From the ridge looking West, North, North-East, and East nothing
is visible but parallel sand-ridges running N.E. To the South-West can be
seen the high ground on which is the rock-hole (Mulundella).
To the South-East, across a mulga-covered flat, is a high ridge one mile
distant, with the crests of others visible beyond it; above them, about
twelve miles distant, a prominent bluff (Breaden Bluff), the North end of
a red tableland. From the mulga trees the bluff bears 144 degrees. One
and a half miles N.E. by N. from the cave is a valley of open spinifex,
breaking through the ridges in a West and Southerly direction, on which
are clumps of cork-bark trees; these would incline one to think that
water cannot be far below the surface in this spot.
Close to the entrance to the cave is erected a mulga pole, on which we
carved our initials and the date. There are also some native signs or
ornaments in the form of three small pyramids of stones and grass, about
eight feet apart, in a line pointing S.W.
Several old native camps were dotted about in the scrub; old fires and
very primitive shelters formed of a few branches. Amongst the ashes many
bones could be seen, particularly the lower maxillary of some species of
rat-kangaroo. To descend to the cave beneath, the natives had made a
rough ladder by leaning mulga poles against the edge of the entrance from
the floor. All down the passage to the water little heaps of ashes could
be seen where their fires had been placed to light them in their work.
Warri found some strange carved planks hidden away in the bushes, which
unfortunately we were unable to carry. King Billy saw them with evident
awe; he had become very useful, carrying wood and so forth with the
greatest pleasure. The morning we left this camp, however, he sneaked
away before any of us were up. I fancy that his impressions of a white
man's character will be favourable; for never in his life before had he
been able to gorge himself without having had the trouble of hunting his
food. From him I made out the following words, which I consider reliable:
ENGLISH. ABORIGINAL.
Smoke, fire. Warru or wallu.
Wood. Taalpa.
Arm. Menia.
Hand. Murra.
Hair. Kuttya.
Nose. Wula or Ula.
Water. Gabbi.
Dog. Pappa.*
[* This word "pappa" we found to be used by all natives encountered by us
in the interior. Warri uses it, and Breaden tells me that in Central
Australia it is universal.]
August 15th we again watered the camels, who were none the worse for
their dry stage. Breaden was suffering some pain from his strain, and on
descending to the cave was unable to climb up again; we had some
difficulty in hauling him through the small entrance.
CHAPTER VI
WOODHOUSE LAGOON
But for the flies, which never ceased to annoy us, we had enjoyed a real
good rest, and were ready to march on the morning of the 16th, no change
occurring in the character of the country until the evening of the 18th,
when we sighted a low tableland five miles to the North, and to the West
of it a table-topped detached hill. Between us and the hills one or two
native smokes were rising, which showed us that water must be somewhere
in the neighbourhood. From a high sandhill the next morning, we got a
better view, and could see behind the table-top another and similar hill.
I had no longer any doubt as to their being Mounts Worsnop and Allott
(Forrest, 1874), the points for which I had been steering, though at
first they appeared so insignificant that I hesitated to believe that
these were the right ones. From the West, from which direction Forrest
saw them first, they appear much higher, and are visible some twenty
miles off. From the North they are not visible a greater distance than
three miles, while from the East one can see them a distance of eight
miles.
I altered our course, therefore, towards the hills, and we shortly
crossed the narrow arm of a salt-lake; on the far side several tracks of
emus and natives caught my eye, and I sent Charlie on Satan to scout.
Before long he reported a fine sheet of water just ahead. This, as may be
imagined, came as a surprise to us; for a more unlikely thing to find,
considering the dry state of the rock-holes we had come upon, could not
have been suggested. However, there it was; and very glad we were to see
it, and lost no time in making camp and hobbling the camels. What a
glorious sight in this parched land! - so resting to the eye after days of
sand! How the camels wallowed in the fresh water! how they drank! and
what a grand feed they had on the herbage (TRICHINIUM ALOPECUROIDEUM) on
the banks of the lagoon! Charlie and I spent the afternoon in further
exploring our surroundings, and on return to camp found our mates busily
engaged in plucking some teal and waterhen which they had shot. The
latter were numerous, and Godfrey at one shot bagged nine. They are
almost identical in size and appearance with our British waterhen, though
they seem to have less power of flight, thus enabling us to drive them
from one gun to the other, and so secure a fine lot for the pot. I doubt
if in civilisation they would be considered good eating, but after tinned
horrors they were a perfect delicacy. The teal were as numerous; but
though there were several emu tracks we saw none of those queer birds.
Our bag for three days was seventeen teal, twelve waterhen, one pigeon.
The natives whose smoke we had seen, disappeared shortly after our
arrival.
