Journals Of Expeditions Of Discovery Into Central Australia And Overland From Adelaide To King George's Sound In The Years 1840-1: Sent By The Colonists Of South Australia By Eyre, Edward John
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To-Day I Found A Most Splendid Creeping Plant In Flower, Growing In
Between The Ranges, It Was Quite New
To me, and very beautiful; the leaf
was like that of the vetch but larger, the flower bright scarlet, with
A
rich purple centre, shaped like a half globe with the convex side
outwards; it was winged, and something like a sweet pea in shape, the
flowers hung pendent upon long slender stalks, very similar to those of
sweet peas, and in the greatest profusion; altogether it was one of the
prettiest and richest looking flowers I have seen in Australia.
September 23. - Moving on over a firm road, but with much scrub and
prickly grass, we travelled for fifteen miles under the hills at a course
of E. 20 degrees N., encamping early in the afternoon close under them,
and procuring a little water left in the hollows by the rains. I ascended
another of the heights in the Gawler range to-day, but could obtain no
clear view from it, the weather being hazy. Ridge behind ridge still
appeared to rise to the north, beyond the front one under which we were
travelling; and several salt lakes were seen among the hills at
intervals. The rock of which the hills were composed was now changed from
a porphoritic granite to a reddish quartz, which was scattered all over
the front hills in loose small fragments. The latitude of our camp was 32
degrees 30 minutes 35 seconds S.
September 24. - Our road was firmer to-day, over a red gritty soil of
sandy loam and gravel. The hills were still covered with quartz, but
decreasing perceptibly in elevation as we advanced to the east. At about
eight miles we were lucky enough to find a puddle of rain water, and at
once halted for the day to rest and refresh the horses. Having ascended a
high peak near the camp, I found I was surrounded by a mass of hills on
every side; they gradually increased in elevation as they stretched to
the northwest, becoming lower at a bearing of north, and quite detached
to the north-east; resembling so many islands in the level waste around
them.
September 25. - Moving from our camp early we had an excellent road, and
travelled rapidly for about twenty miles, nearly due east, halting for
the night under a high red hill, where we found some rain water for our
horses; but the grass was very scarce. After dinner I ascended the hill
near the camp and obtained a distant view of Mount Brown, and the range
on the east side of Spencer's Gulf. To the north was one vast sea of
level scrub, and in the midst of it a lake; but seemingly of no very
great size. A few elevations were seen to the south-east, of all of which
I took bearings, and then descended to the camp again. The bearing of
Mount Brown, from this hill, was E. 10 degrees S.; and the latitude of
the camp, under the hill, was 30 degrees 27 minutes 55 seconds S.
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