And My Companions Were Busy The Whole
Afternoon In Gathering And Boiling The Seeds.
Charley and Brown, who had gone to the river, returned at a late hour,
when they told us that
They had seen the tracks of a large animal on the
sands of the river, which they judged to be about the size of a big dog,
trailing a long tail like a snake. Charley said, that when Brown fired
his gun, a deep noise like the bellowing of a bull was heard; which
frightened both so much that they immediately decamped. This was the
first time that we became aware of the existence of the crocodile in the
waters of the gulf.
June 20. - We travelled about ten miles north-west, and avoided the
gullies by keeping at a distance from the river. Plains covered with high
dry grass alternated with an open forest; in which we observed Spathodea,
Bauhinia, a Balfouria, groves of Cochlospermum gossypium, and several
other trees, which I had seen in the scrubs of Comet River; among which
was the arborescent Cassia with long pods. A Bauhinia, different from the
two species I had previously seen, was covered with red blossoms, which,
where the tree abounded, gave quite a purple hue to the country. The
stringy-bark, the bloodwood, the apple-gum, the box, and the flooded-gum,
grew along the bergue of the river.
We passed some fine lagoons at the latter end of the stage. The banks of
the river were so steep, that the access to its water was difficult; its
stream, deep and apparently slow, occupied about half the bed, which was
perhaps one hundred and eighty, or two hundred yards broad. The soil was
very sandy, and three deep channels parallel to the river were overgrown
with high stiff grass. A pretty yellow Ipomoea formed dense festoons
between the trees that fringed the waters. The unripe seeds of
Cochlospermum, when crushed, gave a fine yellow colour, shaded into an
orange hue.
Large flocks of Peristera histrionica (the Harlequin pigeon) were lying
on the patches of burnt grass on the plains, they feed on the brown seeds
of a grass, which annoyed us very much by getting into our stockings,
trowsers, and blankets. The rose-breasted cockatoo, Mr. Gilbert's
Platycercus of Darling Downs, and the Betshiregah (Melopsittacus
undulatus, GOULD.) were very numerous, and it is probable that the plains
round the gulf are their principal home, whence they migrate to the
southward. The white and black cockatoos were also very numerous.
John Murphy caught four perches, one of which weighed two pounds. The
purple ant of the east coast has disappeared, and a similar one with
brick-coloured head and thorax, but by no means so voracious, has taken
its place.
The flooded-gum and the bloodwood were in blossom: this usually takes
place, at Moreton Bay, in November and December. This different state of
vegetation to the northward and southward, may perhaps account for the
periodical migration of several kinds of birds.
June 21. - A shower of rain fell, but cleared up at midnight. We travelled
nine miles north-west to lat. 16 degrees 9 minutes 41 seconds, over a
country very much like that of the two preceding stages, and past several
fine lagoons, richly adorned by the large showy flowers of a white
Nymphaea, the seed-vessels of which some families of natives were busily
gathering: after having blossomed on the surface of the water, the
seed-vessel grows larger and heavier, and sinks slowly to the bottom,
where it rots until its seeds become free, and are either eaten by fishes
and waterfowl, or form new plants. The natives had consequently to dive
for the ripe seed-vessels; and we observed them constantly disappearing
and reappearing on the surface of the water. They did not see us until we
were close to them, when they hurried out of the water, snatched up some
weapons and ran off, leaving their harvest of Nymphaea seeds behind.
Brown had visited another lagoon, where he had seen an old man and two
gins; the former endeavoured to frighten him by setting the grass on
fire, but, when he saw that Brown still approached, he retired into the
forest. We took a net full of seeds, and I left them a large piece of
iron as payment. On returning to the camp, we boiled the seeds, after
removing the capsule; but as some of the numerous partitions had
remained, the water was rendered slightly bitter. This experiment having
failed, the boiled seeds were then (Unclear:)tied with a little fat,
which rendered them very palatable and remarkably satisfying. The best
way of cooking them was that adopted by the natives, who roast the whole
seed-vessel. I then made another trial to obtain the starch from the
bitter potatoes, in which I succeeded; but the soup for eight people,
made with the starch of sixteen potatoes, was rather thin.
We were encamped at a small creek, scarcely a mile from the river, from
which John Murphy and Brown brought the leaves of the first palm trees we
had seen on the waters of the gulf. They belonged to the genus Corypha;
some of them were very thick and high.
The mornings and evenings were very beautiful, and are surpassed by no
climate that I have ever lived in. It was delightful to watch the fading
and changing tints of the western sky after sunset, and to contemplate,
in the refreshing coolness of advancing night, the stars as they
successively appeared, and entered on their nightly course. The state of
our health showed how congenial the climate was to the human
constitution; for, without the comforts which the civilized man thinks
essentially necessary to life; without flour, without salt and miserably
clothed, we were yet all in health; although at times suffering much from
weakness and fatigue. At night we stretched ourselves on the ground,
almost as naked as the natives, and though most of my companions still
used their tents, it was amply proved afterwards that the want of this
luxury was attended with no ill consequences.
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