Volume I Part 19 (1/2)

When therefore this advanced guard took unto themselves wings and flew away I was obliged to keep all hands on the alert to prevent a surprise.

Whilst we were thus occupied our detachment returned and reported the country to be utterly impracticable. I determined however to examine it myself the next morning in order to be quite satisfied upon so important a point.

March 16.

I moved off at dawn this morning with a party, but after following the direction of the stream for several miles I found that the whole of the land between it and the foot of the hills had been rendered by the heavy rains a marsh quite impa.s.sable for horses, which was rendered the more annoying as the swamp was not more than a mile in width, so that this slight s.p.a.ce alone prevented us from pursuing our desired route. Nothing however was now left us but to turn once more to the north-west, and thus to endeavour to head the marsh.

DANGER FROM NATIVES.

Just as we had prepared to return home the cries of the natives arose close to us; their fire was about half a mile away, and their calls had already several times been heard. Now that they were so near us I thought it better to load my second barrel with ball, for I did not like their hanging about us in the way they had done for several days. On putting my hand into my haversack in order to prepare some ammunition I found, to my great dismay, that I had taken in mistake one which belonged to another man and which contained no ammunition; nor was there a ball in possession of any person with me which would fit my gun and, as I knew that the aim of those with me was not much to be depended on, even under the coolest and most favourable circ.u.mstances, I thought that in the moment of a desperate attack it might be still less sure; this, added to the want of confidence incident on finding oneself unarmed and dependent on the protection of others, made me feel very uncomfortable until we once more reached the tents.

RAINS CONTINUE. TORRENTS OF RAIN.

During the early part of the day the rain fell in torrents; but, as it cleared off a little soon after our arrival, we started in a north-westerly direction. Such violent storms of thunder, lightning, and rain set in when we had made about two or three miles that I was again obliged to halt; and as it continued to rain heavily throughout the night, our situation, which was already bad, might now be said to be hourly growing worse; and it can readily be conceived that, between rheumatism in my wounded limb, lying in water, and vexation at the constant difficulties we experienced, I was too much hara.s.sed to be able to sleep.

SWAMPS.

The continued rain during the night had necessarily rendered the marsh far more impracticable than before; but, as no other route to the southward could be found on account of the river which lay upon either hand, I was compelled to wait until the ground again in some measure dried. But it would have been equally as impossible to beat a retreat as it was to get forward, for we were in a manner surrounded by swampy land, and when the loads were placed upon the ponies they sank nearly up to the shoulders in a bog in whichever direction we attempted to move; but as our present position would have been unsafe in the event of an extensive inundation taking place I judged it necessary at all events to reach a somewhat elevated outlying hill of sandstone which was distant about two miles. This point we succeeded at last in gaining, although not without severely injuring and straining some of the ponies in effecting it. This rising ground was however well situated for our camp under present circ.u.mstances: it was composed of porous sandstone, which in these climates dries almost immediately after rain. There was plenty of dead wood upon it and it was surrounded by richly-gra.s.sed flats, whilst from the base gushed forth a clear spring, which then murmured along a purling brook, traversing the flat on which the ponies were tethered.

SNAKE AND KANGAROO.

Close to this spot the attention of Mr. Lus.h.i.+ngton was drawn to a curious misshapen ma.s.s which came advancing from some bushes with a novel and uncouth motion. He fired and it fell, and on going up to it he found that it was a small kangaroo enveloped in the folds of a large snake, a species of Boa. The kangaroo was now quite dead, and flattened from the pressure of the folds of the snake which, being surprised at the disturbance it met with, was beginning to uncoil itself, when Mr.

Lus.h.i.+ngton drew out a pistol and shot it through the head. It was of a brownish yellow colour and eight feet six inches long. The kangaroo we found very good eating; and Mr. Walker, who ate a portion of the snake, considered it to be as great a delicacy as an eel, but rather tougher.

There fortunately was an elevated pinnacle of rocks on the rising ground upon which we were encamped; and from the top of these I was able in the course of the day to get bearings and angles to many important objects; I could also see many fixed points in my survey, so that the day could not be considered as altogether a lost one.

CONDITION OF THE PONIES.

March 18.

Throughout the whole of this day the rain poured in torrents so that the ponies, notwithstanding the goodness of the feed, began again to suffer from cold and exposure to the weather. They were so wild that we could not venture to let them run loose, and, as it was impossible to tether all of them under trees, the majority were left exposed to the pitiless pelting of the storms; and they certainly made a very wretched appearance as they stood with their sterns presented to the blast, and the water pouring from their sides in perfect streams. I do not know whether this was a very extraordinary season, but it is certain that if all rainy periods in North-West Australia resemble it, to attempt to explore the country at this time of the year would be fruitless. Such a good supply of rain is a great advantage to an occupied country through which regular lines of communication exist; as it then raises but slight impediments to travellers; but the case is very different to first explorers who have to find a ford over every stream and a pa.s.sage across every swamp, and who constantly run the risk of involving themselves in a perfectly impa.s.sable region.

NATIVES NEAR THE CAMP.

March 19.

This morning was also ushered in with torrents of rain, chequered by occasional intervals of fine weather of perhaps half an hour's duration.

Another sheep died and several of the ponies were very unwell. The men who had been s.h.i.+fting the tethers of the horses at noon returned with the intelligence that, during the period of their absence from the encampment, a party of natives must have been close to us, watching our movements, for that when they went out there were no traces of them near the camp, which were now discernible in nearly every direction around us.

I selected the best bushman of my party and went off to see whether anything was to be apprehended from these natives, but I soon found that the report was in some degree exaggerated. Some natives had crept up to within about a hundred yards of us, probably with the intention of making a reconnaissance, and of then framing their future plans; they had however been disturbed by the return of the men from the horses, and then made off. It appears that they had approached us by walking up a stream of water so as to conceal their trail, and then turned out of the stream up its right bank; and although they had carefully trod in one another's foot-marks, so as to conceal their number, we could make out the traces of at least six or seven different men, which we followed to the spot where, whilst creeping about to watch us, they had been disturbed. From this point these children of the bush had disappeared, as it were by magic: not a twig was broken, not a stone was turned, and we could not perceive that the heavy drops of rain had been shaken from a single blade of gra.s.s. We made wide casts in different directions but, not being able to hit on their trail, I returned to the tents, more than ever convinced of the necessity of being constantly on the watch against beings who were often near us when we least dreamt of their presence, and, in an unguarded moment, might so easily surprise and spear some of the party.

APPEARANCE OF THE COUNTRY.

The rain continued to fall throughout the 20th, rendering our condition every hour worse. Towards noon however the weather cleared a little, and in a fine interval I mounted a high range of basaltic hills which lay about a mile and a half to the westward. These hills were the highest which I had yet ascended; and from them I gained a very extensive view.

The farthest extremity of the sandstone range which lay to the southward and eastward did not appear to be more than ten or twelve miles distant.

Behind this barren range there again rose the conical tops of basaltic hills, clothed in the greenest gra.s.s; and beyond these, in the far south-east, I made out with the telescope a range of very lofty hills, which, stretching their heads high into the clouds, left me without means of forming any idea of their elevation: but even the portion of them which met my view must have had a very considerable alt.i.tude. I took a set of angles from this point but the mistiness of the day rendered it very unfit for my purpose. Whilst I was thus occupied, we heard the cries and calls of a party of natives between us and the tents. From the loudness and proximity of these I augured badly and therefore hurried my return; but we neither saw the natives themselves nor their tracks, and were quite in ignorance as to what had been their intentions. Soon after sunset the weather cleared up a little, and the stars, which came peeping out, promised well for the next day.

NATIVES NEAR THE CAMP AGAIN.