Journals Of Two Expeditions Of Discovery In North West And Western Australia Volume 1 (Of 2) by George Grey (read book txt) 📕

Danger In The Passage Across And After Landing.

 

I Therefore Determined To Run All Risks,  And Swim The Arm Of The Sea

Which Stopped Our Way.

 

I Directed Coles To Wait Until The Others Came Up And Then To Remain With

Them Until I Returned In A Boat. From The Rugged Nature Of The Shore I

Could Not Have Walked A Yard Without Shoes,  So I Kept Them On,  As Well As

My Shirt And Military Cap,  And I Took A Pistol In One Hand As A Means Of

Defence Against The Natives,  Or Else To Fire It When I Reached A Spot

Where It Could Be Seen Or Heard From The Vessel.

 

I Plunged In And Very Soon Found Myself Caught In A Tideway So Violent

That Resistance To Its Force,  So As Either To Get On Or Return,  Appeared

At The Moment Hopeless.* My Left Hand,  In Which I Held The Pistol,  Was

Called Into Requisition To Save My Life; For The Stream Washed The Cap

From My Head And,  The Cap Then Filling With Water,  And Being Carried Down

By The Strong Current,  The Chin-Strap Caught Round My Neck And Nearly

Throttled Me As I Dragged It After Me Through The Water; Whilst The Loose

Folds Of My Shirt,  Being Washed Out To Seawards By The Tide,  Kept Getting

Entangled With My Arm. I Grew Weak And Faint But Still Swam My Best,  And

At Last I Providentially Reached A Reef Of Rocks Which Projected From The

Opposite Shore,  And To Which I Clung Until I Had Somewhat Regained My

Strength.

Volume 1 Chapter 4 (Footnote) Pg 48

 

(*Footnote. I Should State That The Rise And Fall Of Tide Here Is

Thirty-Eight Feet.)

 

Volume 1 Chapter 4 (Hanover Bay) Pg 49

Danger From Natives.

 

I Then Clambered Up On The Rocks,  And From Thence Made My Way To The

Beach; But No Sooner Had I Gained It Than I Heard A Native Call From The

Top Of The Cliffs,  And The Answering Cries Of His Comrades Rang Through

The Wood As They Followed Me Along; My Pistol Was So Thoroughly Soaked In

My Passage Across The Inlet That It Was Quite Useless Except As A Club.

To Attempt To Swim Back Again After The Narrow Escape I Had Just Had

Would Have Been Madness; Besides Which If I Had Succeeded I Should Have

Lost The Object For Which I Had Put My Life At Hazard. Nothing Therefore

Was Left But To Walk Along Shore To The Schooner,  Trusting,  In My

Defenceless State,  That I Might Not Fall In With Any Natives. It Was Now

Dark And The Shore Was So Broken And Rocky That I Got Terribly Cut And

Bruised,  And Was,  Moreover,  So Weak From My Exertions In Swimming That

When I Arrived Opposite The Vessel I Could Scarcely Hail. Some Of Those

On Board However Heard Me (As I Found Afterwards) And Shouted In Reply;

But Their Voices Never Reached My Ears,  And I Imagined They Were Too Far

For I Could Not Now See The Vessel.

 

I Made One Or Two More Efforts To Hail The Lynher,  But The Noise I Made

Had Now Attracted The Notice Of The Natives And I Heard Their Cries In

Volume 1 Chapter 4 (Hanover Bay) Pg 50

Several Directions Round Me; This Rendered My Situation An Unpleasant One

For I Was Worn Out,  Naked,  And Defenceless: At First I Thought To Return

And Rejoin My Party,  And Even Turned Back For A Short Distance With This

Intention,  But I Found Myself Too Weak For Such An Undertaking And

Changed My Plans; Resolving To Remain Nearly Opposite To The Vessel Until

The Morning,  And Resting My Chance Of Safety Upon Being Discovered From

It Before The Natives Found Me.

 

Taken Up By The Lynher's Boat.

 

With This Intent I Returned To The Position From Which I Had Lately

Hailed,  And Crept Into A Hole In The Rocks Whence I Could Still

Occasionally Hear The Calls Of The Natives; But,  Being Thoroughly Worn

Out,  I Soon Forgot My Toils And Dangers In A Very Sound And Comfortable

Sleep. I Might Have Slept For Some Two Hours When I Was Roused By Hearing

A Voice Shout "Mr. Grey;" Still However Feeling Rather Distrustful Of The

Truth Of My Mental Impressions,  And Unwilling To Betray My Whereabouts To

The Natives,  I Returned No Answer,  But,  Putting Out My Head From My

Secret Place Of Rest,  I Waited Patiently For A Solution Of My Doubts. But

Again I Certainly Heard The Same Voice Shout "Mr. Grey," And I Moreover

Now Distinctly Recognised The Noise Of Oars Working In The Rowlocks; I

Therefore Hailed "Lynher,  Ahoy," And All My Doubts Were Completely Put At

Rest By The Hearty Cheers Which Greeted My Ear As Mr. Smith,  The Mate Of

The Schooner,  Called Out,  "Where Shall We Pull In,  Sir?"

 

Fortunate Delivery And The Party Regain The Lynher.

 

In A Few Minutes More I Was In The Boat,  And Rejoiced To Find All The

Party Safely There Before Me. My Next Question Was,  "Have You A Little

Water Here?" "Plenty,  Sir," Answered Corporal Cole As He Handed Me A

Little,  Which I Greedily Swallowed.

 

Their Adventures Were Soon Related To Me. The Party Under Mr. Lushington,

Being On An Exposed Part Of The Coast,  The Flash Of Their Guns Had Been

Seen After Dark,  And The Captain Despatched A Boat From The Schooner To

Pull Along Shore. This Boat First Of All Found Coles Near Where I Had

Quitted Him,  And He Directed Them To The Others; The Boat,  Having Picked

Them Up,  Then Returned For Coles,  And Heard From Him The Intentions With

Which I Had Attempted To Swim The Arm Of The Sea; But As He Had Never

Seen Me Reach The Opposite Bank,  And The Inlet Was Of Very Considerable

Width,  They Had,  Up To The Moment Of Finding Me,  Felt Very Serious

Misgivings As To My Fate.

 

I Did Not Know Till Afterwards That The Water Corporal Coles Had Handed

To Me On Entering The Boat Was All They Had On Board When He Was Picked

Up,  And That,  Although Suffering Severely From Thirst,  Coles Would Not

Touch A Drop As Long As He Retained Any Hope That I Might Be Found And Be

In Want Of It.

Volume 1 Chapter 4 (Hanover Bay) Pg 51

 

Return Of All On Board.

 

We Were Now However Safe Again,  And As All Had Borne Themselves Well

Under The Difficulties To Which They Had Been Exposed,  More Particularly

Mr. Lushington,  To Whom The Credit Is Due Of Having,  By His Personal

Example And Influence,  Successfully Brought On The Party To The Point Of

Their Embarkation,  It Was Now Pleasant To Revert To The Trials We Had

Passed,  And To Recall To One Another's Recollection Each Minute

Circumstance Of Our Day's Adventures; And When We Were Again On Board And

Had Turned In For The Night I Could Not Help Feeling A Deep Sense Of

Gratitude To That Providence Who,  In So Brief A Space,  Had Preserved Me

Through So Many Perils.

 

 

 

Volume 1 Chapter 5 (At Hanover Bay) Pg 52

Plague Of Flies.

 

December 4.

 

To Sleep After Sunrise Was Impossible On Account Of The Number Of Flies

Which Kept Buzzing About The Face. To Open Our Mouths Was Dangerous. In

They Flew,  And Mysteriously Disappeared,  To Be Rapidly Ejected Again In A

Violent Fit Of Coughing; And Into The Eyes,  When Unclosed,  They Soon

Found Their Way And,  By Inserting The Proboscis And Sucking,  Speedily

Made Them Sore; Neither Were The Nostrils Safe From Their Attacks,  Which

Were Made Simultaneously On All Points,  And In Multitudes. This Was A

Very Troublesome Annoyance,  But I Afterwards Found It To Be A Very

General One Throughout All The Unoccupied Portions Of Australia; Although

In General The Further North You Go In This Continent The More

Intolerable Does The Fly Nuisance Become.

 

Sunrise Offered A Very Beautiful Spectacle; The Water Was Quite

Unruffled,  But The Motion Communicated By The Tides Was So Great That,

Although There Was Not A Breath Of Air Stirring,  The Sea Heaved Slowly

With A Grand And Majestic Motion. On Two Sides The View Was Bounded By

Lofty Cliffs,  From Three To Four Hundred Feet High,  Lightly Wooded At

Their Summits,  And Broken By Wide Openings,  Into Which Ran Arms Of The

Sea,  Forming Gloomy Channels Of Communication With The Interior Country;

Whilst On Each Side Of Their Entrances The Huge Cliffs Rose,  Like The

Pillars Of Some Gigantic Portal.

 

In Front Of Us Lay A Smooth Sandy Beach,  Beyond Which Rose Gradually A

High Wooded Country,  And Behind Us Was The Sea,  Studded With Numerous

Islands Of Every Variety Of Form.

 

Entrance To Prince Regent's River.

 

I Was Too Much Tired By The Fatigues Of The Night Before To Enjoy The

Scene With The Full Delight I Should Otherwise Have Done; The Bruises I