On The Alarm
Being Given They Were Pursued, But They Had Disappeared Among The
Brush On The Hill.
This instance of their treachery redoubled our
circumspection, and our situation here being favourable for their
attacks, I determined
To pass over the brow of the hill with the
horses - a road which from its extreme steepness, I had been willing
to avoid by waiting for the tide; and orders were given to collect
the horses and proceed on our route. Whilst this was doing, and as
I was sitting in the tent with Dr. Harris and Mr. Evans writing
this Journal, a shower of spears from the height above was thrown at the
tent, one of which passed directly over my shoulder, and entered the
ground at my feet: the others lodged around the tent, and among the
people who were getting ready the baggage, but providentially without
doing any harm. We had stationed men to watch the hill, but the
appearance of the natives and the flight of their spears was so
instantaneous, that they had not time to alarm us. To enable us therefore
to proceed in safety it was necessary to clear the hill, which was soon
done; for on our ascending that hill, they took their station on another
more distant. We travelled unmolested along the beach for upwards of
twelve miles, when we halted for the evening on a small point of clear
land, which at high water was an island. Here we found ourselves secure:
we had however but just unladen, when three natives were seen coming
along the beach from the side of Port Stephens.
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