Volume II Part 16 (1/2)
In the course of four hours thirty green turtles were brought on board, one of which, and not the largest, weighed 385 pounds A small hawk's bill, the first and only one seen, was also taken On this part of the coast grows a peculiar small kind of weed, on which they feed; it was first seen near Depuch Island I have been inforht, have a large ball of a curious kind of weed in their stomach, and that as soon as it is consuh ent inquiries have been made after this weed, it appears to be still unknown
A sandhill on the south-east end of the North Isle our observations placed in latitude 19 degrees 53 rees 09 ree 0 minutes westerly The tide ran between the island and the shore nearly two knots an hour; the flood streas was 18 feet, the ti 11 o'clock
SEARCH FOR WATER
A fruitless atte; and as ere now reduced to a supply for only ten days, it became necessary that we should immediately proceed to Tiretted at the present moment, as the coast to the east had never been seen, and therefore possessed the char a new part of the continent We consoled ourselves for not being able to visit it by the reflection that it would hold out some inducement for us to return to this land of sterility
On Turtle Island was found a broken jar, probably left by some of the Macassar people, who are occasionally blown in upon this part of the coast
July 14
The unusual fogs that had prevailed for three days dispersing, allowed us to leave our anchorage under the south-east side of North Turtle Isle, and soon after dark we occupied another near Bedout Island, having crossed sole was midway between these islands, they were both visible fro the early part of next day, it blew strong fro precious, we could not wait for a quiet day to land on Bedout; its position was therefore determined by observations with the sea horizon, and differs very hed early in the afternoon of the 15th, and passed round the north-west end of Bedout, where there is s until abreast of the north end of Rowley Shoals and twenty-five miles from their inner side, in from 45 to 154 fathoms These shoals, like the Abrolhos, appear to stand on the outer edge of a bank projecting off this portion of the coast, as we did not get botto their parallel
On the 20th, in the afternoon, we passed, having no soundings with 200 fatho the western side of Scott's Reef, at the distance of three oon, with an opening, not appearing to be a shi+p passage, midway on its western side; rees 3 rees 4 minutes 45 seconds East of Swan River The eastern extreme of the reef was not seen; the southern lirees 15 rees 55 rees 2 ives it an extent of twenty miles in a north and south direction
SCOTT'S REEF
Captain Owen Stanley, in March, 1840, discovered a shoal about sixteen miles to the North-North-East of Scott's Reef; he considered its extent from east to west to be about five miles; but from the masthead the south end of it could not be seen It did not appear to have more than two or three feet water on it The north point, Captain Stanley places in latitude 13 degrees 39 rees 11 minutes East of Swan River
(Footnote This reef was seen by the Seringapataan to feel a westerly current, which increased to a knot and a half as we got near Rottee; the winds being moderate, between East and East-South-East
PULO DOUW
July 23
The weather was hazy: the high land of Rottee was seen in the forenoon, the highest part of the island, a rather pointed hill, bearing North 60 degrees East At 1 PMPulo Douhich we endeavoured to weather, but the current prevented us It is a reap in the centre and a clump of trees, that looks like a sail when first seen, on the north-west end, which terminates in a low sandy point This is also the case with the south-east extreme, off which a reef extends for about half a e between the sandy islets that lie to the east of Pulo Douw and Rottee We rounded the north-west end of the forh so to the north-east round the island Pulo Douw appeared to be thickly inhabited, and was encircled by a reef, except at its North-North-West point, where there is a cliffy projection Angles were taken for fixing the position of the islets between Pulo Douw and Rottee, which we found to be wrongly placed The Scotch Bonnet, a remarkable rocky lump, seen over the south-west end of Rottee, and in line with the south side of Pulo Douw, bore South 60 degrees East During the night we had a fresh wind fros, our first entering suddenly upon which caused soave no bottom with 60 and 70 fathoms We passed some distance froh peaks of Tier eyes of the native e had brought with us from Swan River were the first to descry them; and he exclai fella! all the saet the ae, accustomed as he was to behold the level plains of his native land, when he saering in alpine grandeur to the sky, the pinnacled heights of Timor He seemed scarcely able to conceive, even when assured by the evidence of his own senses, that it was possible for es so vast as those that now developed the the , the appearance was truly grand A vast heap of vapour was slowly ged su the eye to penetrate for a moment into the depths of mysterious valleys that seemed to stretch for unknown distances into the recesses of the great Ti clouds that rapidly traversed the heavens iht and shadow to the lowlands that presented theloo in rapid succession the extensive woods and the patches of cultivation that lay within the bosoly htened the beauty of the scene; which to us, who had for so but the monotonous north-west coast of Australia, appeared truly enchanting
During the first watch we beat up the bay, and atof cocks, and the tolling of bells assuring us that ere once again in the vicinity of civilization In the , e shi+fted our berth farther in; the flagstaff of Fort Concordia bearing south a quarter of a mile
SWAN RIVER NATIVE
Our Swan River native came up to me after we had anchored, dressed in his best, shoes polished, and buttoned up to the chin in an old uniforside in a canoe, ”trousers no got 'u to the completeness of this speech, and said as plainly as words could have done, ”poor wretches!” I tried in vain to point out their superiority, by saying, ”Malay boy, work, have house; Swan River boy, no work, bush walk” I then drew his attention to the country, the delicious fruits and other good things to eat (knowing that the surest road to an Australian's heart is through his mouth) but all was in vain! ood, stone, rock big fella, too much, can't walk” Home, after all, is home all the world over, and the dull arid shores of Australia were e than the roht It was a ashore the first ti on our heels, always, I suppose, being in the habit, in his own country, of finding strangers to be enenised by the Malays, who had occasionally seen natives of Australia returning with the Macassar proas froa, much to his annoyance
(Footnote I have never been able to learn the nified man-eater; which explains the native's annoyance; and ines of the northern part of the continent occasionally eat human bodies as they do in the south)
LAND AT COEPANG
Being anxious to make the acquaintance of the Resident, who bore the reputation of being a ent person, a party of us paid him a visit the second day after our arrival The narrow streets, lined with Chinese shops and pedlars of every description, fro-tailed Chinaman to the thick, crisp-haired, athletic Tireen valley, with soe and new to us in every way What we etation--a feast for our eyes, after the dull arid shores of North-western Australia: and we gazed with intense pleasure on the rich green spreading leaf of the banana and other tropical fruit-trees, above which towered, the graceful coconut Is it possible, thought I, that Timor and Australia, so different in the character of their scenery, can be such near neighbours, that these luxuriant valleys, nestling aantic hills, are only separated by a narrow expanse of sea frogard a hand, a soil capable of bearing the productions characteristic of the latitudes within which they lie?
A ainst a tree, suggested to us that we : ere so It soon appeared that it was the last of the large houses before mentioned, and that the soldier was the sentinel
VISIT THE RESIDENT