Journals of Australian Explorations Part 22

27th October.

From this time to the 3rd November the winds continued to blow almost uninterruptedly from the south and eastward, which carried us as far west as longitude 101 degrees east, and lat.i.tude 31 degrees south, where we met with westerly winds, which enabled us to run up to within sight of Cape Naturaliste by the 8th.

9th November.

By 10 a.m. we were off Rottnest Island, when the pilot came on board and took us to the anchorage in Gage's Roads by noon. Having given instructions to Mr. Turner for the landing of the horses, etc., I landed with Messrs. Brown, Harding, and Hall, all of whom were, at their desire, at once released from the duties of the Expedition. Proceeded by steamer to Perth.

10th November.

Had an interview with His Excellency the Governor, and reported the safe return of the party and general results of the Expedition.

F.T. GREGORY,

Commander North-West Australian Expedition.

Perth, 6th February, 1862.

APPENDIX.

Adopting the course which I have found most convenient on similar occasions, I now proceed to offer a few remarks on the general features, productions, and natural capabilities, etc., of the country traversed by the Expedition, which could not, without disadvantage, have been introduced into the foregoing narrative. These remarks have already appeared at the conclusion of my report published on the 18th November, 1861, but are equally applicable to the present publication.

Commencing with its geographical and geological peculiarities, that portion of the country that came under our observation consists of a succession of terraces, rising inland for nearly 200 miles, more or less broken up by volcanic hills towards the coast. The first belt averages from ten to forty miles in width from the sea, and is a nearly level plain, slightly ascending to the southward, with an elevation of from 40 to 100 feet, the soil being generally either light loam or strong clays, according as it is the result of the disintegration of the granite rocks that occasionally protrude above its surface, or of volcanic rocks of black scoria that frequently interrupt the general level; hills of this nature also const.i.tute the greater portion of the more elevated islands off the coast, Cape Lambert, and the promontory that shelters the western side of Nickol Bay. The generality of these rocks do not, however, yield so rich a soil as might be expected from their origin. This is owing to the absence of actual lava, the eruptive heat having nearly been sufficient to convert the superinc.u.mbent primary and tertiary rocks into a vitreous scoria, having a specific gravity of 3.2, and is highly indestructible in its texture.

Proceeding inland for the next fifty or sixty miles is a granite country that has been originally capped with horizontal sandstones, and has an elevation of about 1000 feet. This range terminates to the southward in level plains of good soil, the produce of the next series of more elevated country, while towards the northern edges the granite and sandstones have undergone great changes through the action of numerous trap d.y.k.es, that have greatly disturbed its surface, producing metamorphic rocks, some resembling jasper, and others highly cellular and scoriaceous.

In about lat.i.tude 22 degrees, on the meridian of Nickol Bay, we came upon another and more elevated range trending away to the south-east, having an alt.i.tude of 2500 feet above the sea. This, unlike the last section, has a southern escarpment of 500 or 600 feet, and consists of horizontal sandstones and conglomerates, which have comparatively undergone little change, and has an average breadth of eight or ten miles, the southern flank being bordered by fertile valleys of strong loamy clays, merging gradually to the southward into stony ridges and hills, some having an elevation of nearly 4000 feet, the culminating point being attained at Mount Bruce, in lat.i.tude 22 degrees 30 minutes.

From this point the country gradually falls to the Ashburton, the bed of which river, in the same meridian as the bay, is about 1600 feet above the sea, and the adjoining ranges not above 2200 feet, or about the same as the country on the Gascoyne, Lyons, and Upper Murchison.

Of minerals I was unable to discover any traces, except iron. Quartz reefs occasionally traversed the country in a north-north-east and south-south-west direction, or nearly the same as the mineral lodes at Champion Bay; but I could not find any instance in which this rock offered much to indicate the probable existence of gold, it being far surpa.s.sed in this respect by the rocks on the Upper Murchison. Coal does not appear likely to be found within the limits of the country pa.s.sed over, unless towards the easternmost point attained by the Expedition.

With respect to the harbours on the coast, I can only speak of Nickol Bay and the anchorage under Rosemary and the adjacent islands. The former I consider only second to King George's Sound, as it can be entered in all weathers, either from the north or north-east, and there is reason to believe that a safe pa.s.sage exists between Legendre and Dolphin Islands, leading into Mermaid Straits, where there appears to be an excellent harbour at all seasons of the year.

The soundings towards the eastern and western sh.o.r.es of Nickol Bay, taken at low water, show sufficient depth for vessels of considerable tonnage to lie within a cable's length of the sh.o.r.e, the bottom being fine sand and soft mud. Towards the head of the bay the water is much shallower, not carrying more than two fathoms two miles from the sh.o.r.e. No reefs are known to exist in this bay, except quite close into land.

In making the running survey of the western promontory I found that all to the north of Sloping Head was an island, having a boat channel between from half a mile to a mile wide. To the outer portion I therefore gave the name of Dolphin Island.

The tides are tolerably regular, and average sixteen feet, but at the spring they rise twenty-one feet, on which occasions the whole of the western promontory, including the high lands for several miles to the westward, are entirely cut off by the sea, the other opening being under Enderby Island--a circ.u.mstance that greatly detracts from the value of these otherwise fine harbours, as it would require two miles of causeway to connect the best landing place, where water is to be found, with the mainland.

The average declination of the needle throughout this district I found to be 1 degree east, the result of many amplitudes and azimuths; there is, however, in the vicinity of many of the volcanic hills great local attraction.

Of the climate I can only say that during the five months we remained on the coast we never experienced the same inconvenience from it that we frequently have done within the limits of the settled districts of the colony; the weather was, however, princ.i.p.ally fine, and the sky clear during our stay, only two showers having occurred--one at the latter end of May and the other in June. The meteorological register kept at Nickol Bay shows the following results, from observations taken at all hours of the day and night:--

COLUMN 1: MONTH IN WHICH THERMOMETER READING WAS RECORDED.

COLUMN 2: MAXIMUM.

COLUMN 3: MINIMUM.

May : 80 : 65.

June : 76 : 63.

July : 78 : 56.

August : 80 : 54.

September : 83 : 65.

October : 92 : 70.

Under the peculiar circ.u.mstance of the thermometer being placed on a sandbank in the sun during the hot days in October, it rose to 178 degrees of Fahrenheit, whilst the lowest it ever fell to was up in the hills, in July, when it was 2 degrees below freezing just before sunrise.

The winds continued to blow almost uninterruptedly from the east and south-east during the first four months, veering to the south-south-east and south and occasionally to the north-east. Latterly the wind was alternately south-east in the morning, and north-west or westerly in the afternoon; the sky becoming frequently overcast, and every appearance of the near approach of the rainy season, which it has been observed by navigators and explorers to do about the beginning of November, and continue to March.

Amongst the natural productions I would first briefly refer to the beds of the pearl oysters, as they are likely to become of immediate commercial importance, considerable numbers having been gathered by the crew of the Dolphin at their leisure time, the aggregate value of which, I am told, is between 500 and 600 pounds; besides pearls, one of which has been valued by competent persons at 25 pounds. The limits of the bed are as yet undefined, but there is good reason to believe, from the position of it, that with proper apparatus ships could soon be loaded with them.

Sandalwood was found in small quant.i.ties, very highly scented, but too widely scattered to become of much importance as an article of export.

Of indigenous fruits, etc., we observed the adansonia, or gouty-stemmed tree of Sir G. Grey (nearly allied to the baobab or monkey bread-fruit of Southern Africa), sweet and water melons similar to those formerly seen by me on the Lyons River, but of much larger size; a small gourd; a wild fig, well-tasted; and a sweet plum, very palatable, were found in tolerable abundance.

I have already spoken of the palms which grow on the bank of the Fortescue; they are very handsome and grow to the height of forty feet, but not having brought in any specimens, they have not yet been identified as to their variety.

Tobacco does not grow so luxuriantly here as on the Lyons River, but the natives collect it, and after preparation, chew it; but we did not on any occasion observe them to smoke.

Many beautiful flowers were also collected, which will be forwarded to some of the most eminent botanists, to be described and cla.s.sified.

It now only remains for me to give an opinion on the capabilities of the country for colonisation. It would be almost impossible to particularise the positions or define the limits of country adapted for grazing purposes beyond the reference already made to them. The total amount of land available for this purpose within the limit of our route I should estimate at not less than two or three millions of acres, and of this I may safely say 200,000 are suitable for agricultural purposes, the greater portion of which lies on the two flanks of the Hamersley Range, on the banks of the DeGrey and its tributaries, and on the Lower Sherlock.

Of the fitness of this district for the growth of wool, which, on account of its being an intertropical country, it is generally supposed it would be unsuitable, I would remark that its elevation above the sea appears likely to obviate the objection, and render it probable that sheep may not degenerate in the same way they are found to do in other tropical countries; at any rate, flocks are now being pushed over on to the same lat.i.tude in Queensland, and we do not hear of the wool-grower complaining that such is the case there.

As to its fitness for the growth of cereals, it is quite possible that wheat and barley may not come to the same degree of perfection they do in the more temperate lat.i.tudes of Australia, but there is no reason to doubt its capability of growing sufficient grain for the support of a numerous population.

What it appears more highly qualified for than anything else is the growth of cotton--a question which at the present juncture cannot be lost sight of. From my personal observation of the cultivation of this plant in Egypt, and the attention I have recently paid to this subject while in Europe, I feel confident that a very considerable portion of the arable lands on the DeGrey and Sherlock are precisely the soils adapted for the production of this valuable commodity. As, however, I purpose to make this the subject of a more lengthy paper at a future period, I will not now venture to enlarge upon it.

As the number and disposition of the aborigines is likely to have some effect on the first settlement of a district, I would give it as my opinion that these people will not prove particularly troublesome to the settlers, if properly and fairly treated. They are not numerous, and appear very willing to take employ under Europeans, and will no doubt soon be made as useful as in the other districts. In stature they rather exceed the usual standard, some of them measuring two or three inches over six feet.

In bringing my report to a close, I would wish to observe, that although the results of the Expedition have fallen short of my sanguine hopes with regard to Geographical discovery, and will, I am afraid, in some degree disappoint the antic.i.p.ations of the eminent Geographers who have lent their valuable aid in promoting the undertaking, yet I cannot but hope that the large amount of additional fertile country it has brought to our knowledge will compensate in some degree for the deficiency. I am, however, unable to refrain from again expressing my opinion, that had not so many concurrent circ.u.mstances combined to r.e.t.a.r.d the departure of the Expedition until so late in the season, and it had arrived on the coast at the time originally recommended by the Geographical Society, it would, in all probability, have resulted in the full accomplishment of the object they had in view.

It now devolves upon me to perform the pleasing duty of recording my entire satisfaction with the manner in which the whole of the members of the Expedition put forward their best energies in the performance of their respective functions. To Mr. Turner I am indebted for the care bestowed on the management of the store department, which came under his immediate charge. To Messrs. Brockman and Hall, J. McCourt, and James, are due my acknowledgments for the cheerful alacrity with which they performed the duties allotted to them.

Of Messrs. Maitland, Brown and J. Harding I cannot speak too highly.

Accompanying me on all the extra services upon which I was engaged, they had to endure privations of no ordinary description, which they met with a spirit of steady fort.i.tude deserving of the highest praise. Of the valuable services rendered to the Expedition and to science by Mr. P.

Walcott I have already had occasion to refer, and I sincerely hope that his talents and zeal in the pursuits of Botany and Natural History may meet a more substantial reward than the thanks which are justly due to him and those gentlemen who have given their time and talents gratuitously in the service of their fellow-colonists.

To Captain Dixon and the officers and crew of the Dolphin every praise is due for the a.s.sistance which on all occasions they promptly afforded in aiding the Expedition, and for which I gladly avail myself of the present opportunity to return them my best thanks.

In conclusion, permit me to tender Your Excellency my acknowledgments for the readiness with which you have acceded to my various suggestions in carrying out the arrangements of the Expedition since the pa.s.sing of the vote of money in aid by the local legislature.

F.T.G.