Investigation of the Mysterious Noise--The Trip South--Natives
Exterminated--Stuart's Initials Found.
As soon as the meal was finished, Morton, Brown, and Charlie
descended the hole, but Billy declined the invitation extended to
him. By the aid of the surcingles they climbed down into the passage
already traversed by Charlie and Billy, and which appeared to have
been an underground water-course at the time when the boiling springs
were at work.
At last they arrived at the branch passage from whence came the
mysterious noise, and along this they proceeded cautiously. Suddenly
across their path extended a black chasm, bringing them to a
stand-still. Testing the ground carefully, they crawled to the edge
and looked over. The darkness was intense, but on holding the candle
out, a tiny spark was reflected down below, as though from the
surface of a sheet of water. Suddenly this disappeared, and the loud
sigh, or, as Charlie had called it, "a regular bellow", came up from
the pit. This died down, and they heard a repeated swishing noise,
like water splashing against rocks. Morton inverted his candle so as
to get the wick well alight, and then dropped it down the hole. They
watched it falling for some time ere it struck the water with a
distinctly audible hiss.
"By Jove! it's a long way down there. I don't think we need stop
here any longer unless Charlie wants to go down."
"No, thanks," said Charlie, "my curiosity is quite satisfied."
They retreated as cautiously as they had advanced, followed by the
melancholy roar from below.
"It's the water that makes that noise," said Brown. "The water down
there is evidently still in a disturbed state, and is regularly set
in motion, and rushes up some sort of a blow-hole."
"Do you think it has any connection with that hot swamp and lake down
south?"
"Without any doubt; perhaps we shall find that lake all burst up when
we go down there."
They retraced their steps, and, by the aid of the surcingles held by
the blacks above, emerged once more into the open air. They rested
most of the day, and started back to what they now considered their
main camp as soon as the evening grew cool.
Columbus and the other four blacks were there, and everything as they
had left it.
"That was a smart trick," said Brown.
"What was?"
"In our hurry to start after Charlie, we left the journal and the
copies we had made lying loose in the tent. If the grass had taken
fire, or the niggers looted the camp, we should have lost all our
work."
Morton whistled.
They rested one day, and then made an early start for the south.
They had rigged up a makeshift saddle for Columbus, and, as they
travelled slowly, he was able to get along fairly well. They reached
the swamp about the same time as before, and at first noticed no
change in it. On penetrating it, however, they found that it was not
so boggy as formerly, and on mounting the tree they had already
climbed, they saw that the water in the lake had fallen considerably,
and the fringe of reeds was drooping.
"Do you think all these fine trees will die if the water dries up?"
said Charlie.
"They may. But as their roots go down to a great depth, I should
think they would hold on a good many years yet."
Next morning Columbus indicated the track they had come upon before,
and they soon had left the swamp behind them. The country was
exceedingly monotonous, there being no break in the forest until
about four in the afternoon; then they suddenly came to a creek, and
the country began to improve, and better grass was apparent. At the
first water they came to they camped for the night. Columbus
intimated to them that the creek they were on and the one where they
had been camped were the same, and as the characteristics were
similar, they concluded that he was right, and that the creek had
re-formed again. Columbus also informed them that they would now
follow the creek, and that there was plenty of water all the way. On
inquiry, he said that they would reach the mountain in two days.
On the evening of the second day they got into broken country,
although it was still well grassed, and the creek had largely
increased in size. From the crest of one ridge they passed over,
Columbus pointed to the mountain now visible in the distance.
Next day the country was much rougher, and the creek ran through a
succession of gorges. The mountain was the highest point of the
broken country, and the creek swept round the base of it.
Morton called Brown's attention to the fact that all the native camps
they passed were of old date, and that no fresh tracks were visible.
At last they reached an extent of open country lying at the foot of
the mountain, which rose aloft in a peak. On the bank of the creek
were some ruined humpies, built of mud and sticks, after the manner
of the Cooper's Creek natives. In the creek was a long water-hole,
apparently of great depth. Human bones and skeletons were strewn
about the camp. Evidently a wholesale massacre had taken place some
years back.
"Those cannibals must have wiped the whole tribe out the last time
they were here," said Brown.
"If they have served the tribe to the westward the same way, they
would have had to live on one another shortly."
After unpacking and hobbling the horses, they made a thorough
investigation of the place to see if any trace of Stuart still
existed, but they saw nothing to lead them to suppose that a white
man had ever been there.
Columbus, on being appealed to, pointed to the hill, which was
scarcely a quarter of a mile away. On going over to it they found
what appeared to be a crude kind of barricade built of stones, a work
that none of the party had ever before seen done by natives. This
was the only indication they found that evening. The next morning
early they ascended the hill, and from the top had an extended view
all around. They were evidently on the highest point in that part of
the continent. To the south and east it appeared to be one vast
ocean of scrub, without a break to the horizon. They could trace the
course of the creek for some short distance, then it apparently died
out and was once more lost. Westward the scrub was broken into belts
and patches, until it merged into a wide gray plain, to which they
could see no end but the sky-line. Northward was the broken country
they had passed over. The mountain was of granite formation, and on
a smooth boulder they found some initials plainly chipped on the
surface: "C. N. S. 1861".
"Stuart was here, then, right enough. I wonder whether he went on
from here."
"He never got into the settled districts at any rate, or we should
have heard of it."
Columbus, who had accompanied them, shook his head when asked about
the country to the south and east. He made a gesture like a man
falling down dead, by which they understood that it was impassable,
so that the probability was that Stuart had perished in his attempt
to make into civilization.
Brown struck a match and lit his pipe.
"We have come to the end of our tether in this direction," he said.
"I wonder how the lake bears from here," replied Morton. "I suppose
the cannibals have a track from the great rock out to it, but if
Stuart got down here on foot we ought to be able to find our way
across on horseback."
Columbus, on being questioned as to the direction of the lake,
pointed north, the way they had come.
"That's a way the niggers have," said Brown. "They always point to
the last place they started from; they have no idea of direction.
When we got back to the old camp he would point some other way."
Columbus professed entire ignorance as to any means of reaching the
lake, except by going back the way they came and starting on the road
he knew. Morton and Brown, however, decided on trying to go straight
across from where they were.
They devoted one day to a trip down the creek, which they found was
entirely lost in sandy, scrubby country. No further sign of Stuart's
presence was found anywhere, nor could anything be discovered to lead
one to suppose that any of the natives had survived the massacre,
although Columbus had evidently expected to find some still living.
Calculating the supposed situation of the lake as due west from the
rock, they reckoned it would be north-west from where they then were.
If that course did not bring them to the lake they would probably
come across some indication which would lead them to it.
The first part of their journey was through the belts of scrub they
had seen from the hilltop. It was principally hedgewood, and greatly
delayed their progress, and it was late when they at last emerged
upon the edge of the plain. The grass was fairly good, but there was
no water for the horses, and from what they had seen there did not
seem much prospect of getting any early the next day. In fact, it
was past noon before they had crossed the plain and gained the timber
on the other side of it. This was open forest, and in a clear space,
some mile or two on, they came to a dry lagoon. In the shallow bed
was an old native well, and on clearing this out and deepening it, a
very fair supply of water came in. Watering their now thirsty horses
took some time, as all the water had to be drawn from the well, a
billyful at a time, and poured into a trough extemporized from a
waterproof sheet. The supply, however, came in strongly, showing
there was a good permanent soakage. There was fine feed about the
lagoon, and everybody felt satisfied with the prospect ahead.
Columbus seemingly knew nothing of the country they were then on, so
that the cannibals had evidently stuck to one particular track when
on their periodical man-hunting expeditions.