We Soon Reached The Deep Creek, And Crossed By Means Of A Punt, The
Charges Being The Same As The One At Keilor.
Near here is a station
belonging to Mr. Ryleigh, which is a happy specimen of a squatter's
home - everything being managed in a superior manner.
The house itself
is erected on a rise and surrounded by an extensive garden, vinery and
orchard, all well stocked and kept; some beautifully enclosed paddocks
reach to the Creek, and give an English park-like appearance to the
whole. The view from here over the bay and Brighton is splendid; you
can almost distinguish Geelong. About a quarter of a mile off is a
little hamlet with a neat Swiss-looking church, built over a
school-room on a rise of ground; it has a most peculiar effect, and is
the more singular as the economizing the ground could not be a
consideration in the colony; on the left of the church is a pretty
little parsonage, whitewashed, with slate roof and green-painted
window-frames.
I still fancy, though our redoubtable captain most strenuously
denied it, that we had in some manner gone out of our way; however that
may be, the roads seemed worse and worse as we proceeded, and our pace
became more tedious as here and there it was up-hill work till at
length we reached the Keilor plains. It was almost disheartening to
look upon that vast expanse of flat and dreary land except where the
eye lingered on the purple sides of Mount Macedon, which rose far
distant in front of us. On entering the plains we passed two or three
little farm-houses, coffee-shops, &c., and encountered several parties
coming home for a trip to Melbourne. For ten miles we travelled on
dismally enough, for it rained a great deal, and we were constantly
obliged to halt to get the horses rested a little. We now passed a
coffee-shop, which although only consisting of a canvas tent and little
wooden shed, has been known to accommodate above forty people of a
night. As there are always plenty of bad characters lounging in the
neighbourhood of such places, we kept at a respectful distance, and did
not make our final halt till full two miles farther on our road. Tents
were again pitched, but owing to their not being fastened over
securely, many of us got an unwished-for shower-bath during the
night; but this is nothing - at the antipodes one soon learns to laugh
at such trifles.
THURSDAY, 9. - This morning we were up betimes, some of our party being
so sanguine as to anticipate making the "Bush Inn" before evening. As
we proceeded, this hope quickly faded away. The Keilor plains seemed
almost impassable, and what with pieces of rock here, and a water-hole
there, crossing them was more dangerous than agreeable. Now one passed
a broken-down dray; then one's ears were horrified at the oaths an
unhappy wight was venting at a mud-hole into which he had stumbled. A
comical object he looked, as, half-seas-over, he attempted to pull on a
mud-covered boot, which he had just extricated from the hole where it
and his leg had parted company. A piece of wood, which his imagination
transformed into a shoe-horn, was in his hand. "Put it into the
larboard side," (suiting the action to the word), "there it goes - damn
her, she won't come on! Put it into the starboard side there it goes -
well done, old girl," and he triumphantly rose from the ground, and
reeled away.
With a hearty laugh, we proceeded on our road, and after passing
two or three coffee-tents, we arrived at Gregory's Inn. The landlord is
considered the best on the road, and is a practical example of what
honesty and industry may achieve. He commenced some nine months before
without a shilling - his tarpaulin tent and small stock of tea, sugar,
coffee, &c., being a loan. He has now a large weather-board house,
capable of making up one hundred beds, and even then unable to
accommodate all his visitors, so numerous are they, from the good name
he bears. Here we got a capital cold dinner of meat, bread, cheese,
coffee, tea, &c., for three shillings a-piece, and, somewhat refreshed,
went forwards in better spirits, though the accounts we heard there of
the bad roads in the Black Forest would have disheartened many.
Mount Macedon now formed quite a beautiful object on our right: a
little below that mountain appeared a smaller one, called the Bald
Hill, from its peak being quite barren, and the soil of a white
limestone and quartzy nature, which gives it a most peculiar and
splendid appearance when the sun's rays are shining upon it. As
we advanced, the thickly-wooded sides of Mount Macedon became more
distinct, and our proximity to a part of the country which we knew to
be auriferous, exercised an unaccountable yet pleasureable influence
over our spirits, which was perhaps increased by the loveliness of the
spot where we now pitched our tents for the evening. It was at the foot
of the Gap. The stately gum-tree, the shea-oak, with its gracefully
drooping foliage, the perfumed yellow blossom of the mimosa, the
richly-wooded mountain in the background, united to form a picture too
magnificent to describe. The ground was carpeted with wild flowers; the
sarsaparilla blossoms creeping everywhere; before us slowly rippled a
clear streamlet, reflecting a thousand times the deepening tints which
the last rays of the setting sun flung over the surrounding scenery;
the air rang with the cawing of the numerous cockatoos and parrots of
all hues and colours who made the woods resound with their tones,
whilst their restless movements and gay plumage gave life and piquancy
to the scene.
This night our beds were composed of the mimosa, which has a perfume
like the hawthorn.
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