The Explorers (6 page)
The 3rd after sunset we saw many fires burning along the entire mainland coastâ¦
The 5th in the morning at sunrise the resolution made was put into execution and with the boats of the three South Land ships we, I again in company of the skipper, made for the mainland coast, where having stepped ashore, we found ourselves to amount to eighty-six men (both soldiers and seamen and two of the abovementioned blacks whom we had brought from the Cape) all well provided with weapons. We marched eastward and encountered after about an hour's advance a small hut quite as bad as those of the Hottentots; somewhat further on a large basin with brackish water, which later was found to be a river on whose banks we saw several footprints, no larger than ours, as well as some holes in which there was fresh and somewhat brackish water. But however thoroughly we explored everything, we found no people. Further on we found still more poor huts and footprints. Towards the evening it was resolved to remain ashore that night and so we camped in a wood in a place where we found a fire started by the inhabitants, whom, however, we did not see. It was kept going by throwing on wood while in the meantime four guards were posted every quarter of an hourâ¦
The 7th all the people were ferried back to the ships in the boats, bringing along two young black swansâ¦
The 12th two hours before sunrise I went ashore again with our upper-steersman, several seamen and the said two blacks, upon seeing several fires. We metâ¦no people, wherefore recognising that nothing was to be achieved by us here, we returned to our ship, which we came to at noon. Concerning the country, it is sandy and, in the area where we have been, wooded with many trees, among which some as much as three to four fathoms thick, but without fruit: in short, full of thistles and thorns. Several of these trees yielded a kind of resin, almost like lacquer, brownish-red in colour. Everything was timid in our presence, both men and birds, swans, brent-geese, pelicans, cockatoos, parakeets, etc. The best part of it is that no vermin is found here, but by day the flies are a terrible tormentâ¦
The 15thâ¦saw much smoke and vapour rising up in several places. About midday we went ashoreâ¦We were inland about a mile and a half, but found no people, nor fresh water, but several human footprints and such as of a dog and cassowary; further no trees and nothing but thistles and thorns. One of our people said that he had seen a red snake, some others that just when we arrived at the beach they had seen a yellow dog jump out of the scrub and throw itself into the sea as if to enjoy a swim. I do not know what truth there is in this: for I saw neitherâ¦
The 21st our boat once again went ashore, but without discovering anything newâ¦
The 25th early in the morning I went ashoreâ¦Having come to the beach, we found many oysters and started at once out on our march but sometimes had to rest through fatigue caused by the heat of the sun and the heavy going through thick scrub, until we came to the mountain range, where we camped. But if the march had been hard, the greatest grief struck us now, for finding no water, we thought we would perish from thirst. We could see our ships clearly from here and wished a thousand times to be back on board. Meanwhile, the commander of the soldiers had descended with another two men and brought back a report, with a cheerful face when he returned, that he had found fresh water as well as a hut and footprints eighteen inches long, about an hour's march from our camp. Whereupon it was resolved to march there even though it began to grow dark, which was not done without great trouble because of the scrub and nightfall. Having arrived at the watering place, we found it to be a large hole but the water slightly brackish. We camped by it and, having properly posted guards all the time, passed the night as well as we could.
The 26th in the morning before sunrise we started marching again and arrived at the said hut after a while, around which we found a great many eggshells, but those eighteen-inch footprints changed into ordinary ones. We also passed this night on shore, camped again by the waterhole mentioned, without, although having split up, finding either humans or animals, there being nothing but scrub.
Crying Pooh, Pooh, Pooh, 1699
Dampier seems to have matured as an explorer by the time of his second voyage to Australia in 1699, this time representing the British Admiralty. His careful descriptions of wildlife indicate that he had overcome his initial horror at the sterility of the country, and he was filled with regret at the first spilling of blood between Aborigines and the English, at Roebuck Bay near Broome, an event he recounts here. When homeward bound, his ship sprang a leak and had to be run ashore on Ascension Island. Dampier finally reached England in 1701. Fittingly, he later rescued Alexander Selkirk, better known as that most famous of castaways, Robinson Crusoe.
AugustâThe 28th day we had between twenty and forty fathom. We saw no land this day, but saw a great many snakes and some whales. We saw also some boobies and noddy-birds; and in the night caught one of these last. It was of another shape and colour than any I had seen before. It had a small long bill, as all of them have; flat feet like ducks' feet; its tail forked like a swallow but longer and broader, and the fork deeper than that of the swallow, with very long wings.
The top or crown of the head of this noddy was coal-black, having also small black streaks round about and close to the eyes; and round these streaks, on each side, a pretty broad white circle. The breast, belly and underpart of the wings of this noddy were white; and the back and upper part of its wings of a faint black or smoke colourâ¦
The 30th day, being in latitude 18° 21', we made the land again, and saw many great smokes near the shore; and having fair weather and moderate breezes I steered in towards it. At four in the afternoon I anchored in eight fathom water, clear sand, about three leagues and a half from the shore. I presently sent my boat to sound nearer in, and they found ten fathom about a mile farther in; and from thence still farther in the water decreased gradually to nine, eight, seven, and at two-mile distance to six fathom. This evening we saw an eclipse of the moonâ¦
The 31st of August betimes in the morning I went ashore with ten or eleven men to search for water. We went armed with muskets and cutlasses for our defence, expecting to see people there; and carried also shovels and pickaxes to dig wells. When we came near the shore we saw three tall black naked men on the sandy bay ahead of us, but as we rowed in they went away. When we were landed, I sent the boat with two men in her to lie a little from the shore at an anchor, to prevent being seized; while the rest of us went after the three black men, who were now got on the top of a small hill about a quarter of a mile from us, with eight or nine men more in their company. They, seeing us coming, ran away. When we came on the top of the hill where they first stood, we saw a plain savannah, about half a mile from us, farther in from the sea. There were several things like haycocks standing in the savannah, which at a distance we thought were houses, looking just like the Hottentot's houses at the Cape of Good Hopeâbut we found them to be so many rocks. We searched about these for water, but could find none, nor any houses, nor people, for they were all gone. Then we turned again to the place where we landed, and there we dug for water.
While we were at work there came nine or ten of the natives to a small hill a little way from us, and stood there menacing and threatening of us, and making a great noise. At last one of them came towards us, and the rest followed at a distance. I went out to meet him, and came within fifty yards of him, making to him all the signs of peace and friendship I could; but then he ran away, neither would they any of them stay for us to come nigh them, for we tried two or three times.
At last I took two men with me, and went in the afternoon along by the seaside, purposely to catch one of them, if I could, of whom I might learn where they got their fresh water. There were ten or twelve of the natives a little way off, who, seeing us three going away from the rest of our men, followed us at a distance. I thought they would follow us: but there being for a while a sandbank between us and them, that they could not then see us, we made a halt, and hid ourselves in a bending of the sandbank. They knew we must be thereabouts and, being three or four times our number, thought to seize us. So they dispersed themselves, some going to the seashore, and others beating about the sandhills.
We knew by what rencounter we had had with them in the morning that we could easily outrun them; so a nimble young man that was with me, seeing some of them near, ran towards them; and they for some time ran away before him. But, he soon overtaking them, they faced about and fought him. He had a cutlass, and they had wooden lances; with which, being many of them, they were too hard for him. When he first ran towards them I chased two more that were by the shore; but fearing how it might be with my young man I turned back quickly, and went up to the top of a sandhill, whence I saw him near me, closely engaged with them.
Upon their seeing me, one of them threw a lance at me that narrowly missed me. I discharged my gun to scare them, but avoided shooting any of them; till, finding the young man in great danger from them, and myself in some; and that, though the gun had a little frighted them at first, yet they had soon learnt to despise it, tossing up their hands, and crying
pooh, pooh, pooh
, and coming on afresh with a great noise.
I thought it high time to charge again, and shoot one of them, which I did. The rest, seeing him fall, made a stand again; and my young man took the opportunity to disengage himself, and come off to me; my other man also was with me, who had done nothing all this while, having come out unarmed; and I returned back with my men, designing to attempt the natives no farther, being very sorry for what had happened already.
They took up their wounded companion; and my young man, who had been struck through the cheek by one of their lances, was afraid it had been poisoned; but I did not think that likely. His wound was very painful to him, being made with a blunt weapon, but he soon recovered of it.
Botany Bay, 1770
James Cook is justly regarded as the greatest maritime explorer of his age, perhaps of all time. In 1 770 he charted the east coast of Australia, touching land five timesâfirst of all at what is now Botany Bay. Cook initially named it Stingray Bay, for the enormous stingrays caught there, and he correctly surmised that these creatures were never hunted by the Aborigines. After giving the botanists Banks and Solander time to collect a cornucopia of plant specimens, he changed the name in honour of their work, set sail, and coasted serenely past a safe anchorage he named Port Jacksonâthus failing to discover Sydney's astonishing harbour.
6 MayâIn the evening the yawl returned from fishing having caught two stingrays weighing near 600 pounds. The great quantity of new plants etc. Mr Banks and Dr Solander collected in this place occasioned my giving it the name of Botany Bay. It is situated in the latitude of 34° 0' south, longitude 208° 37' west. It is capacious, safe and commodious.
It may be known by the land on the sea coast which is of a pretty even and moderate height, rather higher than it is farther inland with steep rocky cliffs next to the sea and looks like a long island lying close under the shore. The entrance of the harbour lies about the middle of this land; in coming from the southward it is discovered before you are abreast of it which you cannot do in coming from the northward; the entrance is little more than a mile broad and lies in
WNW
â¦
We anchored near the south shore about a mile within the entrance for the conveniency of sailing with a southerly wind and the getting of fresh water, but I afterwards found a very fine stream of fresh water on the north shore in the first sandy cove within the island, before which a ship might lay almost landlocked, and wood for fuel may be got everywhere. Although wood is here in great plenty yet there is very little variety; the largest trees are as large or larger than our oaks in England and grows a good deal like them and yields a reddish gum; the wood itself is heavy, hard and black like lignum vitae; another sort that grows tall and straight something like pines, the wood of this is hard and ponderous and something of the nature of American live oaks; these two are all the timber trees I met with.