Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia, Complete

C >> Charles Sturt >> Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia, Complete

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PREPARATIONS.

The fitting out of another expedition was accordingly determined upon; and
about the end of September 1829, I received the Governor's instructions to
make the necessary preparations for a second descent into the interior,
for the purpose of tracing the Morumbidgee, or such rivers as it might
prove to be connected with, as far as practicable. In the event of failure
in this object, it was hoped that an attempt to regain the banks of the
Darling on a N.W. course from the point at which the expedition might be
thwarted in its primary views, would not be unattended with success. Under
any circumstances, however, by pursuing these measures, an important part
of the colony would necessarily be traversed, of which the features were
as yet altogether unknown.

It became my interest and my object to make the expedition as complete as
possible, and, as far as in me lay, to provide for every contingency: and
as it appeared to me that, in all likelihood, we should in one stage or
other of our journey have to trust entirely to water conveyance, I
determined on taking a whale-boat, whose dimensions and strength should in
some measure be proportioned to the service required. I likewise
constructed a small still for the distillation of water, in the event of
our finding the water of the Darling salt, when we should reach its banks.
The whale-boat, after being fitted, was taken to pieces for more
convenient carriage, as has been more particularly detailed in the last
chapter of the preceding volume.

So little danger had been apprehended from the natives in the former
journey, that three firelocks had been considered sufficient for our
defence. On the present occasion, however, I thought it adviseable to
provide arms for each individual.

Mr. Hume declined accompanying me, as the harvest was at hand. Mr. George
M'Leay therefore supplied his place, rather as a companion than as an
assistant; and of those who accompanied me down the banks of the
Macquarie, I again selected Harris (my body servant), Hopkinson, and
Fraser.

MR. KENT'S REPORT.

The concluding chapter of this volume, relative to the promontory of
St. Vincent, or Cape Jervis, has been furnished me by the kindness of
Mr. Kent, who accompanied the lamented officer to whom the further
exploration of that part of coast unhappily proved fatal. There is a
melancholy coincidence between Captain Barker's death and that of Captain
Cook, which cannot fail to interest the public, as the information that
has been furnished will call for their serious consideration. I shall
leave for their proper place, the remarks I have to offer upon it, since
my motive in these prefatory observations has been, to carry the reader
forward to that point at which he will have to view the proceedings of the
expedition alone, in order the more satisfactorily to arrive at their
results. And, although he must expect a considerable portion of dry
reading in the following pages, I have endeavoured to make the narrative
of events, some of which are remarkably striking, as interesting as
possible.

REMARKS ON THE PRESENT WORK; DELIVERANCE FROM DANGERS.

It only remains for me to refer the reader to the concluding chapter of
the preceding volume, for such general information as I have been enabled
to furnish upon the nature of the services on which I was employed, and on
the manner of conducting similar expeditions. Indeed, I trust that this
book (whatever be its defects) will be found to contain much valuable
information of a practical character, and I may venture to affirm, that it
will give a true description of the country, and of the various other
subjects of which it treats.

Notwithstanding that I have in my dedication alluded to the causes that
prevented the earlier appearance of this work, I feel it due both to
myself and the public here to state, that during these expeditions my
health had suffered so much, that I was unable to bear up against the
effects of exposure, bodily labour, poverty of diet, and the anxiety of
mind to which I was subjected. A residence on Norfolk Island, under
peculiarly harassing circumstances, completed that which the above causes
had commenced; and, after a succession of attacks, I became totally blind,
and am still unable either to read what I pen, or to venture abroad
without an attendant. When it is recollected, that I have been unassisted
in this work in any one particular, I hope some excuse will be found for
its imperfections. A wish to contribute to the public good led me to
undertake those journeys which have cost me so much. The same feeling
actuates me in recording their results; and I have the satisfaction to
know, that my path among a large and savage population was a bloodless
one; and that my intercourse with them was such as to lessen the danger to
future adventurers upon such hazardous enterprises, and to give them hope
where I had so often despaired. Something more powerful, than human
foresight or human prudence, appeared to avert the calamities and dangers
with which I and my companions were so frequently threatened; and had it
not been for the guidance and protection we received from the Providence
of that good and all-wise Being to whose care we committed ourselves, we
should, ere this, have ceased to rank among the number of His earthly
creatures.

CHAPTER II.

Commencement of the expedition in November, 1829.--Joined by Mr. George
M'Leay--Appearance of the party--Breadalbane Plains--Hospitality of Mr.
O'Brien--Yass Plains--Hill of Pouni--Path of a hurricane--Character of the
country between Underaliga and the Morumbidgee--Appearance of that river--
Junction of the Dumot with it--Crossing and recrossing--Geological
character and general aspect of the country--Plain of Pondebadgery--Few
natives seen.

The expedition which traversed the marshes of the Macquarie, left Sydney
on the 10th day of Nov. 1828. That destined to follow the waters of the
Morumbidgee, took its departure from the same capital on the 3rd of the
same month in the ensuing year. Rain had fallen in the interval, but not
in such quantities as to lead to the apprehension that it had either
influenced or swollen the western streams. It was rather expected that the
winter falls would facilitate the progress of the expedition, and it was
hoped that, as the field of its operations would in all probability be
considerably to the south of the parallel of Port Jackson, the extreme
heat to which the party and the animals had been exposed on the former
journey, would be less felt on the present occasion.

As there was no Government establishment to the S.W. at which I could
effect any repairs, or recruit my supplies, as I had done at Wellington
Valley, the expedition, when it left Sydney, was completed in every
branch, and was so fully provided with every necessary implement and
comfort, as to render any further aid, even had such been attainable, in a
great measure unnecessary. The Governor had watched over my preparations
with a degree of anxiety that evidenced the interest he felt in the
expedition, and his arrangements to ensure, as far as practicable, our
being met on our return, in the event of our being in distress, were
equally provident and satisfactory. It was not, however, to the providing
for our wants in the interior alone that His Excellency's views were
directed, but orders were given to hold a vessel in readiness, to be
dispatched at a given time to St. Vincent's Gulf, in case we should
ultimately succeed in making the south coast in its neighbourhood.

LEAVE SYDNEY.

The morning on which I left Sydney a second time, under such doubtful
circumstances, was perfectly serene and clear. I found myself at 5 a.m. of
that delightful morning leading my horses through the gates of those
barracks whose precincts I might never again enter, and whose inmates I
might never again behold assembled in military array. Yet, although the
chance of misfortune flashed across my mind, I was never lighter at heart,
or more joyous in spirit. It appeared to me that the stillness and harmony
of nature influenced my feelings on the occasion, and my mind forgot the
storms of life, as nature at that moment seemed to have forgotten the
tempests that sometimes agitate her.

APPEARANCE OF THE PARTY.

I proceeded direct to the house of my friend Mr. J. Deas Thomson, who had
agreed to accompany me to Brownlow Hill, a property belonging to
Mr. M'Leay, the Colonial Secretary, where his son, Mr. George M'Leay, was
to join the expedition. As soon as we had taken a hasty breakfast, I went
to the carters' barracks to superintend the first loading of the animals.
Mr. Murray, the superintendent, had arranged every article so well, and
had loaded the drays so compactly that I had no trouble, and little time
was lost in saddling the pack animals. At a quarter before 7 the party
filed through the turnpike-gate, and thus commenced its journey with the
greatest regularity. I have the scene, even at this distance of time,
vividly impressed upon my mind, and I have no doubt the kind friend who
was near me on the occasion, bears it as strongly on his recollection.
My servant Harris, who had shared my wanderings and had continued in my
service for eighteen years, led the advance, with his companion Hopkinson.
Nearly abreast of them the eccentric Fraser stalked along wholly lost in
thought. The two former had laid aside their military habits, and had
substituted the broad brimmed hat and the bushman's dress in their place,
but it was impossible to guess how Fraser intended to protect himself from
the heat or the damp, so little were his habiliments suited for the
occasion. He had his gun over his shoulder, and his double shot belt as
full as it could be of shot, although there was not a chance of his
expending a grain during the day. Some dogs Mr. Maxwell had kindly sent me
followed close at his heels, as if they knew his interest in them, and
they really seemed as if they were aware that they were about to exchange
their late confinement for the freedom of the woods. The whole of these
formed a kind of advanced guard. At some distance in the rear the drays
moved slowly along, on one of which rode the black boy mentioned in my
former volume, and behind them followed the pack animals. Robert Harris,
whom I had appointed to superintend the animals generally, kept his place
near the horses, and the heavy Clayton, my carpenter, brought up the rear.
I shall not forget the interest Thomson appeared to take in a scene that
must certainly have been new to him. Our progress was not checked by the
occurrence of a single accident, nor did I think it necessary to remain
with the men after we had gained that turn which, at about four miles from
Sydney, branches off to the left, and leads direct to Liverpool. From this
Point my companion and I pushed forward, in order to terminate a fifty
miles' ride a little sooner than we should have done at the leisurely pace
we had kept during the early part of our journey. We remained in Liverpool
for a short time, to prepare the commissariat office for the reception,
and to ensure the accommodation, of the party; and reached Brownlow Hill
a little after sunset.

LIVERPOOL-GOULBURN PLAINS.

As I have already described the country on this line of road as far us
Goulburn Plains, it will not be considered necessary that I should again
notice its features with minuteness.

WALLANDILLY-TYRANNA.

The party arrived at Glendarewel, the farm attached to Brownlow Hill, on
the 5th. I resumed my journey alone on the 8th. M'Leay had still some few
arrangements to make, so that I dispensed with his immediate attendance.
He overtook me, however, sooner than I expected, on the banks of the
Wallandilly. I had encamped under the bluff end of Cookbundoon, and,
having been disappointed in getting bearings when crossing the Razor Back,
I hoped that I should be enabled to connect a triangle from the summit
of Cookbundoon, or to secure bearings of some prominent hill to the south.
I found the brush, however, so thick on the top of the mountain, that I
could obtain no satisfactory view, and and M'Leay, who accompanied me,
agreed with me in considering that we were but ill repaid for the hot
scramble we had had. Crossing the western extremity of Goulburn Plains on
the 15th, we encamped on a chain of ponds behind Doctor Gibson's residence
at Tyranna, and as I had some arrangements to make with that gentleman,
I determined to give both the men and animals a day's rest. I availed
myself of Doctor Gibson's magazines to replace such of my provisions as I
had expended, as I found that I could do so without putting him to any
inconvenience; and I added two of his men to the party, intending to send
them back, in case of necessity, or, when we should have arrived at that
point from which it might appear expedient to forward an account of my
progress and ultimate views, for the governor's information.

On the 17th we struck the tents, and, crossing the chain of ponds near
which they had been pitched, entered a forest track, that gave place to
barren stony ridges of quartz formation. These continued for six or seven
miles, in the direction of Breadalbane Plains, upon which we were obliged
to stop, as we should have had some difficulty in procuring either water
or food, within any moderate distance beyond them. The water, indeed, that
we were obliged to content ourselves with was by no means good.
Breadalbane Plains are of inconsiderable extent, and are surrounded by
ridges, the appearance of which is not very promising. Large white masses
of quartz rock lie scattered over them, amongst trees of stunted growth.
Mr. Redall's farm was visible at the further extremity of the plains from
that by which we had entered them. It would appear that these plains are
connected with Goulburn Plains by a narrow valley, that was too wet for
the drays to have traversed.

BREADALBANE PLAINS.

Doctor Gibson had kindly accompanied us to Breadalbane Plains. On the
morning of the 18th he returned to Tyranna, and we pursued our journey,
keeping mostly on a W.S.W. course. From the barren hills over which we
passed, on leaving the plains, we descended upon an undulating country,
and found a change of rock, as well as of vegetation, upon it. Granite and
porphyry constituted its base. An open forest, on which the eucalyptus
mannifera alone prevailed, lay on either side of us, and although the soil
was coarse, and partook in a great measure of the decomposition of the
rock it covered, there was no deficiency of grass. On the contrary, this
part of the interior is decidedly well adapted for pasturing cattle.

THE LORN.

About 1 p.m. we passed Mr. Hume's station, with whom I remained for a
short time. He had fixed his establishment on the banks of the Lorn, a
small river, issuing from the broken country near Lake George, and now
ascertained to be one of the largest branches of the Lachlan River. We had
descended a barren pass of stringy bark scrub, on sandstone rock, a little
before we reached Mr. Hume's station, but around it the same, open forest
tract again prevailed. We crossed the Lorn, at 2 o'clock, leaving
Mr. Broughton's farm upon our left, and passed through a broken country,
which was very far from being deficient in pasture. We encamped on the
side of a water-course, about 4 o'clock, having travelled about fifteen
miles.

On the 19th, we observed no change in the soil or aspect of the country,
for the first five miles. The eucalyptus mannifera was the most prevalent
of the forest trees, and certainly its presence indicated a more
flourishing state in the minor vegetation. At about five miles, however,
from where we had slept, sandstone reappeared, and with it the barren
scrub that usually grows upon a sandy and inhospitable soil. One of the
drays was upset in its progress down a broken pass, where the road had
been altogether neglected, and it was difficult to avoid accidents.
Fortunately we suffered no further than in the delay that the necessity of
unloading the dray, and reloading it, occasioned. Mr. O'Brien, an
enterprising settler, who had pushed his flocks to the banks of the
Morumbidgee, and who was proceeding to visit his several stations,
overtook us in the midst of our troubles. We had already passed each other
frequently on the road, but he now preceded me to his establishment at
Yass; at which I proposed remaining for a day. We stopped about three
miles short of the plains for the night, at the gorge of the pass through
which we had latterly been advancing, and had gradually descended to a
more open country. From the place at which we were temporarily delayed,
and which is not inappropriately called the Devil's Pass, the road winds
about between ranges, differing in every respect from any we had as yet
noticed. The sides of the hills were steeper, and their summits sharper,
than any we had crossed. They were thickly covered with eucalypti and
brush, and, though based upon sandstone, were themselves of a schistose
formation.

YASS PLAINS.

Yharr or Yass Plains were discovered by Mr. Hovel, and Mr. Hume, the
companion of my journey down the Macquarie, in 1828. They take their name
from the little river that flows along their north and north-west
boundaries. They are surrounded on every side by forests, and excepting to
the W.N.W., as a central point, by hill. Undulating, but naked themselves,
they have the appearance of open downs, and are most admirably adapted for
sheep-walks, not only in point of vegetation, but also, because their
inequalities prevent their becoming swampy during the rainy season. They
are from nine to twelve miles in length, and from five to seven in breadth,
and although large masses of sandstone are scattered over them, a blue
secondary limestone composes the general bed of the river, that was darker
in colour and more compact than I had remarked the same kind of rock,
either at Wellington Valley, or in the Shoal Haven Gully. I have no doubt
that Yass Plains will ere long be wholly taken up as sheep-walks, and that
their value to the grazier will in a great measure counterbalance its
distance from the coast, or, more properly speaking, from the capital.
Sheep I should imagine would thrive uncommonly well upon these plains,
and would suffer less from distempers incidental to locality and to
climate, than in many parts of the colony over which they are now
wandering in thousands. And if the plains themselves do not afford
extensive arable tracts, there is, at least, sufficient good land near the
river to supply the wants of a numerous body of settlers.

HOSPITALITY OF MR. O'BRIEN.

We left Mr. O'Brien's station on the morning of the 21st, and, agreeably
to his advice, determined on gaining the Morumbidgee, by a circuit to the
N.W., rather than endanger the safety of the drays by entering the
mountain passes to the westward. Mr. O'Brien, however, would not permit us
to depart from his dwelling without taking away with us some further
proofs of his hospitality. The party had pushed forward before I, or
Mr. M'Leay, had mounted our horses; but on overtaking it, we found that
eight fine wethers had been added to our stock of animals.

HILL OF POUNI; ASPECT OF THE COUNTRY.

To the W.N.W. of Yass Plains there is a remarkable hill, called Pouni,
remarkable not so much on account of its height, as of its commanding
position. It had, I believe, already been ascended by one of the
Surveyor-general's assistants. The impracticability of the country to the
south of it, obliged us to pass under its opposite base, from which an
open forest country extended to the northward. We had already recrossed
the Yass River, and passed Mr. Barber's station, to that of Mr. Hume's
father, at which we stopped for a short time. Both farms are well
situated, the latter I should say, romantically so, it being immediately
under Pouni, the hill we have noticed. The country around both was open,
and both pasture and water were abundant.

Mr. O'Brien had been kind enough to send one of the natives who frequented
his station to escort us to his more advanced station upon the
Morumbidgee. Had it not been for the assistance we received from this man,
I should have had but little leisure for other duties: as it was however,
there was no fear of the party going astray. This gave M'Leay and myself
an opportunity of ascending Pouni, for the purpose of taking bearings; and
how ever warm the exertion of the ascent made us, the view from the summit
of the hill sufficiently repaid us, and the cool breeze that struck it,
although imperceptible in the forest below, soon dried the perspiration
from our brows. The scenery around us was certainly varied, yet many
parts of it put me forcibly in mind of the dark and gloomy tracks over
which my eye had wandered from similar elevations on the former journey.
This was especially the case in looking to the north, towards which point
the hills forming the right of the valley by which we had entered the
plains, decreased so rapidly in height that they were lost in the general
equality of the more remote country, almost ere they had reached abreast
of my position. From E.S.E. to W.S.W. the face of the country was hilly,
broken and irregular; forming deep ravines and precipitous glens, amid
which I was well aware the Morumbidgee was still struggling for freedom;
while mountains succeeded mountains in the back-ground, and were
themselves overtopped by lofty and very distant peaks. To the eastward,
however, the hills wore a more regular form, and were lightly covered with
wood. The plains occupied the space between them and Pouni; and a smaller
plain bore N.N.E. which, being embosomed in the forest, had hitherto
escaped our notice.

We overtook the party just as it cleared the open ground through which it
had previously been moving. A barren scrub succeeded it for about eight
miles. The soil in this scrub was light and sandy.

We stopped for the night at the head of a valley that seemed to have been
well trodden by cattle. The feed, therefore, was not abundant, nor was the
water good. We had, however, made a very fair journey, and I was unwilling
to press the animals. But in consequence, I fancy, of the scarcity of
food, they managed to creep away during the night, with the exception of
three or four of the bullocks, nor should we have collected them again so
soon as we did, or without infinite trouble, had it not been for our guide
and my black boy. We unavoidably lost a day, but left our position on the
23rd, for Underaliga, a station occupied by Doctor Harris, the gentleman I
have already had occasion to mention. We reached the banks of the creek
near the stock hut, about 4 p.m., having journeyed during the greater part
of the day through a poor country, partly of scrub and partly of open
forest-land, in neither of which was the soil or vegetation fresh or
abundant. At about three miles from Underaliga, the country entirely
changed its character, and its flatness was succeeded by a broken and
undulating surface. The soil upon the hills was coarse and sandy, from the
decomposition of the granite rock that constituted their base.
Nevertheless, the grass was abundant on the hills, though the roots or
tufts were far apart; and the hills were lightly studded with trees.

COURSE OF A HURRICANE.

In the course of the day we crossed the line of a hurricane that had just
swept with resistless force over the country, preserving a due north
course, and which we had heard from a distance, fortunately too great to
admit of its injuring us. It had opened a fearful gap in the forest
through which it had passed, of about a quarter of a mile in breadth.
Within that space, no tree had been able to withstand its fury, for it had
wrenched every bough from such as it had failed to prostrate, and they
stood naked in the midst of the surrounding wreck. I am inclined to think
that the rudeness of nature itself in these wild and uninhabited regions,
gives birth to these terrific phenomena. They have never occurred, so far
as I know, in the located districts. Our guide deserted us in the early
part of the day without assigning any reason for doing so. He went off
without being noticed, and thus lost the reward that would have been
bestowed on him had he mentioned his wish to return to Yass. I the more
regretted his having sneaked off, because he had had the kindness to put
us on a track we could not well lose.

COUNTRY FROM UNDERALIGA TO MORUMBIDGEE.

Underaliga, is said to be thirty miles from the Morumbidgee. The country
between the two has a sameness of character throughout. It is broken and
irregular, yet no one hill rises conspicuously over the rest. We found
ourselves at one time on their summits beside huge masses of granite, at
others crossing valleys of rich soil and green appearance. A country under
cultivation is so widely different from one the sod of which has never
been broken by the plough, that it is difficult and hazardous to form a
decided opinion on the latter. If you ask a stockman what kind of a
country lies, either to his right, or to his left, he is sure to condemn
it, unless it will afford the most abundant pasture. Accustomed to roam
about from one place to another, these men despise any but the richest
tracts, and include the rest of the neighbourhood in one sweeping clause
of condemnation. Thus I was led to expect, that we should pass over a
country of the very worst description, between Underaliga and the
Morumbidgee. Had it been similar to that midway between Yass and
Underaliga, we should, in truth, have found it so; but it struck me, that
there were many rich tracts of ground among the valleys of the former, and
that the very hills had a fair covering of grass upon them. What though
the soil was coarse, if the vegetation was good and sufficient? Perhaps
the greatest drawback to this part of the interior is the want of water;
yet we crossed several creeks, and remarked some deep water holes, that
can never be exhausted, even in the driest season. Wherever the situation
favoured our obtaining a view of the country on either side of us, while
among these hills, we found that to the eastward lofty and mountainous;
whilst that to the westward, had the appearance of fast sinking into
a level.

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