The Result Proved That Our
Calculations, As To The Provisions, Were Very Nearly Correct; For Even
Our Flour, Much Of Which Was Destroyed By Accident, Lasted To The End Of
May, The Eighth Month Of Our Journey; But, As To The Time It Occupied, We
Were Very Much Deceived.
Our riding-saddles and pack-saddles were made of good materials, but they
were not fitted to the horses' backs, which caused a constant
inconvenience, and which would not have happened, had my means allowed me
to go to a greater expense.
So long as we had spare horses, to allow
those with sore backs to recover, we did not suffer by it: but when we
were compelled to ride the same horses without intermission, it exposed
us to great misery and even danger, as well as the risk of losing our
provisions and stores. Our pack-saddles had consequently to be altered to
the dimensions of the bullocks; and, having to use the new ones for
breaking in, they were much injured, even before we left Mr. Campbell's
to commence our journey. The statements of what a bullock was able to
carry were very contradictory; but in putting 250 lbs. upon them the
animals were overloaded; and my experience has since shown me that they
cannot, continually day after day, carry more than 150 lbs. for any
distance. The difficulties which we met with for the first three weeks,
were indeed very trying: - the loading of bullocks and horses took
generally two hours; and the slightest accident, or the cargo getting
loose during the day's journey, frequently caused the bullocks to upset
their loads and break the straps, and gave us great trouble even in
catching them again: - at night, too, if we gave them the slightest
chance, they would invariably stray back to the previous camp; and we had
frequently to wait until noon before Charley and Brown, who generally
performed the office of herdsman in turns, recovered the ramblers. The
consequences were that we could proceed only very slowly, and that, for
several months, we had to keep a careful watch upon them throughout the
night. The horses, with some few exceptions, caused us less trouble at
the commencement of our journey than afterwards, when our hobbles were
worn out and lost, and, with the exception of one or two which in turns
were tethered in the neighbourhood of the camp in order to prevent the
others from straying, they were necessarily allowed to feed at large. It
may readily be imagined that my anxiety to secure our horses was very
great, because the loss of them would have put an immediate stop to my
undertaking. - But I hasten to enter on the narrative of our journey.
CHAPTER I
LEAVE THE LAST STATION - FOSSIL REMAINS - DARLING DOWNS - ENTER THE
WILDERNESS - WATERLOO PLAINS - THE CONDAMINE - HEAVY RAINS - CHARLEY'S
MISCONDUCT - MURPHY AND CALEB LOST - KENT'S LAGOON - COAL - MURPHY AND CALEB
FOUND AGAIN.
It was at the end of September, 1844, when we completed the necessary
preparations for our journey, and left the station of Messrs. Campbell
and Stephens, moving slowly towards the farthest point on which the white
man has established himself. We passed the stations of Messrs. Hughs and
Isaacs and of Mr. Coxen, and arrived on the 30th September, at Jimba,
[It is almost always written Fimba, in the Journal; but I have corrected
it to Jimba. - (ED.)] where we were to bid farewell to civilization.
These stations are established on creeks which come down from the western
slopes of the Coast Range - here extending in a north and south
direction - and meander through plains of more or less extent to join the
Condamine River; which - also rising in the Coast Range, where the latter
expands into the table-land of New England - sweeps round to the
northward, and, flowing parallel to the Coast Range, receives the whole
drainage from the country to the westward of the range. The Condamine
forms, for a great distance, the separation of the sandstone country to
the westward, from the rich basaltic plains to the eastward. These
plains, so famous for the richness of their pasture, and for the
excellency of the sheep and cattle depastured upon them, have become
equally remarkable as the depositaries of the remains of extinct species
of animals, several of which must have been of a gigantic size, being the
Marsupial representatives of the Pachydermal order of other continents.
Mr. Isaacs' station is particularly rich in these fossil remains; and
they have been likewise found in the beds and banks of Mr. Hodgson's and
of Mr. Campbell's Creeks, and also of Oaky Creek. At Isaacs' Creek, they
occur together with recent freshwater shells of species still living in
the neighbouring ponds, and with marly and calcareous concretions; which
induces me to suppose that these plains were covered with large sheets of
water, fed probably by calcareous springs connected with the basaltic
range, and that huge animals, fond of water, were living, either on the
rich herbage surrounding these ponds or lakes, or browsing upon the
leaves and branches of trees forming thick brushes on the slopes of the
neighbouring hills. The rise of the country, which is very generally
supposed to have taken place, was probably the cause of the disappearance
of the water, and of the animals becoming extinct, when its necessary
supply ceased to exist. Similar remains have been found in Wellington
Valley, and in the Port Phillip District, where, probably, similar
changes have taken place.
The elevation of Darling Downs - about 1800 to 2000 feet, according to the
barometrical observations of Mr. Cunningham - renders the climate much
cooler than its latitude would lead one to suppose; indeed, ice has
frequently been found, during the calm clear nights of winter. During
September and October, we observed at sunrise an almost perfect calm.
About nine o'clock, light westerly winds set in, which increased towards
noon, died away towards evening, and after sunset, were succeeded by
light easterly breezes; thunder-storms rose from south and south-west,
and passed over with a violent gust of wind and heavy showers of rain;
frequently, in half an hour's time, the sky was entirely clear again;
sometimes, however, the night and following day were cloudy.
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