Discoveries in Australia.

by John Lort Stokes.

VOLUME 2.

JOURNAL OF A VOYAGE OF DISCOVERY.

CHAPTER 2.1.

Leave Port Essington.

Clarence Strait.

Hope Inlet.

Shoal Bay.

Land for Observations.

Explore a new Opening.

Talc Head.

Port Darwin.

Continue Exploration.

Mosquitoes and Sandflies.

Nature of the Country.

Its parched appearance.

Large ant's nest.

Return to Shoal Bay.

Visit from the Natives.

Remarks.

Their teeth perfect.

Rite of Circ.u.mcision.

Observations on the Migrations of the Natives.

Theory of an Inland Sea.

Central Desert.

Salt water drunk by Natives.

Modes of procuring water.

Survey the harbour.

Natives on a raft.

Anecdote.

Bynoe Harbour.

Well.

Brilliant Meteors.

Natives on Point Emery.

Their surprise at the well.

Importance of water.

Anecdote.

Languages of Australia.

Specimens.

Remarks.

Leave Port Darwin.

Tides.

Squall.

Visit Port Patterson.

Leave.

Examine opening to the south-west.

Table Hill.

McAdam Range.

Adventure with an Alligator.

Exploring party.

Discovery of the Victoria.

Ascend the river.

Appearance of the Country.

Fitzmaurice River.

Indian Hill.

The Beagle taken up the river.

LEAVE PORT ESSINGTON.

Early on the morning of the 4th of September, 1839, the Beagle was once more slipping out of Port Essington before a light land wind. We had taken a hearty farewell of our friends at Victoria, in whose prosperity we felt all the interest that is due to those who pioneer the way for others in the formation of a new settlement. No doubt the hope that our discoveries might open a new field for British enterprise, and contribute to extend still more widely the blessings of civilization, increased the sympathy we felt for the young colony at Victoria. There is always a feeling of pride and pleasure engendered by the thought that we are in any way instrumental to the extension of man's influence over the world which has been given him to subdue. In the present instance, the success of our last cruise and the state of preparation in which we were now in for a longer one, caused us to take our departure from Port Essington in far higher spirits than on the former occasion.

Pa.s.s THROUGH CLARENCE STRAIT.

We again shaped our course for Clarence Strait, the western entrance of which was still unexamined. The wind, however, being light, we pa.s.sed the night in Popham Bay; and on leaving next morning, had only six fathoms in some tide ripplings nearly two miles off its south point, Cape Don. We pa.s.sed along the south side of Melville Island, where a large fire was still burning. Early in the evening we anch.o.r.ed in seven fathoms, to wait for a boat that had been sent to examine a shoal bay on the North-West side of Cape Keith. Green Ant Cliffs bore South-West two miles.

September 7.

Weighing at daylight we hauled up south, into the middle of the channel, crossing a ridge of 5 1/2 fathoms; Ant Cliffs bearing West-South-West five miles, and three or four from the sh.o.r.e. This ridge appears to be thrown up at the extremity of the flats fronting the sh.o.r.e. On deepening the water to 10 and 12 fathoms, the course was changed to West 1/2 South, pa.s.sing midway between North Vernon Isle and Cape Gambier, where the width of the channel is seven miles, though the whole of it is not available for the purposes of navigation, a long detached reef lying three miles from the Cape, and a small one two miles from the North Vernon Isle.* The tide hurried the Beagle past between these reefs with some rapidity, the soundings at the time being 19 fathoms.

(*Footnote. These isles, three in number, lying quite in the centre of the western entrance of the Strait, are fringed with extensive coral reefs. There are, however, deep pa.s.sages between them.)

Having cleared Clarence Strait, and found it to be perfectly navigable with common precaution (which in a slight degree enhanced the value of the discovery of the Adelaide) our course was directed for a bay to the southward, which Captain King had not examined. A very refreshing cool north-westerly seabreeze* had just succeeded a short calm. Pa.s.sing four miles from the western extremity of the Vernon Isles, we had irregular soundings of ten and seven fathoms. The ripplings and discoloured water are a warning that they should be approached with caution on this side.

(*Footnote. The seabreeze prevailing from the westward through Clarence Strait, the pa.s.sage to Port Essington from the westward, during the easterly monsoon, might be more easily made by pa.s.sing through it, instead of working along the north side of Melville Island.)

The mouth of a considerable inlet came in sight at the head of a bay as we advanced towards it, steering South by East. This opening began to appear of consequence as we drew near, although the singularly gradual decrease in the soundings, on a sandy bottom materially diminished the probability of its being the mouth of a river. Still, when we anch.o.r.ed as near as we could approach, there remained a hope of its being so.

HOPE INLET. SHOAL BAY.

September 8.

Early in the morning Mr. Forsyth and myself started to explore the opening. We soon discovered that it was nothing more than a shallow creek at low-water. The tide here rising twenty feet, gave it the important appearance it had yesterday evening. A tall clump of naked trees was conspicuous at the east entrance point, towering above the insipid mangrove sh.o.r.e. We gave it the name of Hope Inlet, to commemorate the feelings it excited on its first discovery. From the south point of Clarence Strait it is distant eleven miles, and the bay in which it lies, from the shallow-water at the head of it, was called Shoal Bay.

The boat being provisioned for four days, we pushed on to explore another opening above fifteen miles to the westward. The seabreeze setting in early, we did not reach it till after dark, when we landed for observations at a cliffy projection near the eastern entrance point: this we found to be composed of a kind of pipeclay, mixed with calcareous matter. We had some difficulty in landing, and then in scrambling up the cliffs by the light of a lantern. If any of the watchful natives happened at the time to be on the lookout, they must have stood fixed with astonishment at beholding such strange persons, who at such a time of night, with no ostensible object were visiting their sh.o.r.es.

EXPLORE A NEW OPENING.

September 9.

Before the veil of darkness was quite removed, we could faintly distinguish the mouth of the opening; and the sight at daylight was most cheering. A wide bay appearing between two white cliffy heads, and stretching away within to a great distance, presented itself to our view.

Far to the southward, between the heads, rose a small table-topped hill.

As we pulled in towards the eastern entrance point, the river-like appearance began to wear off, more land making its appearance towards the head of the opening. On reaching this point Mr. Forsyth and myself climbed up the cliff, whilst the breakfast was cooking. From the summit we had a good view of the bay, and were delighted to find large openings in the south-east and south-west corners of it. The table hill before mentioned, stood on the point between them. To see the eastern part of it, however, it was necessary to cross to the opposite point, where some talc slate, pieces of which measured four inches in length, was found imbedded in quartz. The point was called in consequence, Talc Head.