magnificent view burst upon us. From the summit of the hills on which we
stood an almost precipitous descent led into a fertile plain below; and
from this part, away to the southward, for thirty to forty miles,
stretched a low luxuriant country, broken by conical peaks and rounded
hills which were richly grassed to their very summits. The plains and
hills were both thinly wooded, and curving lines of shady trees marked
out the courses of numerous streams. Since I have visited this spot I
have traversed large portions of Australia but have seen no land, no
scenery to equal it. We were upon the confines of a great volcanic
district, clothed with tropical vegetation, to which the Isle of France
bears a greater resemblance than any other portion of the world which I
am acquainted with. The rocks in both places are identical; many of the
trees are also the same; and there are several other close and striking
points of similarity.
DESCENT FROM THE SANDSTONE RANGE INTO THE LOW COUNTRY.
The descent into the lowlands, being very difficult, occupied us nearly
two hours; we then gained the bed of a ravine, in which ran a clear
stream: the ravine gradually widening out as we reached the plains. I
proceeded directly down it in the direction of a lofty peaked hill which
bore to the westward of south; and, having gained a shoulder of this
hill, we halted for the night.
Immediately above us a perfectly conical peak raised its head to the
height of at least five hundred feet;* this hill was covered with rich
grass, and there could be no doubt that it was of volcanic origin, for
the rock of which it was composed was a vitrified lava resembling that of
Ascension. It is from this lava that the natives form their most deadly
spears, for which purpose it answers well, as it fractures easily, and
the fracture resembles that of the coarse green glass of England; indeed
a lump of this rock might readily be taken for a part of a glass bottle.
(*Footnote. This hill may be easily recognized by a precipitous cavity
near the summit on its southern side, which may be seen at some
distance.)
The horses and sheep revelled in the luxuriant pasture. The hill we had
encamped on formed a sort of plateau; behind us stood dark mountains, and
in our front lay fertile plains, from which green hills rose one behind
the other until they were lost in the distance, without any perceptible
change in the character of the country. To the eastward the prospect was
similar, as well as to the westward, except that in this direction the
hills were more lofty, and behind these the tropical sun was hurrying
down with a rapidity of movement never witnessed by those who live in the
gloomy climes of the north. The men all looked healthy and full of hope;
the cool sea-breeze refreshed my feverish frame: I painted in fancy the
rapid progress that this country would ere long make in commerce and
civilization, and my weakness and fatigues were all forgotten.
DISTANT EXPANSE OF WATER.
February 28.
At dawn this morning the sheep could not be found; tempted by the
goodness of the feed they had broken out from the little enclosure we had
made for them and had wandered off. The stock-keeper and two of the men,
having ascended the conical hill behind us to try if they could see them
from it, reported on their return that they could descry a large lake or
expanse of water, which bore about south by west from us.
VEXATIOUS DELAYS.
Whilst the search for the sheep was continued I sent another party up the
hill to observe more particularly this sheet of water, who returned with
a report similar to that of the stock-keeper, and I therefore determined,
as soon as everything had been prepared for starting, to move off in the
direction pointed out; unfortunately the sheep were not found till near
noon but, as I was afraid we should consequently lose a whole day, I
started directly after they were brought in. We had not proceeded more
than half a mile ere I had cause to repent this measure, for two or three
of the men suffered severely from exposure to the sun, and one of them
became so unwell that I was obliged to halt the party.
The spot I chose was the bank of a stream, shaded over by dense trees
and, if anything could have atoned for the mortification of being
compelled to halt when so anxious to get on, the cool beauty of this spot
would have done so.
When the sun began to fall we again moved on, following the course of the
stream, which ran through a fertile valley about two miles wide and
bounded on either side by gently sloping hills, extending through a
country thinly wooded. We did not halt until after sunset.
March 1.
This morning we resumed our route along the banks of the stream, which
continued gradually to increase in size. The marshy ground now extended
further from its banks and, in order to free ourselves from this, I
ascended some rising ground to the eastward, along which we pursued our
route until we fell in with another rapid stream running from the
eastward, and were again involved in marshy land, which delayed us for
some time ere we found a point where loaded ponies could pass. At length
however, having succeeded in getting clear of these obstructions, we
continued our southerly course till we came to a deep stream running from
south-south-east; but, not being able to cross it there, we travelled
along its banks until a ford was found; and as soon as we had passed over
I halted for breakfast.
BEAUTIFUL BASALTIC COUNTRY.
We had traversed a most beautiful country this morning, composed of
basaltic rocks and fine alluvial soil, whilst, from the size and number
of the streams, it must be as well watered as any region in the world.
Before we had completed our breakfast violent tropical rains set in;
these were so cold that some of the men got into the stream, the waters
of which were comparatively warm, and they thus saved themselves from the
painful feeling caused by very cold water falling on the pores, which had
been previously opened by profuse perspiration. The heavy rains continued
without intermission for the remainder of the day and night, and two of
the men were, on this occasion, attacked with dysentery, caused, I
believe, by cold and exposure.
DISCOVERY AND CHARACTER OF THE GLENELG RIVER.
March 2.
We started at dawn, crossing a series of low ridges which ran out from a
chain of hills to the eastward of us, and increased in elevation as we
proceeded to the south. We passed numerous streams, and the country
generally continued of a very rich and fertile character: at last, from
the top of one of these ridges, there burst upon the sight a noble river,
running through a beautiful country, and, where we saw it, at least three
or four miles across, and studded with numerous verdant islands. I have
since seen many Australian rivers, but none to equal this either in
magnitude or beauty.
I at once named it the Glenelg in compliment to the Right Honourable Lord
Glenelg, to whom we were all under great obligations.
IMPEDIMENTS FROM MARSHES AND STREAMS. INEFFECTUAL ATTEMPT TO REACH IT.
My anxiety to reach this stream was too great to allow me to pass much
time in looking at it, so, after I had taken a few bearings to the most
remarkable points in the neighbourhood, we wound down the steep descent
in front, and continued our advance towards the river, but were still at
least five miles from it when we became involved in low marshy ground,
traversed by deep sluggish streams, the banks of which were encumbered by
a dense vegetation. Such a country, though admirably adapted both for
commerce and agriculture, offered almost insurmountable difficulties to
first explorers, at least to such as were compelled to move rapidly. We
at last became so completely entangled in a marsh that further progress
was hopeless, and we halted to prepare breakfast whilst a party searched
for a path by which we might be enabled to proceed.
My wound was still open and my sufferings from it were great; whenever we
moved on I was lifted on the pony, and when we halted I was lifted off
again and laid on the ground, where weakness compelled me to remain
during the whole period of our halt; and on occasions like the present,
when most anxious myself to search for a route, I was obliged to lie
still like a helpless child. My mind was as active and as ready for
exertion as ever, yet the weak frame, of which it felt perfectly
independent, was incapable of seconding my most moderate wishes; and the
annoyance I experienced at finding myself in this state long retarded my
recovery and rendered me weaker every day.
At length a route was found, and until sunset we continued our journey
over a very difficult but fertile country, and then halted for the night
on a small elevation, embosomed amidst conical hills which rose from
verdant meadows, watered by several streams. The country was thinly
timbered.
The spot we had halted at was so thickly tenanted with mosquitoes that it
was impossible to sleep. I therefore laid awake, listening to the cries
of the sea-birds and watching the brilliant fire-flies moving about in
the dark foliage of the trees.
PROGRESS TOWARDS THE UPPER PART OF THE GLENELG.
March 3.
Before the first dawn I called some of the party and we started off to
visit the banks of the river. The first part of our journey lay across
rich grassy flats, thinly wooded with large shady trees, or over gently
rising grounds, on which grew an abundance of young grass which appeared
to be a species of oat. These rising grounds were thinly wooded with a
small sort of gum tree, called in the Isle of France the Bois noir.
We soon reached low marshy land intersected with large dry mud flats and,
as it was impossible, from the nature of the country, to get the pony
further, I tethered it, and we tried to make the river on foot. The
position which we had selected was however so unfavourable that we did
not succeed in reaching the river, and my wound became so painful that I
was scarcely able to crawl back to the pony.
We then returned to the tents, which we reached in the afternoon, and I
sent another party out to examine the country and to see if they could
find a more favourable position for the tent where we might be less
exposed to the mosquitoes. The remainder of the men were employed in
repairing the packsaddles and in mending our shoes, which were in a very
dilapidated condition. The detached party, on their return, reported that
they could not find a more favourable position for the tents; and that we
appeared to be on a low marshy tongue of land which the river nearly
flowed round. We this day saw the tracks of an emu, and of several large
dogs, and kangaroos.
ASCEND A HILL.
March 4.
By sunrise I had gained the foot of the highest hill near our encampment.
It is a very remarkable rocky eminence; in height above the immediate
base it was only 250 feet, but it rose by a regular steep slope from the
river, which was distant about four miles. I do not think therefore that
its height above the level of the sea was less than 800 feet. I was
unable to ride up this hill, from the rocky nature of the ground, which
was composed of a basalt resembling that of the Isle of France; its sides
were slightly wooded and clothed with a fine grass nearly as high as
myself. From the heaviness of the dew, walking through a river would have
been about as agreeable as walking through this grass; but when I had
reached the summit the view amply repaid me for the trouble of the
ascent.
VIEW OF THE GLENELG FROM IT.
The river flowed through a rich and fertile country at the base of the
hill, having in some places hereabouts a triple channel formed by large
and apparently fertile islands, and its width must have been at least
three or four miles; it however ran away so much to the north-eastward
that I began to fear it might be a great salt-water inlet, communicating
in some manner with Prince Regent's River, and that we might thus find
ourselves upon a large island. I had a good view of the valley for 10 or
12 miles in an easterly direction over a country still very fertile, but
all that I saw tended to make me believe that the river had some
communication with the sea, somewhere towards the north-east.
We reached the camp before breakfast; and, as this was Sunday and our
ponies were rapidly improving from the goodness of their feed, I
determined to halt here for a day or two whilst a detachment examined the
country to ascertain, if possible, whether we were on an island or not,
and whether it was possible to cross the river near our present position.
March 5.
This morning accordingly an exploring party started; and, as it was
necessary that they should traverse the country on foot so as to be able
to cross the low marshy grounds near the river, I was, on account of my
wound, unable to accompany them, and therefore occupied myself in making
a set of magnetic observations.
March 6.
This afternoon Mr. Lushington and the party returned, having found the
northern bank of the river to consist of low marshy ground covered with a
luxuriant vegetation, and in some places with such forests of mangrove
trees that it was impossible to approach the stream. They however
succeeded in reaching one of the channels of the river, which was upwards
of 400 yards wide; the rise and fall of tide was here about twenty feet,
and the current, of course, extremely rapid. They reported the river as
being, to all appearance, navigable, and that the tide only set in from
the westward.
THE RIVER.
As the southern bank of the river was bordered by high rocky hills they
saw nothing of the country in that direction. Their report was on the
whole satisfactory, for it appeared that the good country still extended
along the northern bank, and that we were upon the mainland.
PORPOISES SEEN.
A good idea may be formed of the size of the river where the party made
it from the circumstance of their seeing a large shoal of porpoises.
IGUANA. DENSENESS OF VEGETATION.
March 7.
This morning we started early in a north-easterly direction and travelled
all day through a very fertile and picturesque country. On our left lay
hills covered with grass, and on our right extensive plains, through
which ran the Glenelg. The vegetation in these was so luxuriant that it
choked the fresh water up; and whole plains were sometimes thus inundated
ankle deep. The country was thinly timbered, but in general the trees
were of a very great size: one particularly took my fancy, having very
large leaves about the colour of those of the horse-chestnut, and which
cast more shade around them than any other which I have seen in
Australia.
In the afternoon, as we were passing through a densely vegetated bottom,
we saw a very large iguana run up a tree. This brute was of a beautiful
green colour and five or six feet long; it sat on the tree, making a
noise somewhat like a snake, and was the largest and ugliest of the
lizard tribe which I have ever seen on land. As we could make no use of
it I thought it would be wanton to kill it; so, after examining it as
well as we could, we moved on, leaving it undisturbed.
The black flies on this day changed their character, and became much
smaller than those I had hitherto seen.
March 8.
We made but little progress today on account of the denseness of the
vegetation, which was so luxuriant that we found great difficulty in
forcing our way through it; in several instances indeed it was wholly
impassable; and, after making an attempt to penetrate through a jungle,
we were obliged to turn about and coast round it. The numerous streams we
met with were also a serious impediment, for many of these were so muddy
and deep that we had great difficulty in finding a place where we could
cross.
SIGNS OF NATIVES.
We halted for breakfast near a stream of this kind, under the shade of a
large group of the pandanus. This was evidently a favourite haunt of the
natives, who had been feeding upon the almonds which this tree contains
in its large complex fruit, and to give a relish to their repast had
mingled with it roasted unios, or fresh-water mussels, which the stream
produced in abundance. The remains of some old spears were also lying
about, but the natives themselves were not visible.
Immediately after breakfast I ascended a hill to see if we could in any
way get clear of the deep stream on the banks of which we had
breakfasted. The Glenelg was distant about three miles to the south, and
I found that, in order to disengage ourselves from the waters which
almost encompassed us, we must turn off to the north-west, and thus
almost double back on our former track, as there was no other resource. I
returned at once to the party, and we spent the rest of the day in
crossing two deep streams, and then proceeded about a mile to the
eastward, where we halted for the night on the bank of a rocky
watercourse, but not containing a drop of water. The timber today was
larger than I had yet seen it, affording many new kinds, and one in
particular, resembling in appearance and quality the English ash.
March 9.
We moved through a low country, densely vegetated, and still abounding in
deep sluggish streams, almost unapproachable, on account of a dwarf
bamboo and other tropical plants which clothed their margins. Some of
these streams were twenty feet deep and upwards, and looked more like
canals than natural watercourses.
CASCADE OF THE RIVER.
The point where we halted for the night was not very distant from the
river, for its roaring, as it forced itself over a rapid, could be
distinctly heard. As it was important to ascertain if it ceased to be
navigable at this point, as well as whether it could be here forded or
not, I ordered a party to proceed at daylight and examine it, and in the
interim we laid down to enjoy such repose as myriads of mosquitoes would
allow us.
March 10.
The party started at dawn and did not return until the afternoon. They
arrived at low-water at a point where the river formed a series of rapids
and was apparently broken into several channels; the one which they
reached was not more than fifty or sixty yards wide, the tide at low
water being full seven or eight feet below the level of the rocks which
formed the rapids, but at high-water it rose, judging from the marks on
the rocks, as many feet above them. This channel would therefore cease to
be navigable for vessels at this point, but large boats could proceed up
it at high-water. There was no apparent possibility of our being able to
pass it hereabouts on account of the great rapidity of the current. The
river continued fresh below the rapids, and their account of the
character of the country they saw was most satisfactory.
INCONVENIENT HALTING PLACE.
Almost immediately after they had entered the camp the rain began to fall
in such torrents that it was impossible for us to move; this was
unfortunate for where we were halted was unfit for a day's resting-place,
and we should consequently be compelled to move on Sunday morning instead
of making it a day of perfect rest. The point where the party made the
river today was about south latitude 15 degrees 41 minutes; east
longitude 124 degrees 53 minutes.
CHAPTER 9. TO THE UPPER GLENELG.
WORKS OF NATIVE INDUSTRY.
March 11.
The country we traversed this morning was still marshy, and intersected
by deep streams. The party had yesterday fixed upon a point for us to
encamp at; but, a sudden inundation having taken place, we could not
cross a stream which lay between us and the spot selected, so that we
were compelled about noon to halt at a position very ill adapted for our
purpose.
VARIOUS TRACES OF NATIVES.
Close to our camp was a large mass of basaltic rocks, on which the
natives had lately been, and had left behind them a few old spears: some
drawings were also scratched upon the rocks, representing heads, hands,
and other parts of the human frame: they were however indifferently
executed.
Another branch of industry which had engaged their attention was the
manufacture of stone spearheads, the chips and remnants of which were
lying about on every side. As this looked very like a preparation to give
us a warm reception I kept upon the alert. From constantly sleeping on
the wet ground, and the exposure I was obliged to undergo, such an attack
of rheumatism had been produced in my left hip and knee that I was not
only crippled but suffered such dreadful agony from my wounded limb that
I was able to pay but little attention to passing events.
I crept about however as well as I could, and found that we were in a
very populous neighbourhood. At one place a large party of natives
appeared to have lived for some time, twelve bark beds having been left
in a circle round a fire. In this respect they differ in custom from the
natives of the southern parts of Australia, who generally sleep all of a
heap, or, at least, four or five persons together, whereas each
individual here appeared to occupy his own little bark bed. In the course
of the morning's march we had passed a very neat native oven, or
fireplace, much more carefully constructed than anything of the kind I
have since seen; it consisted of a hole sunk eight inches deep in the
earth, which was quite circular, three feet in diameter, and very neatly
paved and lined with flat stones; the last article cooked here had been a
large quantity of turtles' eggs, the remnants of which were lying
scattered all around. This is a dish by no means to be despised; and the
discovery was rather interesting to me as it proved that turtle came so
far up the river. It rained hard during the greater part of the day.
March 12.
As we were preparing to start this morning one of the ponies was found to
be so knocked up as to be unable to proceed; I therefore abandoned it,
though, I fear, in a state too far gone to recover; but if perfect rest
and abundance of good feed and water could effect a restoration it had
still a fair chance.
DIFFICULTIES OF THE ROUTE.
A ford over the stream had yesterday been found between the Glenelg and
our encampment, which we now succeeded in getting the ponies over, and,
in order to avoid another stream, which had been seen to the eastward, we
turned north-east, but in about three miles were again at fault, on the
banks of a deep brook. I now turned due north and, after tracing the
stream for about a mile, discovered a ford across which, after a due
proportion of sticking in the mud and falling with their loads in the
deep water, we led all the ponies, and found ourselves happily
established in a jungle on the other side of it. The vegetation here
consisted of grass and reeds which rose so high and thick that I could
see nothing over them, although there was rising land within a mile of
us.
We first endeavoured to push through this jungle in an easterly
direction; but, after having very resolutely made our way onwards for
about an hour, I saw some very high land to the south-east of us, distant
four or five miles, and therefore changed the direction of our march to
make for these hills; as soon as we had gained a clear place in the
jungle I halted for breakfast, and, after resting for an hour, we
continued, notwithstanding the dreadful heat of the day, to move on, but
soon again came to a deep, sluggish stream which obliged us to turn off
to the north-east; and it was not until near nightfall that we found a
place where we could cross it.
MOUNT LYELL.
Having traversed the stream we proceeded to the foot of a very lofty
peak, the most remarkable hill in this part of the country, and which I
named Mount Lyell, after C. Lyell, Esquire. We here pitched the tents,
and scarcely was this operation performed ere the rain fell in such
torrents that the water stood even under them to the depth of two or
three inches, and yet the tents were fixed in the best position that
could be found. The night was dark and stormy so that, even had a better
place offered, it would now have been useless to move; we therefore
resigned ourselves to our fate and lay down on our watery beds, which
possessed at least one merit, that they were free from mosquitoes.
March 13.
Before the mists of morning had cleared away from the lofty hills to the
north-east of our encampment I had commenced their ascent with a party of
three men. To my great vexation, on taking out the barometer at the
bottom of the hill, it was broken, and I could therefore no longer hope
to be able to obtain the height of remarkable elevations. I managed to
ride the pony up the hill for some time, but the broken and rocky nature
of the ground obliged me at last to walk, and I left the animal tethered
in rich grass higher than itself.
VIEW FROM IT. MAGNIFICENT PROSPECT.
When we gained the summit of the hill I found that in the mists of the
morning we had ascended the wrong peak. The one we stood on was composed
of basalt and at least twelve hundred feet high; but Mount Lyell, another
peak springing from the same range, and not more than a mile to the
eastward, must have been four or five hundred feet higher. It was
moreover distinguished by a very remarkable feature, namely, a regular
circle, as it were, drawn round the peak, some two hundred feet below the
summit, and above this ring no trees grew; the conical peak which reared
its head above the region of trees being only clothed with the greenest
grass, whilst that on which I stood and all the others I could see were
thinly wooded to their very summits.
The peak we had ascended afforded us a very beautiful view: to the north
lay Prince Regent's River, and the good country we were now upon extended
as far as the inlets which communicated with this great navigable stream;
to the south and south-westward ran the Glenelg, meandering through as
verdant and fertile a district as the eye of man ever rested on. The
luxuriance of tropical vegetation was now seen to the greatest advantage,
in the height of the rainy season. The smoke of native fires rose in
various directions from the country, which lay like a map at our feet;
and when I recollected that all these natural riches of soil and climate
lay between two navigable rivers, and that its sea-coast frontage, not
much exceeding fifty miles in latitude, contained three of the finest
harbours in the world, in each of which the tide rose and fell
thirty-seven and a half feet, I could not but feel we were in a land
singularly favoured by nature.
CONTINUATION OF ROUTE. TORRENTS OF RAIN.
I remained for some time on the summit of this hill, enjoying the
prospect, and taking bearings. When this operation was completed we
returned to the camp and prepared once more to proceed upon our route;
but, to our misfortune, had not made more than two or three miles through
a fertile country when the rain again fell in such torrents that we were
compelled to halt. Indeed none but those who have been in tropical
countries can at all conceive with what suddenness and force these storms
burst upon us.
March 14.
We this morning made an attempt to get clear of the marshes by following
a south-easterly course, and were thus forced up into a range of lofty
basaltic mountains, the slopes of which were of the richest description.
Had our ponies been provided with shoes we could have travelled here with
great speed and facility, but the higher land was invariably covered with
sharp pebbles over which the unshod ponies could only move with pain and
difficulty. When however we had gained the summit of the range the view
from it was similar to that which I have just described. Mount Wellington
and Mount Trafalgar formed splendid objects, rearing their bold rocky
heads over St. George's Basin, which now bore the appearance of being a
vast lake. The pleasure of the prospect was however in my eyes somewhat
diminished from seeing on the other side of the range so considerable a
stream that I anticipated great difficulty in crossing it; I therefore
steered a course somewhat more southerly than our former route and,
having reached the extremity of the range, we once more descended into
the fertile lowlands.
GLENELG RIVER.
Along these our course continued through an uninterrupted succession of
rich flats, thinly wooded but luxuriantly grassed, until near sunset,
when, as we were about descending the brow of a low hill, I found that
the Glenelg, having made a sudden turn, was close to us, whilst in our
front, and completely blocking up our passage, there was a very large
tributary which joined the river from the north-east; I therefore halted
the party here for the night, and at once proceeded down to the river.
It was quite fresh and running at the rate of more than five knots an
hour; the bed was composed of fine white sand, and even close to the
margin it was 2 1/2 fathoms in depth. The trees which bordered it were of
a gigantic height and size, I think the largest that I have seen in
Australia; whilst it was almost impossible to get down to the stream,
from the denseness of the vegetation on its banks. Before we reached the
main channel of the river we had several smaller ones to cross, but of
very insignificant depth.
I stood for some time watching this dark turbid stream sweeping rapidly
along, and could not but wonder where so great a body of water could have
its source. I had then seen no other Australian rivers, but judging from
description this differed widely from them all.
I have since visited many of the most noted Australian streams and found
this distinguished by many peculiar characteristics; nor would I hesitate
to say that, with exception perhaps of the Murray, it will be found the
most important on that continent; and, taking into consideration its
geographical position, the fertility of the country on its banks, as far
as it is yet known, and the rise and fall of tide, it may perhaps not
yield in consideration even to the Murray.
TORRENTS OF RAIN.
I now examined the tributary stream which here joined the Glenelg, and to
my chagrin found that it was so much swollen by the late rains as to be
utterly impassable. To attempt to construct a bridge over it would have
been useless for the adjacent ground was now so swampy the horses were
bogged before we got them near it. I wandered up its banks as far as I
could before nightfall, but could not succeed in finding any place in our
vicinity at which we might hope to effect our passage. Just as it got
dark the rain again began to pour in torrents; thus, if possible,
rendering our position worse than before, and I returned late to the
tents much dispirited at the unfavourable weather we had encountered.
RISE OF THE WATERS. MARKS OF INUNDATIONS.
On going down to the Glenelg the next morning I found it so swollen by
the heavy rain of the preceding night as to render it impossible to get
near the main bed. The river was now far beyond its banks, and in the
forks of the trees above our heads we saw driftwood, reeds, dead grass,
etc., lodged at least fifteen feet higher than the present level; and
which could only have been left there during some great flood. Whether
these had frequently recurred we had of course no means of judging, but
during such floods the whole of the very low country which we here saw to
the south-west of us must be inundated. I need scarcely add that in a
tropical country no ground could be conceived better adapted to the
growth of rice than the extensive levels which border the Glenelg.
A detached party now went of to search for a route by which we could
proceed. The stock-keeper came and reported that the sheep were suffering
greatly from the continued rain and exposure to wet, several of them
having died during the night; only five were thus left alive out of the
number we started with, and, one of these being in a drooping state, I
had it killed that we might not lose the advantage of it altogether.
NATIVES.
Immediately on the other side of the tributary stream which lay to the
south of us there rose a high precipitous sandy range, similar to those
we had fallen in with on first landing. This range completely overlooked
our encampment from a distance, and on it a party of natives had posted
themselves. We saw the smoke of their fires and heard their own cries and
the yelling of their dogs; and with the help of my telescope I once
distinguished their dusky forms moving about in the bush.
COCKATOOS.
A large flight of cockatoos which lay between us and them were kept in a
constant state of screaming anxiety from the movements of one or the
other party, and at last found their position so unpleasant that they
evacuated it and flew off to some more quiet roosting-place. Their
departure however was a serious loss to us, as they played somewhat the
same part that the geese once did in the Capitol; for whenever our sable
neighbours made the slightest movement the watchful sentinels of the
cockatoos instantly detected it and, by stretching out their crests,
screaming, standing on their toes on the highest trees, with their wings
spread abroad to support them, and peering eagerly in the direction where
the movement was made, they gave us faithful intimation of every motion.
When therefore this advanced guard took unto themselves wings and flew
away I was obliged to keep all hands on the alert to prevent a surprise.
Whilst we were thus occupied our detachment returned and reported the
country to be utterly impracticable. I determined however to examine it
myself the next morning in order to be quite satisfied upon so important
a point.
March 16.
I moved off at dawn this morning with a party, but after following the
direction of the stream for several miles I found that the whole of the
land between it and the foot of the hills had been rendered by the heavy
rains a marsh quite impassable for horses, which was rendered the more
annoying as the swamp was not more than a mile in width, so that this
slight space alone prevented us from pursuing our desired route. Nothing
however was now left us but to turn once more to the north-west, and thus
to endeavour to head the marsh.
DANGER FROM NATIVES.
Just as we had prepared to return home the cries of the natives arose
close to us; their fire was about half a mile away, and their calls had
already several times been heard. Now that they were so near us I thought
it better to load my second barrel with ball, for I did not like their
hanging about us in the way they had done for several days. On putting my
hand into my haversack in order to prepare some ammunition I found, to my
great dismay, that I had taken in mistake one which belonged to another
man and which contained no ammunition; nor was there a ball in possession
of any person with me which would fit my gun and, as I knew that the aim
of those with me was not much to be depended on, even under the coolest
and most favourable circumstances, I thought that in the moment of a
desperate attack it might be still less sure; this, added to the want of
confidence incident on finding oneself unarmed and dependent on the
protection of others, made me feel very uncomfortable until we once more
reached the tents.
RAINS CONTINUE. TORRENTS OF RAIN.
During the early part of the day the rain fell in torrents; but, as it
cleared off a little soon after our arrival, we started in a
north-westerly direction. Such violent storms of thunder, lightning, and
rain set in when we had made about two or three miles that I was again
obliged to halt; and as it continued to rain heavily throughout the
night, our situation, which was already bad, might now be said to be
hourly growing worse; and it can readily be conceived that, between
rheumatism in my wounded limb, lying in water, and vexation at the
constant difficulties we experienced, I was too much harassed to be able
to sleep.
SWAMPS.
The continued rain during the night had necessarily rendered the marsh
far more impracticable than before; but, as no other route to the
southward could be found on account of the river which lay upon either
hand, I was compelled to wait until the ground again in some measure
dried. But it would have been equally as impossible to beat a retreat as
it was to get forward, for we were in a manner surrounded by swampy land,
and when the loads were placed upon the ponies they sank nearly up to the
shoulders in a bog in whichever direction we attempted to move; but as
our present position would have been unsafe in the event of an extensive
inundation taking place I judged it necessary at all events to reach a
somewhat elevated outlying hill of sandstone which was distant about two
miles. This point we succeeded at last in gaining, although not without
severely injuring and straining some of the ponies in effecting it. This
rising ground was however well situated for our camp under present
circumstances: it was composed of porous sandstone, which in these
climates dries almost immediately after rain. There was plenty of dead
wood upon it and it was surrounded by richly-grassed flats, whilst from
the base gushed forth a clear spring, which then murmured along a purling
brook, traversing the flat on which the ponies were tethered.
SNAKE AND KANGAROO.
Close to this spot the attention of Mr. Lushington was drawn to a curious
misshapen mass which came advancing from some bushes with a novel and
uncouth motion. He fired and it fell, and on going up to it he found that
it was a small kangaroo enveloped in the folds of a large snake, a
species of Boa. The kangaroo was now quite dead, and flattened from the
pressure of the folds of the snake which, being surprised at the
disturbance it met with, was beginning to uncoil itself, when Mr.
Lushington drew out a pistol and shot it through the head. It was of a
brownish yellow colour and eight feet six inches long. The kangaroo we
found very good eating; and Mr. Walker, who ate a portion of the snake,
considered it to be as great a delicacy as an eel, but rather tougher.
There fortunately was an elevated pinnacle of rocks on the rising ground
upon which we were encamped; and from the top of these I was able in the
course of the day to get bearings and angles to many important objects; I
could also see many fixed points in my survey, so that the day could not
be considered as altogether a lost one.
CONDITION OF THE PONIES.
March 18.
Throughout the whole of this day the rain poured in torrents so that the
ponies, notwithstanding the goodness of the feed, began again to suffer
from cold and exposure to the weather. They were so wild that we could
not venture to let them run loose, and, as it was impossible to tether
all of them under trees, the majority were left exposed to the pitiless
pelting of the storms; and they certainly made a very wretched appearance
as they stood with their sterns presented to the blast, and the water
pouring from their sides in perfect streams. I do not know whether this
was a very extraordinary season, but it is certain that if all rainy
periods in North-West Australia resemble it, to attempt to explore the
country at this time of the year would be fruitless. Such a good supply
of rain is a great advantage to an occupied country through which regular
lines of communication exist; as it then raises but slight impediments to
travellers; but the case is very different to first explorers who have to
find a ford over every stream and a passage across every swamp, and who
constantly run the risk of involving themselves in a perfectly impassable
region.
NATIVES NEAR THE CAMP.
March 19.
This morning was also ushered in with torrents of rain, chequered by
occasional intervals of fine weather of perhaps half an hour's duration.
Another sheep died and several of the ponies were very unwell. The men
who had been shifting the tethers of the horses at noon returned with the
intelligence that, during the period of their absence from the
encampment, a party of natives must have been close to us, watching our
movements, for that when they went out there were no traces of them near
the camp, which were now discernible in nearly every direction around us.
I selected the best bushman of my party and went off to see whether
anything was to be apprehended from these natives, but I soon found that
the report was in some degree exaggerated. Some natives had crept up to
within about a hundred yards of us, probably with the intention of making
a reconnaissance, and of then framing their future plans; they had
however been disturbed by the return of the men from the horses, and then
made off. It appears that they had approached us by walking up a stream
of water so as to conceal their trail, and then turned out of the stream
up its right bank; and although they had carefully trod in one another's
foot-marks, so as to conceal their number, we could make out the traces
of at least six or seven different men, which we followed to the spot
where, whilst creeping about to watch us, they had been disturbed. From
this point these children of the bush had disappeared, as it were by
magic: not a twig was broken, not a stone was turned, and we could not
perceive that the heavy drops of rain had been shaken from a single blade
of grass. We made wide casts in different directions but, not being able
to hit on their trail, I returned to the tents, more than ever convinced
of the necessity of being constantly on the watch against beings who were
often near us when we least dreamt of their presence, and, in an
unguarded moment, might so easily surprise and spear some of the party.
APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY.
The rain continued to fall throughout the 20th, rendering our condition
every hour worse. Towards noon however the weather cleared a little, and
in a fine interval I mounted a high range of basaltic hills which lay
about a mile and a half to the westward. These hills were the highest
which I had yet ascended; and from them I gained a very extensive view.
The farthest extremity of the sandstone range which lay to the southward
and eastward did not appear to be more than ten or twelve miles distant.
Behind this barren range there again rose the conical tops of basaltic
hills, clothed in the greenest grass; and beyond these, in the far
south-east, I made out with the telescope a range of very lofty hills,
which, stretching their heads high into the clouds, left me without means
of forming any idea of their elevation: but even the portion of them
which met my view must have had a very considerable altitude. I took a
set of angles from this point but the mistiness of the day rendered it
very unfit for my purpose. Whilst I was thus occupied, we heard the cries
and calls of a party of natives between us and the tents. From the
loudness and proximity of these I augured badly and therefore hurried my
return; but we neither saw the natives themselves nor their tracks, and
were quite in ignorance as to what had been their intentions. Soon after
sunset the weather cleared up a little, and the stars, which came peeping
out, promised well for the next day.
NATIVES NEAR THE CAMP AGAIN.
March 21.
Although it had rained during the night and the sun this morning rose
bright and clear the country was still impassable owing to the late
continued torrents. I therefore went out with a detachment for the
purpose of exploring a route by which we could proceed the next day, as
well as to define some more points in the country we were about to enter.
In the course of our walk we crossed the track of the natives we had
heard yesterday. Their party must have been large, for they approached to
within about three hundred yards of the tents, leaving a trail as broad
and large as was made by our ponies and party together. I did not much
like their hanging about us for so many days as I rather mistrusted their
intentions; their object however appeared to have been to examine the
ponies, for they had only come as far as the tethering ground and, after
wandering about there a little, had again retired. We were unfortunate in
our search for a good line of country by which to proceed, but I made
some important additions to my map.
MARSH AND SANDSTONE RANGE.
March 22.
As fine weather had apparently set in again we this morning resumed our
journey. The poor ponies looked very weak and wretched when they were
brought up to start, and we were all ragged, dirty, and worn out from the
constant exposure to wind and rain; indeed our appearance was altogether
very miserable on moving off, and our progress, too, very slow and
fatiguing, both to ourselves and the horses, on account of the swampy
nature of the ground; but we strenuously persevered until near noon, when
I halted for breakfast at the foot of some lofty hills, at the base of
which ran the stream which was giving us so much trouble. As soon as we
had despatched our scanty breakfast I tried with a party to find a
passage across the marsh, but our search was in vain and, on examining
the sandstone range on the other side of the stream, I found it so
precipitous that our weak ponies could not possibly have clambered up it.
NATIVE BRIDGE.
Whilst on our return we found a native bridge, formed of a fallen tree,
which rested against two others and was secured in its position by forked
boughs.
PRECIPITOUS PASS.
I was thus obliged to continue to travel in a north-east direction for
the remainder of the afternoon, when we found, at last, a passage over
the marsh, but made vain attempts to cross the sandstone range in no less
than four different places; the ponies were so weak and the route so
precipitous that each time we were obliged to return. At length we
reached the watershed, from one side of which the streams ran down to
Prince Regent's River, and from the other to the Glenelg; the rocks on
the south side were ancient sandstone resting on basalt, and on the
opposite the basalt crept out, forming elevated hills. This position was
remarkable both in a geological and geographical point of view; and, the
sandstone range over against us looking rather more accessible than it
had previously done, I determined to halt here for the night and examine
the country; but my resolution was scarcely formed ere such heavy storms
of rain, accompanied by thunder and lightning, came on as totally to
prevent me from seeing to any distance or taking any bearings.
On entering the old red sandstone district again the parakeets became
once more common, and the green ants reappeared. These last seem to be
solely confined to the sandstone, for I did not see one without its
limits.
ASCENT OF THE SANDSTONE RANGE.
March 23.
This morning we made a more fortunate effort to ascend the sandstone
range which had yesterday so baffled our efforts; and having commenced
the ascent at 6 A.M. reached the summit at 10, but the poor little ponies
were dreadfully exhausted. Having now established ourselves upon this
narrow elevated tableland the next thing was to descend on the other
side. The prospect to the southward and eastward was not very cheering,
for before we could make any further progress in either of those
directions we had a perfect precipice to get down, at the foot of which
lay a beautiful and verdant valley about three miles wide, diversified
with wood and water; whilst a large cascade which could be seen falling
in a dark forest on the other side added much to the scenery. Beyond the
valley rose again rocky sandstone ranges, but I knew that the width of
these was inconsiderable.
DESCENT ON THE OPPOSITE SIDE.
After a very tedious search we discovered a sort of pass leading
diagonally down the face of the precipice; but before attempting to take
the ponies over this it was necessary to move many large rocks and
stones, to cut down trees, and otherwise make it practicable for them.
All hands however set cheerfully to work, and by 1 P.M. the whole party
had safely reached the bottom of the precipice. The valley that we were
in was very fertile but, from the incessant rain which had lately fallen,
the centre part of it had become an impassable swamp, and we were thus
once more obliged to turn to the northward in order to travel round it:
but as rest and food were necessary both for horses and men we halted at
the foot of the sandstone range for breakfast.
REMARKABLE FRILLED LIZARD. BEAUTIFUL COUNTRY.
As we were pursuing our route in the afternoon we fell in with a specimen
of the remarkable frilled lizard (Chlamydosaurus kingii); this animal
measures about twenty-four inches from the tip of the nose to the point
of its tail, and lives principally in trees, although it can run very
swiftly along the ground: when not provoked or disturbed it moves quietly
about, with its frill lying back in plaits upon the body: but it is very
irascible and, directly it is frightened, elevates the frill or ruff and
makes for a tree; where if overtaken it throws itself upon its stern,
raising its head and chest as high as it can upon the forelegs, then
doubling its tail underneath the body and displaying a very formidable
set of teeth. From the concavity of its large frill it boldly faces any
opponent, biting fiercely whatever is presented to it, and even venturing
so far in its rage as to fairly make a fierce charge at its enemy. We
repeatedly tried the courage of this lizard, and it certainly fought
bravely whenever attacked. From the animal making so much use of this
frill as a covering and means of defence for its body this is most
probably one of the uses to which nature intended the appendage should be
applied.
We at length reached the watershed connecting the country we had left
with that we were entering upon, and were now again enabled to turn to
the eastward and thus to travel round the swamp. This watershed consisted
principally of a range of elevated hills from which streams were thrown
off to the Glenelg and to Prince Regent's River. The scenery here was
very fine, but I have so often before described the same character of
landscape that it will be sufficient to say we again looked down from
high land on a very fertile country, covered with a tropical vegetation
and lying between two navigable rivers. I can compare this to no other
Australian scenery, for I have met with nothing in the other portions of
the continent which at all resembles it. When we had nearly headed the
valley the night closed in so rapidly on us that I was obliged to halt
the party; and by the time the arrangements for security and rest were
completed it was quite dark.
CURIOUS NEST.
March 24.
This morning we started as soon as it was light and, continuing our route
round the valley, passed the beautiful cascade seen yesterday and, after
fording a clear running brook like an English trout stream, we began to
ascend the next sandstone range. On gaining the summit we fell in with a
very remarkable nest, or what appeared to me to be such, and which I
shall describe more particularly when I advert to the natural history of
this part of the country. We had previously seen several of them, and
they had always afforded us food for conjecture as to the agent and
purpose of such singular structures.
DEEP VALLEY.
Soon after quitting this nest we found a very convenient pass through a
deep and fertile valley, which led directly up into the heart of the
sandstone range; a fine stream ran through it in which were several large
reservoirs of fresh water; the hills on each side were lofty, being at
times of a rounded character, and at others broken into precipitous and
fantastic cliffs; the country was thinly wooded with large timber, and
the varied scenery, the facility which the country afforded for
travelling, and the pleasure incident on finding ourselves clear of the
marshy ground which had so long encumbered our movements, combined to
make me push along as fast as possible; the only check was the heat of
the sun; and it should always be borne in mind that no parallel whatever
can be instituted between travels in tropical and extra-tropical
Australia, for in the former the more exhausting nature of the climate
unfits both men and horses for making long journeys, and indeed renders
it almost impossible to travel during the heat of the day, whilst the
difficult nature of the ground caused by the dense vegetation, the
jungles, the ravines, and marshes, render it altogether impracticable to
move at night through an unknown country.
WILD OATS.
We crossed during the day several recent tracks of natives but did not
fall in with the natives themselves; we also saw many kangaroos, and
halted for the night on an elevated basaltic ridge, at a point close to
which there was a large crop of the grain which we called wild oats. This
is a remarkable vegetable production, growing to the height of from five
to six feet; in the stalk, the shape, and mode of insertion of the leaves
it is similar to the oat of Europe; the manner in which the seeds grow in
the two plants is also the same, and the seeds are nearly of the same
size, but the Australian oat is furnished with a beard like the barley.
When hungry I have repeatedly eaten these oats, which in some parts grow
in such abundance that several acres of them might be mown at once; and I
have little doubt that this plant would with cultivation turn out to be a
very great addition to our tropical grains.*
(*Footnote. I am informed that the seeds of it which I introduced into
the Isle of France in 1838 have greatly multiplied and that the plants
are in a very flourishing state.)
March 25.
This morning we resumed our journey, crossing a succession of basaltic
valleys. The vegetation was luxuriant beyond description; and it was
ludicrous to see the heavy-tailed kangaroos leaping and floundering about
in the long grass when they had quitted their beaten pathways and were
suddenly disturbed by our approach.
CURIOUS BIRDS.
In crossing the second of these large valleys we saw two large white and
black birds, more like pelicans than any other kind I am acquainted with;
they had webbed feet, and the colour and form of their body resembled
that of the pelican, but the head and beak were very different; after
flying two or three times round our heads, well out of shot, so as to
have a good peep at us, they flew away, and for the first and last time I
saw this curious bird.
We now ascended a ridge of sandstone tableland which crossed our route:
this was about three miles in width, and at its southern extremity were
two lofty basaltic hills, from between which a small valley led down into
another very large one that was the general receptacle of the streams
which came pouring in from all directions. This last might be considered
as a good type of the valleys in this portion of the country: at its
northern extremity it was about four miles wide, being bounded on all
sides by rocky wooded ranges with dark gullies from which numerous
streams and springs poured forth their watery contributions to the main
one. This last ran nearly down the centre of the principal valley, the
width of which gradually contracted towards the south, where it
terminated almost in a point, having a narrow lateral opening at the
south-west end of not more than a quarter of a mile wide, and bounded by
steep cliffs on each side, so as to form a perfect gorge, the direction
of which was due west. In about a mile and a half this gorge met a cross
valley, running from the south to the north, down which the waters were
poured, so as to run back as it were upon their former course.
BASALTIC VALLEY.
We halted for the day in the main valley, which from the run of the
waters above described must necessarily have been very elevated; it was,
moreover, nearly level, forming indeed a sort of enclosed plateau, so
that the streams, which both on entering and quitting it ran bubbling
merrily along, preserved whilst in it a sluggish and scarcely perceptible
course. When to this I add that it was composed of basaltic rocks and
received the deposit of such an extent of elevated basaltic land I need
scarcely add that it was highly fertile. I believe that these valleys,
which are very common in North-Western Australia and contain from four to
five thousand acres each, are as rich as any other spots upon the globe,
and moreover possess the great advantage of being situated close to
navigable rivers.
March 26.
This morning we moved down the valley in which we had been encamped
yesterday and, as it was thinly wooded, we experienced no difficulty
whatever until the main stream suddenly turned off from south to due
west; this was a sufficient proof that the gorge of the valley was on its
western side, but I was not anxious to follow the course of the water,
from the apprehension of being led into low and marshy land; I thought
also that a low ridge which I saw to the south could easily be crossed,
and that we should thus gain access to a valley similar to that we were
in. I therefore resolved to cross the stream at the first ford we could
find, and after a little trouble we discovered one suited to our purpose
through which the ponies passed in safety.
IMPASSABLE SANDSTONE RANGE.
We then continued our route in a due southerly direction until we reached
the low range which I had before seen; this range turned out to be
composed of sandstone, and where we made it it was so rocky and
precipitous as to be quite impracticable. We therefore travelled along it
in an easterly direction for about three miles, but throughout this
distance it presented no single pass through which I could hope to
penetrate. The sun having now become very powerful we halted for
breakfast; and whilst this meal was preparing, I sent out a detached
party to search for a road, which soon returned to report that they were
able to find no path by which we could proceed.
I did not however like to retrace our footsteps without having made a
careful search; and although my wound was still open and very painful I
rapidly swallowed a portion of my allowance of damper and started with
another detachment on foot to examine the country. The sandstone range,
which ran nearly east and west, was terminated everywhere throughout its
southern side by perfectly precipitous rocks, at the foot of which lay a
fertile valley, resembling the one in which we had encamped yesterday
except that it was on a much lower level. The position that we were in
appeared to be the pass by which the natives communicated with the
country to the south of us, for marks of them were visible everywhere
about, but they could easily clamber about these precipitous rocks,
though it was quite impossible to get the ponies down, even by forming a
path, as we had often previously done.
PAINTED CAVE. DRAWING ON ROOF OF A CAVE.
Finding that it would be useless to lose more time in searching for a
route through this country I proceeded to rejoin the party once more; but
whilst returning to them my attention was drawn to the numerous remains
of native fires and encampments which we met with, till at last, on
looking over some bushes at the sandstone rocks which were above us, I
suddenly saw from one of them a most extraordinary large figure peering
down upon me. Upon examination this proved to be a drawing at the
entrance to a cave, which on entering I found to contain, besides, many
remarkable paintings.
The cave appeared to be a natural hollow in the sandstone rocks; its
floor was elevated about five feet from the ground, and numerous flat
broken pieces of the same rock, which were scattered about, looked at a
distance like steps leading up to the cave, which was thirty-five feet
wide at the entrance and sixteen feet deep; but beyond this several small
branches ran further back. Its height in front was rather more than eight
feet, the roof being formed by a solid slab of sandstone about nine feet
thick and which rapidly inclined towards the back of the cave, which was
there not more than five feet high.
On this sloping roof the principal figure (Number 1) which I have just
alluded to, was drawn; in order to produce the greater effect the rock
about it was painted black and the figure itself coloured with the most
vivid red and white. It thus appeared to stand out from the rock; and I
was certainly rather surprised at the moment that I first saw this
gigantic head and upper part of a body bending over and staring grimly
down at me.
DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES.
It would be impossible to convey in words an adequate idea of this
uncouth and savage figure; I shall therefore only give such a succinct
account of this and the other paintings as will serve as a sort of
description to accompany the annexed plates.
The dimensions of the figure were:
Length of head and face 2 feet.
Width of face 17 inches.
Length from bottom of face to navel 2 feet 6 inches.
Its head was encircled by bright red rays, something like the rays which
one sees proceeding from the sun when depicted on the sign-board of a
public house; inside of this came a broad stripe of very brilliant red,
which was coped by lines of white, but both inside and outside of this
red space were narrow stripes of a still deeper red, intended probably to
mark its boundaries; the face was painted vividly white, and the eyes
black, being however surrounded by red and yellow lines; the body, hands,
and arms were outlined in red, the body being curiously painted with red
stripes and bars.
DRAWING OF FOUR HEADS.
Upon the rock which formed the left hand wall of this cave, and which
partly faced you on entering, was a very singular painting (Number 2)
vividly coloured, representing four heads joined together. From the mild
expression of the countenances I imagined them to represent females, and
they appeared to be drawn in such a manner and in such a position as to
look up at the principal figure which I have before described; each had a
very remarkable head-dress, coloured with a deep bright blue, and one had
a necklace on. Both of the lower figures had a sort of dress painted with
red in the same manner as that of the principal figure, and one of them
had a band round her waist. Each of the four faces was marked by a
totally distinct expression of countenance, and, although none of them
had mouths, two, I thought, were otherwise rather good looking. The whole
painting was executed on a white ground, and its dimensions were:
Total length of painting 3 feet 6 3/4 inches.
Breadth across two upper heads 2 feet 6 inches.
Ditto across the two lower ones 3 feet 1 1/2 inches.
The next most remarkable drawing in the cave (Number 3) was an ellipse,
three feet in length and one foot ten inches in breadth: the outside line
of this painting was of a deep blue colour, the body of the ellipse being
of a bright yellow dotted over with red lines and spots, whilst across it
ran two transverse lines of blue. The portion of the painting above
described formed the ground, or main part of the picture, and upon this
ground was painted a kangaroo in the act of feeding, two stone
spearheads, and two black balls; one of the spearheads was flying to the
kangaroo, and one away from it; so that the whole subject probably
constituted a sort of charm by which the luck of an enquirer in killing
game could be ascertained.
TWO OTHER DRAWINGS.
There was another rather humorous sketch (Number 4) which represented a
native in the act of carrying a kangaroo; the height of the man being
three feet. The number of drawings in the cave could not altogether have
been less than from fifty to sixty, but the majority of them consisted of
men, kangaroos, etc.; the figures being carelessly and badly executed and
having evidently a very different origin to those which I have first
described. Another very striking piece of art was exhibited in the little
gloomy cavities situated at the back of the main cavern. In these
instances some rock at the sides of the cavity had been selected, and the
stamp of a hand and arm by some means transferred to it; this outline of
the hand and arm was then painted black, and the rock about it white, so
that on entering that part of the cave it appeared as if a human hand and
arm were projecting through a crevice admitting light.
After having discovered this cave I returned to the party and, directing
them to prepare for moving on, I ordered that as soon as all was ready
they should proceed past the cave, so that all would have an opportunity
of examining it, and in the meantime I returned in order to make sketches
of the principal paintings. The party soon arrived and, when my sketches
and notes were completed, we retraced a portion of our route of this
morning, moving round the sandstone ridge through one portion of which I
saw a sort of pass which I thought might perhaps afford us a means of
egress. I therefore halted the party and moved up with Corporal Auger to
examine it. After proceeding some distance we found a cave larger than
the one seen this morning; of its actual size however I have no idea, for
being pressed for time I did not attempt to explore it, having merely
ascertained that it contained no paintings.
INTAGLIO CUT IN A ROCK.
I was moving on when we observed the profile of a human face and head cut
out in a sandstone rock which fronted the cave; this rock was so hard
that to have removed such a large portion of it with no better tool than
a knife and hatchet made of stone, such as the Australian natives
generally possess, would have been a work of very great labour. The head
was two feet in length, and sixteen inches in breadth in the broadest
part; the depth of the profile increased gradually from the edges where
it was nothing, to the centre where it was an inch and a half; the ear
was rather badly placed, but otherwise the whole of the work was good,
and far superior to what a savage race could be supposed capable of
executing. The only proof of antiquity that it bore about it was that all
the edges of the cutting were rounded and perfectly smooth, much more so
than they could have been from any other cause than long exposure to
atmospheric influences.
ROUTE CONTINUED. HIGH GRASS.
After having made a sketch of this head (see the accompanying plate) I
returned to the party and, as I had not been able to find a path which
would lead us across the sandstone ridge, we continued our course round
it, retracing our steps until we reached the stream which had been
crossed this morning, and then moved westward, keeping along its southern
bank until we had turned the sandstone range and reached another stream
running from the south, which we traced up in the direction of its
source, travelling through a series of basaltic valleys of so luxuriant a
character that those of the party who were not very tall travelled, as
they themselves expressed it, between two high green walls, over which
they could not see; and these green walls were composed of rich grass
which the ponies ate with avidity. On a subsequent occasion when we
visited this valley we had to call to one another in order to ascertain
our relative positions when only a few yards apart; and yet the
vegetation was neither rank nor coarse, but as fine a grass as I have
ever seen.
REFLECTIONS.
We halted for the night in one of these lovely valleys; a clear stream
bubbled along within about fifty yards of us and, about a mile beyond,
two darkly-wooded basaltic hills raised their heads, and between these
and the stream our ponies were feeding in grass higher than themselves. I
sat in the fading light, looking at the beautiful scenery around me,
which now for the first time gladdened the eyes of Europeans; and I
wondered that so fair a land should only be the abode of savage men; and
then I thought of the curious paintings we had this day seen, of the
timid character of the natives, of their anomalous position in so fertile
a country, and wondered how long these things were to be. With so wide a
field of conjecture before me, thought naturally thronged on thought, and
the night was far advanced ere I laid down to seek repose from the
fatigues of the day.
DEEP STREAM.
March 27.
The ponies having been routed out of their long and excellent feed,
amongst which indeed it was no easy matter to find them, we moved on. I
could not but reflect how different our position and the condition of the
ponies would have been had we known as much of the country at first
starting as we did at present; but these reflections were now useless.
With the exception of one small rocky valley, the whole of our morning's
journey was through a rich and fertile country until we reached a deep
stream, thirty or forty yards wide and apparently navigable for large
boats up to this point; it ran away to the westward, but with a current
scarcely perceptible.
DIFFICULT APPROACH TO IT.
It was very difficult to approach this stream on account of the marshy
nature of its banks, which were overgrown with bamboo and, even if we
could have got the ponies to it, it was not fordable here. We therefore
turned up it in an easterly direction to look for a passage over it; and
in so doing were necessarily compelled to cross many smaller streams and
a great deal of swampy ground in which some of the most weakly of the
ponies got bogged and were only extricated with great difficulty. However
annoying this was I could not but smile at the distress of some of the
men, who had contracted a friendship for the animals they had so long
led, when one of their favourites got into a difficulty. The exclamations
of Ruston the old sailor were particularly amusing, as, according to the
position in which the animal got bogged, he used to roar out for someone
"to come and give his pony a heave upon the starboard or larboard
quarters;" and once, when violently alarmed at the danger he imagined his
pet pony to be in, he shouted amain, "By G---, Sir, she'll go down by the
stern." At last however we got clear of the marsh, and reached a rocky
gorge where this stream issued from the hills, and here we stopped for
breakfast
This spot was very picturesque. The river as it issued from the gorge in
the high wooded hills first formed a series of cascades, and then at the
mouth of the gorge expanded into a large pool. It was at this point,
although only a secondary stream in this country, far larger than any of
the rivers of South-Western Australia. At the gorges, where they issue
from the hills, its banks were clothed with the pandanus, lofty gum
trees, and a very luxuriant vegetation. We first sought for a ford up the
river in the direction of the rapids, but our search was fruitless. On
returning to breakfast I found that the men had caught three fish and one
of the long-necked fresh-water turtle which are common over the whole of
this continent. Mr. Lushington had also shot several black cockatoos so
that we were supplied with a meal of meat, a luxury we had not enjoyed
for a long time.
CROSS A LARGE RIVER.
After breakfast Corporal Auger started alone and returned in about an
hour to report that he had found a ford across the river close to us. I
therefore ordered the ponies to be brought up and we at once moved on.
The river where we crossed it in south latitude 15 degrees 49 minutes,
east longitude 125 degrees 6 minutes, was about a hundred yards wide. It
was however nowhere more than knee deep as we wound through it, following
a circuitous course; but we passed very deep parts on each side, and I
could not but admire the perseverance of Auger in having discovered so
very intricate a ford as this was. There were several minor channels to
the stream not much wider than an English ditch; they were however very
deep and went winding along through groves of the pandanus and lofty
reeds, which formed leafy tunnels above them. It was some time before we
got rid of the main stream, and we then found ourselves on a narrow
terrace of land which was bounded on the left by rocky cliffs, and on the
right by a large tributary of the stream we had just crossed. This
tributary was not fordable here so we were compelled to travel up the
terrace where our way was much impeded by the luxuriant vegetation and by
fallen trees of great magnitude; indeed of a size which those alone who
have traversed tropical virgin forests can conceive.
That we could not get off this terrace was the more provoking from
seeing, immediately on the other side of the stream, one of those wide
open basaltic valleys which I have so often mentioned. We at length
reached the point where the stream issued from the high land and, having
here forded it, entered the large valley, but in its centre we found
another impassable stream and, in order to turn this, were obliged to
travel round the valley; but before we could gain the head of it we had
to cross two streams which ran into it on the eastern side. These however
gave us but little trouble.
NATIVE HUT.
On the tongue of land between them we found a native hut which differed
from any before seen, in having a sloping roof. After passing this hut we
began to wind up a rocky ascent, and just at sunset reached the
watershed, which threw off streams to the north and south: the valley
which lay immediately to the south of us appearing as fertile as that
which we had been travelling through for the whole day.
March 28.
The first part of our journey was through a fertile valley, about four
miles in length, through which wound a rapid stream. It was clothed with
the richest grass, abounded in kangaroos, and was marked at its southern
extremity by a very remarkable precipitous hill. The heights to the
westward were all composed of basalt, whilst those to the eastward were
sandstone. On passing the ridge of hills which bounded this valley to the
south we entered on a sandstone district, although the hills to the
westward were still basaltic.
NATURAL GRAPERY. GRAPE-LIKE FRUIT.
I here halted the party for breakfast by the side of a stream and, on
casting my eyes upwards, I found that I was in a sort of natural grapery,
for the tree under which I lay was covered with a plant which bears a
sort of grape and I believe is a species of cissus.
We met altogether with three varieties of this plant, all of which were
creepers but differing from each other in their habits and in the size of
their fruit. Two of them generally ran along the ground or amongst low
shrubs and the third climbed high trees; this latter kind bore the finest
fruit, and it was a plant of this description which I today found. Its
fruit in size, appearance, and flavour resembled a small black grape, but
the stones were different, being larger, and shaped like a coffee berry.
All three produced their fruit in bunches, like the vine, and, the day
being very sultry, I do not know that we could have fallen upon anything
more acceptable than this fruit was to us.
FORD THE GLENELG. ANOTHER RIVER.
After breakfast we continued our route through a barren, sandy district,
heavily timbered; and in the course of the afternoon met either the
Glenelg or a very considerable branch of that stream in south latitude 15
degrees 56 minutes, east longitude 125 degrees 8 minutes: it was 250
yards across and formed a series of rapids at this point, where it
emerged from a rocky gorge. Just above the rapids we found a good ford,
the average depth of which was not more than three feet. After crossing,
the banks on the other side were clothed with a species of Casuarina
which I did not observe elsewhere. The country on that side of the stream
was sandy and, as I found by the time we had proceeded two or three miles
that we were getting embarrassed in a sandstone range, I halted the party
for the night and went on to try if I could find a pass across it. My
exertions were not however very successful: I came upon a path which I
thought might be rendered practicable for the ponies over the first part
of the range, but found no line by which we could proceed without making
a road.
WEAKNESS OF THE MEN.
March 29.
At dawn this morning the men were at work forming the road; the poor
fellows were however so much enfeebled from constant fatigue and very
inefficient nutriment, whilst exposed to the great heat of a tropical
climate, that they were unable to exert the same energy as formerly, and
I could not but be struck with the great difference in their strength as
evinced in their incapacity to move stones and other obstacles, which a
few weeks ago they would have had little difficulty in lifting. The path
was however soon made as passable as our abilities permitted, and we
started along it with the ponies; some of them were however no less
reduced than the men and, in endeavouring to lead one of them up a rocky
hill, it fell, and from weakness sank under its light load without making
an effort to save itself; the spine was thus so severely injured as to
render it unable to move the hinder extremities; we therefore killed the
poor creature and moved on.
SANDSTONE CAVE.
Throughout the day we continued gradually the ascent of the range which
we had yesterday commenced. The large valley we were in led us by a
gentle slope winding higher and higher amongst the rocky hills; at first
it had been so wide as to appear like a plain, but by degrees it
contracted its dimensions, until, towards the afternoon, it suddenly
assumed almost the character of a gorge. Just at this point we saw in the
cliffs on our left hand a cave, which I entered in the hope of finding
native paintings.
Nor was I disappointed for it contained several of a very curious
character. This cave was a natural chasm in the sandstone rocks, elevated
at its entrance several feet above the level of the ground, from which
the ascent to it was by a natural flight of sandstone steps, irregular,
of course, but formed of successive thin strata, resting one upon
another, and thus constituting an easy ascent; these successive layers
continued into the body of the cave, quite to the end, where was a
central slab, more elevated than the others, and on each side of this two
other larger ones which reached the top of the cave and partly served to
support the immense sandstone slab that formed the roof.
ANOTHER PAINTED CAVE.
The cave was twenty feet deep and at the entrance seven feet high and
about forty feet wide. As before stated the floor gradually approached
the roof in the direction of the bottom of the cavern, and its width also
contracted, so that at the extremity it was not broader than the slab of
rock, which formed a natural seat.
FIGURE DRAWN ON THE ROOF.
The principal painting in it was the figure of a man, ten feet six inches
in length, clothed from the chin downwards in a red garment which reached
to the wrists and ankles; beyond this red dress the feet and hands
protruded and were badly executed.
The face and head of the figure were enveloped in a succession of
circular bandages or rollers, or what appeared to be painted to represent
such. These were coloured red, yellow, and white; and the eyes were the
only features represented on the face. Upon the highest bandage or roller
a series of lines were painted in red, but, although so regularly done as
to indicate that they have some meaning, it was impossible to tell
whether they were intended to depict written characters or some ornament
for the head. This figure was so drawn on the roof that its feet were
just in front of the natural seat, whilst its head and face looked
directly down on anyone who stood in the entrance of the cave, but it was
totally invisible from the outside. The painting was more injured by the
damp and atmosphere, and had the appearance of being much more
defaced and ancient, than any of the others which we had seen.*
(*Footnote. This figure brings to mind the description of the Prophet
Ezekiel: Men portrayed upon the wall, the images of the Chaldeans
portrayed in vermilion, girded with girdles upon their loins, exceeding
in dyed attire upon their heads, all of them princes to look to, after
the manner of the Babylonians of Chaldea, the land of their nativity.
Chapter 23:14, 15.)
OTHER PAINTINGS.
There were two other paintings, one on each of the rocks which stood on
either side of the natural seat; they were carefully executed and yet had
no apparent design in them; unless they were intended to represent some
fabulous species of turtle; for the natives of Australia are generally
fond of narrating tales of fabulous and extraordinary animals such as
gigantic snakes, etc.
One of the party who appeared much amused at these different paintings
walked straight up the cavern, gradually ascending the steps until he
reached the slab at the end, and then, taking his hat off with a solemn
air, seated himself; to his own, and our surprise, his bare head just
touched the roof of the cave, and on examining this part of it we found
it fairly polished, and very greasy, from all appearance caused by the
constant rubbing against it of the head of a person whilst seated on the
rock. This and other circumstances led us to conjecture that the cave was
frequented by some wise man or native doctor who was resorted to by the
inhabitants in cases of disease or witchcraft. We saw many footmarks
about, and found other signs of the close presence of the natives, but
they themselves remained invisible.
BEAUTIFUL SCENERY.
The cave was situated in an exceedingly picturesque position, it occupied
the corner leading from a wide valley to a narrow ravine, down which came
bubbling along a clear deep stream, which passed within a few yards of
the cave's mouth. After making sketches of the paintings and for a few
minutes admiring this romantic spot we moved up the ravine, which
appeared to lead by a gradual ascent to the summit of the mountain range
that now completely hemmed us in both to the southward and eastward.
This ravine, in the luxuriance of its vegetation and the great size of
the trees, as well as in its rapid stream, at times leaping in cascades
or foaming in rapids, resembled those we had before seen in the sandstone
ranges, but it differed from them in the greater height of the
surrounding hills and cliffs which, being overshadowed with hanging trees
and climbing plants, presented as rich a painting as the eye could
behold: and, as these grew golden with the rays of the setting sun or
were thrown into deep and massive shadows, I could not but regret that no
Claude of the tropics had arisen to transfer to canvas scenes which words
cannot express.
But however beautiful the scenery was the road we had to travel was so
extremely inconvenient that the view scarcely made amends for it; we were
continually compelled from old land-slips to cross from one side of the
stream to the other, and this, from the depth of the ford and the
slipperiness of the rocky bottom, was sometimes no easy task; moreover
the ravine continued rapidly to contract in width and to become more
rugged and precipitous; I therefore turned off to the right into a rocky
amphitheatre which seemed well suited for encamping, and halted the party
for the night; then, taking one of my men with me, I ascended the cliffs
to see if I could make out any line by which to get clear of the
precipices which embarrassed us, but on all sides I could descry nothing
but lofty hills and frowning crags, except in the direction of the ravine
which appeared to run directly into the heart of the mountain chain; I
therefore turned about to rejoin the party, with the intention of
continuing the same course the ensuing morning as we had done this
evening.
NARROW ESCAPE.
Both myself and the man who was with me had however a narrow escape of
being shot, for, as we were returning he let his rifle fall and it
exploded, the ball striking the rocks close to us before it glanced into
the air.
OTHER CAVES.
March 30.
At the earliest dawn we continued our course up the valley, which rapidly
became narrower and more inclined so that it formed, as it were, a series
of elevated terraces, at the edge of each of which was a little cascade.
We found two caves in the cliffs on the right hand, both of which were
painted all over but with no regularity of pattern: the only colours used
were red, yellow, and white. The largest of the caves exceeded in breadth
and depth any others I had seen, but it was only three feet high; in this
one there were several drawings of fish, one of which was four feet in
length; these I copied, although they were badly executed. The caves
themselves cannot be considered as at all analogous to those I have
before described.
INCREASING DIFFICULTIES OF ROUTE. IMPASSABLE SANDSTONE RANGES.
The difficulties of the road continued to increase rapidly, and the
dimensions of the ravine became so contracted that I hesitated whether I
should not turn up another which branched off to the right; previously
however to taking this step I sent a man forward to examine the one we
were in; he soon returned and reported that it terminated in a high
cascade a few hundred yards further on. This intelligence confirming my
previous opinion, I now moved up the ravine which came from the westward,
but we had not proceeded for more than half a mile when the rugged nature
of the country brought us to a complete stand; we found ourselves in a
rocky area, bounded on all sides by cliffs, the only outlet from which
was the path by which we had entered. I therefore halted the party for
breakfast whilst I prepared to ascend some lofty pinnacles which lay to
the south of us.
The state of my wound rendered this exertion one of great pain and
difficulty; I however accomplished it, and found myself on the top of a
high rocky eminence which bore the appearance of having fallen into
ruins; the prospect from it was cheerless in the extreme; to the north
lay the rich valley country far below us, and to the south and east
nothing could be seen but barren sandstone rocks and ranges rising one
above the other until they met the horizon at no great distance from the
eye; the only outlet, except the ravine by which we had approached,
appeared to be by the westward, and I descended to the party in this
direction to see if I could find a route from where they were to the
terrace leading to that point. I struck on a place up the cliffs where I
imagined it possible to construct a road by which the ponies could
ascend, and then returned to breakfast.
COUNTRY INACCESSIBLE FOR HORSES.
As soon as our scanty meal had been concluded all hands were employed in
making this road; and sincerely did I pity the feeble men, whom I saw in
the burning heat of a tropical sun, which was reflected with redoubled
intensity from the bare sandstone rocks, toiling to displace large stones
and obstacles which they had hardly sufficient strength to move; not a
murmur however escaped them; they saw the necessity of the case and
exerted their failing energies as readily as they had done when these
were in full strength and vigour. The road was at last made and we moved
on to the westward, toiling for the remainder of the day amongst steep
precipices of barren sandstone rocks and hills, utterly inaccessible to
horses, till, finding our efforts to proceed useless, I at last turned
the party about and halted them for the night just above where we had
breakfasted; intending with the earliest dawn to renew my search for a
pass by which we might cross this mountain range.
CHAPTER 10. RETURN TO HANOVER BAY.
UNSUCCESSFUL SEARCH FOR A PASS.
March 31.
This day at dawn I sent out a party under Mr. Lushington and Mr. Walker
to try if any pass through the mountains could be found, but they
returned in four or five hours to report that it was utterly impossible
for horses to proceed further in the direction we desired. During their
absence I had made a careful examination of the stores and found that,
even at our reduced allowance, we had only provisions left for twenty
days; our horses were also reduced in number to twelve, but these,
excepting that their feet were sore, were rather improved in condition
than otherwise since the commencement of the journey.
CAUSES FOR RETURNING.
My intention had always been, when I found myself reduced to such an
extremity as the present, to proceed for a few days by forced marches
towards the interior, accompanied by four men, and then, returning to the
remainder of the party, to have taken all together back to the vessel;
when there I knew I could have got four volunteers to accompany me and,
having loaded the horses with ammunition and provisions, I had it in
contemplation to have started with them again for Swan River. But these
projects became now impracticable from the declining state of my health,
consequent on having started too soon after having received my wound, to
the exertions I was obliged daily to make whilst labouring under its
effects, and to the want of those comforts which contribute so materially
to restore an invalid to health. Our allowance of food too had been but
scanty, and, whilst I fared as my men, who, unshattered in health, had
yet grown thin and weak under privation, I, in proportion, had suffered
far more.
PREPARATIONS TO RETURN.
Mr. Walker, who was aware of my design, came to me today and said he felt
it his duty to recommend me without delay to return to the vessel; that
as long as he thought the risk I ran was no more than he considered a man
who had undertaken such a service should be prepared to incur, he had
refrained from pressing this advice upon me, but in my present
debilitated state exposure even for a single night might very probably
cost me my life. To this opinion I felt constrained to yield, and Mr.
Walker, having at my desire repeated it in a letter this afternoon, I
arranged my plans accordingly.
LIGHT EXPLORING PARTY SENT FORWARD UNDER LIEUTENANT LUSHINGTON.
The march in advance, which, had my health permitted, I had intended to
make myself, was now deputed to Mr. Lushington: four of those men who
remained the strongest of our enfeebled band were selected for an
excursion of three days under him; after which we were to return to the
vessel.
April 1 and 2.
At dawn on Sunday the 1st the party started; and these two days I
occupied myself in making magnetic and astronomical observations. Our
latitude I found by two meridian altitudes of the moon to be 16 degrees 0
minutes 45 seconds south, and our longitude by chronometer 125 degrees 11
minutes east.
REPORT OF ADVANCED PARTY.
April 3.
Mr. Lushington's party came in at 12 o'clock this day, reporting as
follows: That they proceeded about eighteen miles from the camp upon a
course of 195 degrees from the north, and the remaining half upon a
course of 155 1/2 degrees; that the whole of their route lay over a
country utterly impassable for horses owing to the steepness of the
hills; that they crossed a great number of under-features at right angles
to their route, between which lay small streams flowing away to the
westward, and which under-features were so steep in their descent to the
southward that, in going down, the men repeatedly fell: both grass and
water were however everywhere abundant; and they saw, in the spots where
the grass was most luxuriant, the root which I found on the hill at our
first encampment on the good land. The last point they attained was a
lofty hill which ran out from a range to the eastward, from which range
sprang also all the under-features that they had crossed. From this hill
they had an extensive view to the northward, eastward, and westward. The
land they saw to the northward is laid down upon my map.
THEIR DESCRIPTION OF THE COUNTRY.
To the eastward they saw nothing but ranges of hills, precisely
resembling those that we had crossed since entering this mountainous
district; and to the westward others of the same nature, but gradually
falling in that direction, whilst on the other hand the land seemed to
rise gently to the eastward, though they saw no very high hills in an
easterly direction. To the southward their view was impeded by a very
high bluff point, distant six or seven miles, and a line of cliffs under
which they conceived that a river or an opening of the sea may run, but
if so, it could not be a stream of great magnitude. Their view of the
base of the cliff was however impeded by the under-features of the hill
on which they stood. They also noticed, as a very remarkable
circumstance, that there were no signs of these mountains having been
visited by the natives. The first part of their route lay over an
extensive plain, four miles in width, which bore no appearance of the
great native conflagrations having ever reached it. This was so generally
the case that, when they halted, they were unable to obtain a sufficiency
of firewood. They saw a native dog of the regular Australian breed;
kangaroos were abundant, but these as well as all other game were much
less wild than any of the party had before observed.
The foregoing summary of the information brought back rests not on the
report of any one individual but expresses the opinions of the party with
regard to those points on which they were all agreed; and the only one as
to which I have any distrust is that of the distance they went, which I
believe to be overrated; having always found the estimates of every one
of the party as to the daily distance travelled very erroneous, and
sometimes more than doubled. This indeed is a mistake well known to be of
common occurrence, and very difficult to guard against in a new and wild
country, and when I consider the diminished strength of the men's
pedestrian powers, and the weights they had to carry, I am disposed to
calculate that the total direct distance they made did not exceed, if it
equalled, twelve miles.
WANT OF FIREWOOD.
Their report of want of firewood is singular as, in all other parts which
we passed over, even upon plains of a similar character though not so
highly elevated or so difficult of access, we had always found the ground
thickly covered with trees which had fallen from the effects of the
native fires.
The only remarkable circumstances about the spot we were encamped in were
the great coldness of the nights and mornings; and moreover that exactly
at nine o'clock every morning a cold breeze, in character precisely
resembling a sea-breeze, set in from the south-east and lasted until
about half-past three in the afternoon.
RETURN. COMMENCEMENT OF MARCH BACK.
April 4.
We this day started on our march homewards. I was afraid, from the
appearance of the weather, that we might soon have rain, and, as a
continuance of it for even three or four days might have prevented our
passing the rivers for several weeks, it became necessary that this part
of our march should be accomplished with the utmost celerity. I therefore
made the first river before I allowed a halt for breakfast. On our route
we passed the spot where, on the 29th ultimo, we had been compelled to
kill the horse; the native dogs had already made it a perfect skeleton
and scattered its bones about.
NATIVE AND HIS DOG.
I committed unintentionally this day what must have appeared to the
natives a very wanton act of aggression: as we were passing the river, a
dog, not of the Australian breed, came from a pass in the rocks on the
opposite side, moving quietly towards us over some flat rocks; when he
had advanced a few yards from the pass he stopped and looked back, so
that from his manner I might have known that his master was near, but
without reflection I fired and struck the ground close to him; he became
alarmed and ran back in the same line he had come; I now took up my own
rifle and just as he turned a point in the rocks I fired, and, although a
very long shot, I struck him far forward in the shoulder. For a moment he
staggered, then turned round and limped up a glen in the hills in quite a
different direction. I had neither time nor strength to follow him, but
on passing the river I found from the tracks that minute made that a
single native had been coming down to the river with the dog, and had
(probably from hearing the shots) turned sharp off to the right and made
his escape into some bushes. This day the weakness of our last sheep
obliged us to kill it.
CONTINUATION OF ROUTE BACK. CHANGE OF TRACK.
April 5.
I continued on our old track this morning until I had passed the other
river, and then, quitting our former route, made a push straight over the
sandstone ridge for our old enemy the marsh, as I felt sure after the
present long continuance of fine weather that it would be now quite
passable. We encamped this night on the sandstone range under a group of
lofty firs, or rather pines.
April 6.
I found a very easy route over the sandstone, quite passable in fine
weather, but after rains, I think, from the marshy nature of the ground,
that it would present some difficulty. The marsh itself was perfectly
passable, could without any difficulty be drained, and consisted of good
and fertile land. A remarkable circumstance connected with it was the
great depth of the beds of its streams, the banks in some places being
fourteen feet above the existing water level, whilst I could observe no
signs of the water having ever risen to that height. In the afternoon I
once more struck our old track, which I quitted again in the evening. We
halted a few hundred yards from two remarkable heaps of stones of the
same kind as those I have before mentioned.
CURIOUS NATIVE MOUNDS OR TOMBS OF STONES.
April 7.
This morning I started off before dawn and opened the most southern of
the two mounds of stones which presented the following curious facts:
1. They were both placed due east and west and, as will be seen by the
annexed plates, with great regularity.
2. They were both exactly of the same length but differed in breadth and
height.
3. They were not formed altogether of small stones from the rock on which
they stood, but many were portions of very distant rocks, which must have
been brought by human labour, for their angles were as sharp as the day
they were broken off; there were also the remains of many and different
kinds of seashells in the heap we opened.
My own opinion concerning these heaps of stones had been that they were
tombs; and this opinion remains unaltered, though we found no bones in
the mound, only a great deal of fine mould having a damp dank smell. The
antiquity of the central part of the one we opened appeared to be very
great, I should say two or three hundred years; but the stones above were
much more modern, the outer ones having been very recently placed; this
was also the case with the other heap: can this be regarded by the
natives as a holy spot?
We explored the heap by making an opening in the side, working on to the
centre, and thence downwards to the middle, filling up the former opening
as the men went on; yet five men provided with tools were occupied two
hours in completing this opening and closing it again, for I left
everything precisely as I had found it. The stones were of all sizes,
from one as weighty as a strong man could lift, to the smallest pebble.
The base of each heap was covered with a rank vegetation, but the top was
clear, from the stones there having been recently deposited.
PASS IN MOUNTAIN RANGE.
In the afternoon we proceeded on our route, travelling nearly north.
After marching some distance we traversed at right angles a variety of
under-features terminating in sandstone cliffs, but the hills on our
right were composed of the same black rock as the chain in which Mount
Lyell lies. Private Mustard being ill, I gave him my horse and tried to
walk, but injured myself materially by so doing. We were obliged to
encamp at the head of a large mangrove inlet.
April 8.
It being Sunday I halted all the morning and only started late in the
afternoon. Our route lay through a mountainous country and consequently
our progress was slow. Quartz was here largely developed in rocks. We
halted this evening in a valley surrounded by mountains.
PASS MOUNT LYELL.
April 9.
We started at dawn and soon found that the valley we had encamped in was
the true pass across the range of mountains. It ran in nearly a
south-west direction to the foot of Mount Lyell. Here I halted for
breakfast; and, on finding my position by cross bearings, which I was now
able to do, and comparing it with my position by dead reckoning, was glad
to find that the error only amounted to 150 yards. The valley we
travelled up in the morning was fertile, connected with several other
large ones of similar character, and contained two small lakes, or large
ponds of water, the least of which was elevated considerably above the
low ground in the neighbourhood. In the afternoon we crossed the
mountains by a narrow neck, which is the best pass over this range of
hills for anyone travelling to the south and east. We crossed our old
track twice in the afternoon and encamped in the evening under a conical
hill.
April 10.
Started at dawn, travelling nearly north-west, and crossed the heads of
all the streams which I had before seen emptying themselves into the
river Glenelg in the opening lying between Mount Sturt and Mount Eyre.
Just under the point where we encamped for the night was a large marsh in
which my horse got bogged and I had a severe fall.
CONTINUATION OF ROUTE.
April 11.
On starting this morning all the party insisted that they saw a hill,
under which our old track had passed. I felt convinced that such could
not be the case; and, had it been so, an error of four miles must have
existed in my map: yet all were so positive of their correctness that I
felt it would appear like obstinacy in me not to yield to the general
opinion. I therefore quitted our direct course to make for the foot of
this hill, and there convinced myself that I was right; yet, even when we
had now passed it, proceeding on our route, I heard several remark, "We
shall soon march back here again." But this evening I had the pleasure of
halting under the sandstone range, and the very hill we had wished to
gain.
RECOVERY OF BURIED STORES.
April 12.
We marched early, and on the way passed more native tombs; when we came
to the place where the horse had been left I found that, through
inadvertence on the part of the man who led him, he had been starved to
death, having been left tethered. This discovery shocked me much. Some of
the stores which had been left where he fell and covered with a
tarpaulinremained uninjured. We proceeded onwards to the camp where I had
lain so long wounded, and, on arriving found all our provisions in good
order, the natives apparently not having since visited the spot. We were
not a little glad to find our preserved meats which had been left buried
here. Halted for the night, and enjoyed our repast.
PRECAUTIONS ON REACHING HANOVER BAY.
April 13.
After digging up our supply of preserved meats yesterday we had made
rather more free with them than was prudent in men who had been for so
long a time compelled to subsist upon very scanty fare, and in
consequence had been nearly all affected with violent sickness; and, as
six of the party, including Mr. Lushington and myself, were now ill, we
did not start very early; the remaining ponies were also so weak that
they could scarcely carry themselves, and we therefore were only able to
place very light loads upon them.
I have already described the very difficult nature of the country we had
to traverse; but the roads we had previously constructed through it
proved extremely serviceable. So little had they been injured that they
formed a very fair and passable line of communication. Early in the
evening we crossed the Lushington and halted at the summit of the cliffs
which formed its northern bank.
April 14.
I sent the most efficient of the party back with the horses for the
remaining stores whilst with four men I remained in charge of the tents.
ANXIETY ON APPROACHING HANOVER BAY.
Sunday April 15.
Our anxiety to ascertain if any accident had happened to the schooner now
became very great: since such a circumstance was of course by no means
impossible. As our position would then have been very precarious, and our
only chance of ultimate safety have rested on the most exact discipline
and cautious rules of conduct being observed from the very first, I
thought it would be most prudent not to allow such a calamity (had it
occurred) to burst too suddenly upon the men when they were quite
unprepared for it.
Two of them were therefore selected and, accompanied by these, I started
before daylight for the sandy beach in Hanover Bay; leaving the party to
make the best of their way to the heights above the valley where we had
first encamped, and where plenty of food and water could be found for the
ponies; these, in the event of anything having happened to the schooner,
would become the mainstay of our hopes.
These arrangements having been made we moved off through the rocky
difficult country we had first encountered: every step we took was over
well-known ground, in which no change had taken place save that there
were evident marks of bodies of natives having been in the neighbourhood
since our departure.
As I proceeded nearly in a direct line to Hanover Bay we encountered some
difficulty from the broken character of the ground, but about eleven
o'clock had gained the hilly country at the back of the beach, from
whence however we could not obtain a view of the spot where the vessel
lay. On emerging from the mangroves upon the beach we saw painted upon
the sandstone cliffs, in very large letters, "Beagle Observatory, letters
south-east 52 paces."
REJOIN THE LYNHER. MEETING WITH THE BEAGLE.
No one who has not been similarly situated can at all conceive the thrill
which went through me when these letters first met my eye; even had
anything happened to the schooner, friends were upon the coast, and I
knew that Captain Wickham, who had passed a great portion of his life in
adventures of this kind, would leave nothing undone which was in his
power to ensure our safety. We now hurried across the beach, and on
gaining the highest part of it saw the little schooner riding safely at
anchor. A gun being fired all became life and expectation on board the
vessel; and whilst the boat pulled ashore we searched for our letters.
These had however not yet been deposited at the spot indicated, and I
therefore conjectured that we should find them on board.
On reaching the vessel we learnt that the mate was gone to the Beagle,
now lying in Port George the Fourth but expected to sail this very day.
It appeared that at 7 o'clock on the morning of the 8th the report of
four carronades was heard on board the schooner; this was conjectured by
all to denote the presence of the Beagle on the coast, but the echo ran
from cliff to cliff with so many reverberations that none could tell from
what direction the sound had originally proceeded. The silence of the
night was not again disturbed; and those on board the schooner felt no
small solicitude to know if their conjectures were correct, and if so in
what direction the Beagle lay.
ARRIVAL OF THE BEAGLE.
The next morning the mystery was cleared up. Before noon a yawl was seen
to round the headland and to stand across the bay in the direction of the
mouth of Prince Regent's River. As soon as the schooner was recognised
the yawl altered her course, and Captain Wickham was soon on board the
Lynher, making anxious enquiries for us and ascertaining what steps could
be taken to assist us and promote our views.
From that time up to the present date the Beagle had lain in Port George
the Fourth to take in wood, water, etc., and to await the return of Mr.
Stokes, who was absent exploring the coast between Collier's Bay and Port
George the Fourth.
As there was no time to lose I at once started in a boat for the Beagle,
and it was late in the evening when we drew near it. I could see anxious
groups looking eagerly at the little boat as it drew near, and when at
length we were recognised the hearty cheers that greeted us as we came up
alongside plainly showed that the pleasure of meeting was not confined to
ourselves.
RESULTS OF HER SURVEY.
As Mr. Stokes was hourly expected to return, and I was very anxious to
know if he had discovered the mouth of the Glenelg, I remained on board
the Beagle and, as all had much to hear and much to communicate, the
evening wore rapidly away. The next day Mr. Stokes arrived, having seen
nothing of the mouth of the river; this however in my apprehension arose
from the greater portion of the time they were absent having been spent
in the examination of Collier's Bay, which was the point of by far the
greatest interest and promise; and that consequently they were compelled,
from want of time and supplies, to examine the intervening coastline less
narrowly than its irregular character rendered necessary. What rather
confirms this opinion is, that Captain King, in his survey of this part,
states his belief, drawn from observation, that it is indented with
inlets similar to Prince Regent's River, now this is exactly the
character of the Glenelg.
Mr. Stokes described Camden Sound as being one of the finest harbours he
had seen; and, such being the case, it must undoubtedly be the most
important position on this part of the coast. It lies close to the
Glenelg and Prince Regent's River, two large navigable streams; and I
have already declared my opinion that I have never seen a richer tract of
country than the extensive alluvial and basaltic districts in the
neighbourhood of the Glenelg, and under the rare circumstance of lying
between two navigable rivers which are separated from each other by so
short an interval.
PREPARATIONS FOR REEMBARKING.
Soon after Mr. Stokes's arrival I started for the Lynher, and the next
morning repaired on shore. During my absence on board the Beagle fourteen
natives had made their appearance near the encampment on the cliffs above
the valley; they appeared however to have been solely attracted from
motives of curiosity and a desire to visit our former huts. From the
fearful disposition which had hitherto been evinced by the natives of
these parts it was necessary however that every precaution should be
observed. This was most carefully done by Mr. Lushington; and as soon as
the natives saw that they were watched they moved off and were not again
observed, although the smokes of their fires were visible in several
points.
On the 17th we commenced our preparations for leaving this part of the
coast. The stores remaining were all carried on board. We had but eleven
ponies left, the greater number of which were so marked and scarred from
falls amongst the rocks that they would have been valueless if brought to
sale; besides which, to have cut and dried a quantity of grass sufficient
for them until we reached the Isle of France would, in the burnt up state
of the country, have delayed us many days, had we even succeeded at last.
On the other hand, if left free in the bush, two good mares which were
amongst them might possibly be the means of giving a very valuable race
of horses to this country. These considerations determined me; and the
companions of our weary wanderings were turned loose--a new race upon the
land; and, as we trusted, to become the progenitors of a numerous herd.
STATE OF THE PLANTS AND SEEDS LEFT AT THE ENCAMPMENT.
Our whole residence in this country had been marked by toils and
sufferings. Heat, wounds, hunger, thirst, and many other things had
combined to harass us. Under these circumstances it might have been
imagined that we left these shores without a single regret; but such was
far from being the case: when the ponies had wandered off, when all the
remaining stores had been removed, and the only marks of our residence in
this valley were a few shattered bark huts, young coconut plants, a
bread-fruit, and some other useful trees and plants, I felt very loth to
leave the spot. I considered what a blessing to the country these plants
must eventually prove if they should continue to thrive as they had yet
done and, as I called to mind how much forethought and care their
transport to their present position had occasioned, I would very gladly
have passed a year or two of my life in watching over them and seeing
them attain to a useful maturity. One large pumpkin plant in particular
claimed my notice. The tropical warmth and rains, and the virgin soil in
which it grew, had imparted to it a rich luxuriance: it did not creep
along the ground, but its long shoots were spreading upwards amongst the
trees. The young coconuts grew humbly amidst the wild plants and reeds,
their worth unknown. Most of these plants I had placed in the ground
myself, and had watched their early progress: now they must be left to
their fate.
REEMBARKATION.
Amidst such thoughts we resumed our course down the valley and embarked
in the boats; but had not proceeded far when a dog belonging to one of
the men was missed and, as we could not abandon so faithful a companion,
a party returned to search for it, and the dog was brought safely on
board.
SAIL FOR THE MAURITIUS.
We then weighed and sailed for the Isle of France, where we arrived on
the 17th May without having met with any circumstance on our voyage
worthy of record.
CHAPTER 11. NATURAL HISTORY. CLIMATE. ABORIGINES.
NATURAL HISTORY.
North-Western Australia seems to be peculiarly prolific in birds,
reptiles, and insects, who dwell here nearly unmolested, mutually preying
upon each other, and thus, by a wise provision, setting the necessary
check to their own multiplication.
DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS.
Of quadrupeds there are but few species, and of these the individuals,
considered in proportion to the surface they roam over, are rare. The
only species I observed during a residence of five months were four of
kangaroos, namely the large Macropus giganteus ? of Shaw, two smaller
kinds, one of which is the Petrogale brachyotis of Gould, and a kangaroo
rat, which last is always seen amongst the rocks on the sea coast. One
species of opossum, a flying squirrel (Petaurista) two kinds of dog, of
which one is new, rats, and a fieldmouse. Of these the kangaroos are
alone numerous, and only in particular spots.
NEW KANGAROO.
I shot a female kangaroo of the Petrogale brachyotis near Hanover Bay,
and by the preservation of the skin and other parts enabled Mr. Gould to
identify it as a new species.
This graceful little animal is excessively wild and shy in its habits,
frequenting, in the daytime, the highest and most inaccessible rocks, and
only descending into the valleys to feed early in the morning and late in
the evening. When disturbed in the daytime amongst the roughest and most
precipitous rocks, it bounds along from one to the other with the
greatest apparent facility, and is so watchful and wary in its habits
that it is by no means easy to get a shot at it. One very surprising
thing is, how it can support the temperature to which it is exposed in
the situations it always frequents amongst the burning sandstone rocks,
the mercury there during the heat of the day being frequently at 136
degrees. I have never seen these animals in the plains or lowlands, and
believe that they frequent mountains alone.
NEW DOMESTIC DOG.
The new species of dog differs totally from the Dingo or Canis
australiensis. I never saw one nearer than from twenty to thirty yards,
and was unable to procure a specimen. Its colour is the same as that of
the Australian dog, in parts however having a blackish tinge. The muzzle
is narrow, long, thin, and tapers much, resembling that of a greyhound,
whilst in general form it approaches the English lurcher. Some of the
party who went to Timor stated it to resemble precisely the Malay dog
common to that island, and considered it to be of the same breed; which I
think not improbable, as I cannot state that I ever saw one wild, or
unless in the vicinity of natives; in company with whom they were
generally observed in a domesticated state. On the other hand the Canis
australiensis was common in some parts in a state of nature: of these I
saw several myself and, from the descriptions given by other individuals
of the party of dogs they had observed, I recognised their identity with
the same species. We heard them also repeatedly howling during the night
and, although they never attacked our sheep or goats, many portions of
dead animals were carried off by them. I saw but two flying squirrels and
know not to which species of Petaurista they are to be referred.
OTHER ANIMALS.
Both mice and rats are common, the former precisely resembling in
appearance the English fieldmouse. The rats on one occasion ate up a live
pet parakeet, leaving the bones gnawed and strewed about; and on another,
when I had shot a crane (Ardea scolopacea) intending it for breakfast,
they in the night devoured nearly the whole of it.
CHECKS ON INCREASE OF ANIMALS.
The multiplication of kangaroos, opossums, rats, etc. may be checked by
various causes; but man, I imagine, is the most deadly enemy they have to
contend with. The numerous remains of these animals that I have seen
about the native fires attest the number destroyed. In all those caves in
which I found native paintings were representations either of kangaroo
hunts, or of men bringing down these animals dead on their shoulders; and
many a hollow tree bore witness of its having been smoked in order to
drive forth to certain death the trembling opossum or bandicoot rat which
had taken refuge in it.
INFLUENCE OF MAN ON THEIR HABITS.
A convincing proof of the dread in which man is held by the various kinds
of kangaroos is given by their extreme shyness. I never but on two or
three occasions got within shot of the larger kangaroos as they were
always so wary; and, although I at different times wounded two, I never
could succeed in actually capturing either. Now, when the detached party
sent forward just before we commenced our return to Hanover Bay crossed a
range of mountains on which were neither traces of the natives or their
fires, they found the direct reverse of this to be the case, and were all
surprised at the tameness of the kangaroos compared with those they had
previously seen.
In the same way, when I entered a new district, the birds merely flew up
into a lofty tree without attempting to go farther away, and it was not
until I had shot for a day or two in the neighbourhood of a place that
the birds there became at all wild.
The native dog, doubtless being dependent for subsistence upon the game
he can procure, must contribute to thin the numbers of the lesser
animals, who also, together perhaps with the rapacious dog himself,
frequently fall a prey to the various snakes that inhabit the country; as
was evinced in the event narrated on the 16th of March of the
destruction, by Mr. Lushington, of the boa with a small kangaroo
compressed in its folds.
The manner, too, in which I have seen the rapacious birds of prey soar
over plains where the small kangaroos abound, convinces me that they also
bear their part in the destruction of this harmless race.
TRACES OF AN ANIMAL WITH A DIVIDED HOOF.
I have already alluded to the paucity of quadrupeds, both in species and
in number, but I have still to record the remarkable fact of the
existence in these parts of a large quadruped with a divided hoof: this
animal I have never seen, but twice came upon its traces. On one occasion
I followed its track for above a mile and a half, and at last altogether
lost it in rocky ground. The footmarks exceeded in size those of a
buffalo, and it was apparently much larger, for, where it had passed
through brushwood, shrubs of considerable size in its way had been broken
down and, from the openings there left, I could form some comparative
estimate of its bulk. These tracks were first seen by a man of the name
of Mustard, who had joined me at the Cape, and who had there been on the
frontier during the Kaffir war; he told me that he had seen the spoor of
a buffalo, imagining that they were here as plentiful as in Africa. I
conceived at the time that he had made some mistake, and paid no
attention to him until I afterwards twice saw the same traces myself.
BIRDS.
To describe the birds common to these parts requires more time than to
detail the names of the few quadrupeds to be found; indeed in no other
country that I have yet visited do birds so abound. Even the virgin
forests of South America cannot, in my belief, boast of such numerous
feathered denizens; yet I cannot, after all, assert that the number of
genera and species is at all proportionate to that of individual birds.
The contrary is probably the real case.
BEAUTY OF THE BIRDS.
The birds of this country possess in many instances an excessively
beautiful plumage; and he alone who has traversed these wild and romantic
regions, who has beheld a flock of many-coloured parakeets sweeping like
a moving rainbow through the air whilst the rocks and dells resounded
with their playful cries, can form any adequate idea of the scenes that
there burst on the eyes of the wondering naturalist.
The beginning of the month of February, or the end of January, is the
season in which the birds in these parts pair. In the beginning of March
I found many nests with eggs in them; and in the end of that month eggs
nearly hatched were observed in most of the nests, as well as young birds
occasionally.
RAPACIOUS BIRDS.
Of rapacious birds I saw but four kinds, but these are by no means
common: