In This Voyage He Completely Examined All The Creeks
And Bays As Far To The Northward As The 25th Degree Of Latitude, And More
Particularly Glasshouse And Harvey's Bays.
The English government at length
resolved that they would wipe off the reproach, which, as Captain Flinders
observes, was
Not without some reason attributed to them, "that an
imaginary line of more than 250 leagues of extent, in the vicinity of one
of their colonies, should have been so long suffered to remain traced upon
the charts, under the title of UNKNOWN COAST," and they accordingly
appointed him to the command of an expedition fitted out in England for
this purpose.
Before giving an account of this voyage of Captain Flinders, we shall
abridge, from the Introduction prefixed to it, his clear and methodical
account of the progressive discoveries which have been made on the coast of
New Holland, and of what was still to be explored. He particularly dwelt on
the advantages that would result from a practicable passage through Torres'
Strait; if this could be discovered, it would shorten the usual route by
the north of New Guinea, or the Eastern Islands, in the voyage to India and
China. The immense gulf of Carpentaria was unknown, except a very small
portion of its eastern side. The lands called after Arnheim and Van Dieman
also required and deserved a minute investigation, especially the bays,
shoals, islands, and coasts of the former, and the northern part of the
latter. The north-west coast had not been examined since the time of
Dampier, who was of opinion that the northern portion of New Holland was
separated from the lands to the northward by a strait. The existence of
such a strait, Captain Flinders completely disproved.
With respect to the south coast, at least 250 leagues were unexplored.
Captain Flinders had examined with considerable care and minuteness the
east coast and Van Dieman's Land; but there were still several openings
which required to be better explored.
Such were the principal objects which Captain Flinders had in view in his
voyage; and no person could have been found better qualified to accomplish
these objects. On the 18th of July, 1801, he sailed from England in the
Investigator, of 334 tons: there were on board, beside the proper and
adequate complement of men, an astronomer, a naturalist, a natural history
painter, a landscape painter, a gardener, and a miner. As soon as he
approached the south coast of New Holland, he immediately began his
examination of the coasts, islands, and inlets of that large portion of it,
called Nuyts' Land; he particularly examined all that part of the coast,
which lies between the limit of the discoveries of Nuyts and Vancouver, and
the eastern extremity of Bass' Straits, where he met a French ship,
employed on the same object. In the month of July, 1802, he left Port
Jackson, whither he had gone to refit, and sailing through Torres' Straits
in 36 hours, he arrived in the Gulf of Carpentaria in the latter end of the
season.
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