The History of Australian Exploration from 1788 to 1888 Part 45

SMITH, A LAD OF EIGHTEEN, FOUND DEAD, MAY 8TH, 1839.

The following is Warrup's account of the finding of Smith's body, the young volunteer of Grey's party who died. Warrup was a Western Australian native who accompanied the search party under Mr. Roe:--

"7th Day. The next day away, away, away, away, returning, on our tracks returning, on our tracks returning. At Barramba we sit down; we eat bread and meat; they eat fresh-water mussels; the natives eat not fresh-water mussels.

"Away, away, away, away; we reach the water of Djunjup; we shoot game.

Away, away, away, through a forest away, through a forest away; we see no water. Through a forest away, along our tracks away. We sleep at Ka-jil-up; rain falls; the water here is good, the horses feed, well do the horses feed.

"Away, away; along our tracks away; hills ascending; then pleasantly away, away, through a forest away, through a forest away; we see a water-the water of Goonmarrup. Along the river away, along the river away, a short distance we go, then away, away, away, through a forest away.

"Then along another river away, across the river away. At Meergamuny we sleep, raising huts.

"Still we go onwards along the sea away, through the bush away, then along the sea away, along the sea away. We see three white men, three of them we see; they cry out, 'Where is water?' water we give them-brandy and water we give them. We sleep near the sea.

"Away, away we go (I, Mr. Roe, and Kinchela), along the sh.o.r.e away, along the sh.o.r.e away, along the sh.o.r.e away. We see a paper--the paper of Mortimer and Spofforth. I see Mr. Smith's footsteps ascending a sand-hill; onwards I go, regarding his footsteps. I see Mr. Smith dead. We commence digging the earth. Two SLEEPS had he been dead; greatly did I weep, and much I grieved. In his blanket folding him, we sc.r.a.ped away the earth.

"We sc.r.a.pe earth into the grave, we sc.r.a.pe the earth into the grave, a little wood we place in it. Much earth we heap upon it-much earth we throw up. No dogs can dig there, so much earth we throw up. The sun had inclined to the westward as we laid him in the ground."

(See page 121.--[Chapter V.])

EYRE'S LETTERS.

Adelaide, 4th January, 1844.

"Having observed that during the past year the subject of an overland journey from Moreton Bay to Port Essington has again been mooted by the Legislative Council of New South Wales, I do myself the honour of applying to you for information as to whether the Executive Government have any such expedition in contemplation during the present year.

"In the event of such being the case, I beg leave respectfully to offer my services to conduct the explorations, and should his Excellency the Governor do me the honour to confide in me so honourable and important an employment, his Excellency may confidently rely that no effort or exertions should be wanting on my part to ensure all practicable success.

In a former communication on the subject, I had the honour of giving a rough estimate of the probable expense of the undertaking, if carried out in accordance to a plan of operations and a scale of party then proposed.

The altered circ.u.mstances of the colonies would now probably enable an equipment to be prepared at much lower prices than were then estimated for, and I may remark that, although in my former letter to his Excellency, Sir G. Gipps, I specified, in accordance with his Excellency's request, the nature of the party I thought it advisable to have, and the general line of route I deemed most likely to be practicable, I shall be most happy to endeavour to carry out any views his Excellency may entertain upon the subject, with any party or any direction his Excellency may think desirable. The only point to which I would call the attention of his Excellency the Governor, in the event of an expedition being now in contemplation, is the great necessity there would be for the party to take the field early in the season, so as to have the whole winter before them for active operations; and, even then, I feel very doubtful whether it would be possible for a party to accomplish the whole distance to Port Essington in less than two winters, being, as I am, strongly of opinion that it will be found quite impracticable to travel in a tropical climate during the summer months.

"I have the honor to be, "Yours obediently, "E. J. EYRE."

"Adelaide, 23rd December, 1841.

"Sir,--Having understood from Captain Sturt that your Excellency is desirous of sending an expedition into the interior from the northeast coast towards Port Essington, I do myself the honour of addressing your Excellency upon the subject, as I feel a very great interest in the investigation of the interior of this singular continent, and shall be most ready to give my services to conduct an expedition should your Excellency decide upon fitting one out, and confide to me that responsible and honourable duty. In September last I met with a printed copy of a letter addressed by your Excellency to Lord John Russell, in which some allusion was made to your wish to send an expedition to explore the interior, and I at once wrote to the Colonial Secretary of Sydney to volunteer my services, but, from various causes, I am induced to believe that my communication must have miscarried, and I now therefore beg leave to renew that offer.

"As I am not in possession of your Excellency's views as to the nature of the expedition it might be in contemplation to send out, or the direction it might be considered desirable to take, I cannot do more at present than express my willingness to engage in the undertaking generally, and should your Excellency do me the honour of entertaining the offer I have made, I shall be most happy, when put in possession of your Excellency's wishes on the subject, to enter more fully into the necessary detail.

"Being now engaged in the public service at some distance inland, I should be most anxious to have as early notice as possible of your Excellency's reply to my proposal, so that, by giving timely notice to the colonial Government here, no obstruction of the public service might take place. It would also be necessary for me to be in Sydney as early as may be practicable to prepare the equipment of the expedition in time to take the field at the close of the summer.

"E. J. EYRE."

NOTE BY SIR GEORGE Gipps.

"Acknowledge receipt, and say I shall be happy to avail myself of the offer of Mr. Eyre's services in the proposed expedition, provided no prior claim be preferred by Captain Sturt, with whom I have had some communication on the subject. The whole expense of the expedition would be defrayed by the Government; but before I can enter into any engagement with Mr. Eyre it will be necessary that I should be furnished with some account of the equipment, etc., which would be considered necessary, in order that some estimate of the expense of the expedition may be formed.

"G. G.

"November 12."

(See page 155.--[Chapter VI.])

EXTRACT OF LETTER FROM MAJOR MITCh.e.l.l.

"5th September, 1845.

"In attention to your letter of yesterday, I have now the honour to submit the outlines of my plan for the exploration of the northern interior.

"I would therefore first beg leave to observe that my proposed line of route is founded on views which I have always entertained respecting the interior, but not more so than on the expediency of ascertaining the character of that portion of the colony to the northwest of the River Darling. To avoid unnecessary repet.i.tion, I shall annex a quotation here from my despatch, dated Peel's River, 29th February, 1832, in which my reasons for believing that there is a dividing range beyond the Darling, and that a great river may be looked for beyond it, are stated at length.

I have had no occasion to alter my plans or views respecting the interior since that time; on the contrary, subsequent experience has rather tended to support these views. The course of the Condamine, now better known, affords now a better indication that the high ground is in the situation I supposed. And I annex also a communication from Walter Bagot respecting that portion of the country beyond the Darling which is nearly opposite to Fort Bourke, affording additional evidence of the existence of a lofty range to the north-west, and a great river beyond it. The overflowing of the 'Waramble' agreed so well with what I observed at the upper part of the Darling in 1831, and near Fort Bourke in 1836, and the situation of the range and river beyond accord so well with all that can reasonably be a.s.sumed, as to leave no doubt in my mind as to the accuracy of Mr.

Bagot's statement, even where it is founded on that of the natives."

MINUTE BY SIR G. Gipps.

"Acknowledge receipt, and inform Sir Thos. Mitch.e.l.l, that desiring to leave him as far as possible free to act upon his own judgment in the arduous undertaking in which he is about to embark, I do not consider it necessary to do more than communicate to him my approval of the course which he has proposed. Mr. Townsend will be authorised to accompany him, and act as his next in command, and Mr. Stephenson may, should Sir Thomas himself approve of it, be engaged at a salary of 7s. 6d. per diem from the day of his leaving Sydney; he must, however, find his own horse.

"Mr. Townsend will, during his absence, as well as Sir Thomas Mitch.e.l.l himself, continue to receive his usual salary from the land fund, but every other expense will be charged against the sum voted for the purpose by the Legislative Council, which is now increased to 2,000."

(See page 156.--[Chapter VI.])

EXTRACT OF A LETTER OF MR. WALTER BAGOT.

"20th January, 1844.

"The country beyond the Darling for the first few miles from the river exhibits the same features as on its southern bank, the soil blackish, soft, and yielding; the trees princ.i.p.ally myall, and a species of myall, called by the squatters rosewood, interspersed with the small and gnarled forest oak. About ten miles from the river, and nearly parallel to it, is the Waramble, a sort of swamp, boggy, and difficult to cross after wet weather, directly after which water remains in the holes along its course. From thirty to forty miles beyond this is the Nareen Creek. Here, except in very dry seasons, water stands. This I know from the Nareen blacks coming into the Barwin only at those times when they are in much danger from the Barwin blacks, who are extremely hostile to them. I cannot tell where the Nareen joins the Barwin; as far as I am acquainted with it, it is nearly parallel to it, slightly converging to the river westward. Between the Waramble and Nareen there is no perceptible rising ground; from the harder nature of the soil, the plain becoming more open, and the timber straighter and larger. I have no doubt that there is a gradual ascent. The gra.s.s is extremely luxuriant, like all the unstocked portions of rich ground in this country, the long kangaroo gra.s.s rising to the saddle skirts. The brigalow, which I have never seen in any but high ground, is here too.

"I now come to the reports of the blacks, which are: That about three days' journey of theirs (ninety miles) beyond the Barwin is a lofty range of mountains (I have beard of these mountains also from a gentleman who got a distant view of them from a plain near the Nareen); that a river, called the Culgoa, runs at the foot of these mountains, which river, from the similarity of the name, I am inclined to think, is one which empties itself into the Barwin, about one hundred miles lower down than the junction of the Castlereagh. I have remarked that the word Culgoa in the Wilem dialect signifies 'waterfall,' which adds to the likelihood of its being a mountain stream; that after crossing the mountains, which occupies one day (thirty miles), and travelling for two days (sixty miles), still north-west, they reach a large river, broader and deeper than the Barwin, the waters of which river never fail. Their name for this river I cannot now recollect. The old black, who gave the clearest account of this river, and who was the only one I have seen who admitted having been actually at this river, distinctly described its course to be different from that of the Barwin, and, perhaps, north or south-west.

Might not this river be a tributary to one of the large rivers which flow into the Gulph of Carpentaria? and if so, how well adapted for a line of road traversing its valley to the Gulph? I have often wished, while residing on the Barwin, to make up a party to explore the size and course of this river, but the dangerous character of the black tribes in its direction, with the late Iong-continued drought, were enough to prevent it."

(See page 156.--[Chapter VI.])