The Australian Explorers: Their Labours, Perils, and Achievements: Being a Narrative of Discovery from the Landing of Captain Cook to the Centennial YearGrimm, George
History
The Australian Explorers: Their Labours, Perils, and Achievements: Being a Narrative of Discovery from the Landing of Captain Cook to the Centennial Year
Grimm, George
Australia -- Discovery and exploration; Explorers -- Australia
flour and a couple of horses, which were only walking skeletons. Kennedy
reckoned on reaching Port Albany in about a fortnight, and started with
a light party of four men, including an aboriginal of tried fidelity
named Jacky Jacky. The remainder of this history is derived from the
barely intelligible language of poor Jacky. It appears that for the
first three weeks very unsatisfactory progress was made, much precious
time being lost in consequence of a gun accident. One of the men being
thus rendered unfit for travel, and another required to nurse him,
Kennedy resolved to divide his party a second time. He accordingly left
three men near Shelborne Bay, and, with only Jacky to accompany him,
determined to make a life-and-death struggle to bring succour from Port
Albany. But his own strength was rapidly failing, and the hostility of
the blacks, who had so long hung upon his rear, was daily assuming a
more deadly aspect. This misfortune was the more to be regretted as this
tedious and toilsome journey was almost at an end. From one of the
heights Kennedy caught a glimpse of Port Albany, with its neighbouring
island, and pointed them out to his dusky companion. But his life's
journey was still nearer its close. The blacks were gathering in
hundreds. An ineffectual attempt was tried to elude their vigilance by
camping in the scrub without a fire, but they again made their presence
known by hurling the deadly spear. Jacky made a rush to rally the
horses, which, frantic with their wounds, had begun to dash through the
scrub, and, on returning, found his master had been speared, surrounded,
and robbed. A feeble resistance was offered to the assault of the
savages, but it had little effect, and was soon over. Jacky thought
Kennedy was dying fast, and asked if he was now going to leave him. He
said he was fatally wounded, and, having given a brief order concerning
his papers, breathed his last in the arms of his faithful attendant.
Such was the end of Mr. E. B. Kennedy, a man who has left his mark on
our history, and will be honoured by posterity as one of the most
heroic, if not the most judicious, and certainly the least fortunate, of
the Australian explorers.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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