Three Expeditions into the Interior of Eastern Australia Volume II Part 28

There was no way of avoiding this spot, at least without delay, and I ordered the men immediately to encamp, being determined to go forward with a party on horseback and ascertain the position of some point where the ground was more favourable, and then to adopt such a mode of extricating the carts and proceeding thither as circ.u.mstances permitted.

I took with me provisions for three days that I might explore the country, if necessary, to the coast.

BEAUTIFUL REGION DISCOVERED.

I had not proceeded above five miles southward when I perceived before me a ridge in bluey distance, rather an unusual object in that close country. We soon after emerged from the wood and found that we were on a kind of tableland and, approaching a deep ravine coming from our right and terminating on a very fine-looking open country below, watered by a winding river. We descended by a bold feature to the bottom of the ravine and found there a foaming little river hurrying downwards over rocks.

After fording this stream with ascended a very steep but gra.s.sy mountain-side, and on reaching a brow of high land, what a n.o.ble prospect appeared! a river winding amongst meadows that were fully a mile broad and green as an emerald. Above them rose swelling hills of fantastic shapes, but all smooth and thickly covered with rich verdure. Behind these were higher hills, all having gra.s.s on their sides and trees on their summits, and extending east and west throughout the landscape as far as I could see. I hastened to ascertain the course of the river by riding about two miles along an entirely open gra.s.sy ridge, and then found again the Glenelg, flowing eastward towards an apparently much lower country. All our difficulties seemed thus already at an end, for we had here good firm ground, clear of timber, on which we could gallop once more. The river was making for the most promising bay on the coast (for I saw that it turned southward some miles below the hill on which I stood) through a country far surpa.s.sing in beauty and richness any part hitherto discovered. I hastened back to my men in the mud and arrived before sunset with the good news, having found most of the intervening country fit for travelling upon. Thus the muddy hill which had before seemed unsurmountable led to the immediate discovery of the true course of the river, and prevented me from continuing my route into the great angle of its course over unfavourable ground instead of thus reaching it so much sooner by a much less deviation from the course I wished to pursue. I now hoped to extricate the carts in the morning and henceforward to accomplish journeys of considerable length.

THE PARTY EXTRICATED WITH DIFFICULTY FROM THE MUD.

August 8.

It was in vain that I reconnoitred the environs of the hill of mud for some portion of surface harder than the rest; and we could only extricate ourselves by floundering through it. Patches of clay occurred but they led only to places where the surface under the pressure of the cattle was immediately converted into white and liquid mud. It was necessary to take the loads from the carts and carry them by hand half a mile, and then to remove the empty vehicles by the same means. After all this had been accomplished the boat-carriage (a four-wheeled waggon) still remained immovably fixed up to the axle-tree in mud in a situation where the block and tackle used in hoisting out the boats could not be applied. Much time was lost in our attempts to draw it through by joining all the chains we possessed and applying the united strength of all the bullocks; but even this was at length accomplished after the sun had set; the wheels, four inches broad, actually cutting through to the full depth of the spokes.

On the eastern side of the hill the ground descended into a ravine where it was gra.s.sy and firm enough; and it was a great relief to us all to feel thus at liberty, even by sunset, to start next morning towards the beautiful country which we now knew lay before us.

CHAPTER 3.10.

Cross various rivulets.

Enter the valley of Nangeela.

Native female and child.

Encamp on the Glenelg.

Cross the Wannon.

Rifle range.

Mount Gambier first seen from it.

Sterile moors crossed by the party.

Natives numerous but not accessible.

Again arrive on the Glenelg.

Indifferent country on its banks.

Breadth and velocity of the river.

Encamp on a tributary.

Difficult pa.s.sage.

The expedition brought to a stand in soft ground.

Excursion beyond.

Reach a fine point on the river.

The carts extricated.

The whole equipment reaches the river.

The boats launched on the Glenelg.

Mr. Stapylton left with a depot at Fort O'Hare.

Character of the river.

Ornithorynchus paradoxus.

Black swans.

Water brackish.

Isle of Bags.

Arrival at the seacoast.

Discovery bay.

Mouth of the Glenelg.

Waterholes dug in the beach.

Remarkable hollow.

Limestone cavern.

One fish caught in the Glenelg.

Stormy weather.

Return to the depot.

Difference in longitude.

CROSS VARIOUS RIVULETS.

August 9.

Once more in a state of forward movement we crossed green hills and running brooks until, when we had travelled nearly six miles from Muddy Camp and had crossed six fine streams or burns, we met with a more formidable impediment in the seventh. The sides of this ravine were so uncommonly steep that our new difficulty was how to move the vehicles down to the bank of the stream. In one place where a narrow point of ground projected across, a pa.s.sage seemed just possible; and after we had made it better with spades we attempted to take a light cart over. The acclivity was still however rather too much, and over went the cart, carrying the shaft bullock with it, and depositing all my instruments etc. under it in the bed of the stream. With travellers on roads this might have been thought a serious accident, but in our case we were prepared for joltings, and nothing was in the least degree injured; neither was the animal hurt, and we ascertained by the experiment, dangerous though it was, that still more was necessary to be done for the pa.s.sage of the heavy carts and boats which were still some way behind; and I encamped on the bank beyond that the men might set about this work.

No time was lost in filling up the hollow with all the dead trees that lay about and what others we could cut for the purpose; and thus before sunset the three carts and one waggon were got across. The rocks in the bed of this stream consisted of grey gneiss, and on the hills beyond it I found nodules of highly ferruginous sandstone.

ENTER THE VALLEY OF NANGEELA.

August 10.

By means of a block and tackle attached to a large tree the remaining carts and the boat-carriage were safely lowered to the bed of the stream.

To draw them up the opposite bank was practicable only by uniting the strength of several teams, yet this too was effected successfully and the whole party were enabled to go forward in the morning. At a mile and a half from the camp a scene was displayed to our view which gladdened every heart. An open gra.s.sy country extending as far as we could see--hills round and smooth as a carpet, meadows broad, and either green as an emerald or of a rich golden colour from the abundance, as we soon afterwards found, of a little ranunculus-like flower. Down into that delightful vale our vehicles trundled over a gentle slope, the earth being covered with a thick matted turf, apparently superior to anything of the kind previously seen. That extensive valley was enlivened by a winding stream, the waters of which glittered through trees fringing each bank.

NATIVE FEMALE AND CHILD.

As we went on our way rejoicing I perceived at length two figures at a distance who at first either did not see or did not mind us. They proved to be a gin with a little boy and as soon as the female saw us she began to run. I presently overtook her, and with the few words I knew prevailed on her to stop until the two gins of our party could come up; for I had long been at a loss for the names of localities. This woman was not so much alarmed as might have been expected; and I was glad to find that she and the gins perfectly understood each other. The difference in the costume on the banks of the Wando immediately attracted the notice of the females from the Lachlan. The bag usually carried by gins was neatly wove in basketwork and composed of a wiry kind of rush. She of Wando carried this bag fastened to her back, having under it two circular mats of the same material, and beneath all a kangaroo cloak, so that her back at least was sufficiently clothed, although she wore no dress in front. The boy was supported between the mats and cloak; and his pleased and youthful face, he being a very fine specimen of the native race, presented a striking contrast to the miserable looks of his whining mother. In the large bag she carried some pieces of firewood and a few roots, apparently of tao, which she had just been digging from the earth.

Such was the only visible inhabitant of this splendid valley resembling a n.o.bleman's park on a gigantic scale. She stated that the main river was called Temiangandgeen, a name unfortunately too long to be introduced into maps. We also obtained the gratifying intelligence that the whole country to the eastward was similar to these delightful vales and that, in the same direction, as Piper translated her statement, "there was no more sticking in mud." A favourable change in the weather accompanied our fortunate transition from the land of watery soil and dark woody ravines to an open country. The day was beautiful; and the balmy air was sweetened by a perfume resembling hay which arose from the thick and matted herbs and gra.s.s. Proceeding along the valley the stream on our left vanished at an isolated rocky hill; but, on closer examination, I found the apparent barrier cleft in two, and that the water pa.s.sed through, roaring over rocks. This was rather a singular feature in an open valley where the ground on each side of it was almost as low as the rocky bed of the stream itself. The hill was composed of granular felspar in a state of decomposition; the surrounding country consisting chiefly of very fine-grained sandstone. It is not easy to suppose that the river could ever have watered the valley in its present state and forced its way since through that isolated hill of hard rock; as to believe that the rock, now isolated, originally contained a chasm, and afforded once the lowest channel for the water before the valley now so open had been scooped out on each side by gradual decomposition. Another rivulet approached this hill, flowing under its eastern side and joining the Wando just below. According to my plan of following down the main river it was necessary to cross both these tributaries.

ENCAMP ON THE GLENELG.

In the open part of the valley the channels of these streams were deep and the banks soft; but at the base of the hill of Kinganyu (for such was its name) we found rock enough and, having effected a pa.s.sage there of both streams that afternoon, we encamped after travelling about three miles further on the banks of the Glenelg once more. Our route lay straight across an open gra.s.sy valley at the foot of swelling hills of the same description. Each of these valleys presented peculiar and very romantic features, but I could not decide which looked most beautiful.

All contained excellent soil and gra.s.s, surpa.s.sing in quality any I had seen in the present colony of New South Wales. The chase of the emu and kangaroo, which were both numerous, afforded us excellent sport on these fine downs. When about to cross the Wando I took my leave of the native woman before mentioned, that she might not have the trouble of fording the river, and I presented her with a tomahawk of which our females explained to her the use, although she seemed still at a loss to conceive the meaning of a present. The use of the little hatchet would be well enough known however to her tribe so, leaving her to return to it and a.s.suring her at the same time of our friendly disposition towards the natives, we proceeded.

The left bank of the princ.i.p.al stream was very bold where we reached it on this occasion, but still open and covered with rich turf. The right bank was woody and this was generally its character at the other points where we had seen the Glenelg. It was flowing with considerable rapidity amongst the same kind of bushes we had met with above, but they did not appear so likely here to obstruct the pa.s.sage of boats.

On the plains we found a singular acacia, the leaves being covered with a clammy exudation resembling honey-dew. It differed from A. graveolens in its much more rigid habit, shorter and broader leaves, and much shorter peduncles.*

(*Footnote. A. exudans, Lindley ma.n.u.scripts; ramis cra.s.sis rigidis angulatis leviter p.u.b.escentibus, phyllodiis oblongo-lanceolatis mucronatis oblique binerviis viscido-punctatis basi obsolete glandulosis, capitulis 1-2 axillaribus, pedunculis lanatis, bracteolis rigidis acutis p.u.b.escentibus alabastris longioribus (capitulis echinatis).)

August 11.

Pa.s.sing along the bank of the river under the steep gra.s.sy hills which consisted of very fine-grained, calcareous sandstone, we began two miles on to ascend these heights; as well to avoid a place where they closed precipitously on the Glenelg as to gain a point from which I hoped to command an extensive view of its further course, and so cut off some of the windings. From that point, or rather on riding through the woods to some distance beyond it, I perceived that the river was joined by another coming from the south-east through an open country of the finest character. Below their junction the princ.i.p.al river disappeared on pa.s.sing through a woody range, and turned towards the south-west.

JUNCTION OF THE WANNON.

Nothing could be seen beyond the crest which seemed a very predominant feature bounding the fine valley of the Wannon on the south. By turning round the eastern brow of the high ground on which we then were we gained a long ridge of smooth gra.s.sy land, leading by an easy descent from this height to the junction of the rivers. This high ground was thickly wooded with stringybark trees of large dimensions, and a few other eucalypti, together with banksia and casuarinae. The soil there was soft and sandy and the substratum contained ma.s.ses of ironstone. The shrubs upon the whole reminded me of those in the wooded parts of the sandhills on the sh.o.r.es of Port Jackson. Smoke arose from various parts of the distant country before us; and we perceived one native running at prodigious speed across the plain below.

CROSS THE WANNON.

On reaching the banks of the Wannon we found it a deep flowing stream, about half as large as the river itself. We succeeded in finding a ford and crossed after cutting away some bushes and levelling the banks.

Beyond the Wannon we travelled 2 3/4 miles over a portion of very fine country and encamped in a little vale in the bosom of a woody range, the western side of which overhung the river at the distance of two miles.

August 12.