A WARNING.
At sunrise the travelers left the gold regions and crossed the
frontiers of the county of Talbot. Their line of travel now struck
the dusty roads of the county of Dalhousie. Half the journey was
accomplished. In fifteen days more of travel equally rapid the little
party would reach the shores of Twofold Bay. Moreover, every one was in
good health. Paganel's assertions as to the salubrity of this climate
were verified. There was little or no moisture, and the heat was quite
endurable. Neither men nor animals complained.
[Illustration: Anon you might see him as in the illustration, when
he had picked up a pebble and was sure that it was in itself so
interesting as a mineralogical specimen that he must treasure it up for
the Bank of France.] [Sidenote: A PILLARED GROVE.]
Only one change had been made in the line of march since leaving
Camden Bridge. The criminal disaster on the railway, when made known
to Ayrton, had induced him to take precautions hitherto needless.
The horsemen were not to lose sight of the cart. During the hours of
encampment one of them was always on guard. Morning and evening the
priming of the fire-arms was renewed. It was certain that a band of
malefactors were scouring the country; and, although nothing gave cause
for immediate suspicion, still it was necessary to be ready for any
emergency.
In truth they had reason to act thus. An imprudence, or negligence
even, might cost them dear. Glenarvan, moreover, was not alone in
giving heed to this state of affairs. In the isolated towns and
stations the inhabitants and squatters took precautions against any
attack or surprise. The houses were closed at nightfall. The dogs were
let loose within the palisades, and barked at the slightest alarm.
There was not a shepherd, collecting his numerous flocks on horseback
for the evening return, who did not carry a carbine suspended from the
pommel of his saddle. The news of the crime committed at Camden Bridge
was the reason for this excessive caution, and many a colonist who had
formerly slept with open doors and windows now carefully locked his
house at twilight.
After awhile, the cart entered a grove of giant trees, the finest
they had hitherto seen. There was a cry of admiration at sight of the
eucalyptuses, two hundred feet high, whose spongy bark was five inches
in thickness. The trunks measured twenty feet in circumference, and
were furrowed by streams of odorous sap. Not a branch, not a twig, not
a wanton shoot, not even a knot, disfigured their perfect symmetry.
They could not have issued smoother from the hand of the turner. They
were like so many columns exactly mated, and could be counted by
hundreds, spreading at a vast height into capitals of finely-shaped
branches adorned with vertical leaves, from which hung solitary
flowers, whose calices were like inverted urns.
Under this evergreen canopy the air circulated freely. A continual
ventilation absorbed the moisture of the earth, and horses, herds of
cattle, and carts could easily pass between these trees, which were
widely separated and arranged in straight rows. It was neither a
wood with thickets crowded and obstructed by brambles, nor a virgin
forest barricaded with fallen trunks and entangled with inextricable
parasites, where only axe and fire can clear a way for the pioneers.
A carpet of herbage below, and a sheet of verdure above; long vistas
of noble pillars; little shade or coolness; a peculiar light, like
the rays that sift through a delicate tissue; shadows sharply defined
upon the ground: all this constituted a strange sight. The forests of
Oceanica are entirely different from those of the New World, and the
eucalyptus--the "tara" of the aborigines--is the most perfect tree of
the Australian flora.
The shade is not dense, nor the darkness profound, beneath these domes
of verdure, owing to a strange peculiarity in the arrangement of the
leaves of the eucalyptus. Not one presents its face to the sun, but
only its sharp edge. The eye sees nothing but profiles in this singular
foliage. Thus the rays of the sun glide to the earth as if they had
passed between the slats of a window-blind.
Every one observed this and seemed surprised. Why this particular
arrangement? This question was naturally addressed to Paganel, who
replied like a man who is never at fault.
"What astonishes me," said he, "is not the freak of nature, for she
knows what she does; but botanists do not always know what they say.
Nature was not mistaken in giving to these trees this singular foliage;
but men are wrong in calling them eucalyptuses."
"What does the word mean?" asked Mary Grant.
"It comes from the Greek words [Greek: eu kalyptô], signifying _I cover
well_. But you all see that the eucalyptus covers badly."
[Sidenote: A SILENT MARCH.]
"Just so, my dear Paganel," replied Glenarvan; "and now tell us why the
leaves grow thus."
"In this country, where the air is dry," said Paganel, "where rains
are rare and the soil is parched, the trees need neither wind nor
sun. Hence these narrow leaves seek to defend themselves against the
elements and preserve themselves from too great an evaporation. They
therefore present their edges, and not their faces, to the action of
the solar rays. There is nothing more intelligent than a leaf."
"Nor more selfish," remarked the major. "They thought only of
themselves, and not at all of travelers."
The entire party was inclined to be of MacNabb's opinion, except
Paganel, who, as he wiped his face, congratulated himself upon
traveling beneath these shadowless trees. However, this arrangement of
foliage was to be regretted; for the journey through these forests is
frequently very long and painful, since nothing protects the traveler
from the heat of the sun.
All day long our travelers pursued their way under these interminable
arches. They met neither quadruped nor human being. A few cockatoos
inhabited the tops of the trees; but at that height they could scarcely
be distinguished, and their chattering was an almost inaudible murmur.
Sometimes a flock of parrots would shoot across a distant vista,
illumining it with a rapid flash of variegated light. But generally a
deep silence reigned in this vast temple of verdure, and the measured
tread of the horses, a few words exchanged now and then in desultory
conversation, the creaking of the cart-wheels, and from time to time a
cry from Ayrton as he urged on his sluggish team, were the only sounds
that disturbed this vast solitude.
[Illustration: They were like so many columns exactly mated, and could
be counted by hundreds.]
At evening they encamped at the foot of some trees that bore the marks
of a recent fire. They formed tall chimneys, as it were, for the flames
had hollowed them out internally throughout their entire length.
Having only this shell of bark remaining, they no longer suffered
severely from this treatment. However, this lamentable habit of the
squatters and natives will finally destroy these magnificent trees, and
they will disappear like the cedars of Lebanon, so many centuries old,
consumed by the careless fires of wandering encampments.
[Illustration: At evening they encamped at the foot of some trees that
bore the marks of a recent fire. They formed tall chimneys, as it were,
for the flames had hollowed them out internally throughout their entire
length.]
Olbinett, according to Paganel's advice, kindled a fire in one of these
tubular trunks. He obtained a draught at once, and the smoke soon
disappeared in the dark mass of foliage. The necessary precautions were
taken for the night, and Ayrton, Mulready, Wilson, and Captain Mangles
watched by turns till sunrise.
During all the next day the interminable forest presented its long,
monotonous avenues, till it seemed as if it would never end. Towards
evening, however, the rows of trees became thinner; and a few miles
farther on, upon a small plain, appeared a collection of regularly
built houses.
"Seymour!" cried Paganel. "This is the last place we shall meet with
before leaving the province of Victoria."
"Is it an important town?" inquired Lady Helena.
"Madam," replied he, "it is a simple parish that would like to become a
municipality."
"Shall we find a comfortable hotel?" asked Glenarvan.
"I hope so," answered the geographer.
"Well, then, let us go into the town; for the ladies will not be sorry,
I imagine, to rest here one night."
"My dear Edward," replied Lady Helena, "Mary and I accept; but on the
condition that it shall cause no trouble or delay."
"None at all," said Lord Glenarvan. "Moreover, our oxen are fatigued.
To-morrow we will start at break of day."
[Sidenote: A TALK AFTER SUPPER.]
It was now nine o'clock. The moon was approaching the horizon, and her
rays were dimmed by the gathering mist. The darkness was increasing.
The whole party, accordingly, entered the broad street of Seymour under
the guidance of Paganel, who always seemed to be perfectly acquainted
with what he had never seen. But his instinct directed him, and he went
straight to Campbell's North British Hotel. Horses and oxen were taken
to the stable, the cart was put under the shed, and the travelers were
conducted to quite comfortable apartments.
At ten o'clock the guests took their seats at a table, over which
Olbinett had cast his experienced eye. Paganel had just explored the
town, in company with Robert, and now related his nocturnal impressions
in a very laconic style. He had seen absolutely nothing.
However, a man less absent-minded would have observed a certain
excitement in the streets of Seymour. Groups were formed here and
there, which gradually increased. People talked at the doors of the
houses, and questioned each other with an air of anxiety. Various daily
papers were read aloud, commented upon, and discussed. These signs,
one might suppose, could not have escaped the most careless observer;
Paganel, however, had suspected nothing.
The major, on the contrary, without even leaving the hotel, had
ascertained the fears that were agitating the little community. Ten
minutes' conversation with the loquacious landlord had informed him;
but he did not utter a word. Not until supper was over, and Lady
Helena, Mary, and Robert had retired to their chambers, did the major
say to his companions:
"They have traced the authors of the crime committed at Camden Bridge."
"Have they been arrested?" asked Ayrton, quickly.
"No," replied MacNabb, without seeming to notice the eagerness of the
quartermaster.
"So much the worse," added Ayrton.
"Well," inquired Glenarvan, "to whom do they attribute the crime?"
"Read," said the major, handing to Glenarvan a copy of the _Australian
and New Zealand Gazette_, "and you will see that the police-officer was
not mistaken."
Glenarvan read aloud the following passage:
"Sydney, Jan. 2, 1865.--It will be remembered that on the night of
December 29 an accident took place at Camden Bridge, five miles from
Castlemaine Station, on the Melbourne and Sandhurst Railway, by which
the night express was precipitated at full speed into the Lutton River.
Numerous thefts committed after the accident, and the corpse of the
guard found half a mile above, prove that it was the result of a crime;
and, in accordance with the verdict at the inquest, this crime is to
be attributed to a band of convicts who escaped, six months ago, from
the Perth penitentiary, in Western Australia, as they were about to
be transferred to Norfolk Island. These convicts are twenty-nine in
number, and are commanded by a certain Ben Joyce, a dangerous criminal,
who arrived in Australia several months ago in some way, and upon whom
justice has not yet succeeded in laying hands. The inhabitants of the
cities, and the colonists and squatters of the stations, are warned
to be on their guard, and requested to send to the undersigned any
information which may assist his investigations.
"J. P. MITCHELL, Surveyor-General."
* * * * *
When Glenarvan had finished reading this article, MacNabb turned to the
geographer and said:
"You see, Paganel, that there may yet be convicts in Australia."
"Runaways there may be, of course," replied Paganel, "but not those
who have been transported and regularly received. These people have no
right to be here."
"Well, at any rate they are here," continued Glenarvan; "but I do not
suppose that their presence need cause us to change our plans or delay
our journey. What do you think, captain?"
[Sidenote: LOOKING AT BOTH SIDES.]
Captain Mangles did not answer immediately. He hesitated between the
grief that the abandonment of the search would cause the two children,
and the fear of compromising the safety of the party.
"If Lady Glenarvan and Miss Grant were not with us," said he, "I should
care very little for this band of wretches."
Glenarvan understood him, and added:
"Of course it is not advisable to give up our undertaking; but perhaps
it would be prudent for the sake of the ladies to join the Duncan at
Melbourne, and continue our search for Captain Grant towards the east.
What do you think, MacNabb?"
"Before replying," said the major, "I should like to hear Ayrton's
opinion."
The quartermaster, thus addressed, looked at Glenarvan.
"I think," said he, "that, as we are two hundred miles from Melbourne,
the danger, if there is any, is as great on the southern as on the
eastern road. Both are little frequented, and one is as good as the
other. Moreover, I do not think that thirty malefactors can intimidate
eight well-armed and resolute men. Therefore, in the absence of better
advice, I should go on."
"Well said," replied Paganel. "By continuing our course we shall cross
Captain Grant's track, while by returning to the south we should go
directly away from it. I agree with you, therefore, and shall give
myself no uneasiness about the runaway convicts."
Thus the determination to make no change in the programme was
unanimously approved of.
"One more remark, my lord," said Ayrton, as they were about to separate.
"Speak."
"Would it not be advisable to send an order to the Duncan to sail to
the coast?"
"Why?" asked Captain Mangles. "It will be time enough to send the order
when we arrive at Twofold Bay. If any unforeseen event should compel
us to return to Melbourne, we might be sorry not to find the Duncan
there. Moreover, her injuries cannot yet have been repaired. I think,
therefore, that it would be better to wait."
"Well," replied Ayrton, without further remark.
The next day the little party, armed and ready for any emergency, left
Seymour, and half an hour after re-entered the forest of eucalyptuses,
which appeared again towards the east. Glenarvan would have preferred
to travel in the open country, for a plain is less favorable to sudden
attacks and ambuscades than a thick wood. But they had no alternative;
and the cart kept on all day between the tall, monotonous trees, and at
evening encamped on the borders of the district of Murray.
They were now setting foot on one of the least frequented portions of
the Australian continent, a vast uninhabited region stretching away to
the Australian Alps. At some future day its forests will be leveled,
and the home of the colonist will stand where now all is desolation;
but at present it is a desert. In this region is situated the so-styled
"reserve for the blacks." On these remote plains various spots have
been set apart, where the aboriginal race can enjoy to the full the
privilege of gradually becoming extinct. Though the white man is at
perfect liberty to invade this "reserved" territory, yet the black may
call it his own.
Paganel, who was in his element wherever statistics or history was
concerned, went into full details respecting the native races. He gave
a long account of the cruelties to which these unfortunate beings
had been subjected at the hands of the early colonists, and showed
how little had been done by the interference of the government. As
a striking instance of the manner in which the aborigines melt away
before the advance of civilization, he cited the case of Tasmania,
which at the beginning of this century had five thousand native
inhabitants, but in 1863 had only seven.
[Sidenote: STUDIES IN ANTHROPOLOGY.]
"Fifty years ago," said he, "we should have met in our course many
a tribe of natives; whereas thus far we have not seen even one. A
century hence, the black race will have utterly disappeared from this
continent."
At that moment Robert, halting in front of a group of eucalyptuses,
cried out:
"A monkey! there is a monkey!"
The cart was instantly stopped, and, looking in the direction
indicated by the boy, our travellers saw a huge black form moving with
astonishing agility from branch to branch, until it was lost from view
in the depths of the grove.
"What sort of a monkey is that?" asked MacNabb.
"That monkey," answered Paganel, "is a full-blooded Australian."
Just then were heard sounds of voices at some little distance; the oxen
were put in motion, and after proceeding a few hundred paces the party
came suddenly upon an encampment of aborigines, consisting of some
ten or twelve tents, made of strips of bark arranged in the manner of
tiles, and giving shelter to their wretched inhabitants on only one
side. Of these miserable beings there were about thirty, men, women,
and children, dressed in ragged kangaroo-skins. Their first movement
was one of flight; but a few words from Ayrton restored confidence, and
they slowly approached the party of Europeans.
The major jocularly insisted that Robert was correct in saying that
he had seen a monkey; but Lady Helena declined to accept his views,
and, getting out of the cart, made friendly advances to these degraded
beings, who seemed to look upon her as a divinity. Reassured by her
gentle manner, they surrounded the travelers, and began to cast wishful
glances at the provisions which the cart contained. Glenarvan, at the
request of his wife, distributed a quantity of food among the hungry
group.
[Illustration: Of these miserable beings there were about thirty, men,
women, and children, dressed in ragged kangaroo-skins.]
After this had been dispatched, our friends were favored by their new
acquaintances with a sham fight, which lasted about ten minutes, the
women urging on the combatants and pretending to mutilate those who
fell in the fray. Suddenly the excited crowd dropped their arms, and
a profound silence succeeded to the din of war. A flight of cockatoos
had made its appearance in the neighboring trees; and the opportunity
to display their proficiency in the use of the boomerang was at once
improved by the Australians. The skill manifested in the construction
and use of this instrument served Lady Helena as a strong argument
against the monkey theory, though the major pretended that he was not
yet convinced.
[Illustration: A sham fight, which lasted about ten minutes, the women
urging on the combatants and pretending to mutilate those who fell in
the fray.]
Lord Glenarvan was now about to give the order to advance, when a
native came running up with the news that he had discovered half
a dozen cassowaries. The chase that followed, with the ingenious
disguise assumed by the hunter, and the marvelous fidelity with which
he imitated the movements and cries of the bird, was witnessed with
interest by the travelers. Lady Helena adduced the skill displayed as
a still further argument against the major's theory; but the obstinate
MacNabb declined to recede from his position, citing to his antagonist
the statement of the negroes concerning the orang-outangs,--that they
are negroes like themselves, only that they are too cunning to talk,
for fear of being made to work.