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Discoveries in Australia, Volume 1.: With an Account of the Coasts and Rivers Explored and Surveyed During; The Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle, in the Years 1837-38-39-40-41-42-43.; By Command of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. Also a Narrative; Of Captain Owen Stanley's Visits to the Islands in the Arafura Sea.Stokes, John Lort

History

Discoveries in Australia, Volume 1.: With an Account of the Coasts and Rivers Explored and Surveyed During; The Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle, in the Years 1837-38-39-40-41-42-43.; By Command of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. Also a Narrative; Of Captain Owen Stanley's Visits to the Islands in the Arafura Sea.

Name: Discoveries in Australia, Volume 1.: With an Account of the Coasts and Rivers Explored and Surveyed During; The Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle, in the Years 1837-38-39-40-41-42-43.; By Command of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. Also a Narrative; Of Captain Owen Stanley's Visits to the Islands in the Arafura Sea.
Author: Stokes, John Lort

Stokes, John Lort

Australia -- Description and travel; Australia -- Discovery and exploration; Natural history -- Australia

The least depth on the Orontes reef is about a fathom, but the generally
discoloured state of the water, renders it impossible to determine its
exact position, and thus greatly increases the injury done by its
presence to the mouth of the harbour. The same difficulty prevents the
end of the reef fronting Point Smith from being made out. After rounding
the latter, we hauled to the wind, South-West by South up Port Essington.


CHAPTER 1.11.

Port Essington.
Bearings from shoals in the Harbour.
Appearance of the Settlement.
Meet Captain Stanley.
Church.
Point Record.
Prospects of the Settlement.
Buffaloes escape.
Fence across neck of Peninsula.
Lieutenant P.B. Stewart explores the Country.
Natives.
Uses of Sand.
Tumuli-building Birds.
Beautiful Opossum.
Wild Bees.
Escape from an Alligator.
Result of Astronomical Observations.
Geological Formation.
Raffles Bay.
Leave Port Essington.
Popham Bay.
Detect error in position of Port Essington.
Melville Island.
Discover a Reef in Clarence Strait.
Cape Hotham.
Native Huts and Clothing.
Geological Formation.
Discover the Adelaide River.
Interview with Natives.
Attempt to come on board.
Messrs. Fitzmaurice and Keys nearly speared.
Exploration of the Adelaide.
Its capabilities.
Wood-ducks.
Vampires.
Another party ascends the Adelaide.
Meet Natives.
Canoes.
Alligator.
Visit Melville Island.
Green Ants.
Thoughts of taking ship up Adelaide abandoned.
Tides in Dundas Strait.
Return to Port Essington.
Theatricals.
H.M.S. Pelorus arrives with Provisions.
Further remarks on the Colony.

PORT ESSINGTON.

The expanse of water presented to our view in standing up Port Essington,
quite delighted us. It is in truth a magnificent harbour, and well worthy
of having on its shores the capital of Northern Australia, destined,
doubtless, from its proximity to India, and our other fast-increasing
eastern possessions, to become not only a great commercial resort, but a
valuable naval post in time of war. Many circumstances combine to render
it a desirable station. Its great size, having an extent sufficient to
hold the largest fleet, is in itself of vast importance, while, as a
shelter for distressed vessels, or the surviving crews of wrecks, it
cannot be too highly rated: the more so that excellent wood for repairing
ships grows in the neighbourhood, especially teak and oak, specimens of
which with others, Captain Laws forwarded, in 1828, to one of the
dockyards in England.

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