Volume I Part 10 (1/2)

A small low wooded islet off Cape Direction, where I landed for a few hours, was found to be composed entirely of dead coral with thickets of mangrove and other bushes, and presented no feature worthy of further notice. We were detained at an anchorage near Cape Weymouth for seven days by the haziness of the weather, which obscured distant points essential to the connexion of the survey.

PIPER ISLETS.

After having anch.o.r.ed once for the night under the lee of reef e of King's chart--one of the most extensive we had hitherto seen, being fourteen miles in length--on September 26th, the s.h.i.+p anch.o.r.ed under the largest of the Piper Islets.

This group consists of four low bushy and wooded islets, situated on two reefs separated by a deep channel. The larger of the two on the south-eastern reef, off which the s.h.i.+p lay, is about half a mile in circ.u.mference. The trees are chiefly a kind of Erythrina, conspicuous from its light-coloured trunk and leafless branches; one of the most abundant plants is a Capparis, with long drooping branches, occasionally a.s.sisted by a Cissus and a Melotria, in forming small shady harbours. In the evening, vast numbers of white pigeons came over from the mainland to roost, and of course, all the fowling-pieces were put in requisition.

Some deep pits dug in the centre of the island were perfectly dry, and are probably so during the latter half of the dry season, or after the month of July. On this island we observed the remains of a small establishment for curing trepang--a large seaslug found on the reefs and in shoal water, const.i.tuting a valuable article of commerce in the China market, where in a dried state it fetches, according to quality, from 5 to 200 pounds a ton. This establishment had been put up by the crew of a small vessel from Sydney, and several such have at various times made voyages along this coast and in Torres Strait, collecting trepang and tortoisesh.e.l.l, the latter procured from the natives by barter.

YOUNG ISLAND.

September 28th.

On our way to the northward today, we pa.s.sed Young Island, of King, which had been previously examined in one of our boats, and found to be merely a reef covered at high-water. Twenty-nine years before it was an embryo islet with two small trees upon it. And as the subject of the rate of increase of a coral reef, and of the formation of an island upon it, is a subject of interest and of great practical importance, I give below in a note* two records of the former appearance of Young Island.

(*Footnote. ”...Pa.s.sed at about three-quarters of a mile to the northward of a small rocky shoal, on which were two small trees. This particular is recorded as it may be interesting at some future time, to watch the progress of this islet, which is now in an infant state; it was named on the occasion Young Island.” Narrative of a Survey of the Intertropical and Western Coasts of Australia, performed between the years 1818 and 1822, by Captain P.P. King, R.N., volume 1 page 226. Its appearance in 1839 is described as ”an elevated reef, with one small mangrove growing on the highest part.” Stokes' Voyage of the Beagle volume 1 page 57.)

September 29th.

Pa.s.sing inside of Haggerstone Island, we rounded Sir Everard Home's group and anch.o.r.ed under Sunday Island, where the Bramble joined us after a month's absence. This is a small, high, rocky island, of flesh-coloured compact felspar. On one side is a large patch of brush with some mangroves and a coral reef.

BIRD ISLES.

A few days afterwards we ran down to the Bird Isles, and anch.o.r.ed. They are three low, wooded islets, one detached from the other two, which are situated on the margin of a circular reef.

NATIVES IN DISTRESS.

On the north-west island we saw a small party of natives from the mainland, consisting of two men and a boy, in great distress from want of water, until Lieutenant Yule kindly supplied their wants. They had been wind-bound here for several days, the weather for some time previously having been too boisterous to admit of attempting to reach the sh.o.r.e, although only a few miles distant, in their split and patched-up canoe.

This was of small size, the hollowed-out trunk of a tree, with a double outrigger, and altogether a poor imitation of that used by the islanders of Torres Strait; the paddles were of rude workmans.h.i.+p, shaped like a long-handled cricket-bat. Their spears and throwing sticks were of the same kind as those in use at Cape York, to be afterwards described. These people were wretched specimens of their race, lean and lanky, and one was suffering from ophthalmia, looking quite a miserable object; they had come here in search of turtle--as I understood. Each of the men had lost a front tooth, and one had the oval cicatrix on the right shoulder, characteristic of the northern natives, an imitation of that of the islanders. They showed little curiosity, and trembled with fear, as if suspicious of our intentions. I made a fruitless attempt to pick up some sc.r.a.ps of their language; they understood the word powd or peace of Torres Strait.

On this island the princ.i.p.al trees are the leafless Erythrina, with waxy, pink flowers. Great numbers of pigeons resorted here to roost. I found here a large colony of that rare and beautiful tern, Sterna melanauchen, and mixed up with them a few individuals of the still rarer Sterna gracilis.

CAIRNCROSS ISLAND.

We anch.o.r.ed under Cairncross Island, on the afternoon of September 3rd, and remained during the following day. The island is about a quarter of a mile in length, low and sandy, covered in the centre with tall trees, and on the outskirts with smaller ones and bushes. These large trees (Pisonia grandis) form very conspicuous objects from their great dimensions, their smooth, light bark, and leafless, dead appearance. Some are from eighty to one hundred feet in height, with a circ.u.mference at the base of twenty feet. The wood, however, is too soft to be useful as timber. Nowhere had we seen the Torres Strait pigeon in such prodigious numbers as here, crossing over in small flocks to roost, and returning in the morning; yet many remained all day feeding on the red, plum-like fruit of Mimusops kaukii. In the first evening not less than one hundred and fifty-nine pigeons were brought off after an hour's work by seven shooters, and next day a still greater number were procured. Being large and well flavoured birds, they formed no inconsiderable addition to our bill of fare, and appeared on the table at every meal, subjected to every possible variety of cooking. Some megapodii also were shot, and many eggs of a fine tern, Onychoprion panaya, were picked up.

CHAPTER 1.4.

Water the s.h.i.+p.

Vessel with Supplies arrives.

Natives at Cape York.

Description of the Country and its Productions.

Port Albany considered as a Depot for Steamers.

Sail from Cape York and arrive at Port Essington.

Condition of the Place.

History of the Settlement.

Would be useless as a Colony.

Aborigines.