Wright, meantime, with the main body of the party had been camping and wandering between the Darling and Bulloo; his men sickened and died of scurvy, and he consumed his rations, and reduced the condition of his stock to no purpose. On Brahe's return he made an extraordinary display of energy, and returned with him to the depôt on Cooper's Creek, at which place they arrived on the 8th of May, whilst Burke and Wills were making their futile attempt to reach Mount Hopeless. Wright and Brahe came to the conclusion that no one had visited the caché since Brahe's departure, although the fact seems almost incredible. Brahe states, however:—
"Mr. Burke's return being so soon after my departure caused the tracks of his camels to correspond in the character of age exactly with our own tracks. The remains of three separate fires led us to suppose that blacks had been camped there. The fires had burned to mere ashes, and left no perceptible evidence from the position of the sticks as to whether they were black men's fires or not. The ground above the caché was so perfectly restored to the appearance it presented when I left it, that in the absence of any fresh sign or mark of any description to be seen near, it was impossible to suppose that it had been disturbed."
Wright and Brahe rode away again, and when Wills afterwards visited the depôt to bury the journals, he says that he could not perceive any sign of it having been visited; a series of singular and fatal oversights that almost seem to have been pre-ordained.
On the 18th of June, Wright reached the Darling and sent in his dispatches. As may be imagined they occasioned great consternation, and no time was lost in instituting search parties to scour half the continent for the missing men. Fortunately a light party, under Mr. A. W. Howitt, had already been equipped, to follow on Burke's tracks, for the long absence and silence of Wright had already caused people to feel anxious. Howitt's party was doubled and he made all speed to Cooper's Creek. Meantime the other colonies took the matter up and three more parties were in the field. Howitt, whose fortunes we must follow, started early in July; the VICTORIA, steam sloop, was sent up to the mouth of the Albert River, in the Gulf of Carpentaria, from Brisbane, having Mr. W. Landsborough on board. Another Queensland expedition, under Mr. Walker, left the furthest out station, in the Rockhampton district, to proceed overland to the Gulf, and from South Australia, started M'Kinlay.
On the 8th of September Howitt, having with him Brahe, reached Cooper's Creek, and on the 13th arrived at the fatal depôt, but like all the others, he says that he could not see any sign of the caché having been touched; nor did he stop to examine it. On the 15th, while trying to follow Burke's outward track down the creek, Howitt says:—
"I crossed at a neck of sand, and again came on the track of a camel going up the creek; at the same time I found a native, who began to gesticulate in a very excited manner, and to point down the creek, bawling out, 'Gow! gow!' as loud as he could. When I went towards him he ran away, and finding it impossible to get him to come to me, I turned back to follow the camel track, and to look after my party, as I had not seen anything of them for some miles. The track was visible in sandy places, and was evidently the same I had seen for the last two days. I also found horse tracks in places, but very old. Crossing the creek I cut our track, and rode after the party. In doing so I came upon three pounds of tobacco, which had lain where I saw it for some time. This, together with the knife-handle, the fresh horse tracks, and the camel track going eastward, puzzled me extremely, and led me into a hundred conjectures. At the lower end of the large reach of water before mentioned, I met Sandy and Frank looking for me, with the intelligence that King, the only survivor of Mr. Burke's party, had been found. [See Appendix.] A little further on I found the party halted, and immediately went across to the black's wurleys, where I found King sitting in a hut that the blacks had made for him. He presented a melancholy appearance-wasted to a shadow, and hardly to be distinguished as a civilised being, except by the remnants of clothes on him."
So soon as King had recovered sufficient strength to accompany the party they went to the place where Wills had died, and found his body in the gunyah as King had described it, there it was buried. On the 21st, Burke's body was found up the creek, he too was buried where he died.
Howitt then, after rewarding the blacks who had cared for King, started home again by easy stages taking the rescued man with him. On his return to Melbourne, Howitt was sent back to disinter the remains of the explorers, and bring them down to Melbourne, which task he safely accomplished. A public funeral then took place, and subsequently a statue was erected to their memory.
Dr. Beckler, and Messrs. Stone, Purcell, and Patton were the others whose lives were sacrificed on this unfortunate trip, the first three were members of Wright's party, the last one was with Brahe at the depôt.
Before ending the narration of this journey of Burke and Wills, it will be remembered, that an account of Stuart's expedition to Central Mount Stuart, and Attack Creek was forwarded to the leader; these papers were entrusted to Trooper Lyons to take from Swan Hill to Wright's camp. Wright ordered him on to follow the tracks of Burke, who he supposed was about two hundred miles away; he was accompanied by the saddler of the party, McPherson, and a black boy, Dick. They followed Burke's tracks for some days but never reached him, their horses gave in, and they being insufficiently provided with provisions nearly perished, finally they were picked up by a relief party under Doctor Beckler.
The nardoo which served to prolong the life of Burke and Wills for a considerable time is a small ground plant resembling clover in the shape of its leaves. These leaves are covered with silvery down, and the seeds, too, have this down on them. When fresh the seeds are flat and oval. The nardoo grows in loose soil, subject to inundation, generally on polygonum flats.
Whilst this tragedy had been enacted, Stuart was endeavouring to force his way across Australia, and at the time his fellow explorers were slowly starving to death on Cooper's Creek, he was making gallant efforts to cross the dry tableland that separated him from the heads of the coast rivers.
Stuart followed his old track by the way of the Fincke and the Hugh, and on the 12th April arrived at their former acquaintance, the Bonney, which they found running strong, with abundant green feed on its banks. They followed it down until it spread out and was lost in a large plain; so striking north, the party on the 21st April reached Tennant's Creek, and four days after, they came to the scene of their skirmish with the natives, on Attack Creek. This time, although the tracks of natives were numerous, they were permitted to pass peacefully onwards. Still pushing to the north, along the base of the line of broken range, that in that locality runs north and south, Stuart found and named many creeks, all of them heading from the range and forming for a considerable space good defined channels, but becoming lost on entering the low country. At last, on the 4th of May, he came to the end of the range, which he there called the Ashburton Range. Here he made several attempts to the north-west, but could discover neither water nor watercourses in that direction; nothing but flooded plains, beautifully grassed, but heavy and rotten to ride over; beyond this, the country changed for the worse, becoming sandy and scrubby.
On the 16th of May, he first encountered a new kind of scrub, which is now known as Stuart's hedgewood. It spreads out in many branches from the root upwards, interlacing with its neighbours on either side, forming an impervious hedge. On the 23rd, he found the magnificent sheet of water, which he called Newcastle Waters, and which at first seemed to promise him good assistance in getting to the north, but it proved delusive. Beyond the Newcastle he could not advance his party at all; north, north-cast, and north-west, it was all the same endless grassy plains, terminating in thick scrubby forest, until at last he had again to give up hope, and return to Adelaide.
Such, however, was the confidence of the authorities in him, and such his own energy, that in less than a month he was on his way to Chambers' Creek, to make preparations for a fresh start. His last journey had proved the existence of a long line of good country, fairly well-watered, and although beyond it he had not been able to proceed, still, there was no knowing what a fresh trial might bring forth. He had, at any rate, brought back his party in safety, with the loss of only a few horses; and in no way deterred by the fate of the Victorian explorers, he started once more, this time destined to meet with success.
Stuart's last Expedition—Frew's Pond—Daly Waters—Arrival at the Sea—The flag at last hoisted on the northern shore—Return—Serious illness of the Leader—The Burke relief Expedition—John M'Kinlay—Native rumours—Discovery of Gray's body—Hodgkinson sent to Blanche Water with the news—Returns with the information of King's rescue by Howitt— M'Kinlay starts north—Reaches the Gulf coast—Makes for the new Queensland settlements on the Burdekin—Reaches the Bowen River in safety—Mystery of the camel's tracks—Landsborough's expedition— Discovery of the Gregory River—The Herbert—Return to the Albert depôt— News of Burke and Wills—Landsborough reduces his party and starts home overland—Returns by way of the Barcoo—Landsborough and his critics—His work as an Explorer—Walker starts from Rockhampton—Another L tree found on the Barcoo—Walker crosses the head of the Flinders—Finds the tracks of Burke and Wills—Tries to follow them up—Returns to Queensland—Abandonment of the desert theory—Private expeditions— Dalrymple and others.
On leaving the settled districts, Stuart followed his old track, now so familiar to him, until on the 14th April, 1862, we find him encamped at the upper end of Newcastle Waters, once more about to try to force a passage through the forest of scrub to the north. On the second day he was partly successful, finding an isolated waterhole, surrounded by conglomerate rock. This he called Frew's Pond, and it is now a well-known camping place on the overland telegraph line.
Past this spot he was not able to make any progress; twice he tried hard to reach some tributary of the Victoria River, but failed, and had to spend many long days in fruitlessly riding through dense mulga and hedgewood scrub. At length, after much hope deferred, and finding a few scanty waterholes that did not serve his purpose, he succeeded in striking the head of a chain of ponds running to the north. These being followed down, led him to the head of the creek, called Daly Waters Creek, and finally to the large waterhole bearing that name, where the telegraph station now stands.
Beyond this point the creek was lost in a swamp, and Stuart was unable to find the channel where it re-formed, now known as the Birdum. Missing this watercourse, Stuart worked his way to the eastward, to a creek he called the Strangways, which led him down to the Roper River. This river he crossed, and followed up a northern tributary named by him the Chambers, a name he was so fond of conferring out of gratitude to his constant friend, John Chambers.
His troubles regarding water were now over, but his horses began to fall lame, and he had to carefully husband his stock of spare shoes to carry him back to Adelaide. From the Chambers he came to the Katherine, the lower course of the Flying Fox Creek of Leichhardt, called by Stuart as above, the name it now bears. Thence he struck across the tableland, and descended to the head waters of the river he christened the Adelaide, although at first he thought that he was on the Alligator River. Following the Adelaide, he soon found himself travelling amongst rich tropical scenery, that told him he was at last approaching the coast.
On the 24th July, he went to the north-east, intending to make the sea shore and travel along the beach to the mouth of the Adelaide River. He only told two of the party of the eventful moment awaiting them. As they rode on, Thring, who was ahead, called out, "The sea!" which so took the majority by surprise, that they were some time before they understood what was meant, and then three hearty cheers burst forth.
At this, his first point of contact, Stuart dipped his hands and feet in the sea, and the initials J.M.D.S. were cut on the largest tree they could find. He then attempted to make the mouth of the Adelaide, but found the route too boggy for the horses, and not seeing the utility of fatiguing them for nothing, had a space cleared where they were, and a tall sapling stripped of its boughs for a flagstaff; on this he hoisted the Union Jack he had carried with him. A memorial of the visit was then buried at the foot of the impromptu staff. It was an air-tight tin case containing the following paper:—
"South Australian Great Northern Exploring Expedition.—The exploring party, under the command of John M'Dowall Stuart, arrived at this spot on the 25th day of July, 1862, having crossed the entire continent of Australia, from the Southern to the Indian Ocean, passing through the centre. They left the city of Adelaide on the 26th day of October, 1861, and the most northern station of the colony on the 21st day of January, 1862. To commemorate this happy event., they have raised this flag bearing his name. All well. God save the Queen."
Stuart and the party signed their names to this document. The tree has since been found and recognised, but this memorial has not been discovered.
More fortunate than the other travellers who reached the Gulf shore, Stuart was able to survey the open sea, instead of having to be content with the sight of some mangrove trees and salt water.
Next day Stuart started on his return. His health was failing, and his horses were sadly weakened. After leaving the Newcastle, the water in the many short creeks coming from the range was found to be at the last gasp; in some there was none, in others but a scanty supply. The horses commenced to give in rapidly, and one after another they were left on successive dry stages. Stuart, too, began to think that he would never live to reach the settled districts. Scurvy had brought him down to a terrible state, and after all his success, he scarcely hoped to profit by it. His right hand was nearly useless to him, and after sunset he was blind. He could not stand the pain caused by riding, and a stretcher had to be made to carry him on. Slowly and painfully they crept along until the first station, Mount Margaret, was reached, and here the leader, who was only a skeleton, was able to get a little relief, and finally recovered sufficiently to ride to Adelaide.
This was the last exploration conducted by Stuart. He was rewarded by theGovernment of the colony he had served so well, and went to reside inEngland, where he died. He never recovered from the great suffering ofhis return journey.
At a re-union of returned Australians, held at Glasgow shortly before his death, he had to speak, and it was evident to all that he had quite broken down. He said that "his eyesight and his memory were so far gone that he was unable to compose a speech, or, indeed, to recollect many of the incidents that happened throughout the course of his explorations." This was the sad ending of one of our greatest explorers. Eight full years of his life had been spent in exploring Australia, and neither his means nor resources had ever been great—in fact, on some occasions they had been dangerously small—but he always brought his party back in safety, through every difficulty.
In following up Stuart's last expedition, we have lost sight for a time of the three parties sent out after Burke and Wills, which, although they were unsuccessful in their first aim, yet did sterling service in the field of discovery.
John M'Kinlay started from Adelaide-the scene of so many departures on similar errands—on October 26th, 1861. On arriving at Blanche Water, he was informed that a report was current amongst the natives that some white men and camels had been seen at a distant inland water, but knowing the little reliance to be placed on such statements, he did not at the time pay much attention to it. On the 27th of September, he crossed Lake Torrens—a feat which would have excited great interest a few years ago—and made for Lake Pando, or Lake Hope, as it is better known. From here he went north, crossing the country so often described, wherein Cooper's Creek is lost in many watercourses. He now got more definite details about the whites that he had formerly heard of, and pressed forward to the place indicated by the natives, and on the 18th October, formed a depôt camp for his main party, and started ahead in company with two white men and a native.
Passing through a country full of small shallow lakes, of all of which M'Kinlay has faithfully preserved the terrible native names, such as Lake Moolion—dhurunnie, etc., they came to a watercourse, whereon they found a grave and picked up a battered pint pot. Next morning they opened the grave, and in it was the body of a European, the skull being marked, so M'Kinlay says, with two sabre cuts. He noted down the description of the body, and, from the locality and surroundings, it has been pronounced to have been the body of Gray, who died before reaching Cooper's Creek.
If the reader will remember what was the result of the circumstantial accounts of Leichhardt's murder retailed to Hely by the natives, he will not be astonished at what follows.
The native that M'Kinlay had with him thus described the manner of the white man's death, which, of course, was all pure fiction. First, that the whites were attacked in camp by the natives, who murdered the whole party, finishing up by eating the bodies of the other men. Next, that the journals, saddles, etc., were buried at a fake a short distance away. Naturally, under the circumstances, M'Kinlay believed this story; particularly as further search revealed another grave (empty) and other small evidences of the presence of whites.
Next morning a tribe of blacks appeared, and although they immediately ran away, one was captured, who corroborated the story told by M'Kinlay's native. The prisoner had marks both of ball and shot wounds on him; he stated that there was a pistol concealed near a neighbouring lake, and he was sent to fetch it; but instead, he appeared the following morning at the head of a host of others, well armed, and bent on mischief. The leader was obliged to order his men to fire on them, and it was only after several discharges that they ran away.
M'Kinlay was now quite satisfied that he had found all that remained of the Victorian expedition; and after burying a letter for the information of any after comers, they left Lake Massacre, as he called it, and returned to his depôt camp. The letter hidden was as follows:—
"S.A.B.R. Expedition,
"October 23rd, 1861.
"To the leader of any expedition seeking tidings of Burke and party:—
"Sir,—I reached this water on the 19th instant, and by means of a native guide discovered a European camp, one mile north on west side of flat. At, or near this camp, traces of horses, camels, and whites were found. Hair, apparently belonging to Mr. Wills, Charles Gray, Yr. Burke, or King, was picked from the surface of a grave dug by a spade, and from the skull of a European buried by the natives. Other less important traces-such as a pannikin, oil can, saddle stuffing, &c., have been found. Beware of the natives, on whom we have had to fire. We do not intend to return to Adelaide, but proceed to west of north. From information, all Burke's party were killed and eaten.
"[P.S.—All the party in good health.]
"If you had any difficulty in reaching this spot, and wish to return to Adelaide by a more practicable route, you may do so for at least three months to come, by driving west eighteen miles, then south of west, cutting our dray track within thirty miles. Abundance of water and feed at easy stages."
M'Kinlay next sent Mr. Hodgkinson with men and packhorses to Blanche Water, to take down the news of his discovery, and to bring back rations for a prolonged exploration. Meantime he remained in camp. From one old native, with whom he had a long conversation, he obtained another version of the supposed massacre, which evidently had a certain admixture of truth.
This was to the effect that the whites repulsed an attack of the natives on their return journey; that in the affair, one white man was killed; he was buried after the fight, and the others went south. The natives then dug up the body and ate the flesh. The blackfellow then described minutely the different waters passed by Burke, and the way the men lived on the seeds of the nardoo plant, which he must have heard of from other natives.
After waiting a little over a month, Mr. Hodgkinson returned, and brought back with him the news of Howitt's success in finding King. This explained M'Kinlay's discovery as being that of Gray's body, the adjuncts of the fight turning out to be exaggerations of the natives. He made an excursion to the eastward, and visited the graves of the two men buried by Howitt, on Cooper's Creek, then he started for the north.
The perusal of his journal, containing the account of his first few weeks' travel, is hard work to accomplish. The native names of every small lake and waterhole are all given in full, and as the course of each day's travel is omitted, it becomes rather difficult to follow the track of the expedition, excepting on the map.
A fairly northerly course was, however, maintained, and M'Kinlay speaks highly of the country for pastoral purposes. As it was the dry time of the year, immediately preceding the setting in of the rains, it shows what a severe season must have been encountered by Sturt when on his last struggle north, as that explorer finally turned his-back in much the same locality.
On the 27th of February, heavy rains set in, fortunately, they were in the neighbourhood of some stony ridges and sand hills, on which they camped, and where they had plenty of space to feed their animals, although surrounded by water.
On March 10th, they started again, and steadily continued north through good travelling country, keeping back from the main creek, which was now too flooded and boggy to follow. This large creek, which was called by M'Kinlay the Mueller, is one of the main rivers of the interior, now known as the Diamantina. M'Kinlay soon kept more to the westward and crossed the stony range, which bears his name, in much the same place that Burke and Wills did. He christened many of the large tributaries of the inland watershed, but most of his names have been replaced by others, it having been difficult to determine them, as in many cases, the creeks he named were but anabranches.
The history of their progress is now monotonous in the extreme, the country through which they travelled presented no great obstacle to the travellers' advance, being well-grassed and watered; and finally on the 6th May they reached the Leichhardt River.
M'Kinlay was most anxious to get to the mouth of the Albert, it being understood that Captain Norman with the steamer Victoria, would there form a depôt for the use of the other explorers, Landsborough and Walker, and M'Kinlay's stock of rations was getting perilously low.
His attempts to reach the sea were, however, fruitless. He was continually turned back by deep and broad mangrove creeks and boggy flats, and on the 21st May the party started for the nearest settled districts in Queensland, in the direction of Port Denison.
They were now on the country already twice described by both Leichhardt and Gregory, and making in the same direction that Gregory did on his return journey. Like him, too, M'Kinlay missed following up the Flinders. He crossed on to the head of the head of the Burdekin, which river he followed down, continually trusting to meet the advancing flocks and herds of the settlers, then pushing forward into the new country. On reaching Mount M'Connell, where the tracks of the two former explorers came respectively to the river, and left it, M'Kinlay kept down the river, crossing the formidable Leichhardt Range, through which the Burdekin forces its way to the lower lands of the coast. Here they came to a temporary station, just formed by Mr. Phillip Somer, where they were received with the usual hearty hospitality. Since leaving the Gulf country the explorers had subsisted on little else than horse and camel flesh, and were necessarily in rather a weak condition; but whilst they were toiling down the channel of the Upper Burdekin, suffering semi-starvation, they were actually travelling amongst the advance-guard of the pioneer squatters, and had they but thought of resting a day and looking around, their wants would have been relieved long before they sighted the gorge of the Burdekin, and their toilsome journey through that gorge have been prevented.
The tracks of the camels had been seen by one squatter [Note, below] at least within a few hours after the cavalcade had passed down the river, and a very little trouble would have saved M'Kinlay much suffering.
[Note: Mr. E. Cunningham, who had then just formed Burdekin Downs Station. He tells, with much amusement, how the nature of the tracks puzzled himself and his black boy. The Burdekin pioneers of course did not expect M'Kinlay's advent amongst them, although they knew he was out west, and such an animal as a camel did not enter into their reckoning. Cunningham says that the only thing he could think of was, that it was a return party who had been looking for new country, and that, having footsore horses and no shoes left, they had wrapped up their horses' feet with bandages.]
M'Kinlay's trip across the continent did good service at this juncture. His track was across the country that had always been considered a terrible desert, useless for pastoral occupation. His report being of such a favourable nature, dealt a final blow to this theory, which Stuart had partly demolished. Fortunately, M'Kinlay was an experienced man, whose verdict was accepted without cavil.
The successful way in which he conducted his party across the continent,and his well-known merits, led to his afterwards being selected by theSouth Australian Government for a responsible post in the NorthernTerritory, which will be dealt with in its proper order.
On the 14th of August, 1861, the FIREFLY, having on board the Brisbane search party for Burke and Wills, left Brisbane. The leader of the party was Mr. William Landsborough, an experienced bushman, having already a good knowledge of new country gained in private exploration. The brig was convoyed by the VICTORIA, under Captain Norman, who had charge of the expedition until the party were landed. On the way up, the vessels were separated, and the FIREFLY suffered shipwreck on one of Sir Charles Hardy's islands; the horses being got ashore safely. On the VICTORIA coming up, the FIREFLY was repaired sufficiently to serve as a transport. hulk and the party re-embarked; she was taken in tow by the VICTORIA, and safely reached her destination at the mouth of the Albert River, in the Gulf of Carpentaria.
The VICTORIA, as arranged, remained there to render assistance to Landsborough on his return, and to the Rockhampton search party under Mr. Walker, on his arrival overland. Landsborough's track, after leaving the Albert, took him on to the banks of a new river, which had the same outlet as the Albert, but on account of the other explorers crossing below the junction, had been hitherto unnoticed. This river, which is a constantly running stream, and flows through well-grassed, level country, was named by him the Gregory. His written opinion of the much-disputed qualities of this district is most sanguine, with regard to its future as a sheep country. Experience, however, has proved otherwise, it being found to be fitted only for cattle. Higher up, Landsborough found the river drier, and presenting a far less tropical appearance than on its lower course. After continued efforts to the south, and the discovery of many tributary creeks, Landsborough, on the 21St of December, found the river which he named the Herbert, one of the most important streams running south, and joining Eyre's Creek. This river has since been re-named by the Queensland Government, in consequence of there being another Herbert River in the territory. With most questionable taste, the officials, out of a wide choice of names, could find none better than the absurd, and inappropriate one of the GEORGINA! by which it is now known.
The first important feature in Landsborough's Herbert, which runs through richly-grassed tableland country, was met with on the day following its discovery, when a fine sheet of water was found which they named Lake Mary; below this, some distance, was another pool—Lake Frances. Landsborough now made an attempt to push to the westward, but failed through want of water, He then returned up the Herbert, and crossed on to the head of the O'Shanassy, a tributary of the Gregory. Down this river, and by way of Beames' Brook, they returned to the depôt on the Albert, where they arrived on the 8th February, 1862, having been absent nearly three months.
Here Landsborough learnt that during his absence Walker had arrived, and reported finding the tracks of Burke and Wills on the Flinders. He therefore determined to go home in that direction, instead of returning in the steamer, being anxious to see if he could render any assistance. The party was reduced in number to three whites and three blacks in all, namely, Messrs. Landsborough, Bourne, and Gleeson, and the three boys—Jacky, Jemmy, and Fisherman They had a decidedly insufficient stock of rations when they started the second time, being without tea and sugar, the VICTORIA not being able to supply them with any.
From the Albert depôt Landsborough made for the Flinders, by way of the Leichhardt, and arrived at that river on the 19th February. He followed it up, and was rewarded by being the first discoverer of the beautiful downs country through which it runs. He named the isolated and remarkable hills visible from the river Fort Bowen and Mounts Brown and Little. On the upper part of the Flinders he named Walker's Creek—a considerable tributary—and from there struck more to the south, towards Bowen Downs country discovered by himself and Buchanan two years previously. Here the leader was in hopes of finding a newly-formed station, and obtaining some more supplies; but the country was still untenanted, although in one place they observed the track of a dray, and they also saw the tracks of a party of horsemen near Aramac Creek. They now made for the Thomson, which is formed by the junction of the Landsborough and Cornish Creeks, but did not follow it down to the Barcoo, striking that river higher up. On the Barcoo they had a slight skirmish with the blacks, who nearly surprised them during the night.
Landsborough was now back in well-known country; some of it, in fact, he had been over before himself, and from the number of trees they saw marked with different initials, it was evident that before long stock would be on its way out. He crossed on to the Warrego, followed that river down, and on the 21st of May came to the station of Messrs. Neilson and Williams, where they heard of the fate of Burke and Wills, the objects of their search. From here the party proceeded to the Darling, and finally to Melbourne.
On Landsborough's arrival in Melbourne, he found that rumour had accredited him with being more interested in looking for available pastoral country than in hunting for Burke and Wills. So far as can be seen, this accusation was utterly groundless, as there was no saying to what part of the Gulf Burke and Wills would penetrate, and he was as likely to meet with traces of them on the Barcoo as well as anywhere else. With the general belief then current, of the desert nature of the interior, nobody dreamt that four inexperienced men would have been able to cross so easily in such a straight line.
The charge lay in a newspaper paragraph that went the round of the daily papers, an extract from which runs as follows:—
"Great credit must be given to Mr. Landsborough for the celerity with which he has accomplished the expedition. At the same time, its object seems to have been lost sight of at a very early stage of the journey, as there was not the remotest probability of striking Burke's track after quitting the Flinder's River, and taking a S.S.E. course for the remainder of the way. In fact, from that moment all mention [This is incorrect. Landsborough particularly mentions in his journal during his trip to the Barcoo, how anxiously he endeavoured to find out from the natives if they had seen anybody with camels.] ceases to be made of the ostensible purpose for which the party was organised, until Mr. Landsborough reached the Warrego, and received the intelligence of Burke and Wills having perished, at which great surprise was expressed. But supposing these gallant men to have been still living, and anxiously awaiting succour at some one of the ninety camping places at which they halted, on their arduous journey between the depôt and the Gulf what excuse could Mr. Landsborough have offered for giving so wide a berth to the probable route of the explorers, and for omitting to endeavour to strike their track, traces of which had been reported on the Flinders by Mr Walker? We may be reminded that 'all's well that ends well,' that the lamented explorers were beyond the reach of human assistance, and that Mr. Landsborough has achieved a most valuable result in following the course he did; but we cannot help remarking that in so doing he seems to have been more intent upon serving the cause of pastoral settlement than upon ascertaining if it were possible to afford relief to the missing men. The impression produced by a perusal of the dispatch which we published on Saturday last is that the writer was commissioned to open up a practicable route from the Warrego to the Flinders, and not that he was the leader of a party which had been organized and dispatched 'for the purpose of rendering relief, if possible, to the missing explorers under the command of Mr. Burke.' We do not wish to detract one iota from the credit due to Mr. Landsborough for what he has actually effected, but we must not lose sight of 'the mission of humanity' in which he was professedly engaged, nor the fact that this mission was replaced by one of a totally different character, strengthening, as this circumstance does, the conviction, which is gaining ground in the public mind, that we have been deluded in expending large sums of money in sending out relief expeditions which were chiefly employed in exploring available country for the benefit of the Government and people of Queensland. The cost and the empty honour has been ours, but theirs has been the substantial gain."
The reply to this is very simple. In the first place, Howitt had been sent especially to follow up Burke from the start, and would therefore be supposed to be searching the country on the direct course. Again, Walker was—as Landsborough thought—then following the homeward track of the lost party. The only chance of affording succour to the missing men, left to Landsborough, was the remote one of accidentally coming upon them. Nobody could have reasonably supposed that such a costly and elaborately got up expedition would have degenerated into a scamper across to the Gulf, and a scramble back over the same country.
Apart from all this, Landsborough did not apply for a lease of any of the country discovered by him on the search expedition, the country called Bowen Downs having been his discovery of two years previously, and considering that he closed his days in comparative poverty, after all his labour, such insinuations as the above are most unjust, and would be hardly worthy of comment save for the prominent and adverse notice taken of it by William Howitt, in general such an impartial historian.
The late William Landsborough first went north to Queensland in 1853. In 1854 Messrs. Landsborough and Ranken formed a station on the Kolan River, between Gayndah and Gladstone, where between bad seasons and blacks they had considerable trouble. In 1856 his exploring career commenced in the district of Broadsound and the Isaacs River. In 1858 he explored the Comet to the watershed, and in the following year the head-waters of the Thomson.
An old friend and comrade, writing of him, says:—
"Landsborough's enterprise was entirely founded on his own self-reliance. He had neither Government aid nor capitalists at his back when he achieved his success as an explorer. He was the very model of a pioneer—courageous, hardy, good-humoured, and kindly. He was an excellent horseman, a most entertaining and, at times, eccentric companion, and he could starve with greater cheerfulness than any man I ever saw or heard of. But excellent fellow though he was, his very independence of character and success in exploring provoked much ill-will."
It is to be hoped, therefore, that in future Landsborough's great services will be regarded in a more just light than they were by some of his contemporaries, particularly some living explorers, who resemble the one alluded to by Dr. Lang:—
"But Mr. —— is not the only geographical explorer in Australia who,
'Turk-like, could bear no brother near the throne.'
It seems to be a family failing."
Frederick Walker was the leader of the Rockhampton search expedition. He was an old bushman, had had much to do with the formation of the native police of Queensland, and took a party of native troopers with him on this occasion.
On receiving his commission he pushed rapidly out to the Barcoo, and in the neighbourhood of the tree marked L, found by Gregory, discovered another L tree. This may or may not be considered a corroboration that the first was Leichhardt's, there being arguments on both sides. From the Barcoo he struck north-west to the Alice, seeing some old horse-tracks, which he thought must be Leichhardt's, but which were probably those of Landsborough and Buchanan. From the head-waters of the Alice and Thomson, Walker struck a river he called the Barkly, in reality the head of the Flinders. Here he experienced much difficulty from the rough basaltic nature of the country which borders the upper reaches of this river. Finally getting on to the great western plains he unwittingly crossed the Flinders, and went far to the north looking for it. Bearing into the Gulf, he had several encounters with the natives, who by this time it may be supposed began to see too many exploring parties.
Walker's track down here is rather vague. He may be said to have run a parallel course to the Flinders River away to the north of it, until, on nearing the coast, the bend of the river brought it across his course again. Here he found the tracks of the camels, which assured him that Burke had at any rate reached the Gulf in safety. He therefore pushed on to the depôt at the Albert to get a supply of provisions, and return and follow the tracks up.
He reached the Victoria depôt safely, as before related, and reported his discovery, having had two more skirmishes with the natives on the way. Fresh provisioned, he made back for the Flinders, but found it impossible to follow the tracks. From what he saw, however, he formed a theory that Burke had retreated towards Queensland, and there he made up his mind to return. He regained his former course on the river he calls the Norman, but which may have been the Saxby, and up this river he toiled till he reached the network of watersheds which forms such a jumble of broken country at the heads of the Burdekin, Lynd, Gilbert and Flinders.
Here Walker's horses suffered severely from the rocks and stones, until at last, by the time they had reached the Lower Burdekin, they were well-nigh horseless, and quite starving. On the 4th of April, 1862, they reached Strathalbyn cattle station, owned by Messrs. Wood and Robison, not far from where M'Kinlay eventually arrived.
M'Kinlay's was the last party to use the roundabout and rugged road to the head of the Burdekin that seemed to have such attractions for all the explorers. Henceforth the road to the Gulf lay down the wide plains of the Flinders.
Walker was afterwards employed by the Queensland Government to explore a track for the telegraph line from Rockingham Bay to the mouth of the Norman River, in the Gulf of Carpentaria. This he carried out successfully; but when at the Gulf he was attacked by the then prevalent malarial fever, and died there.
This completes the series of expeditions undertaken for the relief of Burke and Wills. The eastern half of Australia was now nearly all known—from south to north, and from north to south, it had been crossed and re-crossed, and future enterprise was soon to expend itself upon the western half.
So far the results arrived at had been most satisfactory. Not much over forty years after Oxley's gloomy prediction of the future of the interior, country had been found surpassing in richness any that was then known. The pathways for the pioneers had been marked out, and a few more years was to see the whole of the continent up to the western boundary of Queensland the busy scene of pastoral industry.
Most noticeable in the history we have just recounted is the persistent manner in which each succeeding explorer found in all new discoveries the fulfillment of some pet theory. To the men brought up in the old school of belief in the central desert, every fresh advance into the interior was only pushing the desert back a step; it was there still, and, according to some, it is there now. Others who believed in the great river theory, imagined its source in the fresh discovery of every inland river; and those who pinned their faith on a central range, accepted the low broken ridges of the M'Donnel Ranges as the leading spurs.
But the discoveries of the luxuriant new herbage and edible shrubs of the interior were the greatest stumbling block to all. That the much-despised SALSOLEA and other shrubs should be coveted and sought after; that the bugbear of Oxley, the ACACIA PENDULA, should now be held to indicate good country was inconceivable; and when, above everything, the most fondly cherished of all delusions, that in the torrid north the sheep's wool would turn to hair, had to be given up, it was quite evident that a new order of belief would soon be entertained.
Writers, however, were still found to argue that things must be after the old opinion. When M'Kinlay took his little flock of sheep across Australia and found them grow so fat that, when at the Gulf, he had to select the leanest one to kill from choice, they cried out triumphantly, "Ah, but the flesh was tasteless!" When he assured them that he had never enjoyed better mutton, they said that it was hunger made him think so.
Still the distinctive value of the country was not under stood. Landsborough, who ought certainly to have known better, speaks highly of the Gulf plains as a suitable sheep run; but he was not alone in this belief. The valley of the Burdekin, and many of its tributaries were stocked with sheep by men of acknowledged experience. In a few years the error was found out, and sheep pastures were sought for only in the uplands of the interior.
But the later explorations had done much good for the new colony of Queensland. Most of the work, with the exception of Stuart's, had been wrought out within her boundaries, and capital and stock flowed in from all sides. This led to many private expeditions, such as those conducted formerly by Messrs. Landsborough, Walker, and Buchanan.
Amongst these, one under the leadership of Mr. Dalrymple penetrated the coast country north of Rockhampton, and discovered the main tributaries of the Lower Burdekin, the Bowen and the Bogie rivers. They followed down the Burdekin in 1859, and discovered that its EMBOUCHERE was much higher up the coast than was supposed. From this point they turned back, and ascending the coast range, reached the upper waters of the Burdekin, and discovered the Valley of Lagoons, west of Rockingham Bay. Another party, consisting of Messrs. Cunningham, Somer, Stenhouse, Allingham, and Miles explored the Upper Burdekin in the following year, and discovered tracts of good pastoral country on the many tributaries of that river. The remarkable running stream which joins the Burdekin below the township of Dalrymple, and was noticed and called by M'Kinlay the Brown River, was really first found by this party, though where it obtained its present name of Fletcher's Creek is not on record.
In the far south, the Great Bight became once more the scene of interest. In 1862, Goyder paid a visit to the much-abused region north of Fowler's Bay, but found nothing to reward him but mallee scrub and spinifex. In this year Delisser and Hardwicke went over the same country, but on a much more attractive route, as they came upon a large, limitless plain, covered with grass and saltbush. Unfortunately they could find no water, but since then this want has been supplied by sinking and boring, and pastoral settlement has extended so far.
In the year 1863, Mr. Thomas Macfarlane attempted to get inland, north of the Bight, but was forced to turn back, after suffering much hardship. He, too, found some fairly-grassed country, but quite waterless.
In Western Australia, the colonists still made efforts to find good country east of the Swan River. Lefroy and party pushed out to the eastward of York, but were not able to give a much better account of the country than their predecessors. In the north-west a party of colonists landed at the De Grey River, and settled on the country found by F. Gregory. Their account quite confirmed the one given by that explorer previously.
Once more a fresh chapter in the history of exploration has to be turned. All around the coast the fringe of settlement was rapidly creeping, the gaps of unoccupied country growing smaller and fewer every year. The adventurous traveller who now forced his way through to the late uninhabited north coast would find several infant settlements ready to receive him, and he would no longer be obliged to retrace, with weakened frame and exhausted resources, his toilsome outward track. The last stage of Australia's history was about to set in; the telegraph wire was soon to follow on Stuart's footsteps, and the ring of communication to be nearly completed around the continent.
Settlement formed at Somerset, Cape York, by the Queensland Government—Expedition of the Brothers Jardine—Start from Carpentaria Downs Station—Disaster by fire—Reduced resources—Arrive at the coast of the Gulf—Hostility of the blacks—Continual attacks—Horses mad through drinking salt water—Poison country—An unfortunate camp—Still followed by the natives—Rain and bog—Dense scrub—Efforts of the two brothers to reach Somerset—Final Success—Lull in exploration—Private parties—Settlement at Escape Cliffs by South Australia—J. M'Kinlay sent up—Narrow escape from floods—Removal of the settlement to Port Darwin—M'Intyre's expedition in search of Leichhardt—His death—Hunt in Western Australia—False reports about traces of Leichhardt—Forrest's first expedition—Sent to investigate the report of the murder of white men in the interior—Convinced of its want of truth—Unpromising country—Second expedition to Eucla—The cliffs of the Great Bight—Excursion to the north—Safe arrival at Eucla.
The year 1863 was one of great activity in the northern part of Australia. At Cape York the Imperial Government had, on the recommendation of Sir George Bowen, the first Governor of Queensland, decided to form a settlement. Mr. Jardine, the police magistrate of Rockhampton was selected to take command, and a detachment of marines was sent out to be stationed there.
At the Gulf of Carpentaria the township of Burketown was springing into existence, under the care of William Landsborough, the explorer; and in the north of Arnhern's Land, M'Kinlay was looking for a suitable site to establish a port for South Australia. Somerset, the formation of which led to the expedition of the Jardine brothers, was formed on the mainland at the Albany Pass, opposite the island of that name. Mr. Jardine was to proceed by sea to his new sphere of office., but anticipating the want of fresh meat at the new settlement, he entered into an arrangement with the Government for his two sons to take a herd of cattle overland to there. Somerset was near the fatal scene of poor Kennedy's death, and knowing what tremendous difficulties that explorer had met with on the east coast, it was decided to attempt the western fall, through the unknown country fronting the Gulf.
Both the Jardines were quite young men at the time when they started, Frank, the accepted leader, being only twenty-two years old, and his brother, Alexander, twenty. Besides themselves, the party was composed of A. J. Richardson, a surveyor sent by the Government; Messrs. Scrutton, Binney and Cowderoy, and four natives. They had forty-two horses, and about two hundred and fifty head of cattle, with four months, provisions.
Before their final start from Carpentaria Downs Station, then the furthest occupied country to the north-west, and supposed to be situated on the Lynd River, of Leichhardt, Alexander Jardine made a trip of some distance ahead in order to ensure finding an available road for the cattle, and saving delay when the actual start took place.
On this preliminary journey he followed the presumed Lynd down for nearly one hundred and eighty miles, until he was convinced that there was an error, and that, whatever river it was, it certainly was not Leichhardt's, as neither in appearance, direction, nor position did it coincide with that explorer's description.
On the subsequent journey with the cattle this supposition was found to be correct, the river turning out to be a tributary of the Gilbert, now known as the Einnesleigh. On the 11th of October, after A. Jardine's return, the final start was made from Carpentaria Downs, and the whole of the party commenced a journey destined to be full of peril and adventure.
The beginning of their trip down the Einnesleigh was unavoidably rough, and on the 22nd of the month they came to a halt to spell their cattle and look for the Lynd River, to which they trusted to carry them a good distance on their way. On the 24th the two brothers started, and in about thirty miles came to another river, where they found a fine chain of lagoons, but no country at all resembling the Lynd. All search beyond being resultless, the went back to the main body; and, leaving instructions for the cattle to start by a certain date for the new-found lagoons, they made another effort to find the Lynd.
This time they were again rewarded by discovering a good-sized creek, but no sign of the Lynd was met with, nor did they ever see it, as owing to an error in the map they had with them, the location of the river had been thirty miles misplaced.
Returning to the lagoons, which the cattle had now reached, instructions were given to start forward, but the first day one of the series of heavy misfortunes befell them, that afterwards seemed to dog them so perseveringly. In the morning a large number of the horses were missing, and leaving a party behind to find them and come on with the pack-horses, the Jardines and some of the others made a start with the cattle, and on the second day reached the large creek, but, to their surprise, without being overtaken by the men with the pack-horses. After an anxious day spent in waiting, Alexander Jardine went back to see what was the matter, and on his way met the missing party charged with heavy news. Through some carelessness in allowing the grass around the camp to catch fire, half their rations, and nearly the whole of their equipment had been burnt. In addition, one of the most valuable of their horses had been poisoned. This misfortune coming at such an early stage of the journey, with all the unknown country ahead of them, was most serious, and jeopardised their prospect greatly. However, there was no help for it; so giving up all hope of the Lynd, they followed down the creek they were then camped on.
The natives soon commenced to give them a foretaste of what they kept up during nearly the whole of the journey. Once about twenty appeared at sundown, and boldly attacked the camp with a shower of spears, and two days afterwards the younger Jardine, when out alone, was suddenly surprised by them.
The creek finally led them to the Staaten River, and here the blacks succeeded in stampeding the horses, and it was days before some of them were recovered.
On the 5th December they left this ill-fated river, and steered due north, but bad luck followed them, the torment of mosquitoes and sandflies, added to bad feed, caused their horses to ramble incessantly, and whilst the brothers were away on these hunting excursions, the party at the camp allowed their solitary mule to stray away with his pack on; and despite all efforts he was never found again. Unfortunately, this animal carried a lot of their most necessary articles, and their loss reduced them almost to the same state as the blackfellows who surrounded them.
Two horses here went mad through drinking salt water, one died, and the other was too ill to travel, and had to be left.
On December the 13th they at last reached the long-desired Mitchell river, not without having another pitched battle on the way with the natives. For the blacks followed them throughout with the same relentless hostility that they formerly had shown to Kennedy, and evidently meant to mete out the same fate to them, for whilst the party were on the Mitchell they mustered in force, and fell upon the travellers with the greatest determination, and it was only after a severe contest, and heavy loss had been inflicted on the savages that they retired.
It can be imagined how these continued attacks, in addition to the harassing nature of the country, gave the party all they knew to hold their own, and but for the prompt and plucky way in which these assaults were always met, not one of the little band would have survived. From what was afterwards found out from some of the semi-civilized natives about Somerset, these tribes followed the explorers for over four hundred miles.
Leaving the Mitchell and making north, they travelled through poor country, thinly grassed, and badly watered, but the blacks were still on their heels.
On the 28th December, they commenced on the horses, driving them about, and another stand-up fight ensued. Storms of rain now set in, and they had to travel through dismal ti-tree flats, with the constant expectation of being caught by a flood on low-lying country.
On the 5th of January, they came to a well-grassed valley, with a good river running through it, which was named the Archer, and on the 9th crossed another river, which was supposed to be the Coen. On leaving this river, troubles thickened around them; the rain continued incessantly, the country was so boggy they could scarcely get their animals along at all, and to add to everything, when they reached the Batavia, two horses were drowned in crossing, and six more were poisoned [See appendix.] and died.
Fate seemed to have pretty well done her worst; they could do nothing else but face the future manfully. Burying everything they possibly could, they packed all the horses, and started resolutely on foot. On the 14th, two more horses died, and the blacks came once more to see how they were getting on. As may be imagined, the white men were in not much of a humour for patience, and the skirmish was a brief one.
On the 17th, two more horses died from the effects of the poison plant, and they were reduced to fifteen out of the forty-two with which they started. They were now approaching the narrow crest of the cape, and found themselves on a dreary waste of sandy, barren country, whereon only heath grew, intersected too with boggy creeks. On the 10th of January, they caught a glimpse of the sea to the eastward, from the top of a tree, and on the 20th it was in plain view.
They were now amongst the same description of scrubs that had played such havoc with Kennedy, and day after day they only advanced a few miles. On the 29th, after many days of bog and scrub cutting, it was determined to halt the cattle, whilst the two Jardines made an effort to reach Somerset, and find a less difficult track, as they now believed themselves only twenty miles from that place; but in reality they were more, although, after the country they had passed through, any calculation that could be made would be only approximate.
On the 30th January, the brothers, with their most-trusted black boy, "Eulah," started to find the settlement, taking with them a small quantity of rations. For a time they were hemmed-in in a bend of what they took to be the Escape River, but on leaving it suddenly came on a large river running to the west coast, which is now known as the Jardine. This forced them to return to the main camp, and after a few days' rest, they made to the north again, swimming their horses over at the main camp, where the cattle were, and from there starting, this time down the stream.
This trip was a most fatiguing one, through dense vine scrub, through which they had to work their way tomahawk in hand. On the second day they sighted the ocean, and after travelling towards it, came to a river three-quarters of a mile wide, which they could not cross. Following it up through fearful country, as Jardine says, "too bad to describe," they had to at last camp where they were, being cut off from even approaching the river by a formidable belt of mangroves. Next day was spent in like fruitless attempts, and the next the same.
It being evident that there was no crossing-place for the cattle to be found, they turned back to the camp, having come to the conclusion that the rivers were identical, and that on their first expedition they had been deceived by a large bend.
Tired and wearied, disappointed at finding themselves so near the settlement, and yet hemmed in and embarrassed by impenetrable thickets, and impassable morasses, the brothers now made up their minds to start with the whole party, and try to get round the big bend of the Escape that they thought they must be on. After killing a bullock they started, and at their third camp, from the top of the high ridge they sighted the sea to the westward, and were able to trace the course of the river the whole way, thus convincing themselves at last that it was riot the Escape they were on.
A reference to the map will at once explain the peculiarity of the course of these two rivers that had so puzzled the explorers. The Jardine is a large river heading from the east coast, and running, with many bends, clear across the promontory to the west coast, completely heading the Escape which has been a short course. As the Jardine River was before unknown, and the Escape was well-known, it was but natural that the mistake should have occurred. Added to all this, they were in the depth of the wet season, and amidst flooded creeks whose size and importance could not be fairly gauged.
Once more the two brothers and the black boy swam the river, and made a third effort to reach Somerset. For two days they were detained on the bank of a flooded creek, crossing it on its subsidence on the third day. On the 28th February they were in better country, and a good stage was made, and the next morning they encountered a tribe of blacks who greeted them with cries of "Alico! Franco! Tobacco!" and other words. From these natives they finally selected three as guides, and at noon the following day reached the settlement.
As was but natural, their long journey had caused their father great trouble and anxiety; he had done all in his power to help them at the end, having cut a marked tree line almost across the promontory, and instructed the blacks in the few English words they could remember to greet the wanderers if they met with them, which last device succeeded admirably.
It remains but to be said that the rest of the party and the remnant of their stock were soon brought in to Somerset, where a cattle station was formed. When we look at the difficulties through which they had forced their way, and the unexpected misfortunes that beset them, one cannot help feeling the greatest admiration for the two brothers in attaining such success, not having lost a member of the party throughout the journey, in spite of the numberless treacherous attacks of the natives to which they were subjected, and the daily risks of illness, swimming flooded rivers, and other perils. Above all regret must be felt that their work was not better rewarded by the discovery of available pastoral country, but that result it was not in their power to control. They had at any rate the proud feeling of having done their duty, and that beset by the same dangers that had environed poor Kennedy, they had lived to tell the tale when he had laid down his life.
Whilst the Jardines were fighting their way through to Cape York, and rendering such good service to geographical research, a labour which the Royal Geographical Society afterwards acknowledged by electing the brothers, Fellows of the Society, and awarding the Murchison grant to each of them, the pioneer squatters were everywhere busy.
Mr. J. G. Macdonald started with a small party to visit the much lauded Plains of Promise, and discover a better route for stock than the one formerly taken by the explorers. By crossing the dividing range on to the upper part of the Flinders, and following that river down, a much shorter and more practicable route was made available for the army of cattle and sheep now marching to the western pasture land, and the magnificent country on the river named after the great navigator was brought prominently into notice.
In the far north of Australia, settlement on a fresh scale was once more undertaken; this time under purely colonial auspices. The territory beyond the northern boundary line of South Australia, extending to the shores of Arnheim's Land, and part of the Gulf of Carpentaria had long been considered No Man's Land, although the English had formerly taken possession of it. The arrival of the ASTROLABE and ZELIE in Raffles Bay in 1839, gave colour to the supposition that the French had a design to secure part of this territory after our first abandonment of it. Fortunately Sir Gordon Bremer was in time to make the second settlement at Port Essington a few short weeks before the appearance of M, Dumont D'Urville, even as Governor Phillip forestalled La Perouse.
The territory was provisionally annexed to the Province of South Australia by commission under the great seal, bearing date 8th July, 1863. It comprised all the country to the northward of the twenty-sixth parallel south latitude, and between the 129th and 138th degrees of east longitude.
The inland country was known only from the description of Stuart, Gregory and Leichhardt.
In 1864 an expedition left Adelaide to proceed by sea to Adam Bay, and there form a depôt, whilst search for a suitable site for a township was made. Colonel Finnis was sent in charge of the infant colony, and three vessels, the HENRY ELLIS, the YATALA, and the BEATRICE conveyed the emigrants to their destination, where they safely arrived in August, 1864.
A discretionary power had been entrusted to the leader with regard to the choice of a suitable position; Port Essington and Raffles Bay were excepted, the former failures to establish settlements at those places being probably looked upon as ominous.
Escape Cliffs in Adam Bay, so called from the narrow escape two officers of the BEAGLE had from death at the hands of the natives, was chosen, but the choice was not ratified. A good deal of dissension broke out in the early days, and J. M'Kinlay, the well-known explorer, was sent north to select a more favourable position, and report generally on the capabilities of the territory. He organized an exploring party, and left the camp at Escape Cliffs with the intention of making a long excursion to the eastward; but he only reached the East Alligator River, where he was cut off and hemmed in by sudden floods, and narrowly escaped losing his whole party. Everything had to be abandoned, and the explorers escaped from their critical position by resorting to the construction of coracles of horse hide, by means of which they managed to save their lives. On his return, M'Kinlay examined the mouth of the Daly River in Anson Bay, and recommended it as a site in preference to Escape Cliffs, the suggestion was not, however, acted on.
This was M'Kinlay's last expedition. He died at Gawler, in SouthAustralia, in December, 1874.
The affairs of the new settlement were now in such a disorganised state that a commission of enquiry was appointed, and the result was that Colonel Finnis was removed.
Mr. Goyder then selected Port Darwin as a better situation than that of Escape Cliffs, and the township was laid out and the residents removed to there. The establishment of the overland telegraph line soon caused the town of Palmerston to take permanent importance, which the discovery of gold in the Northern Territory confirmed.
Western Australia, too, had an unfortunate experience about this time, an attempt being made to establish a settlement at Camden Harbour. The country was quite unsuitable, and it was abandoned.
Some fresh interest was now aroused in the unsettled question of the fate of Leichhardt. A Mr. M'Intyre, who, in 1864, was taking stock from the Darling to the Flinders River, found himself stopped on the Queensland border by the stock regulations then in force in that colony. Whilst detained there he made several short excursions, and examined the country between the head of the Paroo and the Barcoo, discovering many well-watered creeks and a lake of considerable size. On his return, finding that there was still no chance of his being allowed to take his stock on, he determined to make a trip to the Gulf of Carpentaria and examine the country he intended taking up.
The party left the Paroo on the 21St June, 1864, and the journey led to an unexpected discovery. On the way over, M'Intyre found and buried the bodies of two unfortunate pioneers who had preceded him, Messrs. Curlewis and M'Culloch. They had. been murdered when asleep by the natives.
Twenty-two days after leaving the Paroo they reached Cooper's Creek, and then pursued much the same track to the Gulf as that formerly followed by Burke and Wills, and M'Kinlay. Three hundred miles from the sea, and to the westward of Burke's track, M'Intyre came upon two old saddle-marked horses, grazing upon what appeared to be a permanently watered creek. A short distance to the eastward he found the traces of two camps, and two trees marked L. From these circumstances M'Intyre concluded that he had come upon new and important traces of the lost explorer.
On his return to the south, public interest was at once aroused, and, aided by the championship of Baron Von Mueller, whose enthusiasm in the cause of discovery never flags, a committee was formed to organise a party to at once follow up these clues, and try to set at rest the much-vexed question.
In order to fully arouse the sympathies of the public, the matter was with much gallantry placed in the hands of the ladies of Victoria, and under their auspices a party was equipped and the command given to Mr. M'Intyre. Unfortunately for the success of the expedition, the leader died of malarial fever before the party left the settled districts of the Gulf of Carpentaria. From the course mapped out for the explorers, there is no doubt that, even if the aim of the expedition had not been reached, an earlier knowledge of much unknown country would have been obtained.
As was but natural, the construction of the overland telegraph line between Adelaide and Port Darwin led to numbers of short explorations on either side of the line, which considerably added to our knowledge of the interior, but of which no records have been kept.
The establishment of this telegraph line and its maintenance did much towards the settlement of Central Australia. It formed, as it were, a chain of outposts through the heart of the continent, and thereby greatly facilitated the success of many private expeditions undertaken in quest of country for pastoral purposes.
South Australia had served a rough apprenticeship in the cause of exploration, and the experience gained by her pioneers now stood her in good stead in the successful accomplishment of the national work she at this time undertook—the establishment of telegraphic communication with England. Queensland, the youngest colony of the group, was striving very hard to secure the landing of the cable on her shores. Walker, the leader of one of the Burke and Wills search parties, was out examining the country at the back of Rockingham Bay, and marking a telegraph line from there to the mouth of the Norman River, in the Gulf of Carpentaria. South Australia, however, thanks to her energy and superior geographical position, secured the honour; and already the completion of a railway across the country which witnessed the repeated efforts of Stuart is being hastened on.
In Western Australia, in 1864, Hunt made a long excursion to the eastward of York, and travelled for 400 miles over the country lying between the 31st and 32nd parallels. He found nothing to reward him for his trouble—scrub, salt lakes and samphire flats were the same wearisome. repetition.
During the construction of the overland telegraph line it was surmised that such a close examination of the country as would necessarily ensue, might lead to the finding of traces of Leichhardt, if he ever had reached so far on his journey; but none were found. Apparently it suggested an idea to a prisoner in one of the gaols of New South Wales, for he made a statement to the effect that he had been employed as a labourer on the construction of the overland telegraph line, and whilst so engaged had been in the habit of making long excursions into the unexplored territory on either side of the line. During one of these trips he came across some blacks, who informed him that they had an old white man living with their tribe. Hume—which was the name of the hero of this story—professed to have an intimate acquaintance with the habits and customs of the natives, and willingly accompanied them to their camp. Here he found a venerable old white man, who turned out to be Classen—Leichhardt's brother-in-law—and from him Hume learnt that the death of the leader and most of his party happened through a mutiny in the camp, Leichhardt being murdered, and the party then becoming disorganised and lost. This absurd story was repeated so earnestly that inquiries were instituted, and it was found that Hume had really been employed on the telegraph line, and that whilst there he had been absent for some time on one or two occasions.
Hume was interviewed by some gentlemen who were interested in the solution of Leichhardt's fate, and he now added a little additional matter: that on a subsequent visit he found that Classen, rendered restless by the near neighbourhood of the whites, had made an effort to reach them and died in the attempt. This, with a few variations as to the details of the death of Leichhardt, led to Hume being released from gaol for the purpose of leading a party to the spot where Classen had pointed out that he had concealed Leichhardt's journals. But for the tragedy that ended the affair this episode would scarcely be of sufficient importance to insert in the history of explorations. Money having been furnished for the purpose, Hume and two companions started on their search. They reached Thargomindah—then the nucleus of a small township in Western Queensland—and left a station called Nockatunga to make a short cut across some dry country. One man only turned up. He said that they had lost themselves, had separated looking for water, and with much difficulty he reached the station. Search being instituted the dead bodies of Hume and the other man were found, they having perished of thirst. This story was revived many years afterwards by another man, who had lived a good deal on the frontiers of Queensland. According to him, Leichhardt and some of his party died of hunger and thirst, Classen was revived again, and the discoverer stated that he had in his possession a diary and many relics of the explorer. Although expressing his willingness to produce the relics on receiving the promise of an adequate reward, he never did so, and having attained a temporary notoriety, returned to his former obscurity. This may be said to end the rumours of the discovery of Leichhardt's memorials, They served no good end in any way.