Brown Offered Them Half A Goose, Which, However, They
Refused; Probably Because It Was Not Prepared By Themselves, As They
Were
very desirous of getting some of the geese which we had not yet cooked.
Brown had shot nine geese,
And our fox hunters returned with forty-four
of the small species.
When the natives became hungry, they ate the lower part of the
leaf-stalks of Nelumbium, after stripping off the external skin. They
threw a great number of them over to us, and I could not help making a
rather ridiculous comparison of our situation, and our hosts, with that
of the English ambassador in China, who was treated also with Nelumbium
by its rich Mandarins.
The natives seemed to speak a less melodious language, which might be
ascribed to the mountainous character of their country. I collected the
following names: Kobboyakka, Nobungop, Kanbinycx, Manguradja, Apirk
(Apek), Yaganyin, Kolar, Kadgupa, Gnanga Gnanga. Ayir meant stone spear;
Ekolpen, jagged fish-spear.
I made the latitude of these lagoons, by an observation of Castor, 12
degrees 23 minutes 19 seconds.
Dec. 6. - The natives visited us again this morning, and it was evident
that they had not been with their gins. They invited us to come to their
camp; but I wished to find a crossing place, and, after having tried in
vain to pass at the foot of the rocky hills, we found a passage between
the lagoons, and entered into a most beautiful valley, bounded on the
west, east, and south by abrupt hills, ranges, and rocks rising abruptly
out of an almost treeless plain clothed with the most luxuriant verdure,
and diversified by large Nymphaea lagoons, and a belt of trees along the
creek which meandered through it. The natives now became our guides, and
pointed out to us a sound crossing place of the creek, which proved to be
the head of the salt-water branch of the East Alligator River. We
observed a great number of long conical fish and crab traps at the
crossing place of the creek and in many of the tributary salt-water
channels; they were made apparently of Flagellaria. Here I took leave of
our guides: the leader of whom appeared to be "Apirk," a young and
slender, but an intelligent and most active man. We now travelled again
to the northward, following the outline of the rocky ridges at the right
side of the creek; and, having again entered upon the plains, we encamped
at a very broad, shallow, sedgy, boggy lagoon, surrounded with Typhas,
and crowded with ducks and geese, of which Brown shot four. It was about
four miles east of our yesterday's camp. Numerous flocks of the Harlequin
pigeon (Peristera histrionica, GOULD) came to drink at this lagoon; and
innumerable geese alighted towards the evening on the plain, and fed on
the young grass, moistened by the rain. The number of kites was in a fair
proportion to that of the geese; and dozens of them were watching us from
the neighbouring trees.
We found a new Eugenia, a tree of rather stunted growth, with broad
opposite leaves, and fruit of the size of an apple, of a delicate
rose-colour, and when ripe, a most delicious refreshment during a hot
day. We had frequently met with this tree on sandstone ridges, and in
sandy soils, but had never before found it in fruit. The day was
distressingly hot, but we had several light showers during the afternoon.
Dec. 7. - "Apirk," with seven other natives, visited us again in the
morning, and it seemed that they had examined the camp we had last left.
They gave us to understand that we could travel safely to the northward,
without meeting any other creek. Apirk carried a little pointed stick,
and a flat piece of wood with a small hole in it, for the purpose of
obtaining fire. I directed my course to a distant mountain, due north
from the camp, and travelled seven or eight miles over a large plain,
which was composed of a rich dark soil, and clothed with a great variety
of excellent grasses. We saw many columns of dust raised by whirlwinds;
and again mistook them for the smoke of so many fires of the natives. But
we soon observed that they moved in a certain direction, and that new
columns rose as those already formed drew off; and when we came nearer,
and passed between them, it seemed as if the giant spirits of the plain
were holding a stately corrobori around us. They originated on a patch of
ground divested of its vegetation by a late fire. There was a belt of
forest to the northward, and the current of the sea-breeze coming up the
valley of the river from N.N.W. seemed to eddy round the forest, and to
whirl the unsheltered loose earth into the air.
Towards the river, now to the west of our course, peaks, razor-backed
hills, and tents, similar to those we had observed when travelling at the
west side of the river on the 3rd December (and probably the same),
reappeared. To the east of the mountain, towards which we were
travelling, several bluff mountains appeared, which probably bounded the
valley of a river flowing to the northward, and disemboguing between the
Liverpool and Mount Morris Bay. For the last five miles of the stage, our
route lay through forest land; and we crossed two creeks going to the
east, and then came to rocky sandstone hills, with horizontal
stratification, at the foot of which we met with a rocky creek, in the
bed of which, after following it for a few miles, we found water. The
supply was small; but we enlarged it with the spade, and obtained a
sufficient supply for the night. A thunder-storm formed to the northward,
which drew off to the westward; but another to the north-east gave us a
fine shower, and added to the contents of our water-hole.
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