Western Australian Explorations

40 "EARLY DAYS"-JOURNAL AND PROCEEDINGS Western Australian Explorations By Mr. fI. J. S. WISE, M.L.A. (Read before the Historical Society, 31/7/42) I fully appreciate the honour and privilege heroes are made to appear nothing less of addressing the Western Australian Histori than demigods. It seems because the tales cal Society on this occasion. I make no 01 Australian travel and self-devotion are claim to address you as an authority, and true, that they attract but little notice, lor can speak to you only as a student over a were the narratives 01 the explorers not number of years 01 the many explorations true we might become the most renowned which have contributed to the establishmenl novelists the world has ever known. Again, of what we now regard as Auslralian geo Australian geography, as explained in the graphy. works of Australian exploration, might be called an unlearned study. Let me ask Among my very earliest recollections as a how many boys out 01 a hundred in Aus child, I have the memory of Sir A. C. Gregory tralia, or England either, have ever react who was such a tremendous contributor to Sturt or Mitchell, Eyre, Leichhardt, Grey or our knowledge 01 this country and who for Stuart It is possible a few may have read years prior to his death, lived at Toowong, Cook's voyages, because they appear Brisbane. This may have been the founda more national, but who has read Flinders, tion of a strong interest in such matters and Kfng or Stokes? Is it because these nar prompted the reading 01 much of our history. ratives are Australian and true that they In a record of his exploring expeditions, are not worthy of attention ?" Ernest Giles makes a striking comment:- I do not intend in this briel review to deal "No works of fiction can excel, or indeed with the original discovery 01 the coastline equal, in romantic and heart-stirring in 01 this land or to endeavour to assign a de terest the volumes, worthy to be written in linite date lor its discovery. The early letters of gold, which record the deeds and navigators had to encounter much difficulty the sullerings of these noble toilers in the and many dangers in their tasks, and many dim and distant field of discovery afforded 01 their names are justifiably held in great by the Auslralian continent and its vasl esteem-but alter the discovery lrom the sea islands. It would be well if those works another kind 01 exploration had to be de were read by the present· generation as veloped-the investigation and search of eagerly as the imaginary tales of adventure what lay inside the shore. which, while they appeal to no real senti It is my intention to deal mainly with this ment, and convey no solid information, aspect in regard to Western Australia and cannot compete for a moment with those part of its adjoining colony to the east. sublime records of what has been dared, done, and suffered, at the call 01 duly, and We know that in the 300 years intervening lor the sake of human interests by men between the early part 01 the 16th Century who have really lived and died. I do not and the time 01 Captain Stirling's arrival in say that all works of Iiction are entirely this country, the greater part 01 our know without interest to the human imagination, ledge 01 Australia was confined to the areas or that writers of some of these works are in close proximity to the coast The great not clever, lor in one sense they certainly knowledge which we now possess 01 the in are, and that is, in only writing of horrors land of this continent has been assembled that never occurred, without going through during the last 120 years. the preliminary agony of a practical real isation of the dangers they so graphically The lives and achievements 01 Sturl, Oxley describe, and from which, perhaps, they and others belore and since have been might be the very first to flee, though their worthily recorded, and while I would not pass W EST ERN AUSTRALIAN HIS TOR I CAL SOC lET Y 41 .Iiqhtly over the heroic deeds and remarkable on the arid interior, Eyre was the pioneer -ochievements of all those who made contri explorer. butions to our fields of discovery in this State before the days of Roe and Grey, time will Some of our historians regarded Eyre as a nol permit of much review prior to the year man of no stature because he found nothing. 1841. They were mainly concerned with material istic gains. Sir George Grey's efforts in 1837-39 have been recorded in many works. His exper If one has the time and inclination to read iences and escapes from death by spear what other explorers have said of this man, wounds, shipwreck, starvation, thirst and it will be very quickly realized that his ex fatigue fill such works with incidents of the ploits threw a very importanl light across the deepest interest. He made some remarkable development of Australia. An attempt re contributions to our fields of discovery along cenlly made to justify and extol him resulted the coastline in our near North. in the production of that thrilling narrative "Waterless Horizons," written by two West In 1839 Roe (who was our first Surveyor Australians. Although some historians did General) distinguished himself by rescuing not do him justice and perhaps he did not Grey's party. Roe was perhaps the father of do justice to himself, the best line on his Western Australian exploration. achievements can be obtained from the state ment of those who suffered similarly, who The explorers of the richer parts 01 our had comradeship in experiences, and who country have some great monuments lelt to have recorded some of his exploits. them in the subsequent development of and production from beautiful fertile lands dis In the writing of Giles and Warburton, very covered by them, but the pioneer of our kindly comment is made of the importance poorer regions who suflered even greater 01 Eyre's exploits. hardship, is too often apt to be passed over. He did not seek to avoid the bazardous Tremendous monuments and expressions of undertaking-he elected to accept the task appreciation are due to those remarkable and his memory will always be preserved men who had endeavoured to penetrate the by the retention of that colourful picture of unknown with little prospect of pleasure in the "Walk around the Bight." A review of the attempts and, alter dreadful experiences his life history which included a period as from hunger, thirst, and attacks by natives, Lieutenant-Governor of SI Vincent in the engaged still further in hazardous undertak West Indies. ings and made repeated efforts to solve the mysteries of our interior. A review of his life I leave to those who have published in detail some of his achieve Many of these men were unsuccessful. if ments prior to that epic, and of his life his success were to be measured by the pro tory which included a period as Lieutenant ductive value of the areas they traversed, Governor 01 SI. Vincent in the West Indies. but if they could be called unsuccesslul they were really splendid lailures. In threading The nature of this man is clearly shown in their way through unknown areas on foot, on a paragraph of his own in which he explain horseback and on camel, the terrors of this ed his motives for the change in destination harsh land were always connected with the when he decided to undertake the journey difficulties associated with the procuring of to Western Australia. With only one white water. companion, he had determined to traverse that fearful wilderness firmly determined Edward John Eyre. never to return unsuccessful but either to ac complish the object he had in view or to This meeting is in some way 10 form a con perish in the attempt. nection with that famous explorer Edward John Eyre, who arrived at Albany lOI years His own words are: "I considered myself in ago, after completing one 01 the most hazar duty and honour bound, not to turn back dous expeditions in the history of Australia. from this attempt as long as there was the On this remarkable journey of Eyre's, his remotest possibility of success, without any horses on one occasion travelled for seven regard to considerations of a personal or days and nights without water. In the attack private nature." 42 "E ARLY DAY S" - J 0 URN A LAN D PRO CEE DIN GS He knew the dangers of the enterprise and desert. The horrors of my situation glared ordered the whites in the party-who had upon me in such startling reality as lor an been with him in the desolate country to instant almost to paralyse the mind. At the north-to return by the cutter "Hero" the dead hour of night, in the wildest and Irom Fowler's Bay to Adelaide. The overseer most inhospitable wastes in Australia. Baxter elected to remain. with the fierce wind raging in unison with the scene of violence before me, I was left Private Irierids entreated this explorer to with a single native, whose fidelity I could desist from his terrible venture, but no argu not reply upon." ment could shake his resolution, and on Feb ruary 25, 1841, the party set out, consisting in He was then 550 miles from Albany 1 Eyre all of two Europeans, three black boys, nine and his native boy Wylie pushed on in a horses, one Timor pony, one foal and six starving condition; living on dead fish and sheep.

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