Botany Bay

“ Black swans and other rare water-birds fluttered up as the white strangers sailed on, charmed with a scene in which every feature was beautiful, yet strange. They had discovered one of the finest harbours in the world. Coasting round the shores of this great natural basin, Governor Phillip determined to plant his colony on a promontory where a small clear stream trickled into the salt water. After three days spent in exploration, he returned to Botany Bay. ”

“ During our stay at Sydney we paid a visit to Botany Bay, which from the circumstance of its being the point first touched at by Captain Cook, naturally possesses the greatest interest of any place in the neighbourhood. Our way thither lay over a sandy plain, into which the coast range of low hills subsides. There is little or no verdure to relieve the eye, which encounters aridity wherever it turns; and the sand being rendered loose by frequent traffic, the foot sinks at every step, so that the journey is disagreeable to both man and beast. ”

“ The great quantity of plants which Mr Banks and Dr Solander collected in this place induced me to give it the name of Botany Bay. [72] It is situated in the latitude of 34° S., longitude 208° 37' W. It is capacious, safe, and convenient, and maybe known by the land on the sea-coast, which is nearly level, and of a moderate height; in general higher than it is farther inland, with steep rocky cliffs next the sea, which have the appearance of a long island lying close under the shore. ”

“ Under May 13 we read: "we found (in the space) Bottonist Harbour." Eight lines lower, though in distinctly altered form, we read: "saw at Botany Harbour."
How different all this from the unaltered, unspaced account by the Captain's copy, given by himself to Sir Hugh Palliser, in which it only says: "The great Quantity [Pg 21] of these sort of fish found here occasion'd my giving it the name of Stingray Harbour"!
So it is hardly correct to say, "It is, however, called Botany Bay from the first in the Journals," any more than "No autograph Journal is, so far as is known, in existence." ”

“ As I have mentioned something of the country between Botany-Bay and Port Jackson, I must farther observe, that in the neighbourhood of Sydney Cove, which is that part of this harbour in which Governor Phillip has fixed his residence, there are many spots of tolerably good land, but they are in general of but small extent; exclusive of those particular spots, it is rather a poor steril soil, full of stones; but near, and at the head of the harbour, there is a very considerable extent of tolerable land, and which may be cultivated without waiting for its being cleared of wood ”

“ As Botany Bay is not many leagues distant from Port Jackson, and the native are exactly the same in their dispositions, manners, and customs, as also the animal and vegetable productions, and the climate and soil varying but in a small degree, we shall therefore copiously describe them under the head of Port Jackson as related by the new Colonists, who had more time to observe, and more leisure to digest these particulars, than the first discoverers. ”

“ Botany Bay reached The land this morn appeard Cliffy and barren without wood. An opening appearing like a harbour was seen and we stood directly in for it. A small smoak arising from a very barren place directed our glasses that way and we soon saw about 10 people, who on our approach left the fire and retird to a little emminence where they could conveniently see the ship; soon after this two Canoes carrying 2 men each landed on the beach under them, the men hauld up their boats and went to their fellows upon the hill. ”

“ In order to get a right knowledge of the country round the Settlement, frequent excursions have been made since the ships sailed in November 1788; soon after which, I went to Botany Bay, and the five days spent in this harbour, confirmed me in the opinion I had first formed of it, that it afforded no eligible situation for fixing the Settlement, and was a bad harbour, not affording good security for ships against the Easterly winds, which frequently blow very hard in the winter ”

“ G. Barrington, `History of New South Wales,' p. 263:
"Botany Bay greens are abundant; they much resemble sage in appearance; and are esteemed a very good dish by the Europeans."
1834. Ross, `Van Diemen's Land Annual,' p. 134:
"I do not think it necessary to enter upon any description of the Barilla shrubs (Atriplex halimus, Rhagodur billardiera; and Salicornia arbuscula) , which, with some others, under the promiscuous name of Botany Bay greens, were boiled and eaten along with some species of seaweed, by the earliest settlers, when in a state of starvation." ”

“ Botany Bay being found to be a station of inferior advantages to what was expected, and no spot appearing proper for the colony, Governor Phillips at once resolved to transfer it to another excellent inlet, about twelve miles further to the north, called Port Jackson, on the south side of which, at a spot called Sydney Cove, the settlement was decided to be made. ”

“ In England in those days people always spoke of Botany Bay, because that was the place where Captain Cook landed before Port Jackson was discovered.
A strong breeze was blowing, which carried us rapidly towards the land. The wind increased, and dark clouds were seen gathering in the south-east. I had heard of a black squall off that coast, and from the darkness of the sky and the increasing wind, I was afraid that one was now brewing. Charley White was of my opinion, I found. This made me more than ever anxious to get into harbour before dark. ”

“ Some bustards were also seen, but none shot, nor any other bird except a few of the beautiful loriquets which we had seen in Botany Bay. Mr Gore, and one of the midshipmen, who were in different places, said that they had heard the voices of Indians near them, but had seen none. The country in general appeared sandy and barren, and being destitute of fresh water, it cannot be supposed to have any settled inhabitants. The deep gullies, which were worn by torrents from the hills, prove that at certain seasons the rains here are very copious and heavy. ”

“ It is only five miles across the land 294from one body of water to the other, and it is evident that he did not venture very far inland, or he would have found Port Jackson an infinitely better harbor than Botany Bay.
“It was in Botany Bay,” continued the gentleman, “that the first expedition to form a settlement in Australia cast anchor. Captain Phillip, who commanded the expedition, and some of his officers examined the land around Botany Bay, and found it quite unfit for a settlement. ”

“ As it is, the islands are exploited merely as a convict establishment—an Indian Botany Bay—and the only industry of any magnitude appertaining to them is that of timber, for which indeed the harbours are very convenient, as the forests worked are all in the neighbourhood of the seashore, or are so placed that after the trees are felled the logs can be hauled by elephants to the many creeks, and floated down to where the vessels engaged in the business are anchored. ”

“ If large rivers do exist in the country, which some of us are almost sceptical enough to doubt, their sources must arise amidst these hills; and the direction they run in, for a considerable distance, must be either due north, or due south. For it is strikingly singular that three such noble harbours as Botany Bay, Port Jackson, and Broken Bay, alike end in shallows and swamps, filled with mangroves. ”

“ Thus, men of science would be gratified by the selection of the place as Botany Bay, an Admiralty officer would be glad of the adoption of his name in Port Jackson, while the Dutch appellation of New Holland gave place to the more British one of New South Wales. ”

“ They anchored at nine o'clock in eight fathoms water, over a soft bottom, Point Venus bearing north-north-east, and One Tree Hill south by east, half east, distant from shore about half a mile. On approaching the bay, they could perceive a prodigious number of the natives on Point Venus, and round the beach, and several canoes put off from the shore, the Indians waving pieces of white cloth and making signs for them to come into the bay. ”

“ At Botany Bay, where they were best, they were just high enough for a man to sit upright in; but not large enough for him to extend himself in his whole length in any direction: They are built with pliable rods about as thick as a man's finger, in the form of an oven, by sticking the two ends into the ground, and then covering them with palm-leaves, and broad pieces of bark: The door is nothing but a large hole at one end, opposite to which the fire is made, as we perceived by the ashes. Under these houses, or sheds, they sleep, coiled up with their heels to their head ”

“ The reef on the west side extends nearly to both extremes with breaks in it, through which boats may pass with safety, but within the reef it is in general very shoaly. The island is tolerably broad at each end, and very narrow, with low land in the center, forming two bays, that should the wind be from south-east to north-east, or south-west to north-west, a ship may always be secure by running to the leeward of the island. There are regular soundings on the west side, but the ground is too hard for holding well, being coral rocks. ”

“ The striking facts which the writer exerts himself to record, and the reader is eager to peruse, arise only from difficult situations: uniform prosperity is described in very few words. Of this acceptable but unproductive kind was the passage of the Botany Bay fleet from Rio de Janeiro to the Cape of Good Hope; uniformly favourable, and not marked by any extraordinary incidents. This run, from about lat. 22° south, long. 43 west of London, to lat. 34° south, long. ”

“ On the 2d of March, 1788, governor Phillip went with a long boat to examine a bay about eight miles to the north of Port Jackson, called Broken Bay; the first night they slept in the boats, as the natives, tho’ friendly, seemed to be very numerons. Next day they examined the land, and found it much higher than at Port-Jackson. Great trees were seen growing to the summits of the mountains, which appeared accessible only to birds.——— In this excursion, some interviews with the natives took place. Several women came down to the beach with the men ”

“ In reference to the name of Botany Bay, Cook's Autograph Log, numbered 27,885, Additional Manuscripts, British Museum, must have the first place. There we read:—
"Remarks on May the 6th, 1770." "Pleasent weather. People empd wooding," &c.
Afterwards came the Bay news, thus:—
"The Yawl return'd from fishing, having caught two Sting rays, whose weight was near 600 lbs. ”

“ The number of inhabitants in this country appears to be very small in proportion to its extent. We never saw so many as thirty of them together but once, and that was at Botany Bay, when men, women, and children, assembled upon a rock to see the ship pass by: When they manifestly formed a resolution to engage us, they never could muster above fourteen or fifteen fighting men ”

“ On the 19th of this month, Lieutenant Ball arrived in the Supply from Norfolk Island. He had made that island on the 29th of February, but was five days off the coast before a place could be found at which it was possible to land the stores and provisions. So completely do the rocks surround the island, that it was not easy to find a place even to land a man. At length, however, they succeeded, having discovered at the south-west end, a small opening in a reef that runs across a bay. Here the people, provisions and stores were all put on shore in perfect safety. ”

“ In three days, with great difficulty, they passed the swamps and marshes which lie near the harbour. Nothing can more fully point out the great improvement which may be made by the industry of a civilized people in this country, than the circumstances of the small streams which descend into Port Jackson. They all proceed from swamps produced by the stagnation of the water after rising from the springs. ”

“ At two o'clock, they were within one mile of the land, and had soundings in sixteen fathoms water over a hard bottom: the Charlotte being a considerable distance a-stern, Captain Marshall lay to for her to come up, and when she joined the Scarborough he stood under an easy sail to the distance of six leagues westward of the island, and carried soundings from sixteen to twenty-five fathoms, the ground various; in some places being soft, in other parts a corally bottom, and sometimes coarse white sand, intermixed with broken shells. ”

“ On the coast of the island are several small bays, and there are still hopes that a better landing place may be discovered; but the necessity of employing all the men in sheltering themselves and the stores from the weather, or in clearing ground for various purposes, has hitherto prevented Mr. ”

“ If we trace the north-west shore of the bay, from the Mount westward to Newlyn, the ebb tide leaves a large space uncovered; the sea sand is from one to two or three feet deep; and under this stratum of sand is found a black vegetable [17] mould, full of woodland detritus, such as the branches, leaves, and nuts of coppice wood, together with the roots and trunks of forest trees of large growth. All these are manifestly indigenous; and, from the freshness and preservation of some of the remains, the inundation of sand, as well as water, must have been sudden and simultaneous ”

“ The green meadow had disappeared, and where it had been, a gleaming lake stretched brilliant in the sunshine, set in the pine-woods like a mirror in an ebony frame, cutting slices of sweeping bay out of their dusky margins, and piercing their depths with silent, weedy water-veins.
Where the villages lie, there have been clearings made in the wood, precisely as one would expect to see in a New Zealand or Australian bay. Close to high-water mark, rows of rounded huts serve as storehouses for nets, and spars, and sails. Before them straggling jetties run on piles far to seaward ”