Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia: From Moreton Bay to Port Essington, a distance of upwards of 3000 miles, during the years 1844-1845Leichhardt, Ludwig
History
Journal of an Overland Expedition in Australia: From Moreton Bay to Port Essington, a distance of upwards of 3000 miles, during the years 1844-1845
Leichhardt, Ludwig
Australia -- Description and travel; Australia -- Discovery and exploration
May 10.--This morning they came again, and, when our bullocks were loaded
and we were about to start, I went down to them and took a sort of leave.
We had scarcely proceeded half a mile, when we missed the tinkling of our
bell, and found that Charley had forgotten to put it on the horse's neck,
and had left it behind. Mr. Calvert and Brown, therefore, returned to
look for it, and, upon reaching the place where the camp had been made,
saw the natives examining and beating every part of it; at the approach
of the horsemen, however, they retired to the other side of the river;
but when they turned their horses' heads, after having found the bell,
the natives followed them, and threw three spears after them--whether it
was out of mere wantonness, or with hostile intentions, I do not know,
though I was inclined to believe the first. It was, nevertheless, a
warning to us not to repose too much confidence in them. Mr. Roper met
to-day with a severe accident, which nearly cost him his life. It was a
very common practice to make our horses stop by catching them by the
tails; as he tried to do this with his horse, which was not yet
accustomed to him, the animal struck out at him, and kicked him with both
feet on the chest. Roper happily recovered after some faintness, but
complained for several days afterwards of external pain. We travelled
this day about four miles and a half N.N.E. along the river side,
following a well-beaten path of the natives.
The river was again confined in its own valley, with quartzose rocks
(Psammite) on one side, and the falls of the basaltic table land on the
other. Basalt was, however, observed here about on several spots at the
left bank, and quartz porphyry composed the ridges near our last
encampment. The river divided here into a great number of anabranches,
but all confined in the same valley, and united by intermediate channels.
The bed of it had again become sandy, with small pebbles of pegmatite and
quartz. Casuarinas were plentiful on its banks; the poplar-gum, and the
Moreton Bay ash on the adjacent flats; Tristania, with pubescent leaves
round some lagoons; narrow-leaved Ironbark, and poplar-gum grew on the
hills; and rich grass every where.
The night was clear, but the morning foggy, and the dew very heavy. The
wind was from the northward, and, as usual, very strong after sunset.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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