John Lort Stokes

“ So strong and native is man's desire for the unknown, that his feelings are never more tried than when on the brink of a discovery, while those who are in presence of the novelty, and cannot enjoy the satisfaction of tasting that pleasure, must ever experience somewhat acute emotions of regret.
There was no difficulty in finding a name for a river which fell into Clarence Strait; it was at once, therefore, honoured with that of Adelaide, after her most gracious Majesty the Queen Dowager. The bay that receives its waters was called after Vice-Admiral Sir Charles Adam. ”

“ The joy a discovery of this nature imparts to the explorer, when examining a country so proverbially destitute of rivers as Australia, is much more easily imagined than described. It formed a species of oasis amid the ordinary routine of surveying, rousing our energies, and giving universal delight. ”

“ July 26.—After one of those soft and lovely evenings so common to this part of Australia, with a gentle breeze and cloudless sky, we were surprised to find that the morning opened dreary and gloomy. There was a very fresh S.S.E. wind with heavy masses of clouds; the breeze continued until noon, when as usual it subsided. We moved the ship a few miles down the opening in the south side of the strait, and in the afternoon a party went on shore near Cape Hotham. We found the country very poor and sandy, and elevated about fifteen feet above high-water mark. ”

“ It was amusing to see the struggle between fear and curiosity plainly depicted in the man's face, as he stood with one foot on the boat, and the other on the shore, hearkening but too credulously to the picture of danger, forcibly drawn by his friends, while curiosity, with almost equal strength, was urging him to dare the perils of the white man's boat. ”

“ The temperature during our stay averaged 82 while land and sea breezes prevailed. We should not omit to mention, that Lieutenant Stewart, when visiting Raffles Bay in order to invite the French officers as above alluded to, found that a deep inlet intervening, formed a good harbour, to which he gave the name of Port Bremer. Of the old settlement nothing remained, save the graves of those whose labours had tended to render this part of Australia another outlet for the surplus population of the mother country, extending at the same time the blessings of civilization. ”

“ Lieutenant Stewart gives as the general result of his observations, extending over about seventy or eighty miles, that there is abundance of fresh water on the Peninsula; that the S. side is by far the finest and best watered country; that the trees are there free from the white ant; and that in a large tract of country, the cabbage-palm abounds. He also observes, that as much of the south coast as he saw, has a coral reef extending about a mile from the beach; and that the rise and fall of the tide is much greater than at Port Essington. ”

“ We cannot avoid expressing our regret at the abandonment of the settlement in Raffles Bay, after it had gone on so far successfully under Captain Barker's excellent management. In mentioning his kindness to the natives, to whose goodwill we must always owe much, we have already given one of the causes which assisted in fostering the undertaking. Nothing could be more unwise than the hostility shown to the natives by the first settlers, as from them we must always calculate on learning much that is useful and valuable, with regard to the productions of the country ”

“ Here another party visited the shore, and those whose occupation did not render their presence necessary near the water, strolled into the country, penetrating about four or five miles inland, but they were rewarded by the sight of no novelty, or even variety in the scenery, beyond what was presented to our view on the visit to Cape Hotham, which it will readily be allowed was little enough. Indeed it will in general be found, that in Australia, a change of formation is necessary to produce any of the scenery, which otherwise exhibits a most monotonous sameness. ”

“ The settlers have been attacked at various times by fever, and have experienced a large comparative mortality; but hopes are entertained that by proper regulations, especially if temperate habits could be introduced, this may be avoided.
The capabilities of the soil, though it has by some been pronounced totally unfit for agricultural purposes, are still supposed by others to be great, and it is believed that if colonists, capable of working in the climate, could be induced to repair to Port Essington, rice, cotton, indigo, etc. might be raised, of the finest quality, and in great abundance. ”

“ The worst crimes of the dregs of a civilized population have been introduced; and many of those wretched beings, who might otherwise have been reclaimed from the rude vices of savage life, have, through the white man's instrumentality, perished in sin.*
* I knew an instance of a convict, who when dying actually picked a man's pocket. The ruling passion, strong in death, was here painfully exemplified. J.L.S. The number of Malay proas that visit this part of the continent, would also furnish facilities for the escape of convicts from the neighbourhood of Port Essington. ”

“ Victoria from the Anchorage Before taking leave of this new colony, we must at once express a hope that it will not be made a Penal settlement; not that we doubt the wonderful degree in which the convict system has hastened the prosperity of our possessions on the south-eastern part of the continent; but from the proximity of northern Australia to the islands in the Arafura sea—the waters separating them being often navigable for boats—the natives would be contaminated and vitiated, their women corrupted, and the badly disposed among the islanders rendered worse ”

“ In working round Vashon Head, we found the water shoal very rapidly to 12, 9, and 7 fathoms on approaching it; on the bearing S. 30° W. This head is fronted by a reef of some extent, which similar to the other at the entrance of Port Essington, cannot be distinguished, owing to the muddy colour of the water; it is therefore necessary that the lead should be kept constantly going when in its vicinity. When daylight broke, we found no fresh arrival to greet our anxious gaze, the Britomart being still the only guardian of the port. ”

“ On anchoring near its edge, a patch with only five feet was discovered close to the ship; the muddy and restless state of the water, caused by a meeting of the tides, setting out of Van Diemen's Gulf and Adam Bay, renders it necessary to approach Cape Hotham from the northward, with caution. However, the unusually great depth, for this strait, of twenty fathoms, will give warning of a ship's proximity to this danger, the limits of which have been given on the occasion of our first visit to Cape Hotham. ”

“ At the south-east extremity of the settlement, raised on piles, was the Government-house, fronted on the harbour side by a small battery. Behind the table-plain, the land, producing very coarse grass, falls away to the south-west, and some clear patches which from lying in a low situation, are flooded during the rains, form tolerable soil. Generally speaking, however, there is a great deficiency of land fit for cultivation. On some of the best spots lying to the southward and westward, gardens have been commenced with some success. ”

“ It is a great enemy to the wild bee, devouring them and their nests; the bees the natives discover by tapping the tree and listening for a buzzing from within. Those we saw, amounting to nearly a hundred, were about the size of a fly, of a dusky black colour, and strange to say, were hovering round an empty tar-barrel. They have been unsuccessfully tried in hives at Sydney. ”

“ From a distance our appearance must have been sufficiently amusing. One moment soberly intent upon our duties, and the next jumping like madmen, and hastily stripping off our garments. The name of Ant Cliffs records our visit to the south shores of Melville Island. The tide on this side of the strait ran nearly two knots an hour, following the direction of the shore; the time of high-water being a quarter of an hour earlier than in Adam Bay.
August 15.—Recrossed Clarence Strait to obtain observations for rating the chronometers, and examine the extensive shoal off Cape Hotham. ”

“ It seems, indeed, that wherever the flag of Britain floats, there is made known the Word of God in its purity; and as an empire has been vouchsafed us on which the sun never sets, the extent of our influence for good in this respect is incalculable. ”

“ Oxide of iron is found in some places in large quantities, and is used by the natives to adorn themselves when dancing. This it is which gives to the coast the peculiar red hue noticed between Cape Croker and Port Essington. Many of the cliffs were composed of a light-coloured marl; but the formation is chiefly old arenaceous rocks. Two of the highest and most remarkable hills on the Peninsula, known as Mounts Bedwell and Rose, have singular flat tops, bearing some resemblance to the curious appearance of Cape Bedford. I am inclined to believe this formation to be floetz trappe. ”

“ A few days after my interview in the dinghy with the natives, Mr. Fitzmaurice went ashore to compare the compasses. From the quantity of iron contained in the rocks, it was necessary to select a spot free from their influence. A sandy beach at the foot of Escape Cliffs was accordingly chosen. The observations had been commenced, and were about half completed, when on the summit of the cliffs, which rose about twenty feet above their heads, suddenly appeared a large party of natives with poised and quivering spears, as if about immediately to deliver them. ”

“ The warmth of the climate in itself conduces to intemperance, which to Europeans is ever fatal.
The Pelorus brought orders for the Britomart to proceed to Sydney.
Captain Stanley was anxious—with the westerly monsoon—to have attempted the passage through Torres Strait, instead of going round the west coast, as such a course might have led to some discoveries in that neighbourhood; a result always in such a service of the utmost importance. ”

“ Their singularly long legs are of a pale flesh colour, while the web on the foot is very much arched near the toes, giving greater pliability to the foot and a power of grasping, which enables them to perch on trees. The head and bill, the latter of a pale ash colour, are both large. When on the wing they make a peculiar though pleasing whistling sound, that can be heard at a great distance,* and which changes as they alight, into a sort of chatter. ”

“ Extensive hauls of fish were made on Point Record, amongst which one species, there called salmon, was most excellent eating.
It is unnecessary for a transient visitor to enlarge upon the birds of Port Essington, as in Mr. Gould's work we have the result of the labours of an individual who spent months collecting in the neighbourhood. ”

“ Nothing can be more curious than to see them hopping towards these piles on one foot, the other being filled with materials for building. Though much smaller in shape, in manner they much resemble moor-fowl. ”

“ We subsequently often found them on the rivers on the N. coast, but not within some miles of their mouths or near their upper waters, from which it would appear that they inhabit certain reaches of the rivers only: we never found them in swamps. The farthest south they were afterwards met with, was on the Albert River in the Gulf of Carpentaria, in lat. 18° S., which gives them a range of six and a half degrees of latitude over the northern part of the continent. Their nests never came under our notice, and consequently we are not aware either of the size or colour of their eggs ”

“ One discovery which was made through the medium of the natives, was that the large tumuli noticed by Captain King and others, and supposed to be raised by the inhabitants, are the works of a bird; some of them are thirty feet long and about five feet high; they are always built near thick bushes in which they can take shelter, at the least alarm. The edifice is erected with the feet, which are remarkable both for size and strength, and a peculiar power of grasping ”

“ At Port Essington it was possible we should be able to get a supply of both, as a ship might have arrived during our absence. Moreover it was highly important, that we should make known without delay, the discovery of a river of such magnitude as the Adelaide, distant only seventy miles from the settlement.
* Nothing shows the flat nature of a country more than the tortuous course of a stream passing through it. ”

“ Its great size, having an extent sufficient to hold the largest fleet, is in itself of vast importance, while, as a shelter for distressed vessels, or the surviving crews of wrecks, it cannot be too highly rated: the more so that excellent wood for repairing ships grows in the neighbourhood, especially teak and oak, specimens of which with others, Captain Laws forwarded, in 1828, to one of the dockyards in England. ”