Journals Of Two Expeditions Of Discovery In North West And Western Australia Volume 1 (Of 2), George Grey [robert munsch read aloud txt] 📗

The

Merits Of Our Redeemer Will Be Found A Sure Refuge And A Certain Source

Of Consolation.

 

In Pursuing My Route Along The Beach I Carefully Examined Every Heap Of

Seaweed Which The Waves Had Thrown Up,  And Was Fortunate Enough To Find A

Bag Of Flour Which Had Been Washed Up By The Tide And Held There By Some

Rocks; Though From Daily Soaking In Salt Water For Several Weeks It Was

Quite Spoilt And Fermented,  And Smelt Like Beer; Yet This,  Under Present

Circumstances,  Was More Valuable Than Its Weight In Gold. Just After I

Had Found This Bag,  I Met Ruston And Another Man Coming From The Boats To

The Depot; I At Once Told Them Exactly How Matters Stood; They Bore The

Announcement Better Than I Could Have Hoped For,  And When I Showed Them

That Their Safety Altogether Depended On Their Good Conduct They Promised

The Most Implicit Obedience And A Ready Cheerful Demeanour. I Must Do

Ruston The Justice To Say That Under Every Trial He Most Scrupulously

Adhered To The Promise He Then Made,  And Never Infringed Upon It In The

Slightest Degree.

 

Conduct Of The Men.

 

When I Reached The Party And Told The Tale Of The Total Disappearance Of

All We Had Left At The Depot Blank And Dismayed Faces Met Me On All

Sides. Mr. Walker And Corporal Auger Set An Excellent Example To The

Others; But Two Men,  Of The Names Of Harry And Charley Woods,  Seized The

First Convenient Opportunity Of Walking Off To The Place Where Our

Miserable Remnant Of Damper Was Deposited With The Intention Of

Appropriating It To Themselves. I Only Waited Till They Actually Laid

Their Hands Upon It,  When I Stopped Them,  Placed A Sentry Over What

Provisions Were Left,  Ordered A Survey Of All Stores To Be Held,  And A

Report To Be Made To Me; And Then Went Off With A Party To Search The

Shore In The Hope Of Finding Any Other Things Which Might Have Been

Washed Up: Our Search However Proved Quite Unsuccessful.

 

Choice Of Plans.

 

I Had Warned The Men That At Sunset I Would Inform Them What My

Intentions Were With Regard To Our Future Movements; And In The Meantime

All Hands Were Employed In Searching For Provisions Or In Preparing The

Boats For Sea. A Very Gloomy Prospect Was Before Us: The Men Were Already

Much Reduced From Illness,  From Using Damaged Provisions,  And From Hard

Work And Exposure Combined: Our Boats Were In A Very Leaky Unsound State,

Whilst All Means Of Efficiently Repairing Them Had Been Swept Away In The

Hurricane. Add To This That The Only Provisions We Had Left Really Fit To

Eat Were About Nine Days' Salt Meat,  At The Rate Of A Pound A Man Per

Diem,  And About Sixty Pounds Of Tolerably Good Flour.

 

It Would Be Useless To Detail The Different Reasons Which Induced Me To

Adopt The Plan Of Endeavouring To Make Swan River In The Whale Boats;

This Was However The Course I Resolved To Pursue. Its Principal

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (From The Gascoyne To Gantheaume Bay Sail From The Gascoyne) Pg 244

Advantages Were That We Should Be Constantly Approaching Home; And That

If Any Accident Should Happen To The Boats We Might Always Hope To Reach

Perth By Walking: The Principal Objection To It Was The Prevalence Of

Strong South-East Winds. At Sunset The Party Assembled. I Detailed To

Them At Considerable Length The Three Most Feasible Plans Which Had

Offered Themselves To Me,  The Reasons Which Had Made Me Reject Two Of

Them,  As Well As Those Which Led Me To Adopt The Third; And As I Knew

That There Were Two Or Three Insubordinate Characters Amongst The Men,

Whom I Had Picked Up At Fremantle,  I Further Told Them That,  If A

Sufficient Number To Man One Of The Boats Objected To Follow Me,  They

Could Go Their Own Way; As The Success Of My Scheme Would Altogether

Depend Upon The Courage And Subordination With Which It Was Carried Out.

No Dissentient Voice Was However Raised,  But They All Promised To Follow

Me Wherever I Might Lead. We Now Made Arrangements For Searching For

Turtle During The Night,  And Then Stretched Ourselves On The Sand To Try

And Sleep.

 

March 21.

 

We Were Unfortunate In Not Catching A Turtle During The Night; The Season

For Them Had However Now Passed Away,  So That We Could Only Hope To Cut

Off A Stray One Which Might Have Lingered Behind Its Fellows. The Next

Day Was Occupied In Sticking Up A Steer-Oar With A Tin Canister Attached

To It,  Containing A Letter In Which Was Detailed The Plan I Intended To

Follow,  So That In The Event Of Any Accident Occurring,  And Our Remaining

On The Coast,  We Might Still Have The Chance Of A Vessel Being Sent To

Search For Us. The Men Were Occupied In Looking For Shellfish,  Drying The

Flour,  And Preparing The Boats. It Blew Nearly A Gale Of Wind From The

South Throughout The Day.

 

Return To The Main.

 

March 22.

 

This Day At Two P.M.,  All Our Preparations Having Been Completed And The

Wind Somewhat Moderated,  We Stood Across The Bay,  And Soon After

Nightfall Made The Main About Twelve Miles To The North Of The Northern

Mouth Of The Gascoyne. The Wind Freshened A Great Deal During The Night;

But As It Was Impossible To Beach Boats On So Dangerous A Coast In The

Dark We Were Obliged To Trust To The Goodness Of Our Anchors,  And They

Did Not Disappoint Us.

 

March 23.

 

Before Dawn This Morning We Were Under Weigh And Pulling Dead To Windward

Against A Strong Breeze And Heavy Sea; The Men Rowed Almost Without

Intermission Until Noon When,  Finding Them Completely Exhausted,  I Made

Sail And Stood In Towards The Shore. When We Had Approached The Land

About Four Miles To The North Of The Gascoyne A Party Of Natives Came

Down,  Without Their Spears,  In The Most Friendly Manner,  Making Signs To

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (From The Gascoyne To Gantheaume Bay Sail From The Gascoyne) Pg 245

Us To Land. We Had However But Little Time To Spare,  And Could Not Afford

To Give Them Any Provisions: Knowing Also The Small Dependence That Can

Be Placed Upon Them In A First Interview,  I Thought It Most Prudent To

Decline Their Invitation.

 

Complete Our Water.

 

We Accordingly Continued Our Route And In The Course Of The Evening Made

The River,  Where We Completed Our Water,  And Halted For The Night. We Saw

Nothing More Of The Natives Here,  But I Feel Convinced That In The Event

Of A Settlement Being Formed At This Point No Difficulty Would Be Found

In Establishing And Maintaining The Most Friendly Relations With Them.

 

Anchor To The North Of The Gascoyne.

 

March 24.

 

The Morning Did Not Promise Very Well,  But Soon After Sunrise The Wind

Shifted So Much To The Westward That We Were Able To Run Along Shore,  And

In The Course Of The Day We Made Altogether About Forty-Five Miles,

Tracing The Greater Part Of The Remaining Unknown Portion Of The Shores

Of Shark Bay. On Leaving The Gascoyne,  A Low Point Bore Due South Of Us,

Distant About Twelve Miles,  Which I Named Point Greenough After George

Bellas Greenough,  Esquire,  The President Of The Royal Geographical

Society; And Between This Point And The River Lay A Deep Bay,  The Shores

Of Which Were Low And Thickly Studded With Mangroves,  Through Which Many

Saltwater Creeks Ran Up Into The Country. Two Of These Creeks I Had

Examined On A Previous Occasion,  And Therefore Now Paid No Attention To

Them.

 

Examine The Coast To The Southward. Its Character.

 

After Passing Point Greenough The Shore Trended South By East And For The

Next Eight Miles Preserved Its Low Character,  Being Still Thickly Wooded

With Mangroves; But At This Point A Remarkable Change Takes Place As The

Mangroves Suddenly Cease,  And The Low Range Of Hills Which Extends

Southward Along The Coast Parallel To The Shore Increases A Little In

Height. In About Another Mile The Mangroves Again Commence,  The Coast Now

Trending South-East; And About Five Miles Further It Runs South-East By

East,  Forming A Bay About Four Miles Deep,  The Bottom Of Which Is

Tolerably Clear Of Mangroves.

 

Continue Our Course To The Southward.

 

Having Crossed This Bay We Ran South-East By South Parallel To The Shore;

The Mangroves Now Became Less Continuous And Numerous,  At Least They

Appeared To Us To Be So,  And The Range Of Hills Seemed Also To Approach

Much Nearer To The Sea. We Continued On This Course Until Sunset,  When I

Selected A Snug Little Bay In The Mangroves,  Where We Anchored At The

Distance Of A Few Yards From The Shore And Made Ourselves As Comfortable

Volume 1 Chapter 12 (From The Gascoyne To Gantheaume Bay Sail From The Gascoyne) Pg 246

As We Could For The Night.

 

Character Of The Coast And Sea.

 

There Was Great Beauty In The Scenery Which We Saw During The Day's Sail;

The Waters And The Sky Had That Peculiar Brilliancy About Them Which Is

Only Seen In Fine Weather And In A Tropical Climate. To The West Of Us

Lay An Apparently Boundless Expanse Of Sea,  Whilst To The Eastward We Had

A Low Shore Fringed With Trees,  Not Only Down To The Water's Edge But

Forming Little Green Knolls Of Foliage In The Ocean Itself; Behind These

Trees Lay Low Wooded Hills,  And In Front Of Them Stalked And Swam About

Pelicans And Waterfowl In Countless Numbers. We Had Only About Three Feet

Depth Of Clear Transparent Water,  Through Which We Saw That The Flats

Beneath Us Were Covered With Vivid Coloured Shells Of Many Genera,  Some

Of Which Were Of A Very Large Size; Strange-Looking Fish Of A Variety Of

Kinds Were Also Sporting About; More Particularly Sharks Of A New Species

(Of That Kind Which I Shot At In Mistake For An Alligator) And Stingrays.

Whenever A Lull Occurred The Men,  Unable To Resist The Chance Of Getting

A Meal,  Would Jump Out Of The Boat,  And Give Chase To One Of These

Sting-Rays,  Boat-Hook In Hand,  And Then Loud Peals Of Laughter Rose From

The Others As The Pursuer,  Too Anxious To Attain His Object,  Missed His

Stroke Or,  Stumbling,  Rolled Headlong In The Water. The Fineness Of The

Day,  The Novelty Of The Scenery,  And The Rapid Way We Were Making Made

The Poor Fellows Forget Past Dangers,  As Well As Those They Had Yet To

Undergo. My Own Meditations Were