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
We entered the new river at right angles, and, as I have remarked, at the
point of junction the channel of the Morumbidgee had narrowed so as to
bear all the appearance of an ordinary creek. In breadth it did not exceed
fifty feet, and if, instead of having passed down it, I had been making my
way up the principal streams, I should little have dreamt that so dark and
gloomy an outlet concealed a river that would lead me to the haunts of
civilized man, and whose fountains rose amidst snow-clad mountains. Such,
however, is the characteristic of the streams falling to the westward of
the coast ranges. Descending into a low and level interior, and depending
on their immediate springs for existence, they fall off, as they increase
their distance from the base of the mountains in which they rise, and in
their lower branches give little results of the promise they had
previously made.
The opinion I have expressed, and which is founded on my personal
experience, that the rivers crossed by Messrs. Hovell and Hume had
already united above me, was strengthened by the capacity of the stream we
had just discovered. It had a medium width of 350 feet, with a depth of
from twelve to twenty. Its reaches were from half to three-quarters of a
mile in length, and the views upon it were splendid. Of course, as the
Morumbidgee entered it from the north, its first reach must have been
E. and W., and it was so, as nearly as possible; but it took us a little
to the southward of the latter point, in a distance of about eight miles
that we pulled down it in the course of the afternoon. We then landed and
pitched our tents for the night. Its transparent waters were running over
a sandy bed at the rate of two-and-a-half knots an hour, and its banks,
although averaging eighteen feet in height, were evidently subject to
floods.
ABSENCE OF NATIVES.
We had not seen any natives since falling in with the last tribe on the
Morumbidgee. A cessation had, therefore, taken place in our communication
with them, in re-establishing which I anticipated considerable difficulty.
It appeared singular that we should not have fallen in with any for
several successive days, more especially at the junction of the two
rivers, as in similar situations they generally have an establishment. In
examining the country back from the stream, I did not observe any large
paths, but it was evident that fires had made extensive ravages in the
neighbourhood, so that the country was, perhaps, only temporarily
deserted. Macnamee, who had wandered a little from the tents, declared
that he had seen about a dozen natives round a fire, from whom (if he
really did see them) he very precipitately fled, but I was inclined to
discredit his story, because in our journey on the following day, we
did not see even a casual wanderer.
WEATHER, TEMPERATURE, &C.
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