Volume II Part 43 (2/2)

Monuhthouse

Penal Establishitude of Fremantle

Final departure froue Island

Effects of a hurricane at Mauritius

The crew and passengers of a foundered vessel saved

Bourbon

Madagascar

Siland

Take leave of the Beagle

The Surveying service

The baroradually within the last three days, now standing at 3020, showed that the opportunity of getting round the South-West Cape, had at length arrived We therefore left Sullivan Cove on the ht passed the above-mentioned storm-beaten headland with a fine northerly wind

Previous, however, to so doing, we had soundings in 84 fathoms, six miles South-West of the Mew Stone From the result of others we had obtained at different tis of a moderate depth extend out only a short distance, and that a shi+p in 60 fathoms will be within ten miles of the land

MONUMENT TO FLINDERS

It had been e to the ard, to have exaaroo Island, with the rocks lying off the former I was also anxious to visit South Australia for anothersatisfactory, I wished, moreover, to comply with Sir John Franklin's desire, that we should set up a monument, dedicated to the memory of poor Flinders, which he had sent to Port Lincoln, the centre of his honoured commander's most important discoveries on the south coast of Australia The performance of such a task would have constituted an appropriate conclusion to our labours on the shores of this great continent; and certainly nothing could have been s than to be instruuished predecessor in the career of discovery I shall always regret that ere prevented fro so At the sareat discredit on the colony of South Australia, if some portion of its wealth be not devoted to the erection of a suitable monument to the memory of Flinders in one of the squares of Adelaide

(Footnote Sir John Franklin was a midshi+pman with Captain Flinders when he discovered this part of Australia)

Strong northerly winds prevented us, as I have above hinted, fro with the land, we consequently continued our course to the ard; and on the twenty-third day arrived at King George's Sound, whence, after co of the 21st of April At noon we passed between Bald Head and Vancouver Reef

(Footnote See plate)

ROTTNEST LIGHTHOUSE

In the forenoon of the 23rdthe lighthouse of Rottnest; and regarded it with great interest, as the work of the aborigines i in , erected by the hands of a people which seemed destined to perish fro able to leave any durable monuments of their existence, except such fabrics as this, constructed under the control of a conquering race The tie froer, on approaching the shores of Western Australia, and asking who erected that lighthouse to guide him in safety to the shore, will be told it was the work of a people that once were and are now no longer

Passing over the foul ground extending off the Stragglers, we ran into Owen's anchorage during the first watch Whilst waiting to rate the chronos were added to our plan of this place, and a three-fathom patch, about a quarter of a mile in extent, was discovered, with nine on either side of it, lying nearly two aol

PENAL ESTABLISHMENT

We also visited Rottnest to inspect the establishment It had now been a penal settles, the aboriginal labourers had cleared thirty-four acres of land, chiefly in detached valleys These grew thirty-five bushels of wheat to the acre (in the Port Phillip district the return is about five more to the acre) and from thirty-four to forty bushels of barley There are about two thousand acres of available land in the whole island The average number of native convicts is about seventeen, and the expense of the whole establishment to Governement of superintendent Vincent, it has realized 1500 pounds by the sale of corn and salt, and allowing for the value of the buildings erected

His Excellency Governor Hutt had done a great deal for the improvement of the natives; the schools established for their instruction work exceedingly well; and I a the taken a native woreat measure the result of the notice bestowed on the to the observations I had previously itude of Fremantle (Scott's Jetty); which, however, is the only part of the continent absolutely detere It is considered to be in longitude 115 degrees 47we received a letter of thanks froislative Council for the services we had rendered the colony My friend Lieutenant Roe presented me, also, with two specimens of the Spined Lizard Moloch horridus, which I intended to present to Her Majesty; but, unfortunately, I did not succeed in bringing either of theland; one, however, lived beyond the Western Islands