Journals of Australian ExplorationsGregory, Augustus Charles
History
Journals of Australian Explorations
Gregory, Augustus Charles
Australia -- Discovery and exploration
The next ten miles passed over between this and sunset was chiefly an
alluvial flat, much resembling the fertile lands near the mouth of the
Greenough; the acacias and several varieties of melaleuca, amongst which
was the Callistemon phoeniceus, with its beautiful scarlet flowers, were
growing with tropical luxuriance, the soil in many places being still
saturated with moisture. A water-melon was here first observed, the fruit
not attaining to more than two inches in length, but not otherwise
differing from the cultivated kinds; we also found a fruit in shape like
a pear, three inches in length, growing on a small creeper, the interior
of the fruit consisting of a number of small flat seeds, to which were
attached a bundle of long silky fibres resembling cotton. Our bivouac was
in latitude 24 degrees 7 minutes 52 seconds, near a fine pool of fresh
water, with limestone cropping out in a thin bed on the banks; we had
frequently met with it distributed in small nodules scattered over a
large portion of the country on the Upper Murchison.
Since quitting the mouth of the Gascoyne we had seen natives almost
daily; to-night we again found ourselves in close proximity to a large
encampment of them.
2nd June.
Our neighbours paid us an early visit this morning, some of them
evidently bent on mischief, but were restrained by others more
prudent--not, however, before it had nearly cost one of them his life;
having pointed a spear at Mr. Moore, Dugel, whose natural instincts are
very destructive, hastily took aim at him, but fortunately pulled the
wrong trigger, which just gave his adversary time to lower his weapon; on
our mounting our horses they hastily fell back and joined their other
companions at their camp, which was just in our line of march; about
thirty of them awaited our approach with some tokens of defiance, but
most of them decamped on our coming within spear's throw.
MOUNT AUGUSTUS 3,480 FEET ABOVE SEA LEVEL.
Directing our course for Mount Augustus, we pushed on at a rapid pace
with the object of ascending it if possible before sundown; but after
riding twenty miles, we found it to be farther off than we anticipated,
and accordingly altered our course and encamped at a pool in the river
about three miles north-east of the mount, in latitude 24 degrees 20
minutes, and at an elevation of 1500 feet above the sea.
We here met with strong evidences of the cannibalism of the natives; at a
recently occupied encampment we found several of the bones of a
full-grown native that had been cooked, the teeth marks on the edges of a
bladebone bearing conclusive evidence as to the purpose to which it had
been applied; some of the ribs were lying by the huts with a portion of
the meat still on them.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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