Journals of Expeditions of Discovery into Central Australia and Overland from Adelaide to King George's Sound in the Years 1840-1: Sent By the Colonists of South Australia, with the Sanction and Support of the Government: Including an Account of the Manners and Customs of the Aborigines and the State of Their Relations with Europeans — Volume 01Eyre, Edward John
History
Journals of Expeditions of Discovery into Central Australia and Overland from Adelaide to King George's Sound in the Years 1840-1: Sent By the Colonists of South Australia, with the Sanction and Support of the Government: Including an Account of the Manners and Customs of the Aborigines and the State of Their Relations with Europeans — Volume 01
Eyre, Edward John
Australia -- Discovery and exploration; Ethnology -- Australia
greyish limestone, of which by far the greater portion of the cliffs are
composed; and immediately below these again is a narrow stripe of a
whitish, or rather a cream-coloured substance, lying in horizontal
strata, but which the impracticable nature of the cliffs did not permit
me to examine. After riding for forty-five miles along their summits, I
was in no instance able to descend; their brinks were perfectly steep and
overhanging, and in many places enormous masses appeared severed by deep
cracks from the main land, and requiring but a slight touch to plunge
them into the abyss below. As far as I have yet been along these cliffs,
I have seen nothing in their appearance to lead me to suppose that any
portion of them is composed of chalk. Immediately along their summits,
and for a few hundred yards back, very numerous pieces of pure flint are
lying loosely scattered upon the surface of the limestone. How they
obtained so elevated a position, or whence they are from, may admit,
perhaps, of some speculation. Back from the sea, and as far as the eye
could reach, the country was level and generally open, with some low
prickly bushes and salsolaceous plants growing upon it; here and there
patches of the gum scrub shewed themselves, and among which a few small
grassy openings were interspersed. The whole of this tract was thickly
covered by small land shells, about the size of snail shells--and some of
them somewhat resembling those in shape. There were no sudden depressions
or abrupt elevations anywhere; neither hills, trees, or water were to be
observed; nor was there the least indication of improvement or change in
the general character of this desolate and forbidding region. The natives
we met with at the head of the Bight were very friendly, and readily
afforded us every information we required--as far as we could make them
comprehend our wishes.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account