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Updated: May 29, 2025
I could see the poor boy was knocked up, and felt little better myself; to go on did not guarantee water, and might end in disaster, so after a short rest we retraced our steps. The night was now dark and oppressive, so hatless and shirtless we floundered through the spinifex, nearly exhausted from the walk, following so close on the last few days' work.
Arrived at the creek about two miles south-south-east of it, and, finding it running, camped amongst excellent feed. By keeping to west of my former track I have found the country much opener; but nearly all day the journey has been through spinifex. Wind from west. Thursday, 4th April, The Wicksteed, Reynolds Range. Started at 7.40 a.m. to cross the range, bearing to Mount Freeling 312 degrees.
We entered upon red sandy soil, with spinifex and grass, from which we changed our bearing. The country became thickly studded with eucalypti, in one or two places rather open, but generally thick. After the twenty-seven miles we again met with the new small-leafed tree, the broad-leafed mallee, the eucalypti, and many other scrubs.
Rested at camp. My brother and Pierre returned this evening, having found a few small rock water-holes, but not sufficient to shift on. They had been about fifty miles East-South-East, and had passed over most miserable spinifex country the whole way. They had not had any rain, not even the light shower we had this morning. They had seen four natives, but did not get near enough to talk to them.
Working our way step by step, we had so husbanded the marvellous powers of endurance of our camels that, in spite of the most terrible privations and difficulties, these noble animals had silently carried their loads day by day, up and down, over the burning sand, maddened by flies, their legs worn bare by spinifex carried them not without great sufferings and narrow escapes from death, but yet without one of their number succumbing to the horrors of the region.
He saw us now and fled, so, shouting to Breaden to stay with the camels, and to Charlie, who was mounted, to cut him off in front, I put my best leg foremost. A hummock of spinifex brought me down, and, exhausted from short rations, I lay, unable to run further. Not so Godfrey, who held on manfully for another fifty yards and grabbed the black-fellow as he turned to avoid Charlie on the camel.
We started due East and held on that course for eight miles, Godfrey and Charlie lighting the spinifex at intervals. Some men have a theory that the blacks signal by smokes, the appearance of which they vary by using different grasses, branches, or leaves. That may be the case in some parts; here, anyway, they are no more than hunting-fires, as we later proved.
The country from Mount Denison to this is a light-red sandy soil, covered with spinifex, with very little grass, and is nearly a dead level. In some places it is scrubby, having a number of gum-trees, and the new tree of Captain Sturt growing all over it. From a distance it has the appearance of a good country, and is very deceiving; you constantly think you are coming upon a gum creek.
Then would come the beginning of the end. As they pressed on, the forest became scantier, and the spinifex higher, spikier, and harder to march through. One by one their animals had fallen and died, and the desperate resort of drinking the blood had been tried by some. What little water they had in their canteens was fast evaporating. Still some of them would keep heart.
It seems to take its rise in a grassy plain to the east of this. The valley through which the creek flows is well grassed, but the sides and the tops of the hills are spinifex mixed with grass. All the small valleys are well grassed. Wind, south-east. Latitude, 14 degrees 26 minutes 50 seconds. Friday, 4th July, Last Water Hole in the Chambers.
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