Journals of Expeditions of Discovery into Central Australia Part 3

Many of the hills are well rounded, very gra.s.sy, and moderately well timbered even to their summits. This is one of the prettiest and most desirable localities for either sheep or cattle, that I have yet seen in the unoccupied parts of South Australia, whilst the distance from Adelaide by land, does not at the most exceed one hundred and twenty miles. [Note 2: All this country, and for some distance to the north, is now occupied by stations.] The watercourse near our camp took its course through an open valley, between bare hills on which there was neither tree nor shrub for firewood and we were constantly obliged to go half a mile up a steep hill before we could obtain a few stunted bushes to cook with. As the watercourse approached the Broughton the country became much more abrupt and broken, and after its junction with that river, the stream wound through a succession of barren and precipitous hills, for about fifteen miles, at a general course of south-west; these hills were overrun almost everywhere with p.r.i.c.kly gra.s.s and had patches of the Eucalyptus dumosa scattered over them at intervals.

Up to the point where it left the hills, there were ponds of water in the bed of the Broughton, but upon leaving them the river changed its direction to the northward, pa.s.sing through extensive plains and retaining a deep wide gravelly channel, but without surface water, the drainage being entirely underground, and the country around comparatively poor and valueless.

Chapter III.

SPRING HILL--AN AGED NATIVE DESERTED BY HIS TRIBE--RICH AND EXTENSIVE PLAINS--SURPRISE A PARTY OF NATIVES--ROCKY RIVER--CRYSTAL BROOK--FLINDERS RANGE--THE DEEP SPRING--MYALL PONDS--ROCKY WATER HOLES--DRY WATERCOURSE--REACH THE DEPOT NEAR MOUNT ARDEN--PREPARE FOR LEAVING THE PARTY--BLACK SWANS Pa.s.s TO THE NORTH--ARRIVAL OF THE WATERWITCH.

During the night the frost had been so severe, that we were obliged to wait a little this morning for the sun to thaw the tent and tarpaulins before they would bend to fold up. After starting, we proceeded across a high barren open country, for about three miles on a W. N. W. course, pa.s.sing close under a peak connected with Campbell's range, which I named Spring Hill, from the circ.u.mstance of a fine spring of water being found about half way up it.

Not far from the spring I discovered a poor emaciated native, entirely alone, without either food or fire, and evidently left by his tribe to perish there; he was a very aged man, and from hardship and want was reduced to a mere skeleton, how long he had been on the spot where we found him I had no means of ascertaining, but probably for some time, as life appeared to be fast ebbing away; he seemed almost unconscious of our presence, and stared upon us with a vacant unmeaning gaze. The pleasures or sorrows of life were for ever over with him: his case was far beyond the reach of human aid, and the probability is that he died a very few hours after we left him.

Such is the fate of the aged and helpless in savage life, nor can we wonder that it should be so, since self-preservation is the first law of nature, and the wandering native who has to travel always over a great extent of ground to seek for his daily food, could not obtain enough to support his existence, if obliged to remain with the old or the sick, or if impeded by the inc.u.mbrance of carrying them with him; still I felt grieved for the poor old man we had left behind us, and it was long before I could drive away his image from my mind, or repress the melancholy train of thoughts that the circ.u.mstance had called forth.

From the summit of Spring Hill, I observed extensive plains to the N. W.

skirted both on their eastern and western sides, by open hills, whilst to the N. W. and N. E. the ranges were high, and apparently terminated in both directions by peaked summits on their eastern extremes; a little south of west the waters of Spencer's Gulf were distinctly visible, and the smokes ascending from the fires of the natives, were seen in many directions among the hills. After pa.s.sing Spring Hill, we crossed some rich and extensive plains, stretching far away to the northward, and taking a nearly north and south direction under Campbell's range; in the upper part of these plains is the deep bed of a watercourse with water in it all the year round, and opposite to which, in lat. 33 degrees 14 minutes S, is a practicable pa.s.s for drays through Campbell's range, to the gra.s.sy country to the eastward.

June 27.--In crossing the southern extremity of these large plains, we came suddenly upon a small party of natives engaged in digging yams of which the plains were full; they were so intent upon their occupation that we were close to them before they were aware of our presence; when they saw us they appeared to be surprised and alarmed, and endeavoured to steal off as rapidly as they could without fairly taking to their heels, for they were evidently either unwilling or afraid to run; finding that we did not molest them they halted, and informed us by signs that we should soon come to water, in the direction we were going. This I knew to be true, and about three o'clock we were in front of a water-course, I had on a former journey named the "Rocky river," from the ragged character of its bed where we struck it.

We had been travelling for some distance upon a high level open country, and now came to a sudden gorge of several hundred feet below us, through which the Rocky river wound its course. It was a most singular and wild looking place, and was not inaptly named by the men, the "Devil's Glen;"

looking down from the table land we were upon, the valley beneath appeared occupied by a hundred little hills of steep ascent and rounded summits, whilst through their pretty glens, flowed the winding stream, shaded by many a tree and shrub--the whole forming a most interesting and picturesque scene.

The bed of the watercourse was over an earthy slate, and the water had a sweetish taste. Like most of the Australian rivers, it consisted only of ponds connected by a running stream, and even that ceased to flow a little beyond where we struck it, being lost in the deep sandy channel which it then a.s.sumed, and which exhibited in many places traces of very high floods. Below our camp the banks were 50 to 60 feet high, and the width from 60 to 100 yards, its course lay through plains to the south-west, over which patches of scrub were scattered at intervals, and the land in its vicinity was of an inferior description, with much p.r.i.c.kly gra.s.s growing upon it.

Upwards, the Rocky river, after emerging from the gorges in which we found it, descended through very extensive plains from the north-north-east; there was plenty of water in its bed, and abundance of gra.s.s over the plains, so that in its upper parts it offers fine and extensive runs for either cattle or sheep, and will, I have no doubt, ere many years be past, be fully occupied for pastoral purposes.

From our present encampment a very high and pointed hill was visible far to the N.N. W. this from the lofty way in which it towered above the surrounding hills, I named Mount Remarkable. Our lat.i.tude at noon was 33 degrees 25 minutes 26 seconds S.

A very beautiful shrub was found this afternoon upon the Rocky river, in full flower: it was a tall slender stalked bush, about six or eight feet high, growing almost in the bed of the river, with leaves like a geranium, and fine delicate lilac flowers about an inch and a half in diameter; here, too, we found the first gum-trees seen upon any of the watercourses for many miles, as all those we had recently crossed, traversed open plains which were quite without either trees or shrubs of any kind.

June 28.--This morning we pa.s.sed through a country of an inferior description, making a short stage to a watercourse, named by me the "Crystal Brook;" it was a pretty stream emanating from the hills to the north-east, and marked in its whole course through the plains to the northward and westward by lines of gum-trees. The pure bright water ran over a bed of clear pebbles, with a stream nine feet wide, rippling and murmuring like the rivulets of England--a circ.u.mstance so unusual in the character of Australian watercourses, that it interested and pleased the whole party far more than a larger river would have done; this characteristic did not, however, long continue, for like all the streams we had lately crossed, the water ceased to flow a short distance beyond our crossing place.

The country below us, like that through which the Rocky river took its course, was open and of an inferior description, but I have no doubt that by tracing the stream upwards, towards its source among the ranges, a good and well watered country would be found; I ascertained the lat.i.tude by a meridian alt.i.tude at Crystal brook to be 33 degrees 18 minutes 7 seconds S.

The hills on the opposite side of Spencer's Gulf were now plainly visible, and one which appeared to be inland, I took to be the middle Back mountain of Flinders; between our camp and the eastern sh.o.r.es of the gulf, the land was generally low, with a good deal of scrub upon it, and nearer the sh.o.r.es appeared to be swampy, and subject to inundation by the tides.

June 29.--Upon moving from our camp this morning we commenced following under Flinders range. From Crystal brook, the hills rise gradually in elevation as they trend to the northward, still keeping their western slopes almost precipitous to the plains, out of which they appear to rise abruptly. Our course was much embarra.s.sed by the gullies and gorges emanating from the hills, in some of which the crossing place was not very good, and in all the horses got much shaken, so that when we arrived at a large watercourse defined by gum trees, and in which was a round hole of water that had been on a former occasion called by me "The Deep Spring," I halted the party for the night and found that the horses were a good deal fatigued. Fortunately there was excellent food for them, and plenty of water. The place at which we encamped was upon one of the numerous watercourses, proceeding from the gorges of Flinders range. It had a wide gravelly bed, divided into two or three separate channels, but without a drop of water below the base of the hills, excepting where we bivouacked, at this point, there was a considerable extent of rich black alluvial soil, and in the midst of it a mound of jet black earth, surrounded by a few reeds. In the centre of the mound was a circular deep hole containing water, and apparently a spring: the last time I was here, in 1839 it was full to overflowing, but now, though in the depth of winter, I was surprised and chagrined to see the water so much lower than I had known it before. It was covered up too so carefully with bushes and boughs, that it was evident the natives sometimes contemplated its being quite dried up, [Note 3: In October 1842, I again pa.s.sed this way, in command of a party of Police sent overland to Port Lincoln, to search for Mr. C. C. Dutton: the spring was then dried up completely.] and had taken this means as the best they could adopt for shading and protecting the water. On the other hand the numerous well beaten tracks leading to this solitary pool appeared to indicate that there was no other water in the neighbourhood. We saw kangaroos, pigeons and birds of various descriptions, going to it in considerable number. At night too after dark we found that a party of natives were watching also for an opportunity to partic.i.p.ate in so indispensable a necessary, which having secured, they departed, and we saw nothing more of them. I observed the lat.i.tude at this camp to be 33 degrees 7 minutes 14 seconds S. and the variation 8 degrees 53 minutes E.

June 30.--Our road to day was much better, and less interrupted by gullies, though we still kept close under Flinders range. We traversed a great extent of plain land which was generally stony, but gra.s.sy, and tolerably well adapted for sheep runs. Several watercourses take their rise from this range, with a westerly direction towards the gulf, these were all dry when we crossed them, but their course was indicated by gum trees, and as some of the channels were wide and large, and had strong traces of occasional high floods, I rode for many miles down one of the most promising, but without being able to find a drop of water. At noon our lat.i.tude was 32 degrees 59 minutes 8 seconds, S.

Late in the afternoon we reached a watercourse, which I had previously named "Myall Ponds," [Note 4: Myall is in some parts of New Holland, the native name for the Acacia pendula.] from the many and beautiful Acacia pendula trees that grew upon its banks. There I knew we could get water, and at once halted the party for the night. Upon going to examine the supply I was again disappointed at finding it so much less than when I had been here in 1839. This did not augur well for our future prospects, and gave me considerable anxiety relative to our future movements.

For some days past the whole party had fully entered upon their respective duties, each knew exactly what he had to do, and was beginning to get accustomed to its performance, so that every thing went on smoothly and prosperously. My own time, when not personally engaged in conducting the party, was occupied in keeping the journals and charts, etc. in taking and working observations--in the daily register of the barometer, thermometer, winds, and weather, and in collecting specimens of flowers, or minerals. My young friend, Mr. Scott, was kept equally busy; for in many of these duties he a.s.sisted me, and in some relieved me altogether; the regular entry of the meteorological observations, and the collecting of flowers or shrubs generally fell to his share; independently of which he was the only sportsman in the party, and upon his gun we were dependant for supplies of wallabies, pigeons, ducks, or other game, to vary our bill of fare, and make the few sheep we had with us hold out as long as possible. As a companion I could not have made a better selection--young, active, and cheerful, I found him ever ready to render me all the a.s.sistance in his power. At our present encampment, several of a species of wallabie, very much resembling a hare in flavour, were shot by Mr. Scott, but hitherto we had not succeeded in getting a kangaroo.

July 1.--To-day we travelled through a similar country to that we were in yesterday, consisting of open plains and occasionally low scrub.

Kangaroos abounded in every direction. Our stage was eighteen miles to a watercourse called by me the "Reedy water holes," from the circ.u.mstance of reeds growing around the margin of the water. Upon arriving at this place I was surprised to find a strongly running stream, where formerly there had only been a reedy pond, although the two last watercourses we had encamped at had been much reduced and dried up. When I had been here in 1839, they were the running streams, and this only a pool, whilst singularly enough there did not appear to have been more rain at one place than the other.

We were now in full view of Spencer's gulf, but as yet could observe no signs of the WATERWITCH, which was to meet us at the head of the gulf with additional stores. At night I observed the lat.i.tude by alt.i.tude of a Bootis to be 32 degrees 41 minutes 28 seconds S.

July 2.--We moved on for 15 miles over extensive plains, covered princ.i.p.ally with RhaG.o.dia, and in some places stony, and halted early in the afternoon at a large dry watercourse, coming out from Flinders range.

Though there was no water in this channel below the base of the hill, on sending a party a mile and a half up it with spades and buckets, we got, by digging in the gravelly bed, as much as sufficed for ourselves and horses. At this camp I observed the variation to be 7 degrees 24 minutes E.

July 3.--During the night our horses had rambled a little, so that we could not get away early, and as we had a long stage before us we were obliged to push on to a late hour. At dark we arrived at my former depot near Mount Arden, and took up our old position in the dry bed of the watercourse, at the base of the hills from which it emanated; but we had still to send the horses a mile and a half further up the gorge, over a hilly and stony road, before we could either get water for ourselves or them; it was therefore very late when the men returned, and the whole party were a good deal fatigued, having travelled from Adelaide to Mount Arden in 14 days, (deducting the two days in camp at the Light.) I now ascertained the lat.i.tude of the depot to be 32 degrees 14 minutes S.

July 4.--Having mustered the horses this morning, I ordered an arrangement to be entered into for taking them to the water twice a day, and bringing down the supply required for the use of the party. Each person undertook this duty in turn, and thus the labour was divided.

After breakfast I went up myself to examine the state of the water and found great abundance in its bed; there were strong traces of recent and high flooding, the drift timber being lodged among the bushes several feet above the ordinary channel. The gra.s.s I was sorry to find was rather old and dry, but still there was a very fair supply of it, a point of great importance to us at a time when it was necessary to detain the whole party for two or three weeks in depot, to enable me to examine the country to the north; my former experience having convinced me that it would be dangerous to attempt to push on, before ascertaining where gra.s.s and water could be procured.

We had now travelled upwards of eighty miles under Flinders range, from Crystal brook to Mount Arden, and hitherto the character of that range had varied but little. High, rocky, and barren, it rises abruptly from the plains, and so generally even is the country at its base, that we had no difficulty in keeping our drays within a mile or two of it. This was convenient, because we had not far to leave our line of route, when compelled to send up among the ravines for water. The slopes of Flinders range are steep and precipitous to the westward, and composed princ.i.p.ally of an argillaceous stone or grey quartz, very hard and ringing like metal when struck with a hammer.

There was no vegetation upon these hills, excepting p.r.i.c.kly gra.s.s, and many were coated over so completely with loose stones that from the steepness of the declivity it was unsafe, if not impossible to ascend them. At one or two points in our routs I climbed up to the top of high summits, but was not rewarded for my toil, the prospect being generally cheerless and barren in the extreme, nor did the account given by Mr.

Brown of his ascent of Mount Brown in March 1802, tempt me to delay a day to enable me to view the uninteresting prospect he had seen from the summit of that hill--by far the highest peak in this part of Flinders range.

Having decided upon ridingon a head of my party to reconnoitre, as soon as the WATERWITCH should arrive, I at once commenced my preparations, and made the overseer put new shoes on the horses I intended to take with me.

The very stony character of the country we had been lately traversing and the singularly hard nature of the stone itself, had caused the shoes to wear out very rapidly, and there was hardly a horse in the teams that did not now require new shoes; fortunately we had brought a very large supply with us, and my overseer was a skilful and expeditious farrier. At dusk a watch was set upon one of the hills near us, to look out for signals from the WATERWITCH in the direction of Spencer's gulf, but none were seen.

July 4.--Whilst writing in my tent this evening, my attention was attracted by the notes of swans, and upon going out I perceived a flight of several of the black species coming up from the southward; when they had got over the tents, they appeared to be alarmed and wheeled to the eastward, but soon returning, they took a nearly due northerly course.

This was encouraging for us, and augured well for the existence of some considerable body of water inland, but we hoped and expected that a few days would perhaps give us a clue to the object of their flight.

Sunday, July 5.--A day of rest to all. In the afternoon I employed myself in writing out instructions for the overseer during my absence, as also for the master of the WATERWITCH, for whose arrival we now kept a constant and anxious look out. In the evening about eight o'clock the sentinel on the hill reported a fire on the opposite side of Spencer's gulf. Upon receiving this intelligence I had blue lights exhibited, and rockets fired, which in a little time were replied to by rockets from the gulf and the lighting up of a second fire on sh.o.r.e a.s.suring me at once of the safe arrival of the cutter.

Chapter IV.

MAKE ARRANGEMENTS FOR GETTING UP STORES FROM THE WATERWITCH--LEAVE THE PARTY--SALT WATERCOURSE--MOUNT EYRE--ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY--LAKE TORRENS--RETURN TOWARDS THE HILLS--NATIVE FEMALE--SALINE CHARACTER OF THE COUNTRY--MOUNT DECEPTION--REACH THE EASTERN HILLS--LARGE WATERCOURSES--WATER HOLE IN A ROCK--GRa.s.sY BUT HILLY COUNTRY--RUNNING STREAM--ASCEND A RANGE--RETURN HOMEWARDS--DECAY OF TREES IN THE WATERCOURSES--SHOOT A KANGAROO--ARRIVE AT THE DEPOT--BURY STORES--MAKE PREPARATIONS FOR LEAVING--SEND DESPATCHES TO THE VESSEL.

July 6.--BEING anxious to pursue my explorations, and unwilling to lose another day solely for the purpose of receiving my letters, I sent down my overseer to arrange about getting our stores up from the vessel, which was about fourteen miles away, and to request the master to await my return from the north, and in the interval employ himself in surveying and sounding some salt water inlets, we had seen on the eastern sh.o.r.es of the gulf in our route up under Flinders range.

Having made all necessary arrangements and wished Mr. Scott good bye, I set off on horseback with the eldest of my native boys, taking a pack horse to carry our provisions, and some oats for the horses. After rounding a projecting corner of the range we pa.s.sed Mount Arden, still traversing open plains of great extent, and very stony. In some of these plains we found large puddles of water much discoloured by the soil, so that it was evident there had been heavy rains in this direction, though we had none to the southward.

After travelling twenty-four miles we came to a large watercourse winding from Flinders range through the plains, with its direction distinctly marked out by the numerous gum-trees upon its banks. This was the "salt watercourse" of my former journeys so called from the large reaches of salt water in its bed a mile or two among the hills. By digging in the gravelly bed of the channel, where the natives had scooped a small hole, we got some tolerable water, and were enabled to give as much as they required to our horses, but it was a slow and tedious operation. We could get very little out at once, and had to give it to them to drink in the black boy's duck frock, which answered the purpose of a bucket amazingly well.

There was not a blade of gra.s.s, or anything that the horses could eat near this creek, so I was obliged to tie them up for the night, after giving to each a feed of oats.

July 7.--Towards morning several showers of rain fell, and I found that I had got a severe attack of rheumatism, which proved both troublesome and painful. Pushing on for ten miles we reached the height standing out from the main range which Colonel Gawler named Mount Eyre, from its having been the limit of my first journey to the north in May 1839. This little hill is somewhat detached, of considerable elevation, and with a bold rocky overhanging summit to the southward. Having clambered to the top of it, I had an extensive view, and took several bearings.

The region before us appeared to consist of a low sandy country without either trees or shrubs, save a few stunted bushes. On the east this was backed by high rugged ranges, very barren in appearance, and extending northward as far as the eye could reach, beyond this level country to the West, and stretching far to the north-west, appeared a broad glittering stripe, looking like water, and const.i.tuting the bed of Lake Torrens. The lake appeared to be about twenty-five miles off, and of considerable breadth; but at so great distance, it was impossible to say whether there was actually any water in it or not.

Having completed my observations we descended again to the plains steering north-west for the lake. At two miles from Mount Eyre we found a puddle of water in the midst of the plains, and halted at it for the night. Our horses had good gra.s.s, but would not touch the water, which was extremely thick and muddy. Upon trying it ourselves we found it was not usable, even after it had been strained twice through a handkerchief, whilst boiling only thickened it; it was a deep red colour, from the soil, and was certainly an extraordinary and unpalatable mixture.