Immediately On His Arrival He Consulted With Governor King As To The
Future Explorations Of The Investigator.
They came to the conclusion that
it would be injurious both for the ship and for her crew to
Attempt
another survey of the South Coast at that season of the year, and decided
that the Investigator, in company with the Lady Nelson, should proceed to
the northward along the Australian coast and then to the westward, if it
were possible, to examine the Gulf of Carpentaria before the November
following when the north-west monsoon might be expected.
There was at this time a very great need of a proper survey of these
shores, particularly of the portion which now forms the Queensland coast
and of the reefs that skirt it. Since the days when Cook in the Endeavour
had discovered these reefs, except when Flinders sailed to Hervey Bay in
1799, little had been done to make this part of Australia better known,
although in the vicinity of the Great Barrier Reef both land and sea were
alike dangerous to seamen and disasters were of frequent occurrence. Cook
himself had met with a mishap in these waters, and Flinders afterwards
was totally wrecked on the inner edge of the Great Barrier Reef.
Consequently, in agreeing to Flinders' proposal, King was conferring a
real benefit upon the whole of the shipping community. It was also
decided that in the event of Flinders' progress being retarded, or if he
were unable to examine the Gulf of Carpentaria, he should either explore
Torres Strait or return and survey Fiji.
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