Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia — CompleteSturt, Charles
History
Two Expeditions into the Interior of Southern Australia — Complete
Sturt, Charles
New South Wales -- Discovery and exploration; Sturt, Charles, 1795-1869
Our horses literally sank up to their knees on parts of the great plain
over which we had in the first instance to pass, and we rode from three to
four miles before we caught sight of a distant wood at its northern
extremity; the view from the river having been for the last two or three
days, as boundless as the ocean. As we approached the wood, two columns of
smoke rose from it, considerably apart, evidently the fires of natives
near water. We made for the central space between them, having a dead
acacia scrub upon our right. On entering the wood, we found that it
contained for the most part, flooded-gum, under which bulrushes and
reeds were mixed together. The whole space seemed liable to overflow, and
we crossed numerous little drains, that intersected each other in every
direction. From the resemblance of the ground to that at the bottom of the
marshes of the Macquarie, I prognosticated to my companion that we should
shortly come upon a creek, and we had not ridden a quarter of a mile
further, when we found ourselves on the banks of one of considerable size.
Crossing it, we proceeded northerly, until we got on the outskirts of a
plain of red sandy soil, covered with rhagodia alone, and without a tree
upon the visible horizon. The country appeared to be rising before us, but
was extremely depressed to the eastward. After continuing along this
plain for some time, I became convinced from appearances, that we were
receding from water, and that the fires of the natives, which were no
longer visible, must have been on the creek we had crossed, that I judged
to be leading W.S.W. from the opposite quarter. We had undoubtedly struck
below to the westward of the Colare or Lachlan, and the creek was the
channel of communication between it and the Morumbidgee, at least such was
the natural conclusion at which I arrived. Having no further object in
continuing a northerly course, we turned to the S.E., and, after again
passing the creek, struck away for the camp on a S. by W. course, and
passed through a dense brush of cypress and casuarina in our way to it.
CONNECTION OF LACHLAN WITH MORUMBIDGEE.
Considering our situation as connected with the marshes of the Lachlan,
I cannot but infer that the creek we struck upon during this excursion
serves as a drain to the latter, to conduct its superfluous waters into
the Morumbidgee in times of flood, as those of the Macquarie are conducted
by the creek at the termination of its marshes into Morrisset's Chain of
Ponds. It will be understood that I only surmise this. I argue from
analogy, not from proof. Whether I am correct or not, my knowledge of the
facts I have stated, tended very much to satisfy my mind as to the LAY of
the interior; and to revive my hopes that the Morumbidgee would not fail
us, although there was no appearance of the country improving.
COUNTRY COVERED WITH REEDS.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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