Many of my readers may probably doubt this horrid occurrence having taken place, as I have not mentioned any corroborating circumstances. I am myself, however, as firmly persuaded of the truth of what I have stated as if I had seen the savage commit the act; for I talked to his companion who did see him, and who described to me the manner in which he killed the child. Be it as it may, the very mention of such a thing among these people goes to prove that they are capable of such an enormity.

We left Yass Plains on the 14th of May, and reached Sydney by easy stages on the 25th, after an absence of nearly six months.

* * * * *

CONCLUDING REMARKS.

To most of my readers, the foregoing narrative will appear little else than a succession of adventures. Whilst the expedition was toiling down the rivers, no rich country opened upon the view to reward or to cheer the perseverance of those who composed it, and when, at length, the land of promise lay smiling before them, their strength and their means were too much exhausted to allow of their commencing an examination, of the result of which there could be but little doubt. The expedition returned to Sydney, without any splendid discovery to gild its proceedings; and the labours and dangers it had encountered were considered as nothing more than ordinary occurrences. If I myself had entertained hopes that my researches would have benefited the colony, I was wholly disappointed. There is a barren tract of country lying to the westward of the Blue Mountains that will ever divide the eastern coast from the more central parts of Australia, as completely as if seas actually rolled between them.

GEOGRAPHICAL REMARKS.

In a geographical point of view, however, nothing could have been more satisfactory, excepting an absolute knowledge of the country to the northward between the Murray and the Darling, than the results of the expedition. I have in its proper place stated, as fairly as I could, my reasons for supposing the principal junction (which I consequently left without a name) to be the Darling of my former journey, as well as the various arguments that bore against such a conclusion.

Of course, where there is so much room for doubt, opinions will be various. I shall merely review the subject, in order to connect subsequent events with my previous observations, and to give the reader a full idea of that which struck me to be the case on a close and anxious investigation of the country from mountain to lowland. I returned from the Macquarie with doubts on my mind as to the ultimate direction to which the waters of the Darling river might ultimately flow; for, with regard to every other point, the question was, I considered, wholly decided. But, with regard to that singular stream, I was, from the little knowledge I had obtained, puzzled as to its actual course; and I thought it as likely that it might turn into the heart of the interior, as that it would make to the south. It had not, however, escaped my notice, that the northern rivers turned more abruptly southward (after gaining a certain distance from the base of the ranges) than the more southern streams: near the junction of the Castlereagh with the Darling especially, the number of large creeks joining the first river from the north, led me to conclude that there was at that particular spot a rapid fall of country to the south.

The first thing that strengthened in my mind this half-formed opinion, was the fall of the Lachlan into the Morumbidgee. I had been told that Australia was a basin; that an unbroken range of hills lined its coasts, the internal rivers of which fell into its centre, and contributed to the formation of an inland sea; I was not therefore prepared to find a break in the chain—a gap as it were for the escape of these waters to the coast.

Subsequently to our entrance into the Murray, the remarkable efforts of that river to maintain a southerly course were observed even by the men, and the singular runs it made to the south, when unchecked by high lands, clearly evinced its natural tendency to flow in that direction.

Had we found ourselves at an elevation above the bed of the Darling when we reached the junction of the principal tributary with the Murray, I should still have had doubts on my mind as to the identity of that tributary with the first-mentioned river; but considering the trifling elevation of the Darling above the sea, and that the junction was still less elevated above it, I cannot bring myself to believe that the former alters its course. It is not, however, on this simple geographical principle that I have built my conclusions; other corroborative circumstances have tended also to confirm in my mind the opinion I have already given, not only of the comparatively recent appearance above the ocean of the level country over which I had passed, but that the true dip of the interior is from north to south.

In support of the first of these conclusions, it would appear that a current of water must have swept the vast accumulation of shells, forming the great fossil bank through which the Murray passes from the northern extremity of the continent, to deposit them where they are; and it would further appear from the gradual rise of this bed, on an inclined plain from N.N.E. to S.S.W., that it must in the first instance, have swept along the base of the ranges, but ultimately turned into the above direction by the convexity of the mountains at the S.E. angle of the coast. From the circumstance, moreover, of the summit of the fossil formation being in places covered with oyster shells, the fact of the whole mass having been under water is indisputable, and leads us naturally to the conclusion that the depressed interior beyond it must have been under water at the same time.

It was proved by barometrical admeasurement, that the cataract of the Macquarie was 680 feet above the level of the sea, and, in like manner, it was found that the depot of Mr. Oxley, on the Lachlan, was only 500, there being a still greater fall of country beyond these two points. The maximum height of the fossil bank was 300 feet; and if we suppose a line to be drawn from its top to the eastward, that line would pass over the marshes of the two rivers, and would cut them at a point below which they both gradually diminish. Hence I am brought to conclude that in former times the sea washed the western base of the dividing ranges, at or near the two points whose respective elevations I have given; and that when the mass of land now lying waste and unproductive, became exposed, the rivers, which until then had pursued a regular course to the ocean, having no channel beyond their original termination, overflowed the almost level country into which they now fall; or, filling some extensive concavity, have contributed, by successive depositions, to the formation of those marshes of which so much has been said. I regret extremely, that my defective vision prevents me giving a slight sketch to elucidate whet I fear I have, in words, perhaps, failed in making sufficiently intelligible.

GEOLOGICAL REMARKS.

Now, as we know not by what means the changes that have taken place on the earth's surface have been effected, and can only reason on them from analogy, it is to be feared we shall never arrive at any clear demonstration of the truth of our surmises with regard to geographical changes, whether extensive or local, since the causes which produced them will necessarily have ceased to operate. We cannot refer to the dates when they took place, as we may do in regard to the eruptions of a volcano, or the appearance or disappearance of an island. Such events are of minor importance. Those mighty changes to which I would be understood to allude, can hardly be laid to the account of chemical agency. We can easily comprehend how subterranean fires will occasionally burst forth, and can thus satisfactorily account for earthquake or volcano; but it is not to any clashing of properties, or to any visible causes, that the changes of which I speak can be attributed. They appear rather as the consequences of direct agency, of an invisible power, not as the occasional and fretful workings of nature herself. The marks of that awful catastrophe which so nearly extinguished the human race, are every day becoming more and more visible as geological research proceeds. Thus, in the limestone caves at Wellington Valley, the remains of fossils and exuviae, show that their depths were penetrated by the same searching element that poured into the caverns of Kirkdale and other places. They are as gleams of sunshine falling upon the pages of that sublime and splendid volume, in which the history of the deluge is alone to be found; as if the Almighty intended that His word should stand single and unsupported before mankind: and when we consider that such corroborative testimonies of his wrath, as those I have noticed, were in all probability wholly unknown to those who wrote that sacred book, the discovery of the remains of a past world, must strike those under whose knowledge it may fall with the truth of that awful event, which language has vainly endeavoured to describe and painters to represent.



CHAPTER VIII.



Environs of the lake Alexandrina—Appointment of Capt. Barker to make a further survey of the coast near Encounter Bay—Narrative of his proceedings—Mount Lofty, Mount Barker, and beautiful country adjacent— Australian salmon—Survey of the coast—Outlet of lake to the sea— Circumstances that led to the slaughter of Capt. Barker by the natives— His character—Features of this part of the country and capabilities of its coasts—Its adaptation for colonization—Suggestions for the furtherance of future Expeditions.

ENVIRONS OF THE LAKE ALEXANDRINA.

The foregoing narrative will have given the reader some idea of the state in which the last expedition reached the bottom of that extensive and magnificent basin which receives the waters of the Murray. The men were, indeed, so exhausted, in strength, and their provisions so much reduced by the time they gained the coast, that I doubted much, whether either would hold out to such place as we might hope for relief. Yet, reduced as the whole of us were from previous exertion, beset as our homeward path was by difficulty and danger, and involved as our eventual safety was in obscurity and doubt, I could not but deplore the necessity that obliged me to re-cross the Lake Alexandrina (as I had named it in honour of the heir apparent to the British crown), and to relinquish the examination of its western shores. We were borne over its ruffled and agitated surface with such rapidity, that I had scarcely time to view it as we passed; but, cursory as my glance was, I could not but think I was leaving behind me the fullest reward of our toil, in a country that would ultimately render our discoveries valuable, and benefit the colony for whose interests we were engaged. Hurried, I would repeat, as my view of it was, my eye never fell on a country of more promising aspect, or of more favourable position, than that which occupies the space between the lake and the ranges of St. Vincent's Gulf, and, continuing northerly from Mount Barker, stretches away, without any visible boundary.

It appeared to me that, unless nature had deviated from her usual laws, this tract of country could not but be fertile, situated as it was to receive the mountain deposits on the one hand, and those of the lake upon the other.

FURTHER EXAMINATION OF THE COAST.

In my report to the Colonial Government, however, I did not feel myself justified in stating, to their full extent, opinions that were founded on probability and conjecture alone. But, although I was guarded in this particular, I strongly recommended a further examination of the coast, from the most eastern point of Encounter Bay, to the head St. Vincent's Gulf, to ascertain if any other than the known channel existed among the sand-hills of the former, or if, as I had every reason to hope from the great extent of water to the N.W., there was a practicable communication with the lake from the other; and I ventured to predict, that a closer survey of the interjacent country, would be attended with the most beneficial results; nor have I a doubt that the promontory of Cape Jervis would ere this have been settled, had Captain Barker lived to complete his official reports.

CAPT. BARKER'S SURVEY.

The governor, General Darling, whose multifarious duties might well have excused him from paying attention to distant objects, hesitated not a moment when he thought the interests of the colony, whose welfare he so zealously promoted, appeared to be concerned; and he determined to avail himself of the services of Captain Collet Barker, of the 39th regiment, who was about to be recalled from King George's Sound, in order to satisfy himself as to the correctness of my views.

Captain Barker had not long before been removed from Port Raffles, on the northern coast, where he had had much intercourse with the natives, and had frequently trusted himself wholly in their hands. It was not, however, merely on account of his conciliating manners, and knowledge of the temper and habits of the natives, that he was particularly fitted for the duty upon which it was the governor's pleasure to employ him. He was, in addition, a man of great energy of character, and of much and various information.

Orders having reached Sydney, directing the establishment belonging to New South Wales to be withdrawn, prior to the occupation of King George's Sound by the government of Western Australia, the ISABELLA schooner was sent to receive the troops and prisoners on board; and Captain Barker was directed, as soon as he should have handed over the settlement to Captain Stirling, to proceed to Cape Jervis, from which point it was thought he could best carry on a survey not only of the coast but also of the interior.

This excellent and zealous officer sailed from King George's Sound, on the 10th of April, 1831, and arrived off Cape Jervis on the 13th. He was attended by Doctor Davies, one of the assistant surgeons of his regiment, and by Mr. Kent, of the Commissariat. It is to the latter gentleman that the public are indebted for the greater part of the following details; he having attended Captain Barker closely during the whole of this short but disastrous excursion, and made notes as copious as they are interesting. At the time the ISABELLA arrived off Cape Jervis, the weather was clear and favourable. Captain Barker consequently stood into St. Vincent's Gulf, keeping, as near as practicable, to the eastern shore, in soundings that varied from six to ten fathoms, upon sand and mud. His immediate object was to ascertain if there was any communication with the lake Alexandrina from the gulf. He ascended to lat. 34 degrees 40 minutes where he fully satisfied himself that no channel did exist between them. He found, however, that the ranges behind Cape Jervis terminated abruptly at Mount Lofty, in lat. 34 degrees 56 minutes, and, that a flat and wooded country succeeded to the N. and N.E. The shore of the gulf tended more to the N.N.W., and mud flats and mangrove swamps prevailed along it.

INVITING COUNTRY—MOUNT LOFTY.

Mr. Kent informs me, that they landed for the first time on the 15th, but that they returned almost immediately to the vessel. On the 17th, Captain Barker again landed, with the intention of remaining on shore for two or three days. He was accompanied by Mr. Kent, his servant Mills, and two soldiers. The boat went to the place at which they had before landed, as they thought they had discovered a small river with a bar entrance. They crossed the bar, and ascertained that it was a narrow inlet, of four miles in length, that terminated at the base of the ranges. The party were quite delighted with the aspect of the country on either side of the inlet, and with the bold and romantic scenery behind them. The former bore the appearance of natural meadows, lightly timbered, and covered with a variety of grasses. The soil was observed to be a rich, fat, chocolate coloured earth, probably the decomposition of the deep blue limestone, that showed itself along the coast hereabouts. On the other hand, a rocky glen made a cleft in the ranges at the head of the inlet; and they were supplied with abundance of fresh water which remained in the deeper pools that had been filled by the torrents during late rains. The whole neighbourhood was so inviting that the party slept at the head of the inlet.

MOUNT LOFTY AND ITS ENVIRONS.

In the morning, Captain Barker proceeded to ascend Mount Lofty, accompanied by Mr. Kent and his servant, leaving the two soldiers at the bivouac, at which he directed them to remain until his return. Mr. Kent says they kept the ridge all the way, and rose above the sea by a gradual ascent. The rock-formation of the lower ranges appeared to be an argillaceous schist; the sides and summit of the ranges were covered with verdure, and the trees upon them were of more than ordinary size. The view to the eastward was shut out by other ranges, parallel to those on which they were; below them to the westward, the same pleasing kind of country that flanked the inlet still continued.

MOUNT BARKER.

In the course of the day they passed round the head of a deep ravine, whose smooth and grassy sides presented a beautiful appearance. The party stood 600 feet above the bed of a small rivulet that occupied the bottom of the ravine. In some places huge blocks of granite interrupted its course, in others the waters had worn the rock smooth. The polish of these rocks was quite beautiful, and the veins of red and white quartz which traversed them, looked like mosaic work. They did not gain the top of Mount Lofty, but slept a few miles beyond the ravine. In the morning they continued their journey, and, crossing Mount Lofty, descended northerly, to a point from which the range bent away a little to the N.N.E., and then terminated. The view from this point was much more extensive than that from Mount Lofty itself. They overlooked a great part of the gulf, and could distinctly see the mountains at the head of it to the N.N.W. To the N.W. there was a considerable indentation in the coast, which had escaped Captain Barker's notice when examining it. A mountain, very similar to Mount Lofty, bore due east of them, and appeared to be the termination of its range. They were separated by a valley of about ten miles in width, the appearance of which was not favourable. Mr. Kent states to me, that Capt. Barker observed at the time that he thought it probable I had mistaken this hill for Mount Lofty, since it shut out the view of the lake from him, and therefore he naturally concluded, I could not have seen Mount Lofty. I can readily imagine such an error to have been made by me, more especially as I remember that at the time I was taking bearings in the lake, I thought Captain Flinders had not given Mount Lofty, as I then conceived it to be, its proper position in longitude. Both hills are in the same parallel of latitude. The mistake on my part is obvious. I have corrected it in the charts, and have availed myself of the opportunity thus afforded me of perpetuating, as far as I can, the name of an inestimable companion in Captain Barker himself.

Immediately below the point on which they stood, Mr. Kent says, a low undulating country extended to the northward, as far as he could see. It was partly open, and partly wooded; and was every where covered with verdure. It continued round to the eastward, and apparently ran down southerly, at the opposite base of the mount Barker Range. I think there can be but little doubt that my view from the S.E., that is, from the lake, extended over the same or a part of the same country. Captain Barker again slept on the summit of the range, near a large basin that looked like the mouth of a crater, in which huge fragments of rocks made a scene of the utmost confusion. These rocks were a coarse grey granite, of which the higher parts and northern termination of the Mount Lofty range are evidently formed; for Mr. Kent remarks that it superseded the schistose formation at the ravine we have noticed—and that, subsequently, the sides of the hills became more broken, and valleys, or gullies, more properly speaking, very numerous. Captain Barker estimated the height of Mount Lofty above the sea at 2,400 feet, and the distance of its summit from the coast at eleven miles. Mr. Kent says they were surprised at the size of the trees on the immediate brow of it; they measured one and found it to be 43 feet in girth. Indeed, he adds, vegetation did not appear to have suffered either from its elevated position, or from any prevailing wind. Eucalypti were the general timber on the ranges; one species of which, resembling strongly the black butted-gum, was remarkable for a scent peculiar to its bark.

AUSTRALIAN SALMON.

The party rejoined the soldiers on the 21st, and enjoyed the supply of fish which they had provided for them. The soldiers had amused themselves by fishing during Captain Barker's absence, and had been abundantly successful. Among others they had taken a kind of salmon, which, though inferior in size, resembled in shape, in taste, and in the colour of its flesh, the salmon of Europe. I fancied that a fish which I observed with extremely glittering scales, in the mouth of a seal, when myself on the coast, must have been of this kind; and I have no doubt that the lake is periodically visited by salmon, and that these fish retain their habits of entering fresh water at particular seasons, also in the southern hemisphere.

Immediately behind Cape Jervis, there is a small bay, in which according to the information of the sealers who frequent Kangaroo Island, there is good and safe anchorage for seven months in the year, that is to say, during the prevalence of the E. and N.E. winds.

SURVEY OF THE COAST.

Captain Barker landed on the 21st on this rocky point at the northern extremity of this bay. He had, however, previously to this, examined the indentation in the coast which he had observed from Mount Lofty, and had ascertained that it was nothing more than an inlet; a spit of sand, projecting from the shore at right angles with it, concealed the month of the inlet. They took the boat to examine this point, and carried six fathoms soundings round the head of the spit to the mouth of the inlet, when it shoaled to two fathoms, and the landing was observed to be bad, by reason of mangrove swamps on either side of it. Mr. Kent, I think, told me that this inlet was from ten to twelve miles long. Can it be that a current setting out of it at times, has thrown up the sand-bank that protects its mouth, and that trees, or any other obstacle, have hidden its further prolongation from Captain Barker's notice? I have little hope that such is the case, but the remark is not an idle one.

BEAUTIFUL VALLEYS.

Between this inlet and the one formerly mentioned, a small and clear stream was discovered, to which Captain Barker kindly gave my name. On landing, the party, which consisted of the same persons as the former one, found themselves in a valley, which opened direct upon the bay. It was confined to the north from the chief range by a lateral ridge, that gradually declined towards and terminated at, the rocky point on which they had landed. The other side of the valley was formed of a continuation of the main range, which also gradually declined to the south, and appeared to be connected with the hills at the extremity of the cape. The valley was from nine to ten miles in length, and from three to four in breadth. In crossing it, they ascertained that the lagoon from which the schooner had obtained a supply of water, was filled by a watercourse that came down its centre. The soil in the valley was rich, but stony in some parts. There was an abundance of pasture over the whole, from amongst which they started numerous kangaroos. The scenery towards the ranges was beautiful and romantic, and the general appearance of the country such as to delight the whole party.

Preserving a due east course, Captain Barker passed over the opposite range of hills, and descended almost immediately into a second valley that continued to the southwards. Its soil was poor and stony, and it was covered with low scrub. Crossing it, they ascended the opposite range, from the summit of which they had a view of Encounter Bay. An extensive flat stretched from beneath them to the eastward, and was backed, in the distance, by sand hummocks, and low wooded hills. The extreme right of the flat rested upon the coast, at a rocky point near which there were two or three islands. From the left a beautiful valley opened upon it. A strong and clear rivulet from this valley traversed the flat obliquely, and fell into the sea at the rocky point, or a little to the southward of it. The hills forming the opposite side of the valley had already terminated. Captain Barker, therefore, ascended to higher ground, and, at length, obtained a view of the Lake Alexandrina, and the channel of its communication with the sea to the N.E. He now descended to the flat, and frequently expressed his anxious wish to Mr. Kent that I had been one of their number to enjoy the beauty of the scenery around them, and to participate in their labours. Had fate so ordained it, it is possible the melancholy tragedy that soon after occurred might have been averted.

OUTLET OF LAKE TO THE SEA.

At the termination of the flat they found themselves upon the banks of the channel, and close to the sand hillock under which my tents had been pitched. From this point they proceeded along the line of sand-hills to the outlet; from which it would appear that Kangaroo Island is not visible, but that the distant point which I mistook for it was the S.E. angle of Cape Jervis. I have remarked, in describing that part of the coast, that there is a sand-hill to the eastward of the inlet, under which the tide runs strong, and the water is deep. Captain Barker judged the breadth of the channel to be a quarter of a mile, and he expressed a desire to swim across it to the sand-hill to take bearings, and to ascertain the nature of the strand beyond it to the eastward.

It unfortunately happened, that he was the only one of the party who could swim well, in consequence of which his people remonstrated with him on the danger of making the attempt unattended. Notwithstanding, however, that he was seriously indisposed, he stripped, and after Mr. Kent had fastened his compass on his head for him, he plunged into the water, and with difficulty gained the opposite side; to effect which took him nine minutes and fifty-eight seconds. His anxious comrades saw him ascend the hillock, and take several bearings; he then descended the farther side, and was never seen by them again.

CIRCUMSTANCES ATTENDING THE LOSS OF CAPTAIN BARKER.

For a considerable time Mr. Kent remained stationary, in momentary expectation of his return; but at length, taking the two soldiers with him, he proceeded along the shore in search of wood for a fire. At about a quarter of a mile, the soldiers stopped and expressed their wish to return, as their minds misgave them, and they feared that Captain Barker had met with some accident. While conversing, they heard a distant shout, or cry, which Mr. Kent thought resembled the call of the natives, but which the soldiers positively declared to be the voice of a white man. On their return to their companions, they asked if any sounds had caught their ears, to which they replied in the negative. The wind was blowing from the E.S.E., in which direction Captain Barker had gone; and, to me, the fact of the nearer party not having heard that which must have been his cries for assistance, is satisfactorily accounted for, as, being immediately under the hill, the sounds must have passed over their heads to be heard more distinctly at the distance at which Mr. Kent and the soldiers stood. It is more than probable, that while his men were expressing their anxiety about him, the fearful tragedy was enacting which it has become my painful task to detail.

Evening closed in without any signs of Captain Barker's return, or any circumstance by which Mr. Kent could confirm his fears that he had fallen into the hands of the natives. For, whether it was that the tribe which had shown such decided hostility to me when on the coast had not observed the party, none made their appearance; and if I except two, who crossed the channel when Mr. Kent was in search of wood, they had neither seen nor heard any; and Captain Barker's enterprising disposition being well known to his men, hopes were still entertained that he was safe. A large fire was kindled, and the party formed a silent and anxious group around it. Soon after night-fall, however, their attention was roused by the sounds of the natives, and it was at length discovered, that they had lighted a chain of small fires between the sand-hill Captain Barker had ascended and the opposite side of the channel, around which their women were chanting their melancholy dirge. It struck upon the ears of the listeners with an ominous thrill, and assured them of the certainty of the irreparable loss they had sustained. All night did those dismal sounds echo along that lonely shore, but as morning dawned, they ceased, and Mr. Kent and his companions were again left in anxiety and doubt. They, at length, thought it most advisable to proceed to the schooner to advise with Doctor Davies. They traversed the beach with hasty steps, but did not get on board till the following day. It was then determined to procure assistance from the sealers on Kangaroo Island, as the only means by which they could ascertain their leader's fate, and they accordingly entered American Harbour. For a certain reward, one of the men agreed to accompany Mr. Kent to the main with a native woman, to communicate with the tribe that was supposed to have killed him. They landed at or near the rocky point of Encounter Bay, where they were joined by two other natives, one of whom was blind. The woman was sent forward for intelligence, and on her return gave the following details:

ACCOUNT OF HIS MURDER.

It appears that at a very considerable distance from the first sand-hill, there is another to which Captain Barker must have walked, for the woman stated that three natives were going to the shore from their tribe, and that they crossed his tract. Their quick perception immediately told them it was an unusual impression. They followed upon it, and saw Captain Barker returning. They hesitated for a long time to approach him, being fearful of the instrument he carried. At length, however, they closed upon him. Capt. Barker tried to soothe them, but finding that they were determined to attack him, he made for the water from which he could not have been very distant. One of the blacks immediately threw his spear and struck him in the hip. This did not, however, stop him. He got among the breakers, when he received the second spear in the shoulder. On this, turning round, he received a third full in the breast: with such deadly precision do these savages cast their weapons. It would appear that the third spear was already on its flight when Capt. Barker turned, and it is to be hoped, that it was at once mortal. He fell on his back into the water. The natives then rushed in, and dragging him out by the legs, seized their spears, and indicted innumerable wounds upon his body; after which, they threw it into deep water, and the sea-tide carried it away.

HIS CHARACTER.

Such, we have every reason to believe, was the untimely fate of this amiable and talented man. It is a melancholy satisfaction to me thus publicly to record his worth; instrumental, as I cannot but in some measure consider my last journey to have been in leading to this fatal catastrophe. Captain Barker was in disposition, as he was in the close of his life, in many respects similar to Captain Cook. Mild, affable, and attentive, he had the esteem and regard of every companion, and the respect of every one under him. Zealous in the discharge of his public duties, honourable and just in private life; a lover and a follower of science; indefatigable and dauntless in his pursuits; a steady friend, an entertaining companion; charitable, kind-hearted, disinterested, and sincere—the task is equally difficult to find adequate expressions of praise or of regret. In him the king lost one of his most valuable officers, and his regiment one of its most efficient members. Beloved as he was, the news of his loss struck his numerous friends with sincere grief, but by none was it more severely felt than by the humble individual who has endeavoured thus feebly to draw his portrait.

From the same source from which the particulars of his death were obtained, it was reported that the natives who perpetrated the deed were influenced by no other motive than curiosity to ascertain if they had power to kill a white man. But we must be careful in giving credit to this, for it is much more probable that the cruelties exercised by the sealers towards the blacks along the south coast, may have instigated the latter to take vengeance on the innocent as well as on the guilty. It will be seen, by a reference to the chart, that Captain Barker, by crossing the channel, threw himself into the very hands of that tribe which had evinced such determined hostility to myself and my men. He got into the rear of their strong hold, and was sacrificed to those feelings of suspicion, and to that desire of revenge, which the savages never lose sight of until they have been gratified.

FEATURES OF THE COUNTRY, AND CAPABILITIES OF THE COAST.

It yet remains for me to state that when Mr. Kent returned to the schooner, after this irreparable loss, he kept to the south of the place at which he had crossed the first range with Captain Barker, and travelled through a valley right across the promontory. He thus discovered that there was a division in the ranges, through which there was a direct and level road from the little bay on the northern extremity of which they had last landed in St. Vincent's Gulf, to the rocky point of Encounter Bay. The importance of this fact will be better estimated, when it is known that good anchorage is secured to small vessels inside the island that lies off the point of Encounter Bay, which is rendered still safer by a horse shoe reef that forms, as it were, a thick wall to break the swell of the sea. But this anchorage is not safe for more than five months in the year. Independently of these points, however, Mr. Kent remarks, that the spit a little to the north of Mount Lofty would afford good shelter to minor vessels under its lee. When the nature of the country is taken into consideration, and the facility of entering that which lies between the ranges and the Lake Alexandrina, from the south, and of a direct communication with the lake itself, the want of an extensive harbour will, in some measure, be compensated for, more especially when it is known that within four leagues of Cape Jervis, a port little inferior to Port Jackson, with a safe and broad entrance, exists at Kangaroo Island. The sealers have given this spot the name of American Harbour. In it, I am informed, vessels are completely land-locked, and secure from every wind. Kangaroo Island is not, however, fertile by any means. It abounds in shallow lakes filled with salt water during high tides, and which, by evaporation, yield a vast quantity of salt.

I gathered from the sealers that neither the promontory separating St. Vincent from Spencer's Gulf, nor the neighbourhood of Port Lincoln, are other than barren and sandy wastes. They all agree in describing Port Lincoln itself as a magnificent roadstead, but equally agree as to the sterility of its shores. It appears, therefore, that the promontory of Cape Jervis owes its superiority to its natural features; in fact, to the mountains that occupy its centre, to the debris that has been washed from them, and to the decomposition of the better description of its rocks. Such is the case at Illawarra, where the mountains approach the sea; such indeed is the case every where, at a certain distance from mountain ranges.

ADAPTION OF THIS PART OF THE COUNTRY FOR COLONISATION.

From the above account it would appear that a spot has, at length, been found upon the south coast of New Holland, to which the colonist might venture with every prospect of success, and in whose valleys the exile might hope to build for himself and for his family a peaceful and prosperous home. All who have ever landed upon the eastern shore of St. Vincent's Gulf, agree as to the richness of its soil, and the abundance of its pasture. Indeed, if we cast our eyes upon the chart, and examine the natural features of the country behind Cape Jervis, we shall no longer wonder at its differing in soil and fertility from the low and sandy tracks that generally prevail along the shores of Australia. Without entering largely into the consideration of the more remote advantages that would, in all human probability, result from the establishment of a colony, rather than a penal settlement, at St. Vincent's Gulf, it will be expedient to glance hastily over the preceding narrative, and, disengaging it from all extraneous matter, to condense, as much as possible, the information it contains respecting the country itself; for I have been unable to introduce any passing remark, lest I should break the thread of an interesting detail.

The country immediately behind Cape Jervis may, strictly speaking, be termed a promontory, bounded to the west by St. Vincent's Gulf, and to the east by the lake Alexandrina, and the sandy track separating that basin from the sea. Supposing a line to be drawn from the parallel of 34 degrees 40 minutes to the eastward, it will strike the Murray river about 25 miles above the head of the lake, and will clear the ranges, of which Mount Lofty and Mount Barker are the respective terminations. This line will cut off a space whose greatest breadth will be 55 miles, whose length from north to south will be 75, and whose surface exceeds 7 millions of acres; from which if we deduct 2 millions for the unavailable hills, we shall have 5 millions of acres of land, of rich soil, upon which no scrub exists, and whose most distant points are accessible, through a level country on the one hand, and by water on the other. The southern extremity of the ranges can be turned by that valley through which Mr. Kent returned to the schooner, after Captain Barker's death. It is certain, therefore, that this valley not only secures so grand a point, but also presents a level line of communication from the small bay immediately to the north of the cape, to the rocky point of Encounter Bay, at both of which places there is safe anchorage at different periods of the year.

HINTS FOR FUTURE EXPEDITIONS.

The only objection that can be raised to the occupation of this spot, is the want of an available harbour. Yet it admits of great doubt whether the contiguity of Kangaroo Island to Cape Jervis, (serving as it does to break the force of the prevailing winds, as also of the heavy swell that would otherwise roll direct into the bay,) and the fact of its possessing a safe and commodious harbour, certainly at an available distance, does not in a great measure remove the objection. Certain it is that no port, with the exception of that on the shores of which the capital of Australia is situated, offers half the convenience of this, although it be detached between three and four leagues from the main.

On the other hand it would appear, that there is no place from which at any time the survey of the more central parts of the continent could be so effectually carried on; for in a country like Australia, where the chief obstacle to be apprehended in travelling is the want of water, the facilities afforded by the Murray and its tributaries, are indisputable; and I have little doubt that the very centre of the continent might be gained by a judicious and enterprising expedition. Certainly it is most desirable to ascertain whether the river I have supposed to be the Darling be really so or not. I have stated my objection to depots, but I think that if a party commenced its operations upon the Murray from the junction upwards, and, after ascertaining the fact of its ultimate course, turned away to the N.W. up one of the tributaries of the Murray, with a supply of six months' provisions, the results would be of the most satisfactory kind, and the features of the country be wholly developed. I cannot, I think, conclude this work better than by expressing a hope, that the Colonial Government will direct such measures to be adopted as may be necessary for the extension of our geographical knowledge in Australia. The facilities of fitting out expeditions in New South Wales, render the expenses of little moment, when compared with the importance of the object in view; and although I am labouring under the effects of former attempts, yet would I willingly give such assistance as I could to carry such an object into effect.



APPENDIX.



APPENDIX No. I.



GEOLOGICAL SPECIMENS FOUND TO THE SOUTH-WEST OF PORT JACKSON.

Considering the nature of the country over which the first expedition travelled, it could hardly have been expected that its geological specimens would be numerous. It will appear, however, from the following list of rocks collected during the second expedition, that the geological formation of the mountains to the S.W. of Port Jackson is as various as that to the N.W. of it is mountainous. The specimens are described not according to their natural order, but in the succession in which they were found, commencing from Yass Plains, and during the subsequent stages of the journey.

Sandstone, Old Red.—Found on various parts of Yass Plains.

Limestone, Transition.—Colour dark grey; composes the bed of the Yass River, and apparently traverses the sandstone formation. Yass Plains lie 170 miles to the S.W. of Sydney.

Sandstone, Old Red.—Again succeeds the limestone, and continues to the N.W. to a considerable distance over a poor and scrubby country, covered for the most part with a dwarf species of Eucalyptus.

Granite.—Colour grey; feldspar, black mica, and quartz: succeeds the sandstone, and continues to the S.W. as far as the Morumbidgee River, over an open forest country broken into hill and dale. It is generally on these granite rocks that the best grazing is found.

Greywacke.—Colour grey, of light hue, or dark, with black specks. Soft.—Composition of a part of the ranges that form the valley of the Morumbidgee.

Serpentine.—Colour green of different shades, striped sulphur yellow; slaty fracture, soft and greasy to the touch. Forms hills of moderate elevation, of peculiarly sharp spine, resting on quartz. Composition of most of the ranges opposite the Doomot River on the Morumbidgee, in lat. 35 degrees 4 minutes and long. 147 degrees 40 minutes.

Quartz.—Colour snow-white; formation of the higher ranges on the left bank of the Morumbidgee, in the same latitude and longitude as above; showing in large blocks on the sides of the hills.

Slaty Quartz, with varieties.—Found with the quartz rock, in a state of decomposition.

Granite.—Succeeds the serpentine, of light colour; feldspar decomposed; mica, glittering and silvery white.

Sandstone, Old Red.—Composition of the more distant ranges on the Morumbidgee. Forms abrupt precipices over the river flats; of sterile appearance, and covered with Banksias and scrub.

Mica Slate.—Colour dark brown, approaching red; mica glittering. The hills enclosing Pondebadgery Plain at the gorge of the valley of the Morumbidgee, are composed of this rock. They are succeeded by

Sandstone.—Which rises abruptly from the river in perpendicular cliffs, of 145 feet in height.

Jasper and quartz.—Colour red and white. Forms the slope of the above sandstone, and may be considered the outermost of the rocks connected with the Eastern or Blue Mountain Ranges. It will be remembered that jasper and quartz were likewise found on a plain near the Darling River, precisely similar to the above, although occurring at so great a distance from each other.

Granite.—Light red colour; composition of a small isolated hill, to all appearance wholly unconnected with the neighbouring ranges. This specimen is very similar to that found in the bed of New-Year's Creek.

Breccia.—Silicious cement, composed of a variety of pebbles. Formation of the most WESTERLY of the hills between the Lachlan and Macquarie Rivers. This conglomerate was also found to compose the minor and most westerly of the elevations of the more northern interior.

Chrystallized Sulphate of Lime.—Found embedded in the deep alluvial soil in the banks of the Morumbidgee River, in lat. 34 degrees 30 minutes S., and long. 144 degrees 55 minutes E. The same substance was found on the banks of the Darling, in lat. 29 degrees 49 minutes S., and in long. 145 degrees 18 minutes E.

A reference to the chart will show that the Morumbidgee, from the first of the above positions, may be said to have entered the almost dead level of the interior. No elevation occurs to the westward for several hundreds of miles. A coarse grit occasionally traversed the beds of the rivers, and their lofty banks of clay or marl appear to be based on sandstone and granitic sand. The latter occurs in slabs of four inches in thickness, divided by a line of saffron-coloured sand, and seems to have been subjected to fusion, as if the particles or grains had been cemented together by fusion.

The first decided break that takes place in the level of the interior occurs upon the right bank of the Murray, a little below the junction of the Rufus with it. A cliff of from 120 to 130 feet in perpendicular elevation here flanks the river for about 200 yards, when it recedes from it, and forms a spacious amphitheatre that is occupied by semicircular hillocks, that partake of the same character as the cliff itself; the face of which showed the various substances of which it was composed in horizontal lines, that if prolonged would cut the same substance in the hillocks. Based upon a soft white sandstone, a bed of clay formed the lowest part of the cliff; upon this bed of clay, a bed of chalk reposed; this chalk was superseded by a thick bed of saponaceous earth, whilst the summit of the cliff was composed of a bright red sand. Semi-opal and hydrate of silex were found in the chalk, and some beautiful specimens of brown menelite were collected from the upper stratum of the cliff.

A little below this singular place, the country again declines, when a tertiary fossil formation shows itself, which, rising gradually as an inclined plain, ultimately attains an elevation of 300 feet. This formation continues to the very coast, since large masses of the rock were observed in the channel of communication between the lake and the ocean; and the hills to the left of the channel were based upon it. This great bank cannot, therefore, average less than from seventy to ninety miles in width. At its commencement, it strikingly resembled skulls piled one on the other, as well in colour as appearance. This effect had been produced by the constant rippling of water against the rock. The softer parts had been washed away, and the shells (a bed of Turritella) alone remained.

Plate 1, Figures 1, 2, and 3, represent the selenite formation.

Plate 2, represents a mass of the rock containing numerous kinds of shells, of which the following are the most conspicuous:

Cardium Pectunculus Corbula Arca Conus, and Others unknown.

* * *

The following is a list of the fossils collected from various parts of this formation, from which it is evident that a closer examination would lead to the discovery of numberless species.

TUNICATA.

PLATE III.

FIG.1 Eschara celleporacea. 2 ———- piriformis. 3 ———- UNNAMED.

FIG.4 Cellepora echinata. 5 ————- escharoides? 6 Retepora disticha. 7 ———— vibicata. 8 Glauconome rhombifera. All Tertiary in Westphalia and England.

RADIATA

9 Scutella. 10 Spatangus Hoffmanni—Goldfuss. Tertiary, in Westphalia. 11 Echinus.

CONCHIFERA—BIVALVED SHELLS.

Corbula gallica—Paris basin—Tertiary. Tellina? Corbis lamellosa—Tertiary—Paris. Lucina. Venus (Cytherea) laevigata—ibid. ——- ————— obliqua —ibid. Venus Cardium?—fragments. 12 Nucula—such is found in London clay. 13 Pecten coarctatus?—Placentia. ——— various?—recent. 14 ——— species unknown. Two other Pectens also occur. Ostrea elongata—Deshayes. 15 Terebratula. 16 One cast, genus unknown, perhaps a Cardium.

MOLUSCA—UNIVALVED SHELLS.

Bulla? Plate II., fig. 2. FIG.17 Natica—small. 18 ——— large species. Dentalium? 19 Trochus. 20 Turritella. ————— in gyps. 21 Murex. 22 Buccinum? 23 Mitra. 24 ——- very short. 25 Cypraea. 26 Conus. 27 ——- (Plate II., fig. 3.) 28 Two, unknown, (Also Plate II, fig. 4.) The above all appear to belong to the newer tertiary formations.

[Fig.17 to 27—These genera are scarcely ever, and some of them not at all, found in any but tertiary formations.]

A block of coarse red granite forms an island in the centre of the river near the lake, but is nowhere else visible, although it is very probably the basis of the surrounding country.

ROCK FORMATION OF THE COAST RANGE OF ST. VINCENT'S GULF.

Primitive Transition Limestone.—Light grey, striped. Altered in appearance by volcanic action; occurs on the Ranges north of Cape Jervis.

Granite.—Colour, red; found on the west side of Encounter Bay.

Brown Spar.—South point of Cape Jervis.

Sandstone, Old Red.—East coast of St, Vincent's Gulf.

Limestone, Transition.—Colour, blue. East Coast of St. Vincent's Gulf. Formation near the first inlet. Continuing to the base of the Ranges.

Clay Slate.—Composition of the lower part of the Mount Lofty Range.

Granite.—Fine grained, red; forms the higher parts of the Mount Lofty Range.

Quartz, with Tourmaline.—Lower parts of the Mount Lofty Range.

Limestone Flustra, and their Corallines, probably tertiary.—From the mouth of the Sturt, on the coast line, nearly abreast of Mount Lofty.



APPENDIX No. II.



OFFICIAL REPORT TO THE COLONIAL GOVERNMENT.

* * * * *

GOVERNMENT ORDER.

Colonial Secretary's Office, Sydney, May 10, 1830.

His Excellency the Governor has much satisfaction in publishing the following report of the proceedings of an expedition undertaken for the purpose of tracing the course of the river "Morumbidgee," and of ascertaining whether it communicated with the coast forming the southern boundary of the colony.

The expedition, which was placed under the direction of Captain Sturt, of his Majesty's 39th Regiment, commenced its progress down the "Morumbidgee" on the 7th day of January last, having been occupied twenty-one days in performing the journey from Sydney.

On the 14th January they entered a new river running from east to west, now called the "Murray," into which the "Morumbidgee" flows.

After pursuing the course of the "Murray" for several days, the expedition observed another river (supposed to be that which Captain Sturt discovered on his former expedition), uniting with the "Murray" which they examined about five miles above the junction.

The expedition again proceeded down the "Murray," and fell in with another of its tributaries flowing from the south east, which Captain Sturt has designated the "Lindesay;" and on the 8th February the "Murray" was found to enter or form a lake, of from fifty to sixty miles in length, and from thirty to forty in breadth, lying immediately to the eastward of gulf St. Vincent, and extending to the southward, to the shore of "Encounter Bay."

Thus has Captain Sturt added largely, and in a highly important degree, to the knowledge previously possessed of the interior.

His former expedition ascertained the fate of the rivers Macquarie and Castlereagh, on which occasion he also discovered a river which, there is every reason to believe, is, in ordinary seasons, of considerable magnitude.

Should this, as Captain Sturt supposes, prove to be the same river as that above-mentioned, as uniting with the "Murray," the existence of an interior water communication for several hundreds of miles, extending from the northward of "Mount Harris," down to the southern coast of the colony, will have been established.

It is to be regretted, that circumstances did not permit of a more perfect examination of the lake, (which has been called "Alexandrina"), as the immediate vicinage of Gulf St. Vincent furnishes a just ground of hope that a more practicable and useful communication may be discovered in that direction, than the channel which leads into "Encounter Bay."

The opportunity of recording a second time the services rendered to the colony by Captain Sturt, is as gratifying to the government which directed the undertaking, as it is creditable to the individual who so successfully conducted it to its termination.—It is an additional cause of satisfaction to add, that every one, according to his sphere of action, has a claim to a proportionate degree of applause. All were exposed alike to the same privations and fatigue, and every one submitted with patience, manifesting the most anxious desire for the success of the expedition. The zeal of Mr. George M'Leay, the companion of Captain Sturt, when example was so important, could not fail to have the most salutary effect; and the obedience, steadiness, and good conduct of the men employed, merit the highest praise.

By his Excellency's command,

ALEXANDER M'LEAY.

* * * * *

BANKS OF THE MORUMBIDGEE, APRIL 20TH, 1830.

SIR,—The departure of Mr. George M'Leay for Sydney, who is anxious to proceed homewards as speedily as possible, affords me an earlier opportunity than would otherwise have presented itself, by which to make you acquainted with the circumstance of my return, under the divine protection, to the located districts; and I do myself the honour of annexing a brief account of my proceedings since the last communication for the information of His Excellency the Governor, until such time as I shall have it in my power to give in a more detailed report.

On the 7th of January, agreeably to the arrangements which had been made, I proceeded down the Morumbidgee in the whale boat, with a complement of six hands, independent of myself and Mr. M'Leay, holding the skiff in tow. The river, for several days, kept a general W.S.W. course; it altered little in appearance, nor did any material change take place in the country upon its banks. The alluvial flats had occasionally an increased breadth on either side of it, but the line of reeds was nowhere so extensive as from previous appearances I had been led to expect. About twelve miles from the depot, we passed a large creek junction from the N.E. which, from its locality and from the circumstance of my having been upon it in the direction of them, I cannot but conclude originates in the marshes of the Lachlan.

On the 11th, the Morumbidgee became much encumbered with fallen timber, and its current was at times so rapid that I was under considerable apprehension for the safety of the boats. The skiff had been upset on the 8th, and, although I could not anticipate such an accident to the large boat, I feared she would receive some more serious and irremediable injury. On the 14th, these difficulties increased upon us.—The channel of the river became more contracted, and its current more impetuous. We had no sooner cleared one reach, than fresh and apparently insurmountable dangers presented themselves to us in the next. I really feared that every precaution would have proved unavailing against such multiplied embarrassments, and that ere night we should have possessed only the wrecks of the expedition. From this state of anxiety, however, we were unexpectedly relieved, by our arrival at 2 p.m. at the termination of the Morumbidgee; from which we were launched into a broad and noble river, flowing from E. to W. at the rate of two and a half knots per hour, over a clear and sandy bed, of a medium width of from three to four hundred feet.

During the first stages of our journey upon this new river, which evidently had its rise in the mountains of the S.E., we made rapid progress to the W.N.W. through an unbroken and uninteresting country of equal sameness of feature and of vegetation. On the 23rd, as the boats were proceeding down it, several hundreds of natives made their appearance upon the right bank, having assembled with premeditated purposes of violence. I was the more surprised at this show of hostility, because we had passed on general friendly terms, not only with those on the Morumbidgee, but of the new river. Now, however, emboldened by numbers, they seemed determined on making the first attack, and soon worked themselves into a state of frenzy by loud and vehement shouting. As I observed that the water was shoaling fast, I kept in the middle of the stream; and, under an impression that it would be impossible for me to avoid a conflict, prepared for an obstinate resistance. But, at the very moment when, having arrived opposite to a large sand bank, on which they had collected, the foremost of the blacks had already advanced into the water, and I only awaited their nearer approach to fire upon them, their impetuosity was restrained by the most unlooked for and unexpected interference. They held back of a sudden, and allowed us to pass unmolested. The boat, however, almost immediately grounded on a shoal that stretched across the river, over which she was with some difficulty hauled into deeper water,—when we found ourselves opposite to a large junction from the eastward, little inferior to the river itself. Had I been aware of this circumstance, I should have been the more anxious with regard to any rupture with the natives, and I was now happy to find that most of them had laid aside their weapons and had crossed the junction, it appearing that they had previously been on a tongue of land formed by the two streams. I therefore landed among them to satisfy their curiosity and to distribute a few presents before I proceeded up it. We were obliged to use the four oars to stem the current against us; but, as soon as we had passed the mouth, got into deeper water, and found easier pulling, The parallel in which we struck it, and the direction from which it came, combined to assure me that this could be no other than the "Darling." To the distance of two miles it retained a breadth of one hundred yards and a depth of twelve feet. Its banks were covered with verdure, and the trees overhanging them were of finer and larger growth than those on the new river by which we had approached it. Its waters had a shade of green, and were more turbid than those of its neighbours, but they were perfectly sweet to the taste.

Having satisfied myself on those points on which I was most anxious, we returned to the junction to examine it more closely.

The angle formed by the Darling with the new river is so acute, that neither can be said to be tributary to the other; but more important circumstances, upon which it is impossible for me to dwell at the present moment, mark them as distinct rivers, which have been formed by Nature for the same purposes, in remote and opposite parts of the island. Not having as yet given a name to the latter, I now availed myself of the opportunity of complying with the known wishes of His Excellency the Governor, and, at the same time, in accordance with my own feelings as a soldier I distinguished it by that of the "Murray."

It had been my object to ascertain the decline of the vast plain through which the Murray flows, that I might judge of the probable fall of the waters of the interior; but by the most attentive observation I could not satisfy myself upon the point. The course of the Darling now confirmed my previous impression that it was to the south, which direction it was evident the Murray also, in the subsequent stages of our journey down it, struggled to preserve; from which it was thrown by a range of minor elevations into a more westerly one. We were carried as far as 139 degrees 40 minutes of longitude, without descending below 34 degrees in point of latitude; in consequence of which I expected that the river would ultimately discharge itself, either into St. Vincent's Gulf or that of Spencer, more especially as lofty ranges were visible in the direction of them from the summit of the hills behind our camp, on the 2nd of February, which I laid down as the coast line bounding them.

A few days prior to the 2nd of February, we passed under some cliffs of partial volcanic origin, and had immediately afterwards entered a limestone country of the most singular formation. The river, although we had passed occasional rapids of the most dangerous kind, had maintained a sandy character from our first acquaintance with it to the limestone division. It now forced itself through a glen of that rock of half a mile in width, frequently striking precipices of more than two hundred feet perpendicular elevation, in which coral and fossil remains were plentifully embedded. On the 3rd February it made away to the eastward of south, in reaches of from two to four miles in length. It gradually lost its sandy bed, and became deep, still, and turbid; the glen expanded into a valley, and the alluvial flats, which had hitherto been of inconsiderable size, became proportionally extensive. The Murray increased in breadth to more than four hundred yards, with a depth of twenty feet of water close into the shore, and in fact formed itself into a safe and navigable stream for any vessels of the minor class. On the 6th the cliffs partially ceased, and on the 7th they gave place to undulating and picturesque hills, beneath which thousands of acres of the richest flats extended, covered, however, with reeds, and apparently subject to overflow at any unusual rise of the river.

It is remarkable that the view from the hills was always confined.—We were apparently running parallel to a continuation of the ranges we had seen on the 2nd, but they were seldom visible. The country generally seemed darkly wooded, and had occasional swells upon it, but it was one of no promise; the timber, chiefly box and pine, being of a poor growth, and its vegetation languid. On the 8th the hills upon the left wore a bleak appearance, and the few trees upon them were cut down as if by the prevailing winds. At noon we could not observe any land at the extremity of a reach we had just entered; some gentle hills still continued to form the left lank of the river, but the right was hid from us by high reeds. I consequently landed to survey the country from the nearest eminence, and found that we were just about to enter an extensive lake which stretched away to the S.W., the line of water meeting the horizon in that direction. Some tolerably lofty ranges were visible to the westward at the distance of forty miles, beneath which that shore was lost in haze. A hill, which I prejudged to be Mount Lofty, bearing by compass S. 141 degrees W. More to the northward, the country was low and unbacked by any elevations. A bold promontory, which projected into the lake at the distance of seven leagues, ended the view to the south along the eastern shore; between which and the river the land also declined. The prospect altogether was extremely gratifying, and the lake appeared to be a fitting reservoir for the whole stream which had led us to it.

In the evening we passed the entrance; but a strong southerly wind heading us, we did not gain more than nine miles. In the morning it shifted to the N.E. where we stood out for the promontory on a S.S.W. course. At noon we were abreast of it, when a line of sand hummocks was ahead, scarcely visible in consequence of the great refraction about them; but an open sea behind us from the N.N.W. to the N.N.E. points of the compass. A meridian altitude observed here, placed us in 35 degrees 25 minutes 15 seconds S. lat.—At 1, I changed our course a little to the westward, and at 4 p.m. entered an arm of the lake leading W.S.W. On the point, at the entrance, some natives had assembled, but I could not communicate with them. They were both painted and armed, and evidently intended to resist our landing. Wishing, however, to gain some information from them, I proceeded a short distance below their haunt, and landed for the night, in hopes that, seeing us peaceably disposed, they would have approached the tents; but as they kept aloof, we continued our journey in the morning. The water, which had risen ten inches during the night, had fallen again in the same proportion, and we were stopped by shoals shortly after starting. In hopes that the return of tide would have enabled us to float over them, we waited for it very patiently, but were ultimately obliged to drag the boat across a mud-flat of more than a quarter of a mile into deeper water; but, after a run of about twenty minutes, were again checked by sand banks. My endeavours to push beyond a certain point were unsuccessful, and I was at length under the necessity of landing upon the south shore for the night. Some small hummocks were behind us, on the other side of which I had seen the ocean from our morning's position; and whilst the men were pitching the tents, walked over them in company with Mr. M'Leay to the sea shore, having struck the coast at Encounter Bay, Cape Jervis, bearing by compass S. 81 degrees W. distant between three and four leagues, and Kangaroo Island S.E. extremity S. 60 degrees W. distant from nine to ten.

Thirty-two days had elapsed since we had left the depot, and I regretted in this stage of our journey, that I could not with prudence remain an hour longer on the coast than was necessary for me to determine the exit of the lake. From the angle of the channel on which we were, a bright sand-hill was visible at about nine miles distance to the E.S.E.; which, it struck me, was the eastern side of the passage communicating with the ocean. Having failed in our attempts to proceed further in the boat, and the appearance of the shoals at low water having convinced me of the impracticability of it, I determined on an excursion along the sea-shore to the southward and eastward, in anxious hopes that it would be a short one; for as we had had a series of winds from the S.W. which had now changed to the opposite quarter, I feared we should have to pull across the lake in our way homewards. I left the camp therefore at an early hour, in company with Mr. M'Leay and Fraser, and at day-break arrived opposite to the sand-bank I have mentioned. Between us and it the entrance into the back water ran. The passage is at all periods of the tide rather more than a quarter of a mile in width, and is of sufficient depth for a boat to enter, especially on the off side; but a line of dangerous breakers in the bay will always prevent an approach to it from the sea, except in the calmest weather, whilst the bay itself will always be a hazardous place for any vessels to enter under any circumstances.

Having, however, satisfactorily concluded our pursuit, we retraced our steps to the camp, and again took the following bearings as we left the beach, the strand trending E.S.E. 1/2 E.:—

Kangaroo Island, S.E. angle S. 60 degrees W.. Low rocky point of Cape Jervis S. 81 degrees W. Round Hill in centre of Range S. 164 degrees W. Camp, distant one mile S. 171 degrees W. Mount Lofty, distant forty miles N. 9 degrees E.

Before setting sail, a bottle was deposited between four and five feet deep in a mound of soft earth and shells, close to the spot on which the tent had stood, which contained a paper of the names of the party, together with a simple detail of our arrival and departure.

It appeared that the good fortune, which had hitherto attended us was still to continue, for the wind which had been contrary, chopped round to the S.W., and ere sunset we were again in the mouth of the river, having run from fifty to sixty miles under as much canvass as the boat would bear, and with a heavy swell during the greater part of the day.

The lake which has thus terminated our journey, is from fifty to sixty miles in length, and from thirty to forty in width. With such an expanse of water, I am correct in stating its medium depth at four feet. There is a large bight in it to the S.E. and a beautiful and extensive bay to the N.W. At about seven miles from the mouth of the river, its waters are brackish, and at twenty-one miles they are quite salt, whilst seals frequent the lower parts. Considering this lake to be of sufficient importance, and in anticipation that its shores will, during her reign, if not at an earlier period, be peopled by some portion of her subjects, I have called it, in well-meant loyalty, "The Lake Alexandrina."

It is remarkable that the Murray has few tributaries below the Darling. It receives one, however, of considerable importance from the S.E., to which I have given the name of the "Lindesay," as a mark of respect to my commanding-officer, and in remembrance of the many acts of kindness I have received at his hands.

Having dwelt particularly on the nature of the country through which the expedition has passed in the pages of my journal, it may be unnecessary for me to enter into any description of it in this place, further than to observe, that the limestone continued down to the very coast, and that although the country in the neighbourhood of the Lake Alexandrina must, from local circumstances, be rich in point of soil, the timber upon it is of stunted size, and that it appears to have suffered from drought, though not to the same extent with the eastern coast. It is evident, however, that its vicinity to high lands does not altogether exempt it from such periodical visitations; still I have no doubt that my observations upon it will convince His Excellency the Governor, that it is well worthy of a closer, and more attentive examination, than I had it in my power to make.

In a geographical point of view, I am happy to believe that the result of this expedition has been conclusive; and that, combined with the late one, it has thrown much light upon the nature of the interior of the vast Island; that the decline of waters, as far as the parallel of 139 degrees E., is to the south, and that the Darling is to the N.E. as the Murray is to the S.E. angle of the coast, the main channel by which the waters of the central ranges are thrown or discharged into one great reservoir.

Our journey homewards was only remarkable for its labour: in conclusion, therefore, it remains for me to add that we reached the depot on the 23rd of March.

Our sugar failed us on the 18th of February, and our salt provisions, in consequence of the accident which happened to the skiff, on the 8th of March; so that from the above period we were living on a reduced ration of flour; and as we took few fish, and were generally unsuccessful with our guns, the men had seldom more than their bread to eat.

I regretted to observe that they were daily falling off, and that although unremitting in their exertions they were well nigh exhausted, ere we reached the Morumbidgee.

We were from sunrise to five o'clock on the water, and from the day that we left the depot to that of our return we never rested upon our oars. We were thirty-nine days gaining the depot from the coast, against a strong current in both rivers, being seven more than it took us to go down. From the depot to this station we had seventeen days hard pulling, making a total of eighty-eight, during which time we could not have travelled over less than 2000 miles. I was under the necessity of stopping short on the 10th instant, and of detaching two men for the drays, which happily arrived on the 17th, on which day our stock of flour failed us. Had I not adopted this plan, the men would have become too weak to have pulled up to Pondebadgery, and we should no doubt have suffered some privations.

This detail will, I am sure, speak more in favour of the men composing the party than anything I can say. I would most respectfully recommend them all to His Excellency's notice; and I beg to assure him that, during the whole of this arduous journey, they were cheerful, zealous, and obedient. They had many harassing duties to perform, and their patience and temper were often put to severe trials by the natives, of whom we could not have seen fewer than 4000 on the Murray alone.

I am to refer His Excellency the Governor to Mr. M'Leay for any more immediate information he may require,—to whom I stand indebted on many points—and not less in the anxiety he evinced for the success of the undertaking, than in the promptitude with which he assisted in the labours attendant on our return, and his uniform kindness to the men.

I have the honour to subscribe myself, Sir, Your most obedient humble Servant, CHARLES STURT, Captain of the 39th Regt.

The Hon. the Colonial Secretary.



END OF VOLUME II