described. We had now been four days without a drop

of water for our horses, and we had no longer any for ourselves, whilst

there appeared as little probability of our shortly procuring it as there

had been two days ago. A break, it is true, had occurred in the line of

the cliffs, but this appeared of a very temporary character, for we could

see beyond them the valley again abutting upon the ocean.

At dark we were fifteen miles from where we left the sheep, and were

again upon a native pathway, which we twice tried to follow down the

steep and rugged slopes of the table land into the valley below. We were

only, however, fagging our poor horses and bewildering ourselves to no

purpose, for we invariably lost all track at the bottom, and I at last

became convinced that it was useless to try and trace the natives'

roadway further, since it always appeared to stop at rocky holes where

there was no water now. Keeping, therefore, the high ground, we travelled

near the top of the cliffs, bounding the sandy valley, but here again a

new obstacle impeded our progress. The country, which had heretofore been

tolerably open was now become very scrubby, and we found it almost

impossible either to keep a straight course, or to make any progress

through it in the dark. Still we kept perseveringly onwards, leading our

horses and forcing our way through in the best way we could. It was,

however, all in vain; we made so little headway, and were so completely

exhausting the little strength we had left, that I felt compelled to

desist. The poor boy was quite worn out, and could scarcely move. I was

myself but little better, and we were both suffering from a parching

thirst; under such obstacles labour and perseverance were but thrown

away, and I determined to await the day-light. After tying up the horses

the boy lay down, and was soon asleep, happy in his ignorance of the

dangers which threatened him. I lay down, too, but not to sleep; my own

distresses were lost in the apprehensions which I entertained for those

who were behind. We were now about one hundred and twenty-eight miles

from the last water; we had been four whole days and nights without a

drop for our horses, and almost without food also, (for parched as they

were they could not feed upon the dry and withered grass we found.) The

state the poor animals were in was truly pitiable, what then was likely

to be the condition of those that were coming after us, and carrying

heavy packs. It was questionable, even, if they would reach the distance

we had already attained in safety; and it was clear, that unless I

discovered water early in the morning, the whole of our horses must

perish, whilst it would be very doubtful if we could succeed even in

saving our own lives.

March 11.--Early this morning we moved on, leading slowly our jaded

animals through the scrub. The night had been one of painful suspense and

gloomy forebodings; and the day set in dark and cloudy, as if to

tantalise us with the hope of rain which was not destined to fall. In a

few miles we reached the edge of the cliffs, from which we had a good

view of the sandy valley we had been travelling round, but which the

thick scrub had prevented our scrutinising sooner. I now noticed some

hillocks of bare sand in the midst of it. These I had not seen before, as

the only previous point from which they could have been visible had been

passed by us in the dark. It now struck me, that the water spoken of by

the natives at Yeerkumban-kauwe might be situated among these sand-hills,

and that we were going away from instead of approaching it. The bare idea

of such a possibility was almost maddening, and as the dreadful thought

flashed across my mind I stood for a moment undecided and irresolute as

to what I ought to do. We were now many miles past these hills, and if we

went back to examine them for water, and did not find it, we could never

hope that our horses would be able to return again to search elsewhere;

whilst if there was water there, and we did not return, every step we

took would but carry us further from it, and lead to our certain

destruction.

For a few minutes I carefully scanned the line of coast before me. In the

distance beyond a projecting point of the cliffs, I fancied I discerned a

low sandy shore, and my mind was made up at once, to advance in the line

we were pursuing. After a little while, we again came to a well beaten

native pathway, and following this along the summit of the cliffs, were

brought by it, in seven miles, to the point where they receded from the

sea-shore; as they inclined inland, leaving a low sandy country between

them and some high bare sand-hills near the sea. The road now led us down

a very rocky steep part of the cliffs, near the angle where they broke

away from the beach, but upon reaching the bottom we lost it altogether

on the sandy shore; following along by the water's edge, we felt cooled

and refreshed by the sea air, and in one mile and a half from where we

had descended the cliffs, we reached the white sand-drifts. Upon turning

into these to search for water, we were fortunate enough to strike the

very place where the natives had dug little wells; and thus on the fifth

day of our sufferings, we were again blessed with abundance of

water,--nor could I help considering it as a special instance of the

goodness of Providence, that we had passed the sandy valley in the dark,

and had thereby been deterred from descending to examine the sand-hills

it contained; had we done so, the extra fatigue to our horses and the

great length of time it would have taken up, would probably have

prevented the horses from ever reaching the water we were now at. It took

us about two hours to water the animals, and get a little tea for

ourselves, after which the boy laid down to sleep, and I walked round to

search for grass. A little grew between the sand-drifts and the cliffs,

and though dry and withered, I was most thankful to find it. I then

returned to the camp and laid down, but could not sleep, for although

relieved myself, my anxiety became but the greater, for the party behind,

and the more so, because at present I could do nothing to aid them; it

was impossible that either the horses, or ourselves, could go back to

meet them without a few hours' rest, and yet the loss of a few hours

might be of the utmost consequence; I determined, however, to return and

meet them as early as possible in the morning, and in the mean time, as I

knew that the overseer and natives would, when they came, be greatly

fatigued, and unable to dig holes to water the horses, I called up the

boy, and with his assistance dug two large holes about five feet deep,

from which the horses could readily and without delay be watered upon

their arrival. As we had only some shells left by the natives to work

with, our wells progressed slowly, and we were occupied to a late hour.

In the evening we watered the horses, and before laying down ourselves,

drove them to the grass I had discovered. For the first time for many

nights, I enjoyed a sound and refreshing sleep.

Chapter XVI.

GO BACK TO MEET THE OVERSEER--PARTY ARRIVE AT THE WATER--LONG

ENCAMPMENT--GEOLOGICAL FORMATION OF THE CLIFFS--MOVE ON AGAIN--DIG FOR

WATER--TRACES OF NATIVES--SEND BACK FOR WATER--PARROTS SEEN--COOL WINDS

FROM NORTH-EAST--OVERSEER RETURNS--CONTINUE THE JOURNEY--ABANDON

BAGGAGE--DENSE SCRUBS--DRIVEN TO THE BEACH--MEET NATIVES--MODE OF

PROCURING WATER FROM ROOTS.

March 12.--THE first streak of daylight found us on our way to meet the

party, carrying with us three gallons of water upon one of the horses,

the other was ridden by the boy. Upon passing the sandy valley, where I

had been in such a state of suspense and doubt at seeing the sand-hills

behind me, I determined to descend and examine them; but before doing so,

I wrote a note for the overseer (in case he should pass whilst I was in

the valley,) and hoisted a red handkerchief to attract his attention to

it.

I was unsuccessful in my search for water; but whilst among the

sand-hills, I saw the party slowly filing along the cliffs above the

valley, and leaving the boy to look about a little longer, I struck

across to meet them. Both horses and people I found greatly fatigued, but

upon the whole, they had got through the difficulty better than I had

anticipated; after leaving a great part of the loads of the pack-horses

about seventeen miles back, according to the written instructions I had

left. The sheep, it seemed, had broken out of the yard and travelled

backwards, and were picked up by the overseer, twelve miles away from

where we had left them; as they had got very tired and were delaying the

horses, he left one of the natives, this morning, to follow slowly with

them, whilst he pushed on with the pack-horses as rapidly as they could

go. After giving him the pleasing intelligence that his toil was nearly

over for the present, and leaving some few directions, I pushed on again

with the boy, who had not found the least sign of water in the valley, to

meet the native with the sheep. In about three miles we saw him coming on

alone without them, he said they were a mile further back, and so tired

they could not travel. Halting our horses, I sent him to bring them on,

and during his absence, had some tea made and dinner prepared for him.

When the sheep came up they were in sad condition, but by giving them

water and a few hours rest, they recovered sufficiently to travel on in

the evening to the water.

At night, the whole party were, by God's blessing, once more together,

and in safety, after having passed over one hundred and thirty-five miles

of desert country, without a drop of water in its whole extent, and at a

season of the year the most unfavourable for such an undertaking. In

accomplishing this distance, the sheep had been six and the horses five

days without water, and both had been almost wholly without food for the

greater part of the time. The little grass we found was so dry and

withered, that the parched and thirsty animals could not eat it after the

second day. The day following our arrival at the water was one of intense

heat, and had we experienced such on our journey, neither men nor horses

could ever have accomplished it; most grateful did we feel, therefore, to

that merciful Being who had shrouded us from a semi-tropical sun, at a

time when our exposure to it would have ensured our destruction.

From the 12th to the 18th we remained at the sand-drifts, during which

time we were engaged in attending to the horses, in sending back to

recover the stores that had been left by the overseer, and in examining

the country around. The natives had told me that there were two watering

places at the termination of the cliffs to the eastward, and that these

were situated in a somewhat similar manner to those at the head of the

Great Bight. We were encamped at one, and I made several ineffectual

attempts to find the other during the time the horses were recruiting.

The traces of natives near us were numerous, and once we saw their fires,

but they did not shew themselves at all. The line of cliffs which had so

suddenly turned away from the sea, receded inland from eight to ten

miles, but still running parallel with the coast; between it and the sea

the country was low and scrubby, with many beds of dried up salt lakes;

but neither timber nor grass, except the little patch we were encamped

at. Above the cliffs the appearance of the country was the same as we had

previously found upon their summits, with, perhaps, rather more scrub;

pigeons were numerous at the sand-hills, and several flocks of

red-crested and red-winged cockatoos were hovering about, watching for an

opportunity to feast upon the red berries I have before spoken of, and

which were here found in very great abundance, and of an excellent

quality. The sand, as usual at our encampments, was a most dreadful

annoyance, and from which we had rarely any respite. The large flies were

also very numerous, troublesome and irritating tormentors. They literally

assailed us by hundreds at a time, biting through our clothes, and

causing us constant employment in endeavouring to keep them off. I have

counted twenty-three of these blood-suckers at one time upon a patch of

my trousers eight inches square.

Being now at a part of the cliffs where they receded from the sea, and

where they had a last become accessible, I devoted some time to an

examination of their geological character. The part that I selected was

high, steep, and bluff towards the sea, which washed its base; presenting

the appearance described by Captain Flinders, as noted before. By

crawling and scrambling among the crags, I managed, at some risk, to get

at these singular cliffs. The brown or upper portion consisted of an

exceedingly hard, coarse grey limestone, among which some few shells were

embedded, but which, from the hard nature of the rock, I could not break

out; the lower or white part consisted of a gritty chalk, full of broken

shells and marine productions, and having a somewhat saline taste: parts

of it exactly resembled the formation that I had found up to the north,

among the fragments of table-land; the chalk was soft and friable at the

surface, and easily cut out with a tomahawk, it was traversed

horizontally by strata of flint, ranging in depth from six to eighteen

inches, and having varying thicknesses of chalk between the several

strata. The chalk had worn away from beneath the harder rock above,

leaving the latter most frightfully overhanging and threatening instant

annihilation to the intruder. Huge mis-shapen masses were lying with

their rugged pinnacles above the water, in every direction at the foot of

the cliffs, plainly indicated the frequency of a falling crag, and I felt

quite a relief when my examination was completed, and I got away from so

dangerous a post.

I have remarked that the natives at the head of the Great Bight had

intimated to us, that there were two places where water might be found in

this neighbourhood, not far apart, and as with all our efforts we had

only succeeded in discovering one, I concluded that the other must be a

little further along the coast to the westward; in this supposition I was

strengthened, by observing that all the native tracks we had met with

apparently took this direction. Under this impression I determined to

move slowly along the coast until we came to it, and in order that our

horses might carry no unnecessary loads, to take but a few quarts of

water in our kegs.

On the 18th we moved on, making a short stage of fourteen miles, through

a heavy, sandy, and scrubby country. At first I tried the beach, but

finding the sand very loose and unsuitable for travelling, I was again

compelled to enter the scrub behind the sea-shore ridge, travelling

through a succession of low scrubby undulations, with here and there the

beds of dried up lakes The traces of natives were now more recent and

numerous, but found principally near the bushes bearing the red berries,

and which grew behind the front ridge of the coast in the greatest

abundance. From this circumstance, and from our having now travelled a

considerable distance beyond the first water, I began to fear that the

second which had been spoken of by the natives must, if it existed at

all, be behind us instead of in advance, and that in reality the fruit we

saw, and not water, was the object for which the natives, whose tracks

were around us, were travelling to the westward. The day was cloudy, and

likely for rain, but after a few drops had fallen, the clouds passed

away. In the afternoon the overseer dug behind the sand-ridge, and at six

feet came to water, but perfectly salt.

March 19.--To-day we travelled onwards for twenty-six miles, through a

country exactly similar to that we had passed through yesterday. At three

in the afternoon we halted at an opening when there was abundance of

grass, though dry and withered. The indications of natives having

recently passed still continued, and confirmed me in my impression, that

they were on a journey to the westward, and from one distant water to

another, and principally for the purpose of gathering the fruit. We were

now forty miles from the last water, and I became assured that we had

very far to go to the next; I had for some time given over any hope of

finding the second water spoken of by the natives at the head of the

Bight, and considered that we must have passed it if it existed, long

ago, perhaps even in that very valley, or among those very sandhills

where we had searched so unsuccessfully on the 12th. There was now the

prospect of a long journey before us without water, as we had brought

only a little with us for ourselves, and which was nearly exhausted,

whilst our horses had been quite without, and were already suffering from

thirst. Consulting with the overseer, I resolved to leave our baggage

where we were, whilst the horses were sent back to the water (forty

miles) to rest and recruit for three or four days; by this means I

expected they would gather strength, and as they would have but little

weight to carry until they reached our present position, when they

returned we should be better able to force a passage through the waste

before us, at the same time that we should be able to procure a fresh and

larger stock of water for ourselves. At midnight I sent the whole party

back to the last water, but remained myself to take care of the baggage

and sheep. I retained an allowance of a pint of water per day for six

days, this being the contemplated period of the overseer's absence. My

situation was not at all enviable, but circumstances rendered it

unavoidable.

From the departure of my party, until their return, I spent a miserable

time, being unable to leave the camp at all. Shortly after the party

left, the sheep broke out of the yard, and missing the horses with which

they had been accustomed to travel and to feed, set off as rapidly as

they could after them; I succeeded in getting them back, but they were

exceedingly troublesome and restless, attempting to start off, or to get

down to the sea whenever my eye was off them for an instant, and never

feeding quietly for ten minutes together; finding at last that they would

be quite unmanageable, I made a very strong and high yard, and putting

them in, kept them generally shut up, letting them out only to feed for

two or three hours at once. This gave me a little time to examine my

maps, and to reflect upon my position and prospects, which involved the

welfare of others, as well as my own. We had still 600 miles of country

to traverse, measured in straight lines across the chart; but taking into

account the inequalities of the ground, and the circuit we were

frequently obliged to make, we could not hope to accomplish this in less

than 800 miles of distance. With every thing in our favour we could not

expect to accomplish this in less than eight weeks; but with all the

impediment and embarrassments we were likely to meet with, it would

probably take us twelve. Our sheep were reduced to three in number, and

our sole stock of flour now amounted to 142 pounds, to be shared out

amongst five persons, added to which the aspect of the country before us

was disheartening in the extreme; the places at which there was any

likelihood of finding water were probably few and far apart, and the

strength of our horses was already greatly reduced by the hardships they

had undergone. Ever since we had left Fowler's Bay, the whole party,

excepting the youngest boys, had been obliged chiefly to walk, and yet

every care and precaution we could adopt were unable to counteract the

evil effects of a barren country, and an unfavourable season of the year.

The task before us was indeed a fearful one, but I firmly hoped by

patience and perseverance, safely and successfully to accomplish it at

last.

During nearly the whole time that my party were away the weather was cool

and cloudy. Occasionally there was a great deal of thunder and lightning,

accompanied by a few drops of rain, but it always cleared away without

heavy showers. The storms came up from seawards, and generally passed

inland to the north-east; which struck me as being somewhat singular,

especially when taken in conjunction with the fact that on one or two

occasions, when the wind was from the north-east, it was comparatively

cool, and so unlike any of those scorching blasts we had experienced from

the same quarter when on the western side of the Great Bight. There was

another thing connected with my present position which equally surprised

me, and was quite as inexplicable: whilst engaged one morning rambling

about the encampment as far as I could venture away, I met with several

flights of a very large description of parrot, quite unknown to me,

coming apparently from the north-east, and settling among the shrubs and

bushes around. They had evidently come to eat the fruit growing behind

the sand-hills, but being scared by my following them about, to try and

shoot one, they took wing and went off again in the direction they had

come from.

Several days had now elapsed since the departure of the overseer with the

horses, and as the time for their return drew nigh I became anxious and

restless. The little stock of water left me was quite exhausted. It had

originally been very limited, but was reduced still further by the

necessity I was under of keeping it in a wooden keg, where it evaporated,

and once or twice by my spilling some. At last, on the 25th, I was

gratified by seeing my party approach. They had successfully accomplished

their mission, and brought a good supply of water for ourselves, but the

horses looked weary and weak, although they had only travelled fourteen

miles that day. After they had rested a few hours I broke up the

encampment, and travelling for fourteen miles further over a scrubby

country, came to a patch of grass, at which we halted early. From the

nature of the country, and the consequent embarrassment it entailed upon

us, it was impossible for any of the party to have any longer even the

slight advantage formerly enjoyed of occasionally riding for a few miles

in turn; all were now obliged to walk, except the two youngest boys, who

were still permitted to ride at intervals. The weather was cloudy, and

showers were passing to the north-east.

March 26.--Upon moving on this morning we passed through the same

wretched kind of country for eighteen miles, to an opening in the scrub

where was a little grass, and at which we halted to rest. There was so

much scrub, and the sandy ridges were so heavy and harassing to the

horses, that I began to doubt almost if we should get them along at all.

We were now seventy-two miles from the water, and had, in all

probability, as much further to go before we came to any more, and I saw

that unless something was done to lighten the loads of the pack-animals

(trifling as were the burdens they carried) we never could hope to get

them on. Leaving the natives to enjoy a sleep, the overseer and I opened

and re-sorted all our baggage, throwing away every thing that we could at

all dispense with; our great coats, jackets, and other articles of dress

were thrown away; a single spare shirt and pair of boots and socks being

all that were kept for each, besides our blankets and the things we stood

in, and which consisted only of trowsers, shirt, and shoes. Most of our

pack-saddles, all our horse-shoes, most of our kegs for holding water,

all our buckets but one, our medicines, some of our fire-arms, a quantity

of ammunition, and a variety of other things, were here abandoned. Among

the many things that we were compelled to leave behind there was none

that I regretted parting with more than a copy of Captain Sturt's

Expeditions, which had been sent to me by the author to Fowler's Bay to

amuse and cheer me on the solitary task I had engaged in; it was the last

kind offering of friendship from a highly esteemed friend, and nothing

but necessity would have induced me to part with it. Could the donor,

however, have seen the miserable plight we were reduced to, he would have

pitied and forgiven an act that circumstances alone compelled me to.

After all our arrangements were made, and every thing rejected that we

could do without, I found that the loads of the horses were reduced in

the aggregate about two hundred pounds; but this being divided among ten,

relieved each only a little. Myself, the overseer, and the King George's

Sound native invariably walked the whole way, but the two younger natives

were still permitted to ride alternately upon one of the strongest

horses. As our allowance of flour was very small, and the fatigue and

exertion we were all obliged to undergo very great, I ordered a sheep to

be killed before we moved on again. We had been upon short allowance for

some time, and were getting weak and hardly able to go through the toils

that devolved upon us. Now, I knew that our safety depended upon that of

our horses, and that their lives again were contingent upon the amount of

fatigue we were ourselves able to endure, and the degree of exertion we

were capable of making to relieve them in extremity. I did not therefore

hesitate to make use of one of our three remaining sheep to strengthen us

for coming trials, instead of retaining them until perhaps they might be

of little use to us. The whole party had a hearty meal, and then,

watching the horses until midnight, we moved on when the moon rose.

During the morning we had passed along an extensive dried-up salt swamp

behind the coast ridge, which was soft for the horses in some places, but

free from that high brush which fatigued them so much, and which now

appeared to come close in to the sea, forming upon the high sandy ridges

a dense scrub. The level bank of the higher ground, or continuation of

the cliffs of the Bight, which had heretofore been distinctly visible at

a distance of ten or twelve miles inland, could no longer be seen: it had

either merged in the scrubby and sandy elevations around us, or was hid

by them from our view.

March 27.--During the night we travelled slowly over densely scrubby and

sandy ridges, occasionally crossing large sheets of oolitic limestone, in

which were deep holes that would most likely retain water after rains,

but which were now quite dry. As the daylight dawned the dreadful nature

of the scrub drove us to the sea beach; fortunately it was low water, and

we obtained a firm hard sand to travel over, though occasionally

obstructed by enormous masses of sea-weed, thrown into heaps of very many

feet in thickness and several hundreds of yards in length, looking

exactly like hay cut and pressed ready for packing.

To-day we overtook the natives, whose tracks we had seen so frequently on

our route. There was a large party of them, all busily engaged in eating

the red berries which grew behind the coast ridge in such vast

quantities; they did not appear so much afraid of us as of our horses, at

which they were dreadfully alarmed, so that all our efforts to

communicate with them were fruitless; they would not come near us, nor

would they give us the opportunity of getting near them, but ran away

whenever I advanced towards them, though alone and unarmed. During the

route I frequently ascended high scrubby ridges to reconnoitre the

country inland, but never could obtain a view of any extent, the whole

region around appeared one mass of dense impenetrable scrub running down

to the very borders of the ocean.

After travelling twenty miles I found that our horses needed rest, and

halted for an hour or two during the heat of the day, though without

grass, save the coarse wiry vegetation that binds the loose sands

together, and without even bushes to afford them shade from the heat, for

had we gone into the scrub for shelter we should have lost even the

wretched kind of grass we had.

At half past two we again moved onwards, keeping along the beach, but

frequently forced by the masses of sea-weed to travel above high water

mark in the heavy loose sand. After advancing ten miles the tide became

too high for us to continue on the shore, and the scrub prevented our

travelling to the back, we were compelled therefore to halt for the night

with hardly a blade of grass for our horses. I considered we were now one

hundred and two miles from the last water, and expected we had about

fifty more to go to the next; the poor animals were almost exhausted, but

as the dew was heavy they were disposed to eat had there been grass of

any kind for them. The overseer and I as usual watched them alternately,

each taking the duty for four hours and sleeping the other four; to me

this was the first sleep I had had for the last three nights.

Whilst in camp, during the heat of the day, the native boys shewed me the

way in which natives procure water for themselves, when wandering among

the scrubs, and by means of which they are enabled to remain out almost

any length of time, in a country quite destitute of surface water. I had

often heard of the natives procuring water from the roots of trees, and

had frequently seen indications of their having so obtained it, but I had

never before seen the process actually gone through. Selecting a large

healthy looking tree out of the gum-scrub, and growing in a hollow, or

flat between two ridges, the native digs round at a few feet from the

trunk, to find the lateral roots; to one unaccustomed to the work, it is

a difficult and laborious thing frequently to find these roots, but to

the practised eye of the native, some slight inequality of the surface,

or some other mark, points out to him their exact position at once, and

he rarely digs in the wrong place. Upon breaking the end next to the

tree, the root is lifted, and run out for twenty or thirty feet; the bark

is then peeled off, and the root broken into pieces, six or eight inches

long, and these again, if thick, are split into thinner pieces; they are

then sucked, or shaken over a piece of bark, or stuck up together in the

bark upon their ends, and water is slowly discharged from them; if

shaken, it comes out like a shower of very fine rain. The roots vary in

diameter from one inch to three; the best are those from one to two and a

half inches, and of great length. The quantity of water contained in a

good root, would probably fill two-thirds of a pint. I saw my own boys

get one-third of a pint out in this way in about a quarter of an hour,

and they were by no means adepts at the practice, having never been

compelled to resort to it from necessity.

Natives who, from infancy, have been accustomed to travel through arid

regions, can remain any length of time out in a country where there are

no indications of water. The circumstance of natives being seen, in

travelling through an unknown district, is therefore no proof of the

existence of water in their vicinity. I have myself observed, that no

part of the country is so utterly worthless, as not to have attractions

sufficient occasionally to tempt the wandering savage into its recesses.

In the arid, barren, naked plains of the north, with not a shrub to

shelter him from the heat, not a stick to burn for his fire (except what

he carried with him), the native is found, and where, as far as I could

ascertain, the whole country around appeared equally devoid of either

animal or vegetable life. In other cases, the very regions, which, in the

eyes of the European, are most barren and worthless, are to the native

the most valuable and productive. Such are dense brushes, or sandy tracts

of country, covered with shrubs, for here the wallabie, the opossum, the

kangaroo rat, the bandicoot, the leipoa, snakes, lizards, iguanas, and

many other animals, reptiles, birds, etc., abound; whilst the kangaroo,

the emu, and the native dog, are found upon their borders, or in the

vicinity of those small, grassy plains, which are occasionally met with

amidst the closest brushes.

Chapter XVII.

HORSES BEGIN TO KNOCK UP--COMPELLED TO FOLLOW ROUND THE BEACH--TINOR PONY

UNABLE TO PROCEED--GLOOMY PROSPECTS--OVERSEER BEGINS TO DESPOND--TWO MORE

HORSES LEFT BEHIND--FRAGMENTS OF WRECKS--WATER ALL CONSUMED--COLLECT

DEW--CHANGE IN CHARACTER OF COUNTRY--DIG A WELL--PROCURE WATER--NATIVE

AND FAMILY VISIT US--OVERSEER GOES BACK FOR BAGGAGE--DISASTROUS

TERMINATION OF HIS JOURNEY--SITUATION AND PROSPECTS OF THE PARTY.

March 28.--AT daylight we moved on, every one walking, even the youngest

boy could not ride now, as the horses were so weak and jaded. Soon after

leaving the camp, one of them laid down, although the weight upon his

back was very light; we were consequently obliged to distribute the few

things he carried among the others, and let him follow loose. Our route

lay along the beach, as the dense scrub inland prevented us from

following any other course; we had, therefore, to go far out of our way,

tracing round every point, and following along every bay, whilst the

sea-weed frequently obstructed our path, and drove us again to the loose

sands, above high water mark, causing extra fatigue to our unfortunate

horses. At other times we were forced to go between these banks of

sea-weed and the sea, into the sea itself, on which occasions it required

our utmost vigilance to prevent the wretched horses from drinking the

salt water, which would inevitably have destroyed them. In order to

prevent this we were obliged to walk ourselves in the water, on the

sea-side of them, one of the party being in advance, leading one horse,

another being behind to keep up the rear, and the other three being at

intervals along the outside of the line, to keep them from stopping for

an instant until the danger was past.

We had scarcely advanced six miles from our last night's camp when the

little Timor pony I had purchased at Port Lincoln broke down completely;

for some time it had been weak, and we were obliged to drive it loose,

but it was now unable to proceed further, and we were compelled to

abandon it to a miserable and certain death, that by pushing on, we might

use every exertion in our power to relieve the others, though scarcely

daring to hope that we could save even one of them. It was, indeed, a

fearful and heart-rending scene to behold the noble animals which had

served us so long and so faithfully, suffering the extremity of thirst

and hunger, without having it in our power to relieve them. Five days of

misery had passed over their heads since the last water had been left,

and one hundred and twelve miles of country had been traversed without

the possibility of procuring food for them, other than the dry and

sapless remains of last year's grass, and this but rarely to be met with.

No rains had fallen to refresh them, and they were reduced to a most

pitiable condition, still they travelled onwards, with a spirit and

endurance truly surprising. Whenever we halted, they followed us about

like dogs wherever we went, appearing to look to us only for aid, and

exhibiting that confidence in us which I trust we all reposed in the

Almighty, for most truly did we feel, that in His mercy and protection

alone our safety could now ever be hoped for.

About ten o'clock the tide became too high for us to keep the beach, and

we were compelled to halt for some hours. Our horses were nearly all

exhausted, and I dreaded that when we next moved on many of them would be

unable to proceed far, and that, one by one, they would all perish,

overcome by sufferings which those, who have not witnessed such scenes,

can have no conception of. We should then have been entirely dependent

upon our own strength and exertions, nearly midway between Adelaide and

King George's Sound, with a fearful country on either side of us, with a

very small supply of provisions, and without water.

The position we were in, frequently forced sad forebodings with respect

to the future, and though I by no means contemplated with apathy the

probable fate that might await us, yet I was never for a moment undecided

as to the plan it would be necessary to adopt, in such a desperate

extremity--at all hazards, I was determined to proceed onwards.

The country we had already passed through, precluded all hope of our

recrossing it without the horses to carry water for us, and without

provisions to enable us to endure the dreadful fatigue of forced marches,

across the desert. The country before us was, it is true, quite unknown,

but it could hardly be worse than that we had traversed, and the chance

was that it might be better. We were now pushing on for some sand-hills,

marked down in Captain Flinders' chart at about 126 1/2 degrees of east

longitude; I did not expect to procure water until we reached these, but

I felt sure we should obtain it on our arrival there. After this point

was passed, there appeared to be one more long push without any

likelihood of procuring water, as the cliffs again became the boundary of

the ocean; but beyond Cape Arid, the change in the character and

appearance of the country, as described by Flinders, indicated the

existence of a better and more practicable line of country than we had

yet fallen in with.

My overseer, however, was now unfortunately beginning to take up an

opposite opinion, and though he still went through the duty devolving

upon him with assiduity and cheerfulness, it was evident that his mind

was ill at ease, and that he had many gloomy anticipations of the future.

He fancied there were no sand-hills ahead, that we should never reach any

water in that direction, and that there was little hope of saving any of

the horses. In this latter idea I rather encouraged him than otherwise,

deeming it advisable to contemplate the darker side of the picture, and

by accustoming ourselves to look forward to being left entirely dependent

upon our own strength and efforts, in some measure to prepare ourselves

for such an event, should it unfortunately befal us. In conversing with

him upon our prospects, and the position we should be in if we lost all

our horses, I regretted extremely to find that his mind was continually

occupied with thoughts of returning, and that he seemed to think the only

chance of saving our lives, would be to push on to the water ourselves,

and then endeavour again to return to Fowler's Bay, where we had buried a

large quantity of provisions. Still it was a gratification to find that

the only European with me, did not altogether give way to despondency,

and could even calmly contemplate the prospect before us, considering and

reasoning upon the plan it might be best to adopt, in the event of our

worst forebodings being realized. In discussing these subjects, I

carefully avoiding irritating or alarming him, by a declaration of my own

opinions and resolutions, rather agreeing with him than otherwise, at the

same time, that I pointed out the certain risk that would attend any

attempt to go back to Fowler's Bay, and the probability there was of much

less danger attending the effort to advance to King George's Sound. With

respect to the native boys, they appeared to think or care but little

about the future; they were not sensible of their danger, and having

something still to eat and drink, they played and laughed and joked with

each other as much as ever.

Whilst waiting for the tide to fall, to enable us to proceed, the

overseer dug a hole, and we buried nearly every thing we had with us,

saddles, fire-arms, ammunition, provisions; all things were here

abandoned except two guns, the keg with the little water we had left, and

a very little flour, tea and sugar. I determined to relieve our horses

altogether from every weight (trifling as was the weight of all we had),

and by pushing, if possible, on to the water, endeavour to save their

lives; after which we could return for the things we had abandoned. Our

arrangements being completed, we all bathed in the sea, ate a scanty

meal, and again moved onwards at half past two o'clock.

The poor horses started better than could have been expected, but it was

soon evident that all were fast failing, and many already quite

exhausted. At six miles my favourite mare could no longer keep up with

the rest, and we were obliged to let her drop behind. Her foal, now six

months old, we got away with some difficulty from her, and kept it with

the other horses; at four miles further another of the horses failed, and

I had him tied up, in the hope that if we reached water during the

evening, I might send back and recover him.

Towards dark we all imagined we saw a long point stretching to the S. W.

and backed by high sandy looking cones. We hoped that these might be the

sand-hills we were pushing for, and our hearts beat high with hope once

more. It, however, soon become too dark to discern anything, and at

fourteen miles from where we had halted in the morning, we were again

obliged by the tide to encamp for the night, as the country behind the

shore was densely scrubby, and quite impracticable as a line of route. It

was nine o'clock when we halted, and we were all very tired, and our feet

somewhat inflamed, from getting so frequently wet with the salt water,

whilst endeavouring to keep the horses from it; there was no grass but

the coarse wiry kind that bound the sand together, of this the poor

animals cropped a little, as a very heavy dew fell, and served to moisten

it. As usual, the overseer and myself kept watch upon the horses at

night, whilst the natives enjoyed their undisturbed repose. Two of the

boys were young, and none of the three had their frame and muscles

sufficiently developed to enable them to undergo the fatigue of walking

during the day if deprived of their rest at night; still the duty became

very hard upon two persons, where it was of constant occurrence, and

superadded to the ordinary day's labour.

March 29.--After calling up the party, I ascended the highest sand-hill

near me, from which the prospect was cheerless and gloomy, and the point

and sandy cones we imagined we had seen last night had vanished. Indeed,

upon examining the chart, and considering that as yet we had advanced

only one hundred and twenty-six miles from the last water, I felt

convinced that we had still very far to go before we could expect to

reach the sand-drifts. The supply of water we had brought for ourselves

was nearly exhausted, and we could afford none for breakfast to-day; the

night, however, had been cool, and we did not feel the want of it so

much. Upon moving, I sent one of the natives back to the horse I had tied

up, about four miles from our camp to try to bring him on to where we

should halt in the middle of the day.

For ten miles we continued along the beach until we came to a bluff rocky

ridge, running close into the sea; here we rested until the tide fell,

and to give the native boy an opportunity of rejoining us, which he did

soon after, but without the horse; the poor animal had travelled about

eight miles with him from the place where we had left him, but had then

been unable to come any further, and he abandoned him.

Whilst the party were in camp, I sent the overseer to a distant point of

land to try and get a view of the coast beyond; but upon his return,

after a long walk, he told me his view to the west was obstructed by a

point similar to the one I had sent him to. During the day, we had passed

a rather recent native encampment, where were left some vessels of bark

for holding water, or for collecting it from the roots of trees, or the

grass. Near where we halted in the middle of the day, the foot-prints of

the natives were quite fresh, and shewed that they were travelling the

same way as ourselves.

For the last two or three days, we had passed many pieces of wreck upon

the beach, oars, thwarts of boats, fragments of masts, spars, etc. strewed

about in every direction; none of them, however, appeared to have been

recently deposited there, and many of the oars, and lighter spars, were

stuck up on their ends in the sand above high water mark, probably so

placed by the natives, but with what object I know not. One oar was stuck

up upon a high sand ridge, some distance from the shore, and I spent some

time in examining the place, in the vain hope that it might be an

indication of our vicinity to water.

In the afternoon we all had a little tea; and after a bathe in the sea,

again moved onwards; fortunately the beach was firm and hard, and the

evening cool; the horses advanced slowly and steadily, and in a way that

quite surprised me. After travelling for thirteen miles, we encamped

under the coast ridge late in the evening, all very much exhausted,

having made several ineffectual searches for water, among the sandy

ridges, as we passed along.

In our route along the shore, we had seen immense numbers of fish in the

shallow waters, and among the reefs lying off the coast; several dead

ones had been picked up, and of these the boys made a feast at night. Our

last drop of water was consumed this evening, and we then all lay down to

rest, after turning the horses behind the first ridge of the coast, as we

could find no grass; and neither the overseer nor I were able to watch

them, being both too much worn out with the labours of the day, and our

exertions, in searching for water.

March 30.--Getting up as soon as the day dawned, I found that some of the

horses had crossed the sand ridge to the beach, and rambled some distance

backwards. I found, too, that in the dark, we had missed a patch of

tolerable grass among the scrub, not far from our camp. I regretted this

the more, as during the night a very heavy dew had fallen, and the horses

might perhaps have fed a little.

Leaving the overseer to search for those that had strayed, I took a

sponge, and went to try to collect some of the dew which was hanging in

spangles upon the grass and shrubs; brushing these with the sponge, I

squeezed it, when saturated, into a quart pot, which, in an hour's time,

I filled with water. The native boys were occupied in the same way; and

by using a handful of fine grass, instead of a sponge, they collected

about a quart among them. Having taken the water to the camp, and made it

into tea, we divided it amongst the party, and never was a meal more

truly relished, although we all ate the last morsel of bread we had with

us, and none knew when we might again enjoy either a drink of water, or a

mouthful of bread. We had now demonstrated the practicability of

collecting water from the dew. I had often heard from the natives that

they were in the habit of practising this plan, but had never before

actually witnessed its adoption. It was, however, very cold work, and

completely wet me through from head to foot, a greater quantity of water

by far having been shaken over me, from the bushes, than I was able to

collect with my sponge. The natives make use of a large oblong vessel of

bark, which they hold under the branches, whilst they brush them with a

little grass, as I did with the sponge; the water thus falls into the

trough held for it, and which, in consequence of the surface being so

much larger than the orifice of a quart pot, is proportionably sooner

filled. After the sun once rises, the spangles fall from the boughs, and

no more water can be collected; it is therefore necessary to be at work

very early, if success is an object of importance.

The morning was very hazy, and at first nothing could be seen of the

country before us; but as the mist gradually cleared away a long point

was seen to the south-west, but so very distant that I felt certain our

horses never would get there if it lay between us and the water. To our

astonishment they kept moving steadily along the beach, which was

tolerably firm near the sea, in which were many reefs and shelves of

rocks, covered with muscles below low water mark. As we progressed, it

was evident that the country was undergoing a considerable change; the

sea shore dunes and the ridges immediately behind them were now of a pure

white sand, and steep, whilst those further back were very high and

covered with low bushes. Upon ascending one of the latter I had a good

view around, and to my inexpressible pleasure and relief saw the high

drifts of sand we were looking for so anxiously, in the corner between us

and the more distant point of land first seen. The height of the

intervening ridges and the sand-drifts being in the angle prevented us

from noticing them sooner.

We had now travelled ten miles, and the sand-hills were about five miles

further. The horses were, however, becoming exhausted, and the day was so

hot that I was compelled to halt, and even now, in sight of our

long-expected goal, I feared we might be too late to save them. Leaving

the boys to attend to the animals, I took the overseer up one of the

ridges to reconnoitre the country for the purpose of ascertaining whether

there was no place near us where water might be procured by digging.

After a careful examination a hollow was selected between the two front

ridges of white sand, where the overseer thought it likely we might be

successful. The boys were called up to assist in digging, and the work

was anxiously commenced; our suspense increasing every moment as the well

was deepened. At about five feet the sand was observed to be quite moist,

and upon its being tasted was pronounced quite free from any saline

qualities. This was joyous news, but too good to be implicitly believed,

and though we all tasted it over and over again, we could scarcely

believe that such really was the case. By sinking another foot the

question was put beyond all doubt, and to our great relief fresh water

was obtained at a depth of six feet from the surface, on the seventh day

of our distress, and after we had travelled one hundred and sixty miles

since we had left the last water. Words would be inadequate to express

the joy and thankfulness of my little party at once more finding

ourselves in safety, and with abundance of water near us. A few hours

before hope itself seemed almost extinguished, and those only who have

been subjeet to a similar extremity of distress can have any just idea of

the relief we experienced. The mind seemed to have been weighed down by

intense anxiety and over-wrought feelings. At first the gloomy

restlessness of disappointment or the feverish impatience of hope had

operated upon our minds alternately, but these had long since given way

to that calm settled determination of purpose, and cool steady vigour of

action which desperate circumstances can alone inspire. Day by day our

prospects of success had gradually diminished; our horses had become

reduced to so dreadful a state that many had died, and all were likely to

do so soon; we ourselves were weak and exhausted by fatigue, and it

appeared impossible that either could have gone many miles further. In

this last extremity we had been relieved. That gracious God, without

whose assistance all hope of safety had been in vain, had heard our

earnest prayers for his aid, and I trust that in our deliverance we

recognized and acknowledged with sincerity and thankfulness his guiding

and protecting hand. It is in circumstances only such as we had lately

been placed in that the utter hopelessness of all human efforts is truly

felt, and it is when relieved from such a situation that the hand of a

directing and beneficent Being appears most plainly discernible,

fulfilling those gracious promises which he has made, to hear them that

call upon him in the day of trouble.

[Note 27: "When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and

their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of

Israel will not forsake them."

"I will open rivers in high places, and fountains

in the midst of the valleys: I will make the wilderness a pool of water,

and the dry land springs of water."--Isa. xli. 17, 18.

"I will even make a way in the wilderness, and rivers in the

desert."--Isa. xliii. 19.]

As soon as each had satisfied his thirst the pots were filled and boiled

for tea, and some bread was baked, whilst the overseer and natives were

still increasing the size of the well to enable us to water the horses.

We then got a hasty meal that we might the better go through the fatigue

of attending to the suffering animals. Our utmost caution now became

necessary in their management; they had been seven days without a drop of

water, and almost without food also, and had suffered so much that with

abundance of water near us, and whilst they were suffering agonies from

the want of it, we dared not give it to them freely. Having tied them up

to some low bushes, we gave each in turn about four gallons, and then

driving them away for half a mile to where there was a little withered

grass, we watched them until the evening, and again gave each about four

gallons more of water.

Whilst thus engaged, a very fine looking native with his wife and family,

passed us and halted for a few moments to observe us, and procure a drink

from the well we had made. This man did not seem at all alarmed, and made

signs that he was going to sleep, a little further along the coast, where

there was also water, pointing to the white sandhills about five miles

from us. The language he spoke seemed to be the same as that of the other

natives we had met with along the Great Bight, nor did the King George's

Sound native understand him a bit better than he had done the others.

At night one of our two remaining sheep was killed, and the overseer and

myself proceeded to watch the horses for the night. The poor creatures

were scarcely able to crawl, yet were restless and uneasy, and fed but

little, they had tasted water and they were almost mad for it, so that it

was a severe task to both myself and the overseer to keep them from

returning to the well. The single sheep now left had also given us a good

deal of trouble, it was frightened at being alone, and frustrated all our

efforts to yard it, preferring to accompany and remain with the

horses,--an arrangement we were obliged to acquiesce in.

March 31.--The morning broke wild and lowering, and the sand blew

fearfully about from the drifts among which the water was. Our well had

tumbled in during the night, and we had to undergo considerable labour

before we could water the horses. After clearing it out, we gave each of

them seven gallons, and again sent them away to the grass, letting the

native boys watch them during the day, whilst we rested for a few hours,

shifted our camp to a more sheltered place, weighed out a week's

allowance of flour at half a pound each per day, and made sundry other

necessary arrangements.

Fearful of losing our only remaining sheep, if left to wander about, we

made a strong yard to put it into at nights, for a long time, however, we

could not get it to go near the yard, and only succeeded at last by

leading in a horse first, behind which it walked quite orderly.

April 1.--The last night had been bitterly cold and frosty, and as we

were badly clad, and without the means of making a large or permanent

fire, we all felt acutely the severity of the weather. After breakfast, I

left the overseer and natives to clear out the well, which had again

fallen in, and water the horses, whilst I walked five miles along the

beach to the westward, and then turned inland to examine the sand-drifts

there and search for grass. Behind the drifts I found some open sandy

plains, with a coarse kind of dry grass upon them, and as they were not

far from where the natives had dug wells for water, I thought the place

might suit us to encamp at for a time when we left our present position.

In returning to the camp, through the scrub behind the coast, I shot a

fine wallabie, and saw several others; but having only cartridges with

me, I did not like to cut up the balls for ammunition.

April 2.--Another severe cold frosty night made us fully sensible that

the winter was rapidly closing in upon us, notwithstanding the

ill-provided and unprotected state we were in to encounter its

inclemencies. Our well had again tumbled in, and gave us a good deal of

trouble, besides, each successive clearing out deepened it considerably,

and this took us to a level where the brackish water mixed with the

fresh; from this cause the water was now too brackish to be palatable,

and we sunk another well apart from that used for the horses, at which to

procure any water we required for our own use. During the afternoon I

shot a wallabie behind the camp, but the place being densely scrubby, and

the animal not quite dead, I did not get it.

On the 3rd, I sent the overseer out in one direction and I went myself

out in another, to examine the country and try to procure wallabies for

food. We both returned late, greatly fatigued with walking through dense

scrubs and over steep heavy sand ridges, but without having fired a shot.

Our mutton (excepting the last sheep) being all used on the 4th, we were

reduced to our daily allowance of half a pound of flour each, without any

meat.

On the 5th, the overseer and one of the native boys got ready to go back

for some of the stores and other things we had abandoned, forty-seven

miles away. As they were likely to have severe exercise, and to be away

for four days, I gave them five pounds extra of flour above their daily

allowance, together with the wallabie which I had shot, and which had not

yet been used; they drove before them three horses to carry their supply

of water, and bring back the things sent for.

As soon as they were gone, with the assistance of the two native boys who

were left, I removed the camp to the white sand-drifts, five miles

further west. Being anxious to keep as near to the grass as I could, I

commenced digging at some distance away from where the natives procured

their water, but at a place where there were a great many rushes. After

sinking to about seven feet, I found the soil as dry as ever, and

removing to the native wells, with some little trouble opened a hole

large enough to water all the horses. The single sheep gave us a great

deal of trouble and kept us running about from one sand hill to another,

until we were tired out, before we could capture it; at last we

succeeded, and I tied him up for the night, resolved never to let him

loose again.

In the evening I noticed the native boys looking more woe-begone and

hungry than usual. Heretofore, since our mutton was consumed, they had

helped out their daily half-pound of flour, with the roasted roots of the

gum-scrub, but to-day they had been too busy to get any, and I was

obliged to give to each a piece of bread beyond the regular allowance. It

was pitiable to see them craving for food, and not to have the power of

satisfying them; they were young and had large appetites, and never

having been accustomed to any restraint of this nature, scarcity of food

was the more sensibly felt, especially as they could not comprehend the

necessity that compelled us to hoard with greater care than a miser does

his gold, the little stock of provisions which we yet had left.

April 6.--The severe frost and intense cold of last night entirely

deprived me of sleep, and I was glad when the daylight broke, though

still weary and unrefreshed. After clearing out the well, and watering

the horses, I sent one of the boys out to watch them, and gave the other

the gun to try and shoot a wallabie, but after expending the only two

charges of slugs I had left, he returned unsuccessful. At night we all

made up our supper with the bark of the young roots of the gum-scrub. It

appears to be extensively used for food by the natives in this district,

judging from the remnants left at their encamping places. The bark is

peeled off the young roots of the eucalyptus dumosa, put into hot ashes

until nearly crisp, and then the dust being shaken off, it is pounded

between two stones and ready for use. Upon being chewed, a farinaceous

powder is imbibed from between the fibres of the bark, by no means

unpleasant in flavour, but rather sweet, and resembling the taste of

malt; how far a person could live upon this diet alone, I have no means

of judging, but it certainly appeases the appetite, and is, I should

suppose, nutritious.

April 7.--Another sleepless night from the intense cold. Upon getting up

I put a mark upon the beach to guide the overseer to our camp on his

return, then weighed out flour and baked bread for the party, as I found

it lasted much better when used stale than fresh. I tried to shoot some

pigeons with small gravel, having plenty of powder but no shot. My

efforts were, however, in vain, for though I several times knocked them

over, and tore feathers out, I killed none. The day being very clear, I

ascended the highest sand-hill to obtain a view of what had appeared to

us to be a long point of land, stretching to the south-west. It was now

clearly recognisable as the high level line of cliffs forming the western

boundary of the Great Bight, and I at once knew, that when we left our

present position, we could hope for no water for at least 140 or 150

miles beyond.

The weather on the 8th and 9th suddenly became mild and soft, with the

appearance of rain, but none fell. I was becoming anxious about the

return of my overseer and native boy, who had been absent nine tides,

when they ought to have returned in eight, and I could not help fearing

some mischance had befallen them, and frequently went back wards and

forwards to the beach, to look for them. The tenth tide found me

anxiously at my post on the look out, and after watching for a long time

I thought I discerned some dark objects in the distance, slowly

advancing; gradually I made out a single horse, driven by two people, and

at once descended to meet them. Their dismal tale was soon told. After

leaving us on the 5th, they reached their destination on the 7th; but in

returning one of the horses became blind, and was too weak to advance

further, when they had barely advanced thirteen miles; they were

consequently obliged to abandon him, and leave behind the things he had

been carrying. With the other two horses they got to within five miles of

the place we first procured water at on the 30th March. Here a second

horse had become unable to proceed, and the things he had carried were

also obliged to be left behind. They then got both horses to the first

well at the sand-hills and watered them, and after resting a couple of

hours came on to join me. Short as this distance was, the jaded horse

could not travel it, and was left behind a mile and a half back. Having

shewn the overseer and boy the camp, I sent the other two natives to

fetch up the tired horse, whilst I attended to the other, and put the

solitary sheep in for the night. By a little after dark all was arranged,

and the horse that had been left behind once more with the others.

From the overseer I learnt, that during the fifty miles he had retraced

our route to obtain the provisions we had left, he had five times dug for

water: four times he had found salt water, and once he had been stopped

by rock. The last effort of this kind he had made not far from where we

found water on the 30th of March, and I could not but be struck with the

singular and providential circumstance of our first halting and

attempting to dig for water on that day in all our distress, at the very

first place, and at the only place, within the 160 miles we had

traversed, where water could have been procured. It will be remembered,

that in our advance, we had travelled a great part of the latter portion

of this distance by night, and that thus there was a probability of our

having passed unknowingly some place where water might have been

procured. The overseer had now travelled over the same ground in

daylight, with renovated strength, and in a condition comparatively

strong, and fresh for exertion. He had dug wherever he thought there was

a chance of procuring water, but without success in any one single

instance.

After learning all the particulars of the late unlucky journey, I found

that a great part of the things I had sent for were still thirty-eight

miles back, having only been brought twelve miles from where they had

originally been left; the rest of the things were ten miles away, and as

nearly all our provisions, and many other indispensable articles were

among them, it became absolutely necessary that they should be recovered

in some way or other, but how that was to be accomplished was a question

which we could not so easily determine. Our horses were quite unfit for

service of any kind, and the late unfortunate attempt had but added to

the difficulties by which we were surrounded, and inflicted upon us the

additional loss of another valuable animal. Many and anxious were the

hours I spent in contemplating the circumstances we were in, and in

revolving in my mind the best means at our command to extricate ourselves

from so perilous a situation. We were still 650 miles from King George's

Sound, with an entirely unknown country before us. Our provisions, when

again recovered, would be barely sufficient to last us for three weeks

and a half, at a very reduced rate of allowance. Our horses were jaded

and miserable beyond all conception; they could literally scarcely crawl,

and it was evident they would be unable to move on again at all without

many days' rest where we were. On the other hand we had still the

prospect of another of those fearful pushes without water to encounter,

as soon as we left our present encampment, and had first to recover the

provisions and other things yet so far away. Nothing could be more

disheartening than our situation, and it was also one in which it was

difficult to decide what was best to be done. Aware that a single false

step would now be fatal to us all, I saw that our circumstances required

promptness and decision. With every thing depending upon my sole

judgment, and the determination I arrived at, I felt deeply and anxiously

the over-whelming responsibility that devolved upon me.

We were now about half way between Fowler's Bay and King George's Sound,

located among barren sand-drifts, and without a drop of water beyond us

on either side, within a less distance than 150 miles. Our provisions

were rapidly decreasing, whilst we were lying idle and inactive in camp;

and yet it would be absolutely necessary for us thus to remain for some

time longer, or at once abandon the horses, and endeavour to make our way

without them. To the latter, however, there were many objections, one of

which was, that I well knew from the experience we had already had, that

if we abandoned the horses, and had those fearful long distances to

travel without water, we never could accomplish them on foot, if

compelled at the same time to live upon a very low diet, to carry our

arms, ammunition, and provisions, and in addition to these, a stock of

water, sufficient to last six or seven days. The only thing that had

enabled us to get through so far on our journey in safety, had been the

having the horses with us, for though weak and jaded, they had yet

carried the few things, which were indispensable to us, and which we

never could have carried ourselves under the circumstances.

There was another inducement to continue with the horses, which had

considerable weight with me, and however revolting the idea might be at

first, it was a resource which I foresaw the desperate circumstances we

were in must soon compel us to adopt. It was certainly horrible to

contemplate the destruction of the noble animals that had accompanied us

so far, but ere long I well knew that such would be the only chance of

saving our own lives, and I hoped that by accustoming the mind to dwell

upon the subject beforehand, when the evil hour did arrive, the horror

and disgust would be in some degree lessened. Upon consulting the

overseer, I was glad to find that he agreed with me fully in the

expediency of not abandoning the horses until it became unavoidable, and

that he had himself already contemplated the probability of our being

very shortly reduced to the alternative of using them for food.

It remained now only to decide, which way we would go when we agan moved

on, whether to prosecute our journey to the Sound, or try to retrace our

steps to Fowler's Bay. On this point my own opinion never wavered for an

instant. My conviction of the utter impossibility of our ever being able

to recross the fearful country we had passed through with such

difficulty, under circumstances so much more favourable than we were now

in, was so strong that I never for a moment entertained the idea myself.

I knew the many and frightful pushes without water we should have to make

in any such attempt, and though the country before us was unknown, it

could not well be worse than that we had passed through, whilst the

probability was, that after the first long stage was accomplished, and

which would take us beyond the western boundary of the Great Bight, we

should experience a change in the character of the country, and be able

to advance with comparative ease and facility. Unhappily my overseer

differed from me in opinion upon this point.

The last desperate march we had made, had produced so strong an

impression upon his mind, that he could not divest himself of the idea

that the further we went to the westward the more arid the country would

be found, and that eventually we should all perish from want of water; on

the other hand, the very reduced allowance of food we were compelled to

limit ourselves to, made his thoughts always turn to the depot at

Fowler's Bay, where we had buried a large supply of provisions of all

kinds. In vain I pointed out to him the certain difficulties we must

encounter in any attempt to return, the little probability there was of a

single horse surviving even the first of those dreadful stages we should

have to make, and the utter impossibility of our getting successfully

through without the horses; and, on the other hand, the very cheering

prospect there was of all our most serious difficulties being terminated

as soon as we had turned the western extremity of the Bight (to

accomplish which, would not occupy more than six or seven days at the

furthest when we moved on,) and the strong hopes that we might then

reasonably entertain of falling in with some vessel, sealing or whaling

upon the coast, and from which we might obtain a fresh supply of

provisions. All my arguments were fruitless. With the characteristic

obedience and fidelity with which he had ever served me, he readily

acquiesced in any plan I might decide upon adopting; but I perceived,

with pain, that I could not convince him that the view I took was the

proper one, and that the plan I intended to follow was the only one which

held out to us even the remotest hopes of eventual safety and success.

Finding that I made little progress in removing his doubts on the

question of our advance, I resolved to pursue the subject no further,

until the time for decision came, hoping that in the interim, his

opinions and feelings might in some degree be modified, and that he might

then accompany me cheerfully. The important and pressing duty of

recovering at once the stores we had left behind, now claimed my

attention. The overseer, with his usual anxiety to save me from any extra

labour, kindly offered to attempt this object again; but as he had just

returned from a severe, though unfortunately unsuccessful journey for the

same purpose, I decided upon doing it myself, and at once made my

preparations for leaving the camp.

Chapter XVIII.

GO BACK WITH A NATIVE--SPEAR STING-RAYS--RECOVER THE BAGGAGE--COLD

WEATHER--OVERSEER RECONNOITRES THE CLIFFS--UNFAVOURABLE

REPORT--DIFFERENCE OF OPINION AS TO BEST PLANS FOR THE FUTURE--KILL A

HORSE FOR FOOD--INJURIOUS EFFECTS FROM MEAT DIET--NATIVE BOYS BECOME

DISAFFECTED--THEY STEAL PROVISIONS--NATIVE BOYS DESERT THE PARTY--THEY

RETURN ALMOST STARVED--PARTY PROCEED ONWARDS TO THE WESTWARD--CLIFFS OF

THE BIGHT--COUNTRY BEHIND THEM--THREATENING WEATHER--MURDER OF THE

OVERSEER.

April 10.--FOUR days' provisions having been given to each of the party,

I took the King George's Sound native with me to retrace, on foot, our

route to the eastward. For the first ten miles I was accompanied by one

of the other native boys, leading a horse to carry a little water for us,

and take back the stores the overseer had buried at that point, when the

second horse knocked up with him on the morning of the 9th. Having found

the things, and put them on the horse, I sent the boy with them back to

the camp, together with a large sting-ray fish which he had speared in

the surf near the shore. It was a large, coarse, ugly-looking thing, but

as it seemed to be of the same family as the skate, I did not imagine we

should run any risk in eating it. In other respects, circumstances had

broken through many scruples and prejudices, and we were by no means

particular as to what the fish might be, if it were eatable.

Having buried our little keg of water until our return, the King George's

Sound native and myself pushed on for five miles further, and then halted

for the night, after a day's journey of fifteen miles. We now cooked some

sting-ray fish (for the native with me had speared a second one,) and

though it was coarse and dry, our appetites had been sharpened by our

walk, and we thought it far from being unpalatable.

April 11.--Moving away long before daylight, we pushed steadily on, and

about dusk arrived, after a stage of twenty-three miles, at the place

where our stores were. I found a much greater weight here than I

expected, and feared it would be quite impossible for us to carry the

whole away. By the light of the fire, I threw out saddles, clothes,

oil-skins, etc. that we did not absolutely require, and packing up the

remainder, weighed a bundle of thirty-two pounds for myself to carry, and

one of twenty-two for the native, who also had a gun to take. Our

arrangements being completed for the morrow, we enjoyed our supper of

sting-ray, and lay down for the night.

April 12.--To-day the weather was cloudy and sultry, and we found it very

oppressive carrying the weight we had with us, especially as we had no

water. By steady perseverance, we gained the place where our little keg

had been buried; and having refreshed ourselves with a little tea, again

pushed on for a few miles to a place where I had appointed the overseer

to send a native to meet us with water. He was already there, and we all

encamped together for the night, soon forgetting, in refreshing sleep,

the fatigues and labours of the day.

The 13th was a dark cloudy day, with light rains in the morning. About

noon we arrived at the camp, after having walked seventy-six miles in the

last three days and a half, during great part of which, we had carried

heavy weights. We had, however, successfully accomplished the object for

which we had gone, and had now anxieties only for our future progress,

the provisions and other stores being all safely recovered.

During my absence, I had requested the overseer to bake some bread, in

order that it might be tolerably stale before we used it. To my regret

and annoyance, I found that he had baked one third of our whole supply,

so that it would be necessary to use more than our stated allowance, or

else to let it spoil. It was the more vexing, to think that in this case

the provisions had been so improvidently expended, from the fact of our

having plenty of the sting-ray fish, and not requiring so much bread.

April 14.--Early this morning I sent the overseer, and one of the native

boys, with three days' provision to the commencement of the cliffs to the

westward, visible from the sand-hills near our camp, in order that they

might ascertain the exact distance they were from us, and whether any

grass or water could be procured nearer to their base than where we were.

After their departure, I attended to the horses, and then amused myself

preparing some fishing lines to set off the shore, with a large stone as

an anchor, and a small keg for a buoy. The day was, however, wild and

boisterous; and in my attempts to get through the surf, to set the lines,

I was thrown down, together with the large stone I was carrying, and my

leg severely cut and bruised. The weather was extremely cold, too, and

being without coat or jacket of any kind, I suffered severely from it.

The 15th was another cold day, with the wind at south-west, and we could

neither set the lines, nor spear sting-ray, whilst the supply we had

before obtained was now nearly exhausted. One of the horses was taken

ill, and unable to rise, from the effects of the cold; his limbs were

cramped and stiff, and apparently unable to sustain the weight of his

body. After plucking dry grass, and making a bed for him, placing a

breakwind of boughs round, and making a fire near him, we left him for

the night.