SOUTH AUSTRALIA. LONDON: GEORGE WOODFALL AND SON., ANGEI. COURT, SKINNER STREET. SOUTH AUSTRALIA; ITS ADVANTAGES AND ITS RESOURCES. A DESCKIPTION OF THAT COLONY, A MANUAL OF INFORMATION FOR EMIGRANTS. GEORGE BLAKISTON WILKINSON. LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET. 1848. PREFACE. The present work is for the most part the result of seven years' personal observation in the Colony of South Australia, and contains, from this source, detailed statements on the prospects of labourer and farmer, on Agricul- ture, Stock Farming, Building, Gardening, Manufacturing in various branches, and last, not least, on Mining and Mineral Productions, in that flourishing Colony. The style of the book is, the Author pre- sumes, much in correspondence with the sub- ject ; for though the horny hand of toil cannot make fine strokes with the pen, yet it may represent the demands, the works, and the rewards of human labour. He feels that other- wise he would have much to apologise for on A 3 4.G51.Jw^ LIB SETS VI PREFACE. this score, both in the manner and arrangement of his pages ; but he has the hope that his plain garb and homeliness, and cursory method, will enable the proper class among his country- men to come to his remarks without any fear of misunderstanding, or any feeling of want of sympathy with the Author. In short, the Book is in a rough dress, which, it is trusted, will not hinder its doing good service to all classes of those who need it. One leading motive which has converted the writer into an Author, a character which he never expected to assume, is the wish to pro- claim to thousands and tens of thousands of his poor countrymen, and, it may be, even to the British Government, the capacities and kindli- ness of the new home which may await all who are desirous to emigrate to the splendid country and exquisite climate of South Australia. If he should succeed in directing a well-ordered stream of emigration to this favoured land, his whole object will be gratified. Wherever he found it expedient, he has availed himself of the valuable labours of his PREFACE. VU predecessors who have written on the subject ; and he believes that his work will be found tolerably complete on the subjects which it pro- fesses to treat. He has also added some lighter matters, and a few remarks on the natives, as well from his own experience as from the observation of two valued friends and fellow-travellers. New West End, Hampstead. A2)ril, 1848. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. Page Demand for Emigrants in South Australia. — Late Arrivals of Emigrants. — Report on the want of Emigration. — Frauds on the Emigration Fund. — Opportunities of ac- quiring Wealth. — Labour Market. — What Class should Emigrate. — Cautions on First Arrival. — Advantages to Married Men. — Miners in demand. — Farmers and Farm- ing. — On the Choice of Emigrants. — Adelaide Markets . CHAPTER IL Emigrant Ships. — Fares. — Free Emigrants. — Articles re- quii-ed by Government Emigrants. — Rules on board Ship. — Articles required by Cabin and Intermediate Emigrants 26 CHAPTER III. First Establishment of South Australia. — Extent of Land. — Port Adelaide. — Population of Port Adelaide. — Road to Adelaide. — River Torrens. — Park Lands. — The City of Adelaide. — Bridges. — Population. — Small Towns and Villages. — Number and Description of Manufactories. — Churches. — Schools. — Public Houses. — Convictions of OflFenders. — Government Revenue 40 X CONTENTS. CHAPTER IV. Page Ac/ricvltural Farmiiig. Advice to Farmers. — Living in Town. — Hut Building. — Clearing Land. — Steeping Wheat. — Fencing. — Reaping Machine. — Average Crop. — Barley, Oats, Maize, Potatoes. — Expenses of Farming. — Building. — Purchasing Land. — Expense of Farming Eighty Acres. — Farming Implements. — Price of Farm Produce. — Tobacco Culture. — Agricultural Society . 60 CHAPTER V, GattU Farming. Prices of Cattle in Adelaide. — Expenses of Cattle Farming. — Horses. — Cattle Hunting. — Breed of Cattle for Dairy. — Bulls. — Milking. — Branding. — Burning the Grass. — Hutkeepers. — Benefit of Milking. — Cattle Owner's Life in the Bush. — Tea Drinking and Smoking. — Travelling to the Station. — Cattle Driving. —Fires .94 CHAPTER VL Sheep Farming. Sheep in Australia. — Lambing Time. — Shearing. — Wool. — Expenses of Sheep Farming. — Profits. — Diseases of Sheep. — Washing the Wool. — Runs for Sheep. — Land Regulations. — Renting Land. — Li- cences for Runs ... .... 129 CHAPTER VII. First Introduction of Cattle into Adelaide. — Kangaroo Flesh. — Breaking in Steers for Draught. — Journey Overland. — Hostile Natives. — Raye's Journey. — The Bushman's Food. — Price of Cattle in New South Wales 154 CHAPTER VIIL Climate. — Rain Gauge. — Hot Winds. — Meteorological Ob- servations. — Storms. — Earthc[uakes. — Diseases. — Sea- CONTENTS. XI Page sons. — Gardeners' Calendar. — Native Trees. — Eucalyjjtus Tribe. — Manna. — Acacia Tribe. — Gum Acacia. — Gum- mers. — Casuarina or She Oak. — Native Cherry. — Tea Tree. — Honeysuckle Tree. — Sarsaparilla. — Geraniums. — The Hop Plant.— Olive.— Indigo.— Tobacco.— Mulberry 185 CHAPTER IX. Wild Dogs. — Locusts. — The Wombat. — The Kangaroo. — The Emu 232 CHAPTER X. Mines and Minerals of South Australia .... 253 CHAPTER XL Natives. — Their Habitations. — Working among the Set- tlers. — Grumblers in the State of Nature. — Painting the Body. — Native Women. — Clothing. — Superstitions. — Burials. — Corroberies. — Fighting. — Jealousy. — Stealing Women. — Night Attacks. — Treatment in case of Illness. — No Regular Medical Attendant allowed. — Port Lin- coln Blacks. — Superstitions regarding Death. — Mr. Eyre's Account. — Observations of W. P. J ames, Esq., on the Aboriginal Natives of South Australia. — Also of R. G. Thomas, Esq 317 Appendix 368 SOUTH AUSTRALIA; ITS ADVANTAGES AND RESOURCES. CHAPTER I. DEMAND FOR EMIGRANTS IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA. — LATE ARRIVALS OF EMIGRANTS. REPORT ON THE WANT OF EMIGRATION. FRAUDS ON THE EMIGRATION FUND. OPPORTUNITIES OF AC- QUIRING WEALTH. — LABOUR MARKET. WHAT CLASS SHOULD EMIGRATE. CAUTIONS ON FIRST ARRIVAL. — ADVANTAGES TO MARRIED MEN. MINERS IN DEMAND. FARMERS AND FARM- ING. ON THE CHOICE OF EMIGRANTS. ADELAIDE MARKETS. The great demand for labour in South Australia during the past few years, has naturally directed the attention of the colonists to Great Britain as the mart for supplying the deficiency ; and many efforts have been made to induce emigration to Adelaide, which, however, although partially successful, have not hi- therto obtained a supply commensurate with what is required. Thus, notwithstanding the thousands of persons who have arrived in the colony during the last two years, the cry for, and the complaints of scarcity of, labour have been at no time greater than at present, at least so far back only as last August. The impetus given by the mines has spread in every B 2 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [OH. I. direction. The farmers, in consequence of the high price of field produce, are not merely cultivating to a much larger extent than formerly, but they are de- sirous to improve their present, or to build new and more comfortable, dwellings ; to form gardens, or- chards, and vineyards, and to make other improve- ments on their grounds. Instead, however, of being- able to make improvements, they are in the greatest perplexity to procure sufficient labour to reap their crops ; and probably they have already found, by painful experience, that it is better to stand idle, and not produce grain, where there is no chance of get- ting it housed. I have myself seen many acres of good corn destroyed for want of the means of gather- ing it in. The sheep farmers are in the same plight, and complain as much as the agriculturists, for they must procure men to take care of their flocks, and they have to pay higher prices at the present time when thp wool has become much less remunerative. The demand for men for new flocks -and herds is also great, and the supply quite inadequate. Such is the information collected from the Ade- laide papers, published directly after the arrival from England of about three hundred emigrants in the course of one day. These emigrants came in two vessels, which both entered the port at the same time, and caused a considerable sensation. The day after their arrival the port was thronged by hundreds of masters in want of servants, and high wages were offered. This may easily be verified from the news- papers which are there pubhshed — not, be it observed, CH. I.] DEMAND FOR EMIGRANTS. 3 in order to pufF the colony to strangers, but for circu- lation in Adelaide itself. It ought assuredly to be seen to by those who have no employment here in England, especially since at this time there is little difficulty in finding a passage out through the emi- gration fund. The great deficiency, however, is said to be felt in the mines, several of which are not worked, simply from the want of labour ; these alone it is calculated would give immediate employment to at least three thousand men. The miners at pre- sent in employment have been enabled to purchase cattle, horses, houses, and other property, or, where they have not been so thrifty, they have, at all events, evidently shown that they had more money than they could take care of, and scenes of extravagance and riotous luxury have been constantly witnessed. From the system of emigration hitherto pursued, it seems plain that the machinery at home, for diffusing information respecting the superior advantages of this colony as a field for labour and enterprise, is ex- tremely defective and inadequate. The result is, that although there are, and for a length of time have been, available funds to pay the passage of thousands from the three kingdoms, only an insignificant num- ber have been induced to emigrate; notwithstanding, there is reason to beHeve that, if proper means were taken, an ample supply of superior workmen and agricultural labourers might still be procured, to their own great benefit and to the good and wealth of the colony. The late newspapers from South Australia give the most encouraging accounts of its prosperity, and mention that the crops are uncommonly flou- B 2 4 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. I. rishing and the wheat splendid *. From all quarters the wool crop is said to be excellent in quantity as well as quality, and in capital condition. The colony of South Australia was first established in December 1836, and has now a population of about 25,000 souls ; and certainly from its present cir- cumstances, and equally from the intrinsic w^ealth it possesses, it may fairly be said that no settlement was ever more prosperous, or held out greater pro- mise of becoming within a few years a place of con- sideration in commerce and trade. The following is an extract of a communication by the Colonial Secretary in South Australia, dated 11th July, 1846:— " The present very urgent demand for labourers, mechanics and others, quite obviates the necessity of my pointing out any class in particular which may be considered to be most in request; and the high rate of wages now paid sufficiently indicates the in- sufficient supply in the labour market, whilst it can- not fail, at the same time, to afford encouragement to all the industrious classes who may be intending to emigrate from the mother-country, to seek a liveli- hood for themselves and their famihes in South Austraha. The scarcity of female domestic servants is most severely felt by those requiring their services; and the consequent exorbitant wages now demanded by them are seldom conducive to their own w^elfare, or to the comfort of those by whom they are em- * A proof of the excellence of Australian wheat is that, wlien sold in England, it realises from two to three shillings per quarter more than the wheat of this country. CH. I.] REPORT ON THE WANT OF EMIGRATION. 5 ployed. Cooks maybe said to be ahnost extinct; and for women who can be recommended for situa- tions of trust, to take charge of children, &c., there is great demand. " The arrivals from Great Britain, as well as from the neighbouring colonies during the present quarter, have made no perceptible impression on the labour market ; and the difficulty now experienced by the colonists (agriculturists especially) in finding the ne- cessary labour must be seriously impeding their ope- rations. Mining being the most attractive pui'suit, a large majority of the labouring classes are directing their attention to that object from those employments in which they have been previously engaged. " The prices of all the necessaries of life have ex- perienced a considerable rise within the period em- braced in this Report ; but no danger whatever need be apprehended of a scarcity of provisions arising from the introduction of emigrants to any probable amount, the colony, from its vast resources, being quite capable of producing food for at least double its present population." It is indeed extraordinary that so little notice should be taken by the people of England of the means of providing employment for the large numbers of in- dustrious and deserving labourers at present without bread. It is conjectured that in this country alone not less than 150,000 able-bodied men, willing to work, are unable to do so ; and it is to be feared that the present season may produce a state of mi- sery such as has never yet been paralleled in this country. Vast numbers of labourers have certainly 6 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. I. emigrated to British America and to the United States ; but ah-eady those countries are complaining of the shoals of destitute persons that they have to keep from starvation ; their labour market, like our own, being overstocked. A petition to Parliament from British America is receiving signatures, praying that no more labourers be sent out there, and drawing a dreadful picture of the want and misery to which those who have emigrated without capital are ex- posed. But to turn to another and a brighter clime and picture. The latest advices from South Australia are most cheering, and the want of la- bourers there is causing as great a stir as the over- abundance of poor in this country ; and a petition, signed by the greater part of the colonists, has either arrived, or is on the passage, praying that the poor of this country may be sent out to them, and bitterly complaining of the indifference with which their former prayers for labour have been received. In addition to their petitions, they offer to pay for the passage of the poor, and pledge themselves to find them in work, with better wages and more food than they can expect to get at home. I can safely assert that during a residence of seven years in South Australia (with the exception of about eighteen months, when the colony was overburdened with go- vernment debts), I have never seen or heard of a common beggar, or any person who could not obtain sufficient food ; and I am convinced that the condi- tion of the labourer in that colony is many degrees above that of the man in constant employment in England. CH. I.] FRAUDS ON THE EMIGRATION FUND, 7 The South Australian newspapers complain, and with great justice, of the many frauds committed by persons proceeding free to the colony in the emi- grant vessels. They state that certain emigrants, who obtain a free passage at the expense of the emigration fund, rendezvous at the port without any intention of settling in the colony, making use of the bounty simply as a means of transport to their friends in the neigh- bouring settlements. The impropriety and injustice of the fund being used for such a purpose are obvious ; for the money thus alienated and wasted has been paid by the South Australians on purpose to bring labour to their shores, where it is so much needed. It is, indeed, difficult to put a stop to the practice al- luded to, unless an agreement be entered into with the intending emigrants, making it obhgatory upon them to pay back to the fund the price of their passage, in case they leave the colony before a cer- tain time has elapsed. Such a bond would, I believe, at once arrest this scandalous mode of peculation. To do this is of primary importance, for labour is the grand desideratum in the colony, and it is for want of a sufficiency of it that the produce of the country in many parts is rotting upon the ground and worse than useless ; a melancholy return to the industrious farmer, instead of that interest which he had antici- pated for the labour and care bestowed upon his land. This destruction of valuable produce is taking place, let us remember, at a time when hundi'eds of thou- sands in England, Scotland, and Ireland are in danger of starving for want of work to supply them with food. The emigration to South Australia^ is loudly 8 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. I. called for, and the demand for labour is so great, that many ship-loads of persons might be provided with permanent work the day after their arrival. I con- fess it is surprising to me, that in the midst of the distress, pestilence and death which are stalking abroad over the United Kingdom, the poor are still unwilling to trust themselves to that new land, where the comforts they would enjoy are ten thousand times greater than they can possibly expect here. England is a land teeming with wretchedness and beggary; in South Australia the beggar is unknown. In Eng- land, even if work be found by the labourer, the money he receives in wages, in consequence of the price of provisions, is quite inadequate to provide him with good wholesome food; much more with warm and comfortable clothes. In South Australia every man, woman and child of ten years of age is able to earn sufficient food and clothing, and in a short time, with care and economy, to save enough to keep the wolf from the door in time of sickness, if such should come. Many poor but industrious men emigrate thither without a shilling, and in four or five years afterwards are substantial farmers. Were it required, I could mention names, and give many instances ; but it must be observed, that none but sober, honest and hard-working men can save money in this way ; others have very little prospect of raising themselves above the common herd *. * Last August a voluntary subscription of 1,000?. from the people in South Australia, was sent to England for the famish- ing Irish, and accompanied by a promise to send the same CH. I.] OPPORTUNITIES OF ACQUIRING WEALTH. 9 An Adelaide paper, the South Australian Register, speaking of the want of labour, remarks : " No amount of labouring population, which either a sus- tained enthusiasm on the part of our friends at home, or the miraculous conversion of the emigration com- missioners and the Colonial Office into stanch and active friends of this colony, would be at all likely to favour us with, will, according to our conceptions, reach one tithe of the quantity for whom constant employment at good, fair wages would most assuredly be found within our ample borders for many, very many years to come. Want of hands is just now the universal cry. The corn that is at this moment ripe for the sickle within a circle of three or four miles' radius from Adelaide would employ, we are informed, from two hundred to three hundred men for the next five or six weeks, at the rate of from twelve to four- teen shillings per acre, and yet the labourers are no- where to be found with sufficient readiness. The recent arrivals, large though they may sound to the good folks in England, here proved but a drop in the bucket, * the small dust on the balatice, a very little thing.' " This was written in December 1846 ; and the fact of much wheat being uncut, and therefore lost, proves that the writer was correct in his state- ments. He continues as follows : " Under these circumstances, we do feel that the colony has abun- amount in wheat. Of this sum 500^. was collected dui'ing two days ; from which it would appear as if there were no scarcity of money, or food in the country, since the above subscription amounts to the sum of one shilling and sixpence for every inan, woman and child in the whole colony. B 3 10 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. I. dant excuse for any amount of indignation which it may manifest to those false, though professing friends in London, whose absurd notions on this vital topic may possibly have had the effect of dimi- nishing the number of persons who would otherwise have been at once forwarded to our aid. We implore all those gentlemen in England, who are interested in promoting the welfare of South Australia, to dismiss from their imaginations any such ' chimaera dire ' as that the colony can be overstocked with labouring emigrants. In the ordinary course of events it is a sheer impossibility." There is great truth in all this; and it is my opinion, founded upon experience, that such is the favourable position of the colony, and such the demand for extra labour, that ten thousand persons, including women and children, would not cause the least sur- plus population on its fertile lands. We may here properly introduce an extract from " An Address to the Starving and Suffering Millions of Great Britain and Ireland," by J. Stephens, Esq., editor of the Adelaide Observer and the South Austra- lian Register, published on the 30th June, 1847. " Hear me, ye sons of toil," says Stephens, " and judge for yourselves from the following facts : " 1st. The local government has 28,000Z. in hard coin in its coffers to spend in public buildings, in bridges and in harbour improvements, in road-making and repairs, nearly all of which are at a stand-still for want of contractors to undertake them, and artisans, skilful workmen, or labourers to do their work. CH. I.] OPPORTUNITIES OF EMPLOYMENT. 11 " 2nd. Merchants, storekeepers, and capitalists find it difficult to build new warehouses, shops, and dwellings, or to enlarge or improve their present ones, not for want of money, but for lack of men, "3rd. Mining proprietors and their operations are kept in check, and in many instances mines have been closed, owing to the insufficiency of labour or the extreme demands of miners and others employed. "4th. Farmers, who have numbers of spare oxen, horses, and ploughs, cannot break up so much land as they had succeeded in getting inclosed, still less take more into cultivation, for want of men to hold the plough, and of boys to drive. "5th. Stockholders and sheep farmers are con- tinually on the look-out for more men and boys to attend to their increasing herds or flocks ; to form new flocks from their tens of thousands of weaned lambs, and tp drive the additional teams required by the constantly increasing intercourse and traffic to and from the secondary towns, mines, and out-sta- tions. At this present moment some sheep farmers, out of sheer inability to find shepherds and mates enough, talk of boiling down portions of their flocks for tallow. " 6th. We are monthly importing thousands of pounds' worth of building materials from the neigh- bouring colonies, because we have not men enough to hew, saw, and split, and attend to the carting down of the timber and split stuff" obtainable in our extensive forests. I may likewise mention that we have many kinds of wood suitable for furniture. The quarries yield building materials in great abundance 12 SOUTH AUSTRALIA, [CH. I. and variety, the slate produced being excellent for roofing and flooring purposes. Limestone is plentiful, and clay for the potter and the brickmaker is almost every where to be found. Finer clays have also been discovered in a state of great purity. " 7th. Many useful manufactures might be profit- ably added to the existing ones, but the obstacle again is the want of available and experienced hands. " 8th. As for the domestic servants of the softer sex, although in this colony they are considered better off' than in any other part of the world, yet many worthy employers say that they cannot get any female servants for love or money. The fact is, that virtuous and well-conducted young women seldom remain long unmarried, the wife-seeking South Aus- tralians seemingly caring little for dower." The following is the condition of the labour market, according to papers dated in Australia in February 1847 :— Bricklayers, in great request, and earning from 6s. to Is. per day. Blacksmiths, a few wanted, at from 5,?. to 65. per day. Bakers, with board and lodging, 20s. per week. Brickmaker s, in demand, wages from \2s. to 14s. per thousand. Carpenters, in great demand, at from 5s. 6d. to 6s. 6d. per day. Cabinet-makers, in demand, wages 5s. 6d. to 6s. 6d. per day. Coopers, in great demand, and readily obtain from 5s. to 7s. per day. CH. I.] LABOUR MARKET. 13 Domestic servants, not to be obtained, wages offered, from 5s. to Is. per week. Engineers, working, all engaged, at from Qs. to 7s, per day. Gardeners are much wanted, wages, varying ac- cording to ability, from 10s. per week with full ra- tions in the country, to the town rate of from 18s. to 21s. without food. Labourers, in town, without rations, 18s. to 22s. per week; in the country, with rations, 10s. to 12s. per week. At present, if an extra day labourer is wanted, it is almost impossible to obtain one. Mi)ters, at day work, are paid at the rate of from 30s. to 42s. per week. At tut work, tribute, or tow work, the earnings of miners have been considerable. Masons find employment very brisk, and can earn, according to abihty, 5s. Qd. to 7s. per day. Plasterers find plenty of employment, at from bs. 6d. to 6s. 6d. per day. Painters, not in great request, wages from 5s. to 6s. per day. Quarrymen labour under great temptation to turn miners, but they can earn at their own employment from 21s. to 25s. per week. Reapers are by no means thrown out of employ- ment by the reaping machines. Many farmers still prefer the sickle, and are willing to pay more for hand labour in the field than the charge for machine work. The price paid reapers during the last harvest was 12s. 6d. and rations per acre. Shoemakers, including bootmakers, find employ- 14 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. I. ment plentiful, and, in proportion to their ability and diligence, can earn per week from 25s. to 45.s. Sau-yers are almost invariably paid by the 100 feet super; the price being, for deal or cedar, 7s. Qd. ; for gnm or other hard woods, 10s. Splitters are much in request ; the prices are, for posts and rails for fencing and taken on the ground, from 16s. to 20s. per 100; shingles, 3s. per lOO; broad paling, 10s. per 100; laths, 8s. per 1000. Sailors employed in the colonial vessels are paid about 21. 14s. per month. Shinglers are paid, at per square of 100 feet super, from 4s. 6d. to 5s. Shepherds. There is no end to the demand for shepherds to meet the natural increase of the flocks ; the hut-keepers, who have scarcely any work to per- form, and are mostly very old men or young lads, earn from 18Z. to 20^. per annum, in addition to their food, and the shepherds' wages vary from 10s. to 15s. per week, also with rations. To deserving men va- rious encouragements are held out, extra allowances given, and many a good wife is paid as well as fed for being her husband's hut-keeper. Sadlers and harness-makers find full employment; but almost the highest wages given are 35s. per week. Tailors are paid at from Id. to 8 „ 8 terfeiting coin . . . . . ) Total of Felonies . .17 21 Misdemeanors 4 1 Total of Convictions . .21 22 It must be remembered that the number of the population is above 25,000, many of whom have ar- rived in Adelaide from the neighbouring penal settle- ments, and these are the parties who generally make the amount of convictions as high as it even now is. D 3 58 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. III. Otherwise, I consider that there are few places having the same character for morality as South Australia, and no place where the immoral man or the drunkard is more shunned by all the respectable part of the community. In the Government Gazette, published on the 4th February, 1846, are given the returns of receipts and expenditure for the quarter ending 31st December, 1846. 184^ . 1846. Customs : — £ s. d. £ s. d. Spirits imported 2,697 9 9 4,377 5 Wines 346 10 4 571 13 Tobacco . 1,310 19 11 1,601 12 5 Other goods 3,073 12 8 6,328 12 1 Other receipts . 255 3 1 129 9 6 Postage of Letters . 248 2 345 14 9 Fines . 154 5 53 7 4 Fees . 551 1 5 640 4 Auction duty 115 9 5 205 18 5 Licences 76 149 Assessments . 1,923 13 7 1,004 14 4 Other items, less drawba ck 854 7 5 141 15 7 £11,606 12 9 15,549 1 10 The increase of revenue is no less than 401. per cent., being above 8 per cent, more than the in- crease in 1845 over the previous year. " The revenue received in the year 1846 amounts to 48,017/. 105. 2d., or 21,391Z. 19s. 8d. more than the estimated expenditure. Some months since, Lieut. - Governor Robe applied to the council, and obtained CH. III.] REVENUE. 59 its sanction to additional expenses in 1846, chiefly for public works and improvements, to the amount of 28,187/. Is. 9d., on the understand ino; that any defi- ciency in the revenue received should be supplied from the half of the land fund applicable for such purposes. We are sure that it will surprise every one, but more especially Governor Grey, who framed the estimates for 1846, to find a surplus of 21,391/. 19s. 8d.; and it must astonish him to find that only 4,795/. 25. Id. of the very large sum voted for public works will be required to be drawn from the land fund. This is the more gratifying, as it leaves the money for emi- gration ; but we do not think that even the last-men- tioned sum will be required for the revenue. The revenue in 1846 was 48,017/. ; the estimated expen- diture for 1847 is 42,760/. : thus if the revenue of 1847 is no more than that of 1846, there will be a surplus of more than 5,000/. But it is nearly certain that the ratio of increase will at least equal that of the preceding year. " The revenue in 1845 was . . £36,182 9 10 „ 1846 . . . 48,017 10 2 £11,835 4 " At this rate we may confidently expect that in the year 1847 the revenue will exceed 60,000/., and will afford a surplus, after expending the large sum of 20,000/. in public works." — Extract from the Ade- laide Observer f SOth January, 1847. CHAPTER IV. ADVICE TO FARMERS. LIVING IN TOWN. HUT BUILDING. CLEARING LAND. STEEPING WHEAT. FENCING. REAPING MACHINE. AVERAGE CROP — BARLEY, OATS, MAIZE, POTATOES. EXPENSES OF FARMING. BUILDING. PURCHASING LAND. EXPENSE OF FARMING EIGHTY ACRES. FARMING IMPLEMENTS. PRICES OP FARM PRODUCE. TOBACCO CULTURE. AGRICUL- TURAL SOCIETY. After the emigrant has been so many months on the sea without sight of land, or has only seen it at a considerable distance, and has been cooped up in the small space allowed him on board, he feels the great- est pleasure at the prospect of once more setting his foot on lerra firina, and revels in the anticipation of acquiring, cultivating, and improving a property of his own. This is his constant thought on board ; and the chief anxiety he experiences is to divine the kind of life he will lead, and to imagine the particulars of the country in which he will probably end his days. On his first arrival he feels surprised at the massive buildings at the port, and at the number of vessels lying there from different parts of the world ; and this particularly strikes him, when he remembers that the colony has only been established a few years, was CH. IV.] LIVING IN TOWN. 61 but a short time since in deep want and distress, and has but lately begun to make any headway. The improvement effected in the mercantile state of Adelaide is nearly all due to the farmers, and to this class the colony is indebted mainly for its sudden rise and prosperity. An account of the capabilities of South Australia would include information suitable to no other class than agriculturists and miners, and therefore any work written expressly for that part would be but an ac- count of farming and mineral pursuits. South Australia indeed has risen of late in the estimation of the whole world, by the immense quantity and richness of its ores, but which were only discovered after the colony was able to support itself by the produce of its soil : and therefore the general richness of the soil was the primary cause that made it flourish. The farmer, directly he lands, should endeavour to procure a farm, or plot of land, with the least possible delay, which he will find little difficulty in doing, for there is an abundance of splendid land yet unoccu- pied, and sufficient farming for many thousands of proprietors. We may observe en passant, which we shall have occasion to repeat, that the emigrant farmer ought not to stay in the town on his first arrival, as his great object is to obtain all the information he can, which may be best gained by travelling about to dif- ferent parts of the colony, and observing the various modes of operation in actual practice. Great difJ'er- ence will be perceived at the first glance between the colony and the mother-country; and this, both in the 62 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV, large quantity of available land, and in t}\e primitive way of farming there in use. If the emigrant has a wife and children, they may be left in town until he has determined upon the spot he intends purchasing, and when he has built his house they may then follow him ; this I should recommend as being the most pleasant course for the family. With many, how- ever, a house to live in is a secondary consideration, on account of the healthiness and geniality of the air and climate, which enables persons to do things there which would soon consign them to a bed of sickness in England. Thus it is common to sleep for nights together in the open air without any injury to health ; and, on first entering on the country life, a tent or suchlike slight covering is considered amply sufficient for all wants, until the emigrant has ploughed, sown and fenced his land ; when, if time be allowed, the building of a house is com- menced. This edifice generally differs from any building to be seen in England, and would be a cu- riosity if transported hither. The colonial country houses are of various materials, as turf, pise, slab, brick and stone ; and, even among the same class of persons, are roomy, neat and comfortable with some, small and miserable to the last degree with others ; which, however, is easily accounted for by the fact, that the farmers (with few exceptions) build their own cottages, and it is not every man who is an architect, or can make the best of his materials. A very com- mon, and, if justice be done to it, a very comfortable way of knocking up a mansion is that called wattle and dab, which consists of making a frame with strong CH. IV.] HUT BUILDING. 63 uprights of wood placed in the ground about two feet apart, and then weaving in long narrow sticks, much in the same way as is done to make strong wicker baskets, spaces being left for doors, windows, &c. When the basket-work of the house is completed, a quantity of hay or straw is chopped small, and mixed with well- worked clay or earth, and is then thrown on to the wicker-work, or wattling as it is called, so as to fill up all the fissures ; after this, it is smoothed off with a trowel, and whitewashed inside and out. When due care is taken in their construc- tion, such houses, though poor, may be made very comfortable, and answer well enough for the first two or three years. Slab huts are built of wood split into broad pieces like boards, and about two inches thick ; a frame is made, and the slabs are nailed to a wall plate at the top, and either let into the ground, or fastened to a sleeper laid on the surface; such houses are quickly made, cheap and comfortable. The covering is either thatch, paling, or shingles ; even slates are some- times used, but these last are liable to the objection of being too hot. If properly worked at, the farmer, with the assistance of his man, or his couple of la- bourers, is able to sleep in his own house in a week or ten days after its commencement. The hut once finished, and the stores and goods under shelter, the next job is to clear the land ready for the plough. If the section be timbered, the farmer digs around the roots of the trees, laying them bare, and then cuts them through with an axe or saw, till the tree falls, when it is got rid of either by burning, or by drag- 64 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. ging it away to the adjacent land, to be burned at some future time. This mode of clearing is called grubbing, and destroys the whole tree. Very large trees are sometimes killed by cutting the bark circu- larly, and making a further ring to the depth of about two inches in the substance of the tree itself. This is called girdlbig, but is a slovenly plan, and cannot be recommended to the beginner : cutting down the tree, and leaving the stump in the ground, is better; but the bare stump looks unsightly, takes up room, and is often years before it dies. Unless very excel- lent land be found, or great collateral advantages ob- tained, I should advise the farmer not to purchase heavily wooded land for agricultural purposes, since the expense of clearing is great, and causes much labour at a time when all available resources are re- quired for other things. In most parts of the colony there is a great choice of land ; you can either get it densely covered with trees, moderately wooded like the parks in England, or with not a tree upon the whole farm. The reverse of America, the largest trees grow on the poorest soils, and therefore they are no positive proof of the goodness of the land in Australia. The lands with the gum, oak, or other trees in small clumps, are generally very good, but seldom superior to that land which is bare of all trees and shrubs. In some parts, as at Yankalilla, this land is superior, and yields most abundant crops. It re- quires six bullocks to turn up new land ; these get through about one acre a day, or at least five acres a week, without being distressed. The ploughing should be finished by the latter end of March, or the I CH. IV.] STEEPING WHEAT. 65 middle of June, at the latest ; wheat is not found to grow well if sown after that time. Bullocks are most used for ploughing in Australia ; they are not inconvenienced by the heat, do their work steadily, are very enduring, and, when the day is done, are turned out in the bush to get their fill of grass. They, however, require two men to each team, one to drive, the other to guide the plough, and in this respect are not so economical as horses. The quantity of wheat sown to the acre differs very much on different farms, some farmers using only one bushel per acre, and others as much as two. The mean is found to answer very well, and is the most usual quantity. Great care is necessary in se- lecting seed, which should be free from smut, drake, or wild oats, and before sowing should invariably be steeped, to obviate the risk of a snmtty crop. This is done as follows : on the evening previous to sowing, wash the seed wheat in clean cold water, skimming off every thing that floats ; then immerse it in brine sufficiently strons: to swim an eo-o- addino; a solution of bluestone in the proportion of two pounds to the first three bushels of wheat, and half a pound addi- tional to every three bushels steeped in succession in the same liquor, taking care to keep up the strength of the brine ; pour the wheat into the liquor very gently, stir it well about, and skim off every thing that floats. In the morning draw off the liquor, put the wheat into a basket, box, or tub with small holes in the bottom, to allow the remaining liquor to drain back into the tub ; then lay the wheat on a floor, and sift some fresh lime over it, stirring it well up, to mix the 66 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. lime with the seed ; one shovelful of lime is sufficient for a bushel. The grain is now fit for sowing, and should not be allowed to remain in a heap too long, or it will be heated and spoiled. What is steeped over night should be sown next day. The land after sowing will require well harrowing, and rolling improves it; but this is all that is required until the blades of wheat are six inches high, by which time the fencing should be finished. I have known many who did- not fence their land at the proper time and lost their whole crop by the omis- sion. A herd of cattle soon makes a difference in its appearance, being very fond of young wheat ; and, when once they have tasted it, they always have a hanker after more, and strong fences are required to keep them out. The land should invariably be well fenced at the onset, by which much trouble will be saved as well as great expense. The most usual and the best fence is the post and rail, which is common in England, and is made by three or four rails being- fitted into each panel between the posts which sup- port the ends of the rails. This fence is made of stringy bark, with the rails nine feet long, and the posts six feet six inches, of which length from fifteen to eighteen inches should be firmly fixed in the ground. A good fence of this description costs 2s. 6d. per rod, splitting and putting up, and lasts about ten years, after which time it may be used for firewood. Another kind is the upright or kangaroo fence, made by cutting all the timbers about six feet six inches in length, placing them close together in a trench about eighteen inches deep, and then CH, IV.] FENCING. 67 having the loose earth firmly beaten in about the butts, and a rail or band of hoop-iron or wood nailed along the top. When well made, this fence costs from 2s. to 2*. 6d. per' rod, and is substantial and excellent. Another mode is that called the dog-leg fence or chevaux-de-fi-ise. This is a strong and durable fence, but requires a great quantity of timber to make it properly, and is not easily repaired ; more- over is dangerous where fires are common, as in places where the grass is not well " fed down " by cattle or sheep. These are all good fences ; but it is a matter of sur- prise to me that the farmers are satisfied with wooden fences, which must in a few years decay and require renewal and repair. The plan in England is to train a hedge inside, which by the time the fence falls, is strong enough to supply its place. There are several native shrubs that would make excellent hedges; among which we may mention the thorny acacias of Kangaroo Island. The sweet-briar might be used, and, with a few brambles intertwined, would answer most purposes. The castor oil and larkspur, al- though not fit to keep cattle out, might be ingre- dients in the hedges, and would do much towards protecting a section from the locusts : the native myrtles might also be employed when a very thick hedge was required. Fences made of timber are always expensive and want repair, and a little addi- tional expense at first starting, in ploughing a few fur- rows round the inside of the fence, and sowino- the seeds of some kind of shrubs, as the furze, acacia, prickly pear, or any thing to make a solid and last- 68 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV, ing hedge, would be a great saving in the end. The grand objection to the hedges has been their habihty to catch fire during the summer; this, in consequence of the heat of the cHmate, is certainly a serious draw- back when the country is scantily stocked with cattle or sheep, and the grass or underbrush is on that ac- count high and rank. The land, however, about the town is never in this state, and therefore the chance is small of the fire extending over the country by igniting the grass, and hence this need be no objec- tion to making hedges in those parts. Before the harvest comes on, a large barn should be built, either of stone, brick, or wood ; and as all labouring men in the colony are handy with tools, this may be finished by the farmer and his servants without employing extra labourers : by the by, if the farmer is not a bit of a carpenter, the sooner he learns the art the better, as it will be most useful to him, and save much ex- pense. On the plains the wheat harvest commences in No- vember, but in the hilly districts not until December or the beginning of January, according as the season is wet and cold, or fine and warm. Reaping by hand costs from 125. to I5s. per acre; but if the crop be cut by the reaping machine, invented by a gentleman in Adelaide, the cost is only about 8s. for the same quantity. This useful invention reaps and thrashes the corn, and winnows it ready for the market, and is a saving to the farmer where the cost of hand reaping is so great. The following description of the above machine is taken from the Report of the Royal Agricultural So- CH. IV.] REAPING MACHINE. 69 ciety of England, to which an account of the inven- tion was sent by Captain Grey, the Governor of South AustraHa. Description of the Machine. " The colony continues to prosper ; and the only event which has created any sensation is the com- plete success which has attended the operations of a new reaping machine, invented in the colony. This machine reaps, thrashes and winnows, all at the same time, and this at the rate of nearly an acre an hour ; the machine requiring to be attended by two men. " It is something like a cart, pushed forward by two horses, instead of being drawai. In front of this machine is a very lariJe steel comb, which is pushed forward, and seizes the straw of the wheat, as an or- dinary comb seizes hair. As the machine is moved forward, the straw is, by the motion, drawn through the comb, until the head, or the part containing the grain, is caught in the comb, and dragged upwards towards the mouth of the machine. From the peculiar dry- ness of this climate, the wheat (what is termed) sheds very easily ; that is, the corn, or grain, falls very rea- dily out of the husk ; indeed, so much so, that wheat cannot be reaped here in the usual manner, without considerable loss from the shedding. " As soon, therefore, as the head of the wheat is caught in the comb, the grain is, as it were, combed out, and falls down the comb to the mouth of the machine; that part of the head of the wheat which does not get through (which is too fine to admit it 70 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. until the grain has fallen out) is ultimately dragged up to the mouth of the machine, when it is knocked off by an apparatus like that of the ordinary thrash- ing machine ; and the wheat is then thrashed in the same manner as in other thrashing machines, whilst the rapid advance of the machine creates a strong draught, by the aid of which the corn is winnowed. The straw is left standing ; so much of it as is re- quired for manure, &c., is mown, and the remainder is burnt." Mr. Ridley, the inventor of this machine, has since made some improvements in it ; and it is now drawn by bullocks, instead of being pushed forward by horses.- About twenty of these machines were in full work on the plains of Adelaide in December last; and the cost of reaping, thrashing and win- nowing by them is about \0s. per acre. Her Majesty the Queen and Prince Albert have been pleased to express to Mr. Ridley their high admiration of the value and importance of this in- vention. From 25 to 30 bushels are about a fair crop of wheat on the average quality of land, but from 40 to 45 have been gathered in where the land has been su- perior, or, what is almost as good, where proper at- tention has been paid to its cultivation throughout the whole process. The weight of Austrahan wheat is greater than the average weight in England ; but the grain is, if any thing, dryer, so that that cannot account for the difference. Some wheat that ob- tained the prize at the Agricultural Show in Adelaide in the year 1844, weighed 66 pounds 4 ounces to the CH. IV. J AVERAGE CROPS. 71 bushel; in 1845,67 pounds 6 ounces; and at the last show the prize wheat weighed 66f pounds. This is much heavier than in England, where wheat seldom weighs more than (i4 pounds. In New South Wales and Van Diemen's Land the crops have several times been ruined by long- continued droughts ; but during those years the South Australian produce did not suffer from that cause ; which is accounted for by the prevalence of south-westerly winds, which are always accompa- nied by more or less rain. The greatest enemies the farmer has to contend with are the blioht and smut in the wheat. The blight is occasioned by the hot winds scorching the wheat when in flower. These hot winds are seldom much felt except in the plains, and even there not generally until the wheat is enough advanced to resist their bliohting; effects. The smut is occasioned by not properly steeping the wheat in some preparation before sowing, or by allowing a self-sown crop to come up, in which case it is almost sure to be infected, and moreover to abound in drake and other injurious weeds. Many persons, by not getting their crops in at the proper time, suffer the grain to fall on the ground, and there being no winter to destroy the seed thus deposited, if it be left, a crop will spring up the next year ; some have taken ad- vantage of this circumstance to avoid the trouble of ploughing, and have certainly obtained a return, but very much less than by going the proper way about it. Caterpillars do some damage to the wheat and other crops, but only partially, and little notice is taken of them. 72 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. In consequence of the natural richness of the soil and the luxuriance with which produce grows, and also in consequence of the colonial modes of culture in vogue, and which answer well, the English farmer will find that his practical knowledge is of little value to him unless he correct it by observation on the spot. No dressing is used at present, but in time the land will doubtless require it ; however, I have known land cropped for four or five years successively, and no dressing used, and the crops still excellent. If wanted, dressing can easily be procured in almost any part of the country ; for straw is frequently burned to get rid of it about the farm, and the manure from the large stockyards is often served in the same way. In ad- dition to this, sheep may be folded over the land, and there is a good dressing to be obtained from the large quantities of kelp and sea-weed along the coast ; lime also is abundant in all parts of the country. In addition to wheat, the chief crops are barley, oats, Indian corn or maize, and potatoes. Barley is sown in August, and grows very well, yielding a large crop, at an average weight of 56 pounds to the bushel. The English barley is used for malting, for which pur- pose a great quantity is annually sold, there being ten malting establishments in different parts of the country. Cape barley is not much in demand, being only used for feeding pigs, fowls, &c., but when cut green, and made into hay, it is foimd to answer well for horses and cattle. Oaten hay is often made, and fetches from 21. \0s. to 3/. per ton in the town ; but, as the cartage from a distance is expensive, it willj only answer to grow the oats near town for that pur- CH. IV.] PRODUCE OF FARM. 73 pose. Maize or Indian corn yields a fine crop, ave- raging on good soil from fifty to sixty bushels per acre ; it is sown in September or October, and ripens about March. Maize is not extensively planted, being used only for feeding pigs and poultry, though sometimes a little is mixed with oats for horses. Al- though this grain produces more than wheat, it also gives more trouble, as it requires planting in holes six feet apart, and also earthing up when half grown ; which involves considerable labour and expense. Potatoes are planted in January, and again in August ; and both the summer and winter crops are generally abundant. As far as my experience goes, the Aus- tralian potatoes are free from the dreadful disease that has ravaged Great Britain and many parts of Europe ; although I see, by late papers from South Australia, that it is imagined that the colonial potato has been at length attacked. The description they give of the malady, however, makes it different from that here observed ; for the only complaint is, that the potatoes in some parts are watery, and in others hol- low in the middle. The potato crop is often from nine to ten tons to the acre, and I have been told by a person who grew a large quantity, that many of his roots yielded from thirteen to fourteen pounds each, and the tubers themselves were from three to four pounds weight, without being either hollow in the middle, or otherwise unfit for the table. Some South Australian potatoes were a few months since shown at a meeting of the Royal Agricultural Society, and were pronounced remarkably fine. These were sent, I understood, by Lady Franklin. £ 74 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. The expenses of farming are small, and if a reason- able crop be obtained, and a fair price, there is little fear of the result; especially where the land is the farmer's own property, which is a very important item in success. I advise all persons commencing farming to purchase the land in preference to renting it. The prime cost is only about 1 1, per acre, and the rent for one year will be at least 2s. 6d. for good land for the same quantity, which rent must be paid whe- ther the crops are remunerating or not. The fencing is expensive, and must be done whether the land be rented or purchased ; so also a house or cottage must be built, with a barn, stockyard, pigsties and other buildings ; and in addition to all this expense, if no ready money be in hand, part of the crop must be sold, perhaps at a sacrifice, in order to pay the rent when due. Therefore if the means will at all permit, it is most advisable to make the necessary outlay upon one's own land, and then the profit will be for the farmer's exclusive benefit, and the land his own as long as it suits him to dwell upon it, instead of the landlord reaping the benefit of the tenant's industry. This applies especially to a country like Australia, where the tenant farmer enters upon a plain piece of land, and has to make every improvement at his own cost, for the landlords do not first fence and build, and then let the land ; this would never pay them; and I am sure that it would not answer a tenant's purpose to do so even if no rent were expected, as he might be ejected when the works were complete. The owner of one or two sections will find means of passing his time both pleasantly and profitably, CH. IV.] HOUSE BUILDING. 75 and, by improving his land, will soon make a comfort- able and prosperous home. When he finds that the crops succeed well, and a sufficient quantity of land is fenced and in good working order, when in fact he sees that he can manage to make a decent living, the next care will be to furnish himself with a neat and substantial house suited to his wants and to the cli- mate. On some part of his land he will probably have stone fit for building, which can be carted from time to time, as a spare day intervenes, and unloaded near the spot chosen for his future house. In nearly all parts of the colony good building stone is readily procured ; but where this is not the case, as in some of the large plains, clay for bricks is generally found. When enough stone or bricks have been obtained, a couple of sawyers must be hired to cut down timber, dig a saw-pit, and then cut the wood into the sizes and lengths for rafters, beams, door-plates, or what- ever else is wanted for the buildino;. While these men are at work the farmer's own labourers will have made a lime-kiln, and burned a sufficient quantity of lime, which also is easily procured, as much as is wanted, in all parts of the colony. After this a mason or bricklayer commences building ; and a substantial and at the same time a cheap house is thus obtained. The doors, window-frames and flooring, should be of deal or cedar made on the station by a carpenter on weekly wages. A house of this kind containing dining, sitting, bed, and store-rooms, also kitchen and lumber-room, in all about eight good-sized rooms, may be built and decently furnished for about 200/. A large barn may be built of stone or brick for about E 2 76 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. 60/., and all other buildings in the same proportion. It is needless to say that these expenses should not be incurred before the settler knows that he can well afford it, and that there is a prospect of earning a good living from his land. A well-fenced and pro- perly cultivated garden of about an acre will be a great comfort to him. This, at the onset, should be trenched to at least eighteen inches in depth ; which, as it is rather tedious work,, may be done by contract, but after being once trenched no more expense should be incurred upon the garden, except in the purchase of fruit trees. All the rest of the work, as digging, sowing, planting, pruning, should be done by the farm-servants during wet weather, or on broken days, when there is not time to commence any other job of work, or if the farmer take an interest in it, he will find in it the means of passing away an hour or two after his severe work is over. On an acre of ground sufficient vegetables of all kinds may be grown to supply the house during the year round, and, in addition, plenty of melons can be obtained for the hot season. Vines and fruit trees will be an ornament to the garden, and in the proper months the fruit will be found a great luxury, with no other expense than the purchase of the plants. In Australia it is in every one's power to sit under his own vine and fig tree, and in no country will they grow to greater perfection, or with less care, than in this colony. To make the farm complete a fcAv fowls and pigs are required ; these are plentiful, and thrive well in all parts ; the former increase so rapidly that there CH. IV.] TRICKS UPON NEW COMERS. 77 is often a difficulty in keeping them under. The best food they can have is the refuse of the wheat and other grains. Pigs, if of a good breed, pay well for home consumption ; their keep need be but little in point of expense, as it may consist of garden produce and skimmed milk ; this, with a little wheat, will main- tain them in good condition; and the comfort of seeing some hams and fine sides of bacon ranged around the store-room is ample compensation for the trouble incurred. A few cows will find their food on the unoccupied land around the farm, and supply milk and butter for the trouble of milking. Every farm should be provided with cows, if only to give milk enough for mixing with tea or coffee ; it is, however, a curious fact, that in Australia many cattle owners having large herds, and amongst the herds many good cows, never care about milk for their tea, and do not consider the profit of milking equal to the trouble. Such people buy their butter either from the town, or at a neighbouring dairy. When first coming on the land, the farmer must expect a bustling, busy time for some months, and must be most strenuous in his exertions, and do all in his power to work himself, or to superintend the tasks of his labourers.' Most persons on their arrival are considered " green," and tricks are some- times played them which are a little unpleasant. Some time since the following was common : — When a new arrival came, he obtained a lot of servants without character, (for where labour is so scarce they can find employment without any written character,) who took his dray and property out into the country to the land he had purchased. 78 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. If tlie distance they had to travel were con- siderable, knowing who they had to deal with, and feeling perhaps lazy or tired, his servants, quite by accident apparently, managed to lose the bullocks or horses at night, or during baiting, or to miss the road, and then the whole cavalcade was at a stand-still. The unfortunate master wished of course to find his missing beasts with as little delay as possible, and inquired the most likely direction that they had taken ; this was always wrongly given, and off he started on his horse to find the poor crea- tures, which were snug enough in some gully or con- cealed corner out of his reach; then coming back quite tired to the point he started from, and weary of a settler's hfe, he made up his mind (at the sugges- tion of one or two of his men) to offer a reward for the cattle. This soon had the magnetic effect of drawing them home in double quick time ; for, be- hold ! the next morning they are brought in by one of the men belonging to the party, who covered with dust and streaming with perspiration, and more- over "tired to death," reports that he found them many miles off; that he came upon their track ; walked till it was quite dark, then lay down " with- out a fire, or a bite or sup " until daylight, when he followed up the trail, and came upon the beasts about a dozen miles off the camp. Poor fellow ! if you are a charitable man, you offer him a glass of grog and the reward, which he is thankful for, and sleeps the remainder of the day on the top of the dray to re- cover his night's exertion, Avhich, however, was under- gone between the blankets until about eight in the m orning ! However, all goes on comfortably ; you CH. IV.] ADAPTATION TO CIRCUMSTANCES. 79 consider that it is a mercy that the cattle were ever recovered, and the man is quite pleased with his part of the reward ; all the men, in fact, look happy, and have a quiet smile in their faces, and also one in their sleeves. Many of the new comers are staggered at the mode of living in the bush, and make dreadful com- plaints of every thing ; declaring that such a life is not fit for dogs, and that it is a savage, listless and miserable mode of existence ; and they express their wonder that any one can do without good houses, chairs, tables, sofas, and the like; and, in fine, they give one the idea that they will never settle as farmers or graziers. However, after a few months have passed, the same persons pay you a visit, not as heretofore with dress coat and cloak, dandy boots and beaver hat, but more likely with a shooting coat on, or per- haps a blue or red serge shirt, and moleskin or cordu- roy trousers, a straw hat with a broad brim, and, ten to one, a short pipe, either stuck in the band of the hat, or in a pouch by the side. You will say that the former figure of the man was the better ; this would be true in England, were he obliged to conform to certain rules of gentility ; but in his new life he has to work for himself, or to see that others work for him ; and if he desires to succeed he must be ready at all times to lend a helping hand, which, if he did in his superfines, he would soon have n6ne left to appear in at the Government balls, and other such- like festive meetings. In England it is the greatest luxury to have well-made, good and warm clothing ; but in Australia you want cool and loose garments^ 80 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. ' [CH, IV. except during the short season of cold weather, when warm cloth clothes are preferred. I hope that by this time I have given some idea of the free life and multifarious occupations of the farmer, and that I have succeeded in showing the facilities which South Australia possesses over most other parts of the world, for buying land, producing grain, and rearing provisions sufficient for the wants of the inhabitants. I do not wish to make it appear that this is really the finest part of the earth ; which on my part would be presumption (though, by the way, I have seen a goodly portion of the climates of the globe) ; but this I report, that all those who have been to other parts, and with whom I have conversed, and compared the several advantages and discomforts, one against the other, have come to the conclusion that South Australia is the pleasantest land that they have visited ; which also is what 1 say myself. Land is frequently to be bought cheap at the auc- tions, which, therefore, the new comer should attend if he be in town at the time. Before the land is put up, he must learn all he can about it, and if it be re- presented as good, let him go out and see it, ascer- tain why it is sold, see what buildings or improve- ments there are upon it, and, above all, whether there is a good supply of surface water, or else a well. By doing this he may perchance obtain a good section, with fencing and building, at a great bargain ; but he must be very cautious, and only depend upon his own judgment. The reason of such sales is various; either the owners have been unlucky or extravagant, or else they may be going to some other part where CH. IV.] FARMING EXPENSES. 81 they will not be so closely environed by neighbours, and therefore where their cattle will find better food. Land may be obtained of all known varieties of soil, from the light sandy to the heavy loamy and clay soils. The country also frequently abounds in dif- ferent varieties of limestone, and in various earths and natural products useful to farmers and others, either for building, as clay, stone, or slate ; or for making farming implements, for which the growth of native woods is well adapted, and more enduring than the species imported from other countries. The following is, I believe, a correct calculation of the sum required to purchase and cultivate 80 acres of land in South Australia. I make two different prices, one high, and the other as low as the colony generally at present affords. Eighty acres of good clear land Fencing the whole, employing all labour Six bullocks, at 5^. each . One dray, plough and harrow Carpenters' and farming tools Building a cottage . Seed wheat, at 6s. per bushel Twelve months' provisions for two persons Two labourers, at 251. each per annum Provisions for labourers .... Extra expenses, including reaping . Four cows for milk Ploughing the whole quantity, by contract 50 £494 £329 * Working himself. t Two cows. X Employing his own team. E 3 High price £ s. Low price. £ s. 100 V 80 40 J) 20 0* 30 » 30 18 » 18 10 )J 10 30 » 5 36 » 36 30 )) 20 50 )) 50 20 » 20 60 » 20 20 >3 10 Of 50 » 10 0% 82 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. The return from 80 acres of wheat, at only 20 bushels to the acre, and at 4,?. per bushel, realizes 320Z. This calculation will be found correct, or, if any thing, exaggerated, as to the price of the different articles to be purchased. Hence it is evident that the profit will be large compared to profits accruing from the same sum expended m England ; and that the first year the produce will pay for all the land, farm buildings, and cattle, and also for labour within 1 74/. *; and the second year the farmer will be en- tirely cleared of all his first expenses, and have cattle, land and plenty of wheat, besides barns and out- houses, which will be erected by his own men at no extra cost. Almost all farmers, of whatever class, build their own houses, which are generally made of rough slabs, and thatched or shingled as befoi'e men- tioned : it will, however, be seen that I have allowed the sum of 30/. for this purpose: hence, if the farmer be content to live in a house built by himself or his regular labourers, he may save at least 25/. out of that sum. The poorer man may save also as much as 20/. from the allowance of 40/. for his and his wife's provi- sions. All the articles in the first list I have reckoned at high prices ; thus the 80 acres of land are gene- rally sold at 80/. Is., instead of at 100/. The fencing the land may be done by the farmer's men, and save another 20/., and the money allowed for extras may be reckoned at 20/. instead of 60/. ; but in all these cases, for at least the first year, the farmer must him- self work, be the first up in the morning, and the last * The sum of 174^. applies to the highest calculation. CH. IV.] FARMING IMPLEMENTS. 83 to bed at night, which he may do without any damage to his constitution, and at much saving to his pocket. In order to plough the greatest part of his own land, he must not be later than January in com- mencing, when he will be able to get through a quan- tity of work before the sowing season comes on. No person ought to set up as a farmer unless he be possessed of 500^. ; that sum is the lowest he should commence with, unless he have grown up sons both able to work, and willing to save him the expense of labourers. This, indeed, will greatly reduce his expenses ; but even then the sum I have indicated may be required in case of a bad season the first year. For this reason I place the above as the smallest sum that any one should begin with; but with this and with proper management the agricul- turist may obtain a comfortable living, and accu- mulate moderate wealth. In England about 1,000^. is required to undertake the farming of 100 acres, and even with this outlay the profit is little to the profit of half that investment in Australia, and the labour and anxiety are tenfold. All kinds of farming implements are made in Ade- laide, and those there manufactured are found to an- swer better, and to stand the heat of the climate more conveniently, than articles brought from England, the wood of which mostly warps and cracks, and even the iron is too often " made up for the colonies," and of little value ; nay, numbers of the articles are of cast iron, which, when once broken (which is easily done) are not soon repaired. This applies to ploughs and harrows made all of iron, and which, when driven against a stone or large sunken root, snap short off 84 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. and leave you in the middle of your work, when per- haps you have not a moment to spare. I recollect a farmer bringing one of these from Liverpool, and paying freight and cartage ; then carrying it down to his farm about 50 miles from town ; getting the ground ready, yoking the oxen, and putting this only plough within ten miles, into the earth. Before it had gone 20 yards, the cast iron beam broke, and there was an end of it. The original proprietor might have had it back for half-a-crown. In a case of this kind you are perfectly " in a fix ;" the season is ad- vancing ; your grand stay and dependence is gone ; no blacksmith can mend it ; and it takes a week, and great expense, in short, a special journey to town, to purchase another, which, however, will be colonial made, and worth the money that it costs. All kinds of carts, waggons and drays should also be purchased from those made in the colony, and in the end they will be cheaper and better than those imported. In some parts the roads are rough and stony, and the drays carry very heavy loads, and are constantly jolting about from side to side, often nearly, and sometimes quite, turned over, and all that kind of thing ; of course, therefore, they require to be very strong, of a peculiar make, and innocent of the fila- gree work that is put upon such articles in England, and not forgotten in the bill. This will exemplify the kind of goods required for the emigrant, and the folly of taking light and fragile carriages for Austra- lian work. Close to the town light waggons may indeed be useful, but even there they will not answer for journeys into the woods or tiers (timber forests), undertaken to procure fencing or building timber, CH. IV.] VALUE OF FARM PRODUCE. 85 which is always required ; in which case the farmer will have to keep two vehicles instead of one, which might do all his work and answer every purpose. As regards the wheels for these carriages, patent ones, all of iron, answer extremely well on hard ground, but when the land is soft they are not so good as the common sort made in the colony from native wood, and which are only about 61. a pair, made to order, and warranted to last a certain time without wanting repairs. The following is a statement of the prices of farm produce on the 1st of January, 1847 : — £ s. d. Wheat, per bushel 3s. 6f?. to 3 9 Fine flour, per ton 12 Pollard, per ton 6^. 10s., or per bushel of 20 lbs. .014 Bran, per bushel 13 Oats, per bushel 5 6 English barley, per bushel . . .3s. 6c?. to 4 Cape barley, per bushel . . . . 2s. 6c^. to 2 9 Malt, per bushel 7 The 2 lb. loaf 3^ Butcher's Meat. s. d. s. d,. Beef, per lb 3 to 4 Mutton, per lb 3 to 4 Lamb, per lb. 4d, or per quarter . . 2 6 to 3 Veal, per lb 4 to 5 Calves' heads, each 2 to 2 6 Calves' feet, per set 8 to 1 4 Tripe, per lb 6 According to these prices wheat has fallen below six shillings, which it was at the beginning of 1846; but even at the present prices farming pays well : one 86 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. proprietor has said that he can afford to grow wheat and sell it at 1.5. Qd. per bushel without loss to him- self. This was Captain Bagot, a well-known and much respected colonist, and one who would not make such a statement without grounds. He, however, reckons that the wheat should be reaped and thrashed by the reaping machine, and not cut by hand. At all events it will pay if 3.§. per bushel can always be ob- tained, below which it is not likely to fall, since the lars^e bodies of miners will be constant consumers, and a large quantity of grain is annually sent to the neiohbourino: colonies, also to the Isle of France, the Mauritius, and England, not to mention other places. Many articles, besides those I have mentioned, can be grown in South Australia to a profit to the farmer: such are tobacco, hops, olives, grapes, and other plants and trees, all which, or their produce, find a ready market, and command remunerating prices. Tobacco, where grown, has been very profitable when sold for making a decoction for sheep dressing ; and latterly some has been manufactured for smoking, and has obtained the prize at the agricultural and horticultural show in Adelaide : if any person tho- roughly acquainted with the mode of manufacture from the green state were to turn his attention to this herb, and to be in command of sufficient capital to keep it about a couple of years, or until it were well seasoned and had arrived at its proper flavour, I have no doubt that the cultivation and subsequent process would amply repay him. There is no duty on the colonial tobacco, and the leaf grows to as great per- fection in the colony as in any part of the world. CH. IV.] TOBACCO. 87 New South Wales has long been partially supplied • with capital tobacco, grown and manufactured in the country, and selling at from Is. to l.s. 6d. per lb. retail, and the raw leaf at from 3d. to 4d. per lb. The Government duty on this article is 2^. per lb. for tobacco fit for smoking, as Cavendish or Negrohead, which two are almost the only kinds used in the bush. Some of the New South Wales tobacco was not long since seized as smuggled by the Custom-house officers: which of itself speaks volumes in its favour, and shows what may be done in Adelaide. From January 6th, 1845, to January, 1846, the quantity of tobacco imported into South Australia was as follows : — Estimated value Manufactured 106,985 lbs. . 5,070 8 Snuff . . . 6411 ^^ 72 Cigars . . . 4,032 „ . 1,250 6 11 Stems for sheep-wash 16,664 „ 146 10 Total value . ^6,539 4 11 The whole of this money might be saved to the colony, and large exports of tobacco be made to any non-producing country. The Agricultural and Horticultural Society of Ade- laide was established some years since, and has been the means of causing; much emulation among: the farmers and others, who are invited to attend an annual show of produce at which prizes are given for different articles. These shows take place generally at the beginning of February ; and the spot chosen 88 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. is the park lands, at a short distance from the town. A laroe booth is erected and ornamented for the occa- « sion, and this is surrounded by a fience, to exclude those who do not pay for admission, whilst the judoes are going round and awarding the several prizes. The show day is a general holiday in the town, and the exhibition is attended by all classes, and has constantly passed off to the satisfaction of the inhabitants. Stalls and booths are put up out- side the railings of the grand marquee, and serve as stations for the sale of wines, spirits and beer, and also display goodly quantities of fine fruits. The melons are brought in huge loads to the show ; one, the size of a horse's head, can be purchased for 3d. or 4d. ; other fruits are not, as yet, in proportion to the melons, on account of the time required before the trees come into full bearing ; but these will follow, and before many years are over the colonists will be able to purchase at a cheap rate almost all kinds of both European and tropical fruits. The last agri- cultural show took place on the 11th February, 1847. The numbers who attended were large, and the scene was graced by his Excellency the Governor and the principal officials of the settlement. It was estimated that 1600 ladies and gentlemen paid Is. each for ad- mission to the pavilion in which the different articles were exhibited, and at least 2000 others visited it after the prizes had been awarded, when it was opened to the public. The pavilion, covered with snow-white canvas, was in length 150 feet, and the tables, which were ranged down the centre, were covered with the choicest fruits, and with all kinds of CH. IV.] AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY. 89 colonial productions. With regard to the articles exhibited, the competition for the prizes on wheat, barley, and oats, was much greater than in any former year. The fruit was very fine, particularly the apples and grapes. It was remarked that the tables were not so abun- dantly covered as the last year, in consequence of the much smaller quantity of melons exhibited. The samples of manufactured tobacco were very good, and there was much competition on that article. The 1st prize, amounting to 5^. 5s., for the best sample of wheat, was awarded to John Frame. His sample weighed 66| lbs. per bushel. The 2nd prize, 3^. 3s., to Stamford and Burley, weighed 66^g per bushel. The 3rd prize, 21. 2s., to Walter Duffield, weighed 66| lbs. per bushel. <£ s. d. lbs. Barley, 1st prize . John Frame . .550 56|g „ 2nd do. . Stamford and Burley .220 55|§ The barley shown was none of it first rate ; that obtaining the 1st prize was stained ; the 2nd dirty ; and others contain- ing wheat, oats, and barley mixed together, were not considered worth weighing. Oats, 1st prize . . Jos. Mott . „ 2nd do. . . Shakes Maize, 1st prize . . G. Baker Peas, „ . . Jos. Mott Malt, „ . . H. Rickets Cheese, „ . . J. Addison This latter article was mentioned as being of a very superior quality, but no prize was awarded by the judges. 3 3 43 § 2 2 46,^5 £ s. d. . 1 1 . 1 1 . 1 13 90 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. £ s. d. Bacon, „ . W. Duffield . . 2 2 Very superior. Hams, „ . . W. DuflSeld . . 2 2 Also very good. Butter, „ . S. J. Jackson . . 3 3 Potatoes, „ . W. Duffield . . 3 3 „ 2nd prize . Hardiman . 1 1 Onions, Isfc prize . G. Baker . 1 1 „ 2nd prize . W. Duffield . . 10 6 Cucumbers, 1st prize . W. Duffield . . 10 6 Vegetable marrows J5 . Haines . . 10 6 Carrots, 5> . W. Duffield . . 10 6 Salads, >J . Haines . . 10 6 Table grapes. )J . G. Stevenson . . 4 4 „ 2nd prize . A. H. Davis . . 2 2 These were very fine samples, and were pronounced by the judges equal to any they had seen elsewhere. Many different varieties were exhibited, and contributed to make a most ele- gant show. Wine grapes, 1st prize . G. Stevenson . . .440 „ 2nd prize . D. Kavel . . .220 The oranges and lemons were inferior, and none were consi- dered to deserve the prize. G. Anstey W. Duffield G. Anstey A. H. Davis W. Duffield G. Anstey G. Anstey Haines . . G. Baker , W. Duffield Peaches and Apricots, Vegetable seeds Collection of fruits, 1st „ 2nd Collection of vegetables Apples, 20 varieties Plums Sweet melons . Water melons . Hops The prize sample of hops was very fine, and showed what may be done with this plant in South Australia. The hop is .110 .220 .440 .220 .220 . 10 6 . 10 6 . 10 6 . 10 6 .220 CH. IV.] AGRICULTURAL PRIZES. 91 .110 . 10 6 .050 .330 . 10 6 . 10 10 . 10 10 considered so valuable an article of produce, that it is intended to offer a large prize for it at the next show. All the samples were reported as being exceedingly creditable to the growers. It is a curious fact that the whole of the hop plants in the colony are of the male kind, not one of the female having been hitherto observed amongst those exhibited. Dried figs . . . , G. Stevenson . . .110 Dried peaches . . .No prize. Raisins . . . .J. Gilbert Bouquet . . . . G. Stevenson „ . . . . G. A. Anstey Manufactured tobacco . W. Jacobs Snuff . . . . R. Dodson Collection of leather . G. Bean . Wine, the butt, 5 gallons . G. Anstey There was keen competition for the wine prize, and some good judges preferred one of Mr. Duffield's samples to that which obtained the reward. The samples were in rather a bad condition, having been brought from a long distance ; some of them, however, give promise of the production of superior wines by the vine growers. Jordan Almonds . . G. Stevenson . . . 10 6 Honey, prize recommended to Dr. Addison. Unenumerated Articles. Lead pump from colonial metal, by J. Chamberlain, 51. 5s. recommended. Brass force pump, also from colonial metal, W. Pybus ; this was a beautiful casting. The exhibition also had a church bell and an umbrella stand ; 12 horse and cattle bells ; a show-board of bell-hangings ; and a very large, hand- some scraper, made for the Adelaide Lodge of Odd Fellows, the name and number of which appear on the lower part in large raised letters. The judges remarked that these were all very creditable, and much in advance of former exhibitions ; 5/. 5s, recommended. Messrs. Little and Saint exhibited a brass counter beer engine of colonial metal, which was much admired for its ele- 92 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. IV. gant shape, the absence of blemish, and the high polish it had taken ; a prize of 2^. 2s. recommended. Mr. Davis sent some candles, which were considered by the judges as very good. A tradesman of Currie Street brought in a set of horse shoes, which were beautifully made, and attracted the favourable notice of the judges. Michael Underwood exhibited a beautiful specimen of straw plat ; a manufacture which ought to be more common than it is. Mr. Wyatt had some large castings, all in their rough state ; the principal of which was the main part of a 6-horse power engine. The cross piece and brass guide were said to be par- ticularly well cast. The judges remarked that this lot was highly gratifying, as showing the advancement of colonial manufacture. Prize recommended, 51. 5s. The day after the show a pubHc fair was held on the ground, near the grand booth, which was suffered to remain for the sale of fruit and other articles. The publicans' and fruit-dealers' tents were also re- tained, and it was a very animated scene. There is, however, a great difference between an English fair and one in Adelaide. In the former all the sio-ht- seers are on foot, but in Australia most persons keep a horse, and at the fair appear on horseback, or in gigs, carts, or other conveyances. The weather, on the occasion we allude to, was very fine, and the com- pany, though less select than on the previous day, was pretty nearly as numerous. It is worthy of men- tion that very few persons are taken in charge by the police either for drunkenness or other offences at such meetings in Adelaide. This is not from remissness on the part of the constables, but from the general good behaviour and moral feeUng of the people themselves. CH. IV.] STORES AT THE STATIONS. 93 It is common for the farmers to exchange their produce with the merchant for flour, tea, sugar, tobacco, spirits, or other articles ; which ensures them generally a good price for their grain, and also a saving in the goods they thus obtain at wholesale prices from the store. It is a great economy for farmers, as well as others, to lay in a large stock of provisions at a time, to last from six to twelve months ; and this, either directly the wool or grain is ready for sale, or else when the goods wanted are at the lowest price. In this case the stock comes back to the farm or station in the drays that take the produce to town. The cartage of goods being expensive, advantage must be taken of any such opportunity to procure what will be wanted even months afterwards; this causes the stations to appear like wholesale stores, furnished with many different articles, and these in considerable quantities. CHAPTER V. PRICES OP CATTLE IN ADELAIDE. — EXPENSES OF CATTLE FARMING. HOUSES. CATTLE HUNTING. BREED OF CATTLE FOR DAIRY. BULLS. MILKING. BRANDING. BURNING THE GRASS. HUTKEEPERS. — BENEFIT OF MILKING. CATTLE OWNEr's LIFE IN THE BUSH. TEA DRINKING AND SMOKING. TRAVELLING TO THE STATION. — CATTLE DRIVING. FIRES. The prices of cattle and sheep in the Adelaide markets were as follows on the 1st of January, 1847 : — £ s. d. £ s. d. Fat cattle, per 100 lbs. Working steers, each Dairy cows, each Young stock, each . Fat sheep, each Breeding ewes, each This is a fair average of the price of stock tak- ing one season with another, and that this price will be maintained I think there is little doubt. The great price of working steers and bullocks arises in consequence of the high charges paid for carting ores and goods to and from the mines, which has influ- enced the price for draught all over the colony. From 1200/. to 1500/. will enable any person in- 18 . 4 to 6 . 3 10 „ 4 . 1 15 „ 3 . 10 „ 15 . 10 „ 12 CH. v.] EXPENSES OF CATTLE FARMING. 95 tending to purchase cattle to select a fine herd, and have every convenience about the station ; and with a good run, (vi^hich may be procured without any great difficulty,) and proper treatment of the stock, he will have a return of 25 per cent, per annum, with almost no risk. The chief object is, to purchase good stock at first, which is plainly most important to all who intend to make a Hving by cattle. It is common to see poor, badly bred animals sold at the auctions at low prices, say \l. 5s. for a cow and calf; many persons consider them cheap; this, however, is a fallacy, for they are of no use, although of the same expense to keep as the best. They are also coarse and poor meat, never make a large carcass, and are too weak and small to be fit for labour. The expenses of commencing cattle farming are as follows : — £ s. 80 cows in calf, (or with calves at their sides under ten months old,) averaging 5^. each . . 400 50 bullocks and young steers, not under two years 250 100 young heifers and steers, over twelve months 200 2 horses for the herdsman, at 15^. each . . <* 30 2 brood mares, at 25^. each 50 Building small house 30 Stock-keeper's wages, 30/., hut-keeper's ditto, 20/. 50 Rations for the first year for four persons . . 60 Stock-yards, &c 40 1 dray, bows, yokes, and chains . . . . 14 2 saddles and bridles 7 Axe, adze, augers, gimblets, cross-cut saw, hand saw and saw files, hammer, mortising chisel, and nails ....... 30 Spade, hoe and rake, and plough ...55 Cask for meat, and safe 1 10 96 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. £ s. Maulrings, wedges, and camp oven, 2 saucepans, tin plates and pint mugs, knives, forks, spoons, butcher's knife and chopper . . . . 2 10 For the dairy : 12 milking tins, 3 buckets, churn, milk strainer, 4 butter casks . . . . 3 Rope, branding iron and hobbles ... 2 1148 5 Depasturing licence 10 Total 1158 5 Thus for the sum of 1158/. 5s. the number of 270 head of cattle may be purchased ; 2 horses for rid- ing, and 2 mares for riding and breeding. If these be of a good sort, and be properly looked after by the master, they will certainly pay 25 per cent, after the first year. Ten pounds will be paid for the liberty of depasturing the cattle on crown lands, and securing the run to the proprietor of the licence. As the cattle increase in number, the run will not be large enough to hold them, and an off station must be sougTit for to which to send the young heifers. Besides that cattle farming is profitable, and, com- pared to sheep farming, of small risk, the work is but little, generally pleasant, and much liked by all who are fond of being on horseback, and breathing fresh air in the open country, with almost no anxiety about making a living. The horses are good and cheap ; those purchased by the stock-owners being fast, strong, and able to endure great fatigue; and the price for such is only about 15/. each. The mares are nearly as useful for the saddle as the geldings. CH. v.] SADDLE HORSES. 97 and valuable, moreover, for breeding purposes. The master will have one or two saddle horses constantly for his own riding, and will have little to do but to enjoy himself. This is the most free and least trou- blesome life with which I am acquainted. The horses are hardy and perform long, nay surprising journeys, during which they are not supplied with any provender, except what they pick up when turned out to grass after the day's labour is over. Before being let loose they are hobbled or tethered if they cannot be depended upon ; but those that can be trusted are allowed to roam where they like, and in the morning will generally be found close to the spot where you have been camping. Thus the cost for their keep is absolutely nothing except when stabled in town, to which place their owner ought not to resort often if he expects to make a profit from his herds, for in Adelaide the livins; and lodging: are expensive ; the bill for the horse at livery soon mounts up, and the journey there may, in many cases, be saved. The horses are surefooted, which is very lucky, for they are frequently obliged, when after cattle, to gallop up and down most dangerous places, amongst stones, rocks and fallen timber, literally at full speed; such places, I think, as few of the English steeple chasers would venture, for a fall would not impro- bably settle both horse and rider. It is the excitement of such adventures that forms part of the glory and pleasure of the stock-owner's career. Some of the cattle are often wild, and ramble away for miles ; in which cases it is necessary every F ij^ SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. week or two to muster them, in order to see if any are missing, and bring them back if they can be (bund. Every two or three months a general muster takes phice, with a view of branding the calves, look- ing to the increase, and observing the progress that has been made to render them comely in the butcher's eyes. This mustering is a busy time. Some few beasts will no doubt have got away from the proper run, and gone to other herds ; these have to be col- lected from far and near, and those on the run driven in to the neighbourhood of the stockyards. The men who are going any distance are collected and mounted on their steeds, and provided with their tra- velling requisites, which consist of a tether, rope and hobbles for tiie horse, saddle-bags containing bread or flour, meat, tea, sugar, lucifers or tinder, tobacco and pipe, stock whip, and many little odd articles of comfort or bush luxury, if it may be so called. They are also provided with a blanket and coat for a bed at night, and a quart tin pot to boil their tea in, with a smaller vessel of the same to drink it from. All these multifarious articles are fastened to the saddle in different parts ; the latter being provided with a number of buckles or straps, which gives the fully accoutred horseman a grotesque appearance when he is ready to start. If going very far into the bush, and away from the settled districts, and where the wild blacks are to be met with, a carbine, or pair of pistols, is often added ; but this garniture does not much improve the appearance of the party. Inquiry having been made in difiierent directions in order to fix the locality of the stray cattle, the men CH. v.] STRAY CATTLE, 99 are enabled generally to have some idea where they will find them, and to that place they leisurely make their way ; taking care not to distress their horses, as very likely when they come in sight of the cattle they may have heavy woik to perform. On arriving near the spot, perhaps forty, fifty, or more miles from the station (for the cattle stray to a great distance some- times), the company divides and reconnoitres the hills from some elevated position, and endeavours to ascertain where the cattle are feeding ; if this is not successful, and brings no report, the parties then try to find the place where they fed, or bedded, the night before, and from this spot they track them to ascer- tain which way they have gone. There is assuredly much art in tracking, and no person can become a proficient who does not take notice of every little trifling incident, such as the grass being slightly bent down by the feet, the fresh breakage of dead twigs, the moss rubbed from the top or sides of wood or stones, the presence of dung, and other points which constitute the chief marks for observation, and by which also it may be told about how long it is since the cattle were on that spot, and whether they were feeding steadily, or on the march. The cattle being found on another person's run or feeding ground, the greatest care must be taken to single them out from those they have joined, and to leave the strange cattle on their own pasture. To do this often requires great exertion from both men and horses, and it is a very exciting time : the hunters have to chase each separate head out from the herd ; drive those they have separated over some hill to a dis- F 2 100 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. tance from the mob, to prevent them from seeing their companions ; and there keep them until all are se- lected. This is often a work of time ; and much hard riding being required, the horses must be brought li-esh into the field, or they will not unlikely knock up when most wanted. The whole mob often sets off at full speed, and the separated cattle follow and sometimes mix, and then the work begins over again. In accomplishing the purpose in view, the people must follow the particular beast they are in want of, and first turn him one way, then another, to guide him in the right direction for you, which is the very way he does not want to go. All this has probably to be done at full speed, and over all kinds of good or bad country, just as it may happen. The men are armed with long whips, the lash being from twelve to eighteen feet according to fancy, whilst the handle is only as many inches. The stock-keepers are very dexterous in the use of these formidable weapons, and can inflict a heavy blow if necessary : the report of the whip is like the explosion of a gun, and may be iieard for miles ; it is this noise that frightens the cattle, and makes the whip so annoying to them. A mixed herd of about three hundred head of cattle is sufficient to commence farming with, for they in- crease very rapidly, and in a few years will occupy a large run. A good colonial half-bred bull may gene- rally be bought at from 15Z. to 20/., and of these two ^v'ill be required. In buying a large lot of cattle the bulls are generally given in at the same price as the rest, the seller no doubt taking care that on the whole he is no loser, for the price of the lot generally allows CH. v.] BEST BREEDS OF CATTLE. 101 this liberality. Some of the colonial bred bulls are superior animals, and would command a fair sum in England. In Australia it is a chief desideratum to obtain a pure Durham or Sussex imported breed, the males of these fetching as much as 200/. The Durham breed is considered the best both for milking, draught, and carcass. This breed is the earliest to arrive at maturity ; the cattle are good feeders, and soon obtain a great weight, which makes them valuable for the butcher. They are remarkable for the large quan- tity of inside fat they make, and the meat is of a fine grain. For the dairy the Durham cows are very valuable, being excellent milkers, and yielding a large quantity for a long continuance. Next to these we may mention the Alderney breed, which is sometimes met with in tlie colony ; and although small in size, and of singular proportions, the Alderney cattle should not be forgotten for the dairy, for, although the milk is not large in quantity, jet it is remarkable for richness. This breed eats almost any kind of herbage, such as other cattle would refuse, and fat- tens rapidly. The Sussex breed arrives at a large size, but is not fit for draught on account of its slow- ness ; but for the butcher, and also for increase, it is valuable. These are the most remarkable breeds I have seen in Australia, and they are found to be well adapted to the cHmate, and for crossing with the common sorts reared there. When good cattle are once obtained, great care should be taken to keep the increase as pure as possible, or they soon dege- nerate ; and therefore it is the best plan, if the 102 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. owner's means will permit, to have a paddock fenced in, so as to keep a bull of good breed separate from the herd, and drive the well-bred cows and heifers into the inclosure when required. This, and castrat- ing all the bull calves when young, will allow the heifers to attain a sufficient age before rearing a calf; and, as many are ruined for want of this care, it should be particularly attended to. As it is, many heifers bring forth calves when only about eighteen months old, in which case the increase cannot be ex- pected to grow to a proper size, and the heifer is de- prived of that strength and bulk which it is so im- portant she should reach. In a word, heifers should always be two years old before they are suffered to breed, and then strong healthy calves may be ex- pected. The stress upon the immature animal from the calf she has borne, and the drainage of the milk from the system, necessarily tends to arrest her growth and due development. Even fences are not always strong enough to keep the breed of cattle select, or to enable you to profit by the services of your valuable bulls, as the follow- ing will show : — A gentleman in the colony, who purchased a fine Durham bull at a high price, as he considered it necessary to keep it from the mixed herd, had a large meadow fenced off on purpose to isolate his prize. Here it was kept, and the best cows were tjurned into the paddock from time to time. The noble creature was seen and approved of by some dishonest people, the fence broken down, and their own cattle driven into the inclosure. This will show the tricks resorted to, also the great CH. v.] CATTLE BREEDING. 103 value placed upon a superior breed, and the expe- dients and risk which persons will run to obtain it. Such doings are one nuisance. Another is the custom of all poor people, who have one or two cows of their own, of keeping a bull calf, even though it be the most ill-bred miserable creature that can be imagined ; such young bulls roam about from herd to herd, fighting with each other, teazing the cows, and doing all possible damage to those desirous of improving their stock. As all the different herds feed in the open unfenced country, there is no remedy for this, except perhaps shooting the bulls, and standing the damage for the act ; even this must be better than having stunted ill-formed young bulls running riot amongst your choicest cattle. If you have made up your mind to commence cat- tle-farming, you will, I think, find it the best plan to obtain an insight into the ways practised in Austra- lia; and with this view to bargain with the person you buy your cattle of, to allow them to continue on his run amongst his herds, until such time as you have got the requisite information, and a good run for your own purchase. Most settlers will be happy to enter into this agreement with you, on condition that you make yourself useful to them in the mean- time, and nothing; will enable the cattle-farmer to learn so much as this course. In six months you will have gained sufficient information to manage for yourself, and, after finding a convenient station for the cattle, you must at once erect a hut and strong stock-yard on a dry spot; the stock-yard may be divided by a strong fence down the centre, besides which, milking-bails and calf-pens will be wanted. 104 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. Two huts can be built ; one for yourself, and another for the stock-men and hut-keeper. These will cost but little if all lend a helping hand. The timber will 1)0 split by men who earn their living at this kind of work, and the stock-yard, requiring to be very strong, had better be put up by them; care being taken by the master to see that all the posts are strong, and that the mortices, into which the rails are fitted, are well filled up, so as to resist the enormous pressure that the erection will sometimes experience when the yards are crowded with cattle. A garden should be fenced in; and this will be kept in order by the hut-keeper, or all the lighter work may be performed by the master himself, if he be fond of this kind of employment. When the cattle arrive on the run, separate all the newly calved cows, and regularly milk them; nothing tends so much as this to make them quiet, and be- sides that you have the profit of the milk, the calves are generally quieter, and more useful in every respect by this treatment. Either butter or cheese may be made, and the spare milk given to the pigs, which will help to fatten them, and supply the station with ham, bacon and pork. It is not common for stock- owners to trouble themselves about the milk, espe- cially if they have many cattle ; but yet they know the advantages and emoluments of it, and are most willing to allow their men to milk as many cows as they like for their own use. In South Australia cows are only milked once a day, viz., early in the morning ; and during the day the calves run with them on the feeding grounds: CH. v.] MILKING. 105 at night they are brought in, the calves shut up in their pens, and the cows remain near the yards until morning, when they are driven in to be milked. When cattle are first brought to a run, they re- quire great care to prevent them making back to their old pastures ; and therefore, for at least three or four months, they should be watched during the day by a man, either on horseback or foot, whose duty it is to keep them from separating, to look after them all day, and drive them to the yards at night. It would be advantageous to have five or six acres of land well fenced in with a strong post-and-rail fence, and, instead of yarding the cattle every night, to turn them into this inclosure, where they would have plenty of room to move about and keep themselves clean, and be in better condition than when crowded into a small stock-yard, which in wet weather will not allow them to lie down in ponsequence of the dirt. The greater number of cows calve from Sep- tember to December, and the calves should be weaned when about six months old. When this process is not attended to properly, much harm is often done to the cows by steers or heifers as large as the cows themselves constantly sucking them; butting away the young calves, and not unlikely maiming them for life. Twice a year the cattle are collected for counting, and the calves for branding and cutting ; and the young heifers are drafted out from the rest, and sent to the heifer-station, if one have been established, or else kept in a paddock separate from the herd. This again is a busy time, and an extra number of men are engaged, or else F 3 lOG SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. the services of the surrounding settlers obtained, each making it a rule to help himself by helping his frionds in emeroencies. Whenever a calf is branded, a description of its colour and sex is entered into the cattle book, which is kept to enable the master to know each separate beast, and to be able to give a particular desciiption of it if astray. Unless this were regularly done, no owner could remember the details of his herd, and many mistakes would result. The irons for branding are made in the colony, and con- sist of a stamp with some letters or mark upon it to distinguish each person's cattle. These irons are heated in a large wood fire outside the yard, and, while the animal is roped or firmly held, the hot iron is held close against the skin until the surface is scorched, and forms a mark that never wears out if properly made at first. Each separate herd is marked on some particular part of the animal; for instance, the right or left shoulder, the hip, or side ; and by this means the cattle are known when even in a large herd and at full gallop, and all the dif- ferent brands may be detected. In South Australia cattle are almost free from dis- ease, neither the black-leg nor influenza having done any damage, or, to my knowledge, so much as made their appearance. In some parts these diseases have been fearfully destructive ; but in that colony nearly all the cattle die the " natural death " of such ani- mals, being killed for their meat and hide, or if very aged, either dying of real old age, or being killed and boiled down for their tallow. The immunity they enjoy from disease of all kinds can only be CH. v.] SALT SPRINGS. 107 accounted for by the fact of their being constantly in the open air, and in their natural state ; there is little doubt that if they were housed, and fed with artificial food, they would soon become subject to all the complaints prevalent among the English cattle. The springs of water in Australia are many of them brackish ; but, although the water is unplea- sant to man at first, yet the cattle thrive well upon it. Indeed, according to the following extract, it would seem to be requisite for them : — " It should never be forgotten that salt is essential to the health of cattle. Wild cattle regularly visit the salt licks in North America, and in South America the herds ab- solutely require the barrero, for so is called a saline or nitrous earth which the herds of horned and other cattle seek with avidity, and without which they fail and die in about four months. From the twenty- seventh degree of south latitude to the Malovine Islands, the horned cattle, as well as other animals, have no need of the harrero, because the water and the pasture grounds are sufficiently salt; but north- ward, beyond this latitude, the harrero is necessary, and the plains which do not contain it do not feed either the horse, the ass, the mule, the ox, the goat, or the sheep." Such is the account of the salt licks given in Knight's Farmer'' s Library; and I have little doubt that the frequency and abundance of salt springs in Australia is a great blessing to the country, and that without them, or salt given in food, the cattle would not thrive. There is no part of the colony that has yet been discovered that does not contain salt, 108 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. either in springs or in the earth, and which the cattle liave one way or another an opportunity of obtaining. Whenever it can be done, the whole of the run should be set on fire and burned, to destroy the coarse sour grasses and plants, and make room for a second and more abundant crop. If this burning be done just before rain, it is astonishing how rapidly a new crop will appear ; instead of a black, dreary, and apparently barren surface, two or three days will show a oreen and luxuriant herbao-e covering the whole extent of burned ground. Besides the good that is done to the pasturage by the fire, many noxious reptiles are destroyed, which would other- wise be a nuisance, and might do much damage. Many snakes, for example, are thus annually de- stroyed; for snakes frequently live in old logs and stumps of trees, which easily catch fire and gradually smoulder away. The grass in the bush is burned almost every year, either by persons purposely setting it on fire, or else accidentally, by the fire from to- bacco pipes blowing about; or not unfrequently by people sleeping out all night in the bush and having a fire, which, when left, blows about and sets the long grass or leaves in a blaze, which soon commu- nicates. This might be accounted a sad event, and great injury would naturally be expected from it. The fact is, that the damage is trifling, and the gain immense; and therefore the deliberateness of the incendiarism need be no mystery. When the hot weather has set in a month or two, the grass and iierbage become thoroughly dried, and are not palat- CH. v.] HUT-KEEPERS. 109 able to cattle ; but when burned, and a shower of rain has afterwards fallen, the roots send up strong fresh shoots, full of moisture and nutriment; and, instead of the dry burned country, the whole appear- ance is changed, the cattle thrive, and the alteration is almost magical in its rapidity. Thus like cures like, — " one fire puts out another burning." On account of the general scarcity of female do- mestic servants, and the high wages they obtain where they can be procured, also the certainty of their obtaining husbands, it is found necessary to engage men as hut-keepers and cooks, who likewise do the milking at the dairy stations, the lords of the creation being obliged to engage in many things which are not thought to belong to the sex in Eng- land. Many hut-keepers, from long experience, be- come capital house servants, washing, starching, ironing, making beds, cooking, and doing all the in- doors' work, inclusive of mending and washing bush clothes of every description. I knew an old man, now dead, who was perfect in all such matters, and would have been a pattern to many English servants. He used to bake and cook, keep the house clean and in order, wait at table, wash the clothes and get them lip, and cook for from ten to twenty men, according to the season, in addition to his other work for his master. This man had been an old sailor, and was much respected. He died at an off sheep station, and was buried in sight of his former hut, this mode of sepulture being common enough ; for, at a distance from the towns, the dead are buried near the spot where they die ; and the grave is generally 110 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. placed under some handsome native tree, or in a sheltered nook, and then fenced round, and in some places a rude head board is carved, and put up to mark the spot. In one of these distant scenes there is much more feeling displayed, in a rude but sincere way, than in the splendid obsequies of the dead in England, where nothing from birth to death is thought of but show and effect. But to return to the cattle station. Nothing, as before observed, improves cattle so much as constant and regular milking, and if this be attended to pro- perly there is httle doubt of its profitableness. Cattle that are not milked are always comparatively wild and unmanageable; their offspring also take after them, and will think less of jumping over a fence than of allowing themselves to be handled or ap- proached without attempting to butt and clear away every thing before them ; and this, when only a month or two old. When such cattle get older, they either turn round and face any stranger, or else at the slightest rusthng of the trees, or other sound, fly off at full gallop, tearing over hill and dale like wild colts more than like the respectable fat cattle they ought to become. Where the cows are milked, they presently become steady and well broken in, go quietly into the milking-bail, and either in the yard, or on the run, allow the men to approach them without fear. The calves soon aet accustomed to be handled, and, if properly treated from their birth, they never forget it, being readily broken in either for draught or milking, and much sooner fattening and becoming fit for the butcher. At a dairy station, as CH. v.] SIZE OF CATTLE. Ill soon as the heifers or cows calve, they are put into a mob by themselves; these are all milkers, and are tailed or followed throughout the day by a boy, whose duty it is to yard their calves at night, and to see that they do not stray away during the daytime. The milking-sheds are much as in England ; and as the whole process is on nearly the same plan, it is unnecessary to describe it. The cows, as I said before, are milked in the morning, after which the calves are allowed to feed with them till night. The milk is set by for butter or cheese ; and after being skimmed, any refuse is used for fattening pigs, which last should be kept at a dairy to consume the waste. Butter and cheese always find a ready market, and are sure to pay the expense of milking, besides keep- ing the station in provisions. I do not know that any great profit can be made by dairy farming as a business except in the respect I have mentioned, of rendering the cattle quiet and tractable; but this alone will amply compensate the owner for his trouble and expense. The outlay will consist in building a long shed fitted up with bails for the cows to be milked in ; digging an underground dairy, and furnishing it with the necessary utensils ; and hiring an extra man and a woman to attend to the churning; also a little boy to look after the milch cows during the day. These items for the first year may cost about 80^., but the next year much less. The well-bred cattle in South Australia are usually large, and easily fattened, sometimes weighing from eighteen to twenty hundred weight ; but above this is considered heavy, and such animals are scarce. The I 12 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH, V. flosli is equal in flavour and fibre to any fattened in England, and miolit be still improved if the cattle were allowed to attain a better age, and were, in fact, never killed under at least four years old. At present they do not often attain their full size, but are slaugh- tered in the second year; although it ought to be borne in mind that cattle grow until they are about five years old, when they are in their prime. In order that some idea may be formed of the cattle-owner's life at his station, let me imagine the reader to be the master, and in his bed, in a hut like the generality in the Australian Bush ; and, further, suppose that about his usual time (daylight) he awakes and opens his eyes. His bed-room shall be formed of slabs of wood fitted into a groove at top and bottom; the top is the wall-plate, the bottom the sleeper or foundation ; these slabs put close together make the walls all round, except in one place where there is a window, and in another where there is a door. The window is not often glazed, but more generally covered with calico ; or perhaps it is only a kind of trap-door, that lifts up to give light when needed, which is but seldom, for the sun shines through the crevices of the hut with suflicient force to make formal apertures unnecessary; which cre- vices also keep the hut cool in summer, and when winter comes are daubed up with clay if requisite. After washing and dressing, you become anxious to see the progress the hut-keeper has made in his work; and, opening the door, you find yourself simultaneously in your parlour, drawing-room, and kitchen. This is furnished with table, chairs, or CH. v.] cattle-owner's life. 113 stools, the latter rough but strong ; and with slabs or boards as shelves, on which are ranged your stock of plates and crockery, looking meagre and scarce enough, but supplied by an extra number of tin pots and plates, which remind you of the constant breakages by your male attendant, against which you are now provided by these more durable articles. One more shelf is seen containing a number of bound books, and perhaps a late English paper or two (about five months old) ; for the huts generally have some shadow of a library, which strangely con- trasts with the rough woodwork, the naked thatched roof, and the tempered clay or lime floor. The gen- tlemen in the bush are great readers, and think little of riding twenty or thirty miles to borrow an amusing or instructive work. This cannot be wondered at when we consider the monotonous life they would lead without this pastime, and the little interest one can take in the conversation of a companion or man with whom one has been living perhaps for years, and whose every tale, and even thought, have long since been exhausted. In such a place and situation, who can express the satisfaction, the intense pleasure, of finding a book containing new and interesting; in- formation, or the avidity with which it is devoured, the fortunate reader sitting into the hours of the night, and not allowing meals to interrupt him long, until the last page is finished, when the craving is to gain intelligence of the whereabouts of other such precious treasures ? After seeing that the hut-keeper has commenced clearing the hut, and preparing breakfast, you go out at the door, and are greeted by the sunrise, 114 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V, which should be the bushman's signal to com- mence his daily work. About fifty or a hundred yards from the hut are your stock-yard, men's huts, dairy, pigsties, and other buildings; and around these you see the milch cows standing ready to be driven to the bails, while their calves are kept in a separate pen or fold, diy under foot, with a bedding of straw, and secure from their enemies the wild dogs. The men are all up, and preparing to milk, and the stock-man, with a thin cloud of smoke issu- ing from his mouth, is seen in the distance, carrying his bridle in his hand, and tracking his horses, after finding which he will drive them to the huts, to be ready for use. On the side of that bank of clay may be seen a door from which a man has been passing to and fro with clean milking buckets, and tins that ghtter in the sun. This is the dairy, which is dug out in the ground like a cellar. Such dairies are often about thirty feet long and fourteen wide, the walls built up with stone, and heavy beams, with boards on the top, forming the roof, which is covered over with earth, and, when finished, is somewhat like the entrance to a railway tunnel. In the interior a row of tables, or more properly very broad shelves, is placed about breast-high to set the milk upon, and down the centre may be seen a large table and other apparatus — as churn, salting-tubs, and the like. On each side are ranged the milk tins, clean and bright, and filled with yesterday's milk, which would have been sour and useless if not preserved with the greatest cleanliness in such cool places. Just outside the door is a large cask half-full of skimmed milk for the pigs ; or, if pigs are not kept, a puddle is ob- CH. v.] cattle-owner's life. 115 served, where the skimmed milk is thrown away. This is sometimes done, but is a wasteful act. At a little distance from the dairy there is a shed, where a large copper is built up, with a stove underneath, to heat water for washing the milk utensils and keeping them scalded. This cleanliness must be particularly attended to, or the whole thing will turn out ill, the cheese not be saleable, and the butter be only fit to grease the dray wheels. After looking over the rest of the establishment, as the piggery, arable land and garden, your break- fast is ready, consisting of either a damper or leaven bread, bacon, ham, beef, fowls, eggs, mut- ton, butter, or cream. All these ought to be the produce of your own farm ; the only foreign arti- cles are tea and sugar, but which have been supplied you by the sale of your butter. During breakfast, you settle the mode of passing the day, whether you will stay at home to garden, or work among the cattle ; take a horse and look over the run ; see a friend at some near station; or take the dogs and hunt the wild dog, kangaroo, or emu ; or sally out, gun in hand, accompanied by a pointer, to shoot quails or ducks ; or creep after and get a chance at the native turkey, which is capital eating, though the best fare in my opinion is the bronze-winged pigeon, a beautiful bird, which is a general favourite at table. Perhaps some butcher or cattle-dealer has come into the neighbourhood to purchase fat cattle, and take a ride with you to the place where your herd are feeding, to look them over, find fault with the breed, and talk about the low price of meat. llf) SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. This vou treat as " all gammon," little heeding any renv.uks of the kind ; but you endeavour to make the best bargain you can for ready money, or at least for a check on the bank. You must beware of the buyers, for they are never pleased with a beast. If you have any animal that you particularly admire, and expect to make a high price by, you are sure to hear the buyer talk in a disrespectful way of your favourite, and find all kinds of fault with it. If, after you have sold it, you want to be convinced whether your judgment be good or not, try to pur- chase back the beast ; and you will then see the dif- ference between the buyer and seller. After a long deal, you probably make some sales, when the whole mob is driven to the yards, and, the sold cattle being draughted out, you help to drive them a couple of miles along the road beyond their old run, after which they go steadily on to the town. Whoever comes to your hut, whether a stranger or not, drinks with you, not wine but tea, for which the kettle is always on the hob, to be ready for any new arrival. Tea drinking and tobacco smokino- are in vogue among all classes, and serve to while away many a dull hour. If in the bush you are hungry and without the means of obtaining food, then the advice is, — "Light your pipe and smoke;" so also, if thirsty,—" A smoke will reheve you." If tired, there is nothing like smoking ; and if particularly lively and happy — smoke ; if you have made a good bargain— smoke ; if a bad one— still smoke ; but if you despise the weed, do not smoke, but be miserable and churlish with yourself and querulous at every CH. v.] THE PIPE. 117 trifle. Some of my readers, and these not of the fair sex, will hardly admire this indiscriminate use of the pipe ; and will hold that, if at any time, it is only at dusk, after the day's work, is over, that the pipe should be brought out. Such is the rule of English propriety, but it is out of its latitude in the colony, where you feel that something is wanting every couple of hours, and the only Jill up of that want is smoking. The habit is thought indeed to be any thing but agreeable by those who have not experi- enced its refreshing and consolatory influence, and such inexperience is common among new comers. I well remember one old gentleman using severe lan- guage to his son for smoking in the morning, and showing with respectable rhetoric that it was a blackguard habit, and indicated a low and debauched character. His argument could not have been good, for in less than a week I saw him looking after some of his cattle, with a short pipe in his mouth, although he had not then had his breakfast. During the heat of the day, if no particular work presents itself, you remain in your hut to talk or read, smoke and drink tea; but if you are busy, either draughting, branding, or seeking cattle, you pay little attention to the broiling sun. There is plenty of excitement attending many of the common occupa- tions of cattle farming, such as hunting and sorting out the cattle on the runs, branding and draughting them in the yards, yoking and breaking in the young steers for draught, all which have to be done among most likely a good proportion of wild and savage- looking cattle. Some of the old stock-keepers are as 118 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V, cool as possible, even in a yard filled with a mixed lot, among which are many termed Russians; and have only a small staff waddy, or knobby stick, where- with to protect themselves. You may pei-haps see one huge beast look at the stock-keeper for a few seconds, and begin to scrape the dirt up with his feet, evidently meaning mischief. The man shows no timidity, but watching when the brute comes at him with his head lowered, ready to throw him a somerset in the air, he gently, and commonly with the greatest unconcern, raises his stick at the exact moment, and giving the brute a tap between the horns, brings it to its knees for a couple of minutes, from which it gets up looking very stupid, but a wiser and a better beast for all that. Presence of mind is always re- quired among cattle, which nothing but being accus- tomed to them and their habits can give. It is, how- ever, rare to hear of any accident happening to the men through their ferocity ; indeed, they only want determination and courage to put them to the right about. Dinner is generally on the table at two or three o'clock, and consists of vegetables and salads grown upon the farm, and meat reared and fattened upon the pastures surrounding. It is accompanied by tea, which makes its appearance at every meal ; and among the polite you may be asked to take a cup of tea instead of wine during the repast. At the tables of the rich and luxurious the difference is not seen be- tween Adelaide and England ; yet the difference ought to be great for any man who has to make his fortune and provide against a rainy day. CH. v.] cattle-owner's life. 119 It should always be remembered that the master's eye makes the horse fat ; which rule appHes to sheep, to cattle, and to every thing. Always, therefore, con- trive to look after all the concerns about the station yourself; to see that the dairy utensils are scalded and clean ; that the cattle are not kept too long in the yards for milking ; that the calves and pigs are dry and littered down ; the horses well looked to, and their saddles duly stuffed and cleaned to prevent injury to their backs. Unfortunately too little atten- tion is paid to this point; and almost every horse over five years old either has, or has had, a sore back, some being thus completely ruined and useless at the age when they should be in their prime. I advise the emiorant to take out one or two oood saddles, but let them be strong and well made, without " fancy-work," and provided with straps and buckles wherewith to fasten on a coat or a blanket. All work is over about six p. m,, and tea ready ; and if no friend or traveller is passing the night at the station the evening is consumed over a paper or book, accompanied by smoking and tea drinking ; or, if you please, your horse is put in requisition to carry you to a friend's hut, or whithersoever pleasure at- tracts or business requires. It is, I confess, difficult to convey an adequate no- tion of the mode of life in the bush, so very different is it from life in England ; but it may not be amiss to observe that nearly all people who enter upon it grow fond of it, and become enchanted with its freedom and happiness, its healthfulness and buoyancy ; and that few wish to exchange it for the bustling, crowded IJO SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. occupations and life of cities. Those also who thus becbme enamoured of a state which can hardly be called civilized, are not poor, ignorant, or vulgar men, but often persons of talent and education, brought up in their native land amid luxury and abundance, witli all tlieir wants supplied and their cares fore- stalled. This class, at any rate, is met with every here and there, and a more light-hearted, happy and independent set of gentlemanly fellows is not to be encountered. Every station boasts of its hospitality to strangers, a virtue, however, which, in Australia, is confined to no one class ; but, besides mere libe- rality, you meet with genuine kindness and good breeding in the depths of the forest, where you might expect only savagery and insult. In travelling in the remote parts, it is not uncom- mon to meet a diay, or perhaps two drays, loaded with provisions, lurniture, boxes, a plough, harrow, guns, axes and saws, bedding, cooking utensils, yokes for oxen, ropes, and a host of things too numerous to mention, and accompanied by a family of persons, young and old, father, mother, sons, daughters, with a greater or less number of labourers, some riding, others walking, and others again half-asleep on the drays, but all looking tired, and desirous of their jour- ney's end. These are new arrivals making their way through the bush to a section or two of land pur- chased or rented, but which it is hoped by them will be their future happy home ; and, however tired and weary with travelling, all are sanguine and buoyed up with the prospect of making a fortune, or obtain- ing a comfortable living; and although tar from CH. v.] TRAVELLING TO THE STATION. 121 neighbours, of being able to enjoy the friendship and intercourse of their own homestead. The father and mother look with pride on the stout athletic sons, and recognise them in their altered dress as the heait ideal of the farmer, or bushman. The daughters think of the nice butter and eggs they will have from their dairy and poultry ; and they all reckon on good crops, and speculate that they will astonish the natives with their neat house and superior culture. They have brought with them good seed wheat and potatoes ; flower seeds for a garden ; vine cuttings and fruit trees to plant ; and naich else ; not omit- ting a few cows and pigs, of which the latter may be heard grunting and groaning as the dray rumbles over the stones, or grinds through the ruts. A few fowls are observed in a crate on the top of the dray ; and in a basket, covered from the sun by a bag or coat, there is a " cold collection," of meat, pies and other articles of food brought from town, with a bottle or two of wine for the female travellers, and something stronger for the male part of the family. If, reader, you ever find yourself in one of these drays, be careful of your spirits, or the men in charge of the cattle will drink them, and say that the bottle has fallen off" on the road. Generally speaking indeed, your stock of wines or spirits wall not last long, and, if you make any considerable stay in the bush, you will for- get the taste of both, not being able to procure them nearer than twenty or thirty miles off". Public- houses are rare after the first twenty miles out of town, and for this oood reason men are seldom found tipsy at the out-stations; and perhaps, on account of 122 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. the same constrained abstinence, they frequently take too much when they can get it. During the heat of the day, the dray stops for a couple of hours under a shady tree, near which there is water and food for the cattle, which are turned out to feed, and a fire is made not far off, on which a kettle of water is soon boiled for tea ; then the basket is brought out, and, all being tired and hungry, ample justice is done to its contents. When the heat has a little moderated, the cattle are again put to, and the journey continued till night comes on, or the convoy arrives at its place of destination. For description's sake we will suppose the arrival to be the case, and will now introduce the reader to the next scene of the drama. The sections commonly are of eighty acres, or thereabouts, and when the party arrives the land is in a state of nature, except that all around the allot- ment may be observed pegs or stakes of wood driven into the ground at certain distances. These are placed by the Government surveyors, and mark out the boundary of the allotment. Saving these, all is " natural." The morning after the arrival is spent by the male part of the little settlement in looking about their land for a site for tiieir future house, which must be conveniently chosen near water, and wood for fuel. Such a situation being found, the w ork at once commences of unpacking the drays to get out the axes and other tools. The settlers (as they must now be considered) work like horses, soon blistering their hands, whilst the colonial labourers they have with them (and who brought down the drays) take it CH. v.] TRAVELLING TO THE STATION. 123 much more pleasantly, and, although resting and smoking now and then, get through plenty of work without the same wear and tear as the new comers. Until the hut is finished, a couple of men cut two or more " forks " and a long pole, and placing the forks in the ground and the pole upon them, the ridgepole of a place of shelter is thus provided. A tarpaulin or piece of canvas is stretched across it, and with the ends fastened down close to the earth, forms a regular tent, such as the gipsies use ; this is set apart as a sleeping place for the females ; the men find their ac- commodation on the open section, and all they want for shelter is a blanket beside a good fire. At day- break all are up and busy, one looking after the cattle, another falling a tree for some part of the dwelling. The females soon learn the cooking, for there is small choice of dishes ; a little salt meat, fresh beef or mutton, is about all the new comers can have, and plain boiling or baking suffices, for the labourers come home ready to devour any thing eat- able in whatever shape. The master and his sons having found a suitable place for the hut, a tree is soon felled, and the labourers split it into slabs and other pieces for building. The hut is up in about a week, and then the family have time and opportunity to look about them, and to fence, plough and dig; build up dairy and fowl-house ; make a sty for the pigs ; and, when this is done, enlarge the hut or build a new one of stone oi" brick, after which the old one serves for the men employed as labourers ; and thenceforth every thing goes on regularly. We pass that same " natural " place in twelve months' time, G 2 124 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V. and see one or two stacks of wheat, a man thrashing in a uood barn, a comfortable honse surrounded by a pretty and useful garden, stocked with vegetables and embellished with numerous flowers, the seeds of some of which have been brought from home, and are cherished on that account : in a word, where nothing but open hush was seen a year before, there are now the symptoms of thriving industry. Health and hap- piness beam on every face, and hardly any one would recognise the strong men and lads in their homely appropriate dresses, as the same with the party of shabby genteel emigrants noted on the journey down. This is one picture, and a bright one ; many are darker, not from any fault of the climate or soil, but from carelessness and negligence, which in Australia, as in England, entail want and misery. The plea- santer but more expensive way of commencing is to hire men to build the hut, and to make every thing comfortable for the family, before the latter ventures into the bush ; but in the interim the family must be living at great expense in town. The general object should be to spend as little money as possible, the steady pursuit of which object does not interfere with the health of the party. Many persons almost live in the open air, without any shelter over their heads at night ; but without engendering sickness, or feeling the miseries that would be expected, and descanted upon, by the inexperienced. It is a pretty sight to see a herd (or mob) of cattle rushing along at full speed, making the ground tremble beneath their weight, and all guided by two or three men on horseback, who ride after them, now CH, v.] MOBS OF CATTLE. 125 here, now there, sometimes galloping before them, crossing in their front to slacken their pace, which, if kept up until they were nearly exhausted, would de- feat the object of the pursuers, for in that state the cattle are sullen, will neither be driven one way or the other, and not unfrequently rush after the drivers, who are obliged to " clear " out of the way as soon as possible. This cattle-driving is a very exciting, healthy, and pleasant exercise for any one fond of riding ; and what makes it better is, that the horses are good, agreeable to back, seldom knock up, and are altogether desirable. They are also sagacious, enjoy the sport, and perfectly understand what they are about; many of them know the particular animal they are after, and keep close to it, turning as it turns, and seldom fail in their object of separating it from the others. One of my friends had a capital roan horse who would follow any particular head, and, if the cow or bullock did not go by fair means, the horse rushed at it and bit it so sharply as soon to claim its attention, and direct it the proper way. On a horse like this there is little to do but keep a firm seat and crack the whip ; the horse will manage all the rest. After being ridden at a rapid pace some- times for the greater part of the day, at night the saddles are taken off, the hobbles put on the fore feet of the horses, and then they are turned out to get what they can to eat, which they soon accomplish, there being seldom any scarcity of rich, strengthening grass when the land is good. Sometimes, however, the country for miles round is burned up, the grass 126 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V, all destroyed, and nothing is to be seen but a land- scape as black as a coal. We must say a few words on these burnings. When the grass is long and rank, and is set on fire, the blaze extends rapidly to a great distance, consuming all things in its progress, destroying ver- min and numberless reptiles, and marching along in an unbroken line, all behind it black, dry and smok- ing, and all in front like the long stubble of a wheat field. When a dead tree or log comes in the way, the flames shoot up and roar whilst devouring the tangled grass collected among its twigs and branches, and then the fire passes onwards, leaving enough behind it to consume its prey gently, which it does without any residimm but a small scatter of white ashes and bits of charcoal, to show the spot where the mighty tree had lain. When the dense stringy-bark forests are in its line of march, the sight becomes singularly grand. The underbrush being thick and compact, and the trees covered with a dry fibrous bark, in appearance like the husk of the cocoa nut prepared for ropes, many of the trees also dead from former fires and tottering with decay, others measuring their length on the earth and piled one upon another, and the dead intermingled with the living ; when all these circumstances combine, the flame is vast and mighty, and the effect majestic. The bark of the trees, when on fire, appears at night like a bright pillar, made brighter and clearer by the winds fanning the flame, and illuminating the parts close around, only to make the darkness more thick CH. v.] FIRES. 127 and dark. Every now and then a thundering crash is heard, and re-echoes from hill to hill, as some giant of the forest comes ruining to the earth, bearing all before him, and sending up a shower of sparks in compactness like one tremendous blaze. The wild animals speedily scour away from this destruction to their lairs ; and many of the smaller creatures are no doubt burned without a chance of escape. Some- times, in large forests, the smouldering trees keep on fire for whole days ; some having lost their heads or upper branches, and being hollow, flare away like huge chimneys, the draught through them keeping up a constant blaze until they fall piece by piece, and no- thing at last remains but a large hole in the ground, where the roots have been burned out. Some kinds of wood, if once ignited, gradually consume until they are gone ; this is the case with the casuarina and divers of the acacia tribe. I have noticed some of these when set on fire, and have afterwards found that not a leaf, twig, or bit of bark was left ; but in their place the shape of the former tree is marked out in white ashes on the earth beneath. When the fires are advancing in the direction of any fence or building, the people must be prepared with green branches of trees to beat it out from amongst the grass ; if this be spiritedly done and a little judgment exercised, the danger will soon be past, especially as most of the farms are made bare, and the grass well trodden down around the fences by the cattle and sheep, and also have roads which serve as gaps, leading in one direction or the other. Where a road occurs to the fire it often puts a stop to its further pro- 1'28 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. V, gress, unless any bunch of grass, or bit of dry wood, or even a few leaves, make a kind of bridge for it, when it again gathers strength on the other side, and continues its passage over hill and dale. In this way on one occasion I observed a distance of thirty miles blackened by the fire, which might be seen smoking as far as the eye could reach. The South Australian grasses are not so coarse, thick, or rank as the grasses are reported to be in America, where a fire is particularly to be dreaded by man and beast, and al- most every living thing in its path is overtaken and destroyed. In Australia, unless the wind is very high, the fire comes gradually on, seldom faster than a common walking pace ; but, if it be more rapid, a bare spot can easily be found, or else a fresh fire be- ing made and allowed to burn all round makes a resting place of security where you may even sleep without fear. Whoever has seen a crop of wheat or any other grain on fire knows well the difference that is made by the luxuriance and height of the material; the flames in this case are like a wall, which flies along at a tremendous rate at the top, and afterwards consumes the bottom or coarser part. In a large plain covered with such materials, and on fire, there would be little chance of escape; and few lamenta- tions would be allowed, as death would be too in- stantaneous. From this danger, however, so for- midable in America, the Australians are happily relieved. CHAPTER VI. SHEEP IN AUSTRALIA. — LAMBING TIME. — SHEARING. — WOOL. — EX- PENSES OF SHEEP FARMING. PROFITS. DISEASES OF SHEEP. "WASHING THE WOOL. RUNS FOR SHEEP. LAND REGULATIONS. RENTING LAND. LICENSES FOR RUNS. The number of sheep in South Austraha at shearing time, in the year 1846, amounted to 480,669 ; and, as all unweaned lambs were excluded from that sum, the quantity now would be at least 50,000 additional. The average of wool from these is 3f lbs. each, and the whole weight exported in 1846 was 1,331,788 lbs., valued at 72,235Z. 12^. sterling. No sheep farmer who wishes to rear a good, strong, healthy sort will expect to have more than one crop of wool, or one dropping of lambs, in the twelve months. The lambing ought to be so ma- naged as to commence in August, and be all over by September, whereby the general work of the station and the tending of the sheep will come together. Great care should be taken, during the lambing time, to bed the sheep every night in a clean yard or fold, and early every morning to separate the lambs dropped in the night, and the ewes belonging to G 3 130 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. them, from the rest of the flock, and place them in a more roomy fold, or in good feed close at hand. Many young ewes, with their first lamb, pay little at- tention to its wants, and allow a strange lamb to take their milk; this must be guarded against, by shutting up the ewe and lamb in a pen made of three hurdles, and tying the ewe's head up, when the lamb can ob- tain the milk ; and the mother, after a day or two of confinement, will take to her offspring, and not after- wards neglect it. As soon as any ewe has lambed, she is drafted with her lamb into the lambed flock, which is taken only a short distance from the hut, to feed upon some clear hill or plain, the grass on which has been reserved for that purpose. Some good shepherds rear c.s many as ten lambs to the same number of ewes, but this is far from general ; where one does this, a hundred do not rear more than an average of from seven to ten. A very good lambing is from eighty to ninety per cent, on the ewes ; could this amount be depended upon, sheep would pay much better than they commonly do. The sheep generally lamb during the rainy weather, when the grass is green and full of nutriment, and the ewes are well supplied with milk ; this is a great ad- vantage to the lambs, which, were they dropped while the feed is dried up by the summer's sun, would be half starved for want of sufficient milk. On the other hand, however, many, both ewes and lambs, die in the winter or rainy months from cold and wet ; for during this time it is not uncommon to have hard pelting showers of rain accompanied by piercing wind ; which makes the young lambs cold and miser- CH. VI.] WILD DOGS AND WATCH-DOGS. 131 able, and they lie down under any shelter they can find, often become benumbed, and soon die. In my recollection, in one afternoon, at least fifty lambs out of a flock were killed by the bitter rain in less than a couple of hours. The wild dogs are a sad nuisance in lambing time. These beasts seem to be aware of the helplessness of the poor creatures, and are constantly watching to destroy them. They are guided to the fold by the incessant bleating of the young lambs, and also fol- low them on scent over the whole tract of country they have passed through during the day, until they arrive at the folding ground, where they prowl about to take advantage of any opportunity that may offer. The best guard against them is a good watch-dog ; but in some places they are too numerous for any single dog to keep away. It may be asked, — Why not keep a pack of watch-dogs ? I answer, that this would be as bad as the evil intended to be remedied ; for, during some parts of the year, dogs' meat is scarce, and at such times a sheep must be killed to provide the pack with meat. After the shearing, dressing, weaning, and draughting are over, the deaths should be rare when the sheep are free from disease ; and, if so, the tribes of tame dogs, being pressed with hunger, would perhaps forget their manners, and turn round and destroy the property they were kept to guard. At lambing time they would find plenty of food from the number of lambs which die, and from the ewes which are cut off in lambing; again, at shearing time sheep are killed for the extra num- ber of men employed, and some also are perhaps 132 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. destroyed by drowning while washing, by being accidentally stabbed in shearing, by getting smothered in the yards, and by other mishaps. A flock of six hundred ewes should have as many as twelve or fourteen rams among them. The rams should be kejDt in the flock for at least six weeks, unless indeed more than the above number are put with the ewes, which will lessen the time required. After the rams are taken from the ewe flocks, they may be placed among the wethers until next season ; but, if no dry flock be kept, the better way is to hire ■Jieni for the occasion from some neighbour. The cost of hire is about ten shiUings for each ram, which is preferable to buying them outright, and letting them constantly run with the ewes, in which case the lambing, instead of being over in a few weeks, will be a bother for the whole year round, and quite ruin the flock. Where this unprofitable game is pursued, or where more than one dropping is expected in the twelve months, the ewes are never in good condition, and are so weakened by con- stantly rearing lambs, that the increase is compara- tively poor and feeble, and the wool much deterio- rated, being neither firm nor strong in the staple, nor heavy in weight. If the lambing be all over by the latter end of September, the lambs will be fit for weaning at the shearing time, which occurs in November, and which should be concluded by the end of the year, to pre- vent the wool getting full of grass, seeds and burrs, which would damage its quality so much as to make a penny or more in the pound difference in its value. i CH. VI.] SHEEP-SHEARING. 133 After the' sheep have been thoroughly washed, and sufficient time has elapsed for the yoke or grease to rise in the wool, the shearing comraences. During the shearing season, many men travel to all parts of the country in quest of work as shearers, for which they obtain about fifteen shillings for the hundred sheep. These men are employed, for the rest of the year, either in driving bullocks, or as reapers, farm labourers, shepherds, or in any other calling they like ; many are employed in the whale fisheries, the season for which closes just before the shearing com- mences, and hence these men can go from one occu- pation to the other without loss of time. Many shearers earn a good deal of money ; thus a tolerable hand will shear sixty or seventy sheep in the day, and the best or the fastest hands will shear their hundred without much fatigue. During the shearing and washing, either spirits or wine is generally allowed, though not so often as formerly. The men are better without it, and I have remarked that those who were standing up to their chests in water for hours, washing sheep, could better support the fatigue, when supplied with hot coffee, than others who had access to intoxicating drinks. The more common allowance at present is a bottle of Cape wine fer diem, with provisions also, but one shilUng a day is deducted from the wages to pay for the latter. The sheep are shorn in great barns or wool sheds. One part of these buildings, which are often seventy or eighty feet long, is boarded and made ready for the shearers ; close to this shearing floor, one or more tables are fixed up ; these, instead of being solid, are 134 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. made like Venetian blinds, so as to allow any dust or dirt to fall through them from the fleece ; at each of these tables one man is employed folding the fleeces as they are taken off" the sheep, and putting them into different bales according to their quality. This person is the " winder," whose duty it is to take the fleece and spread it out upon the table, separate from it any stained wool or dirt, then roll it up from the tail to the head ; and either tie the roll with twine, or with a band made by the neck part being twisted like a rope. Close to the door, the sheep are col- lected in a fold, and from that are driven into smaller pens where they can be easily caught, and which are laid down with clean straw or rushes to keep the wool dry, and as free from dust as possible. The men assemble at daylight, and when all is ready, and every one at his post, the catcher goes into the small pen, takes the first sheep he comes to, and delivers it over to the shearer next to him, and so continues till all the shearers are served. In a few minutes these sheep are turned out shorn into another fold, and the fleece is picked up, and placed on the table for the winder. If the flock be diseased, as soon as the sheep have been shorn the whole of them are dressed with a lotion ; this again employs several men, and requires great care. When first caught in the dress- ing pen, the sheep are placed on the rump, and then the under part of the neck, and the chest, legs and stomach are well examined, and if any discoloration of the skin, or small vesicle denoting the scab, be observed, that part is opened or scarified with a sharp knife, and then well rubbed with the dressing ; CH. VI.] SALE OF WOOL, 135 the sheep is then turned up upon its legs, and the neck placed in a bale or stock made to fit it, which is confined by a wooden peg", so that there is no fear of escape ; while here, the shoulders, back, rump and sides are well looked to, and, if the sheep are not dipped in a large tub containing the liquor, the wool is separated from the head to the tail along the spine, and the liquor poured into this furrow formed by the wool. Rubbing the sides will then soak the whole carcase ; but the better way is, to take hold of the legs, lift the sheep into a tub full of dressing, only keeping out the head, so that no part can escape a thorough soaking. By this means the dressing and shearing will be over the same day, and the lambs can be separated from the ewes and weaned, after which a quiet station may be looked for until the next season. The shearing is always a time of bustle and anxiety to the master, and of jolHfication for the men. After the wool is off the sheep and packed, the bales, being marked, are ready for the market, and are either sent up in the owners' drays, or drays are hired to do the cartage, and to bring back provisions ; which latter should be obtained in sufficient quantities to last for twelve months, and may be brought down at but little extra cost by the return drays. The merchants in Adelaide either advance money on wool sent to their agents in England, or buy the wool outright for their own benefit. Wool in town is therefore as good as cash, there being always plenty of buyers, and the farmer can easily find out the highest current price. 136 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. The wages for the shepherds are generally from 251. to 35/. per annum, and rations ; which latter consist of ten j)o»mds of flour, ten pounds of meat, a quarter of a pound of tea, and two pounds of sugar; any thing else is paid for by the men out of their wages. The hut-keeper receives from 18/. to 201. a year, and the same rations as the shepherd. The shepherd takes his sheep out at daylight, and returns with them at sunset, when they ai'e given over to the hut-keeper, to be put into a clean and roomy fold, and kept safe from the wild dogs, until given again into the shepherd's charge in the morn- ing. The shepherd is expected to catch and dress any diseased sheep ; to be answerable for the whole flock ; and to report deaths or accidents at head- quarters. The rations are given out every week, and left in charge of the hut-keeper, who is liable to the shepherd for them, and for whom he cooks, keeps the hut in order, and helps as required. The shepherds and hut-keepers generally sign a written agreement, engaging to serve a certain time for a certain sum of money, be answerable for any property placed under their care, and make up any losses that may occur through carelessness or neglect. In these agreements the master ought, for his own sake, to be careful that the time of servitude of his men does not expire during the lambing, weaning, shear- ing, or dressing seasons; in which case he might find great diflSculty in replacing his hands, the wages being then high, and work very plentiful. Different accounts of the increase of sheep have at various times been presented to the readers of CH. VI.] PROFIT AND LOSS OF SHEEP. 137 colonial books ; and if calculations on paper, in which death and accidents are not allowed for, were valid in fact, few of the Australian sheep farmers should be without large fortunes. The way of reck- oning is somewhat in this style : — Increase. Male. Female. 600 ewes, first purchase, 1 st year, 550 lambs ; 250 300 900 ewes , . . 2ud „ 850 „ 400 450 1350 ewes . . .3rd „ 1200 „ 500 700 This is little better than simple multiplication, and, if the expenses were even taken at the proper sum, the profit would meet them at this progressive rate. But sheep require great care, and, even with that, they will contract disease and die ; be killed by the wild dogs ; and suffer many other mishaps about which people in England hear nothing. From the time that sheep are first purchased, until either they are given up, or the owner has become callous, they are one continued source of annoyance. You cannot leave the stations for even a few days without hear- ing on your return that So-and-So has lost part of your flock, or that the sheep at such an out station have been attacked by the wild dogs ; or that some other confounded event has befallen them. You spend large sums about dressing them, and gloat over the idea that you have killed the disease, which all the time is only awaiting a few rainy days to break out afresh. Perhaps your flock is clean, and then you are indeed lucky ; but your pleasure will be modified before long by a few of your sheep being lost, and found in a neighbour's scabby flock; or worse, it 138 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. will be vice versa, and his brutes will be seen rubbing their diseased sides amongst your clean animals. It is no use getting into a rage ; you must bear all, and more sometimes. After all your sheep have been washed, and are ready to shear, a wild dog may likely come (these beasts seem to love to annoy, and do choose such a time) and break into the fold ; the sheep then break out, and you are lucky if you find many of them again. These things make a sad hole in your calculations, and after the year is out you are fortunate if you are not out of pocket. True it is, then, that in the colony persons may lose hundreds, and even thousands of pounds on sheep. In my experience, as many as two hundred sheep died out of a flock of eight hundred in one night; and, in less than a fortnight, not more than three hundred remained ; even these were afterwards much thinned, and probably now not more than one hundred of them survive. All this destruction was caused by that horrid disease the scab, in conjunction with the dressing applied to cure it. These great losses are not even uncommon enough to cause notice to be taken of them by the neighbours, who are often in the same plight with their flocks. The best remedy for the scab, or at least the remedy most popular among the sheep farmers, con- sists of half a pound of tobacco boiled in a gallon of water for about three or four hours, and when cold strained ; then add to the decoction an ounce and a half of corrosive subUmate, two ounces of turpentine, and one ounce of spirits of tar. This quantity should dress about twelve sheep, or more if they are not CH. VI.] PROFIT AND LOSS OF SHEEP, 139 very bad ; for then it only requires to be applied to the places affected, and not over the whole body. Where the disease exists, the skin is very hard and thick, and of a yellow tinge. This skin should be scored through in stripes, and the mixture well rubbed in; which, although a barbarous operation apparently, the sheep seem to prefer to the dreadful torture they endure from the constant irritation. If carefully performed, and if the patients are afterwards occasionally looked to, this remedy is found to have the effect of killing the dis- ease. Many other means and receipts have been tried with greater or less benefit, but the tobacco and cor- rosive sublimate is the favourite cure among the far- mers. Sometimes, as before stated, great numbers of sheep are destroyed by the remedy, which is gene- rally the case when heavy rain comes on directly after the patients have been dressed, which causes them to be attacked with dysentery, and they are soon carried off. The sheep are never housed at night as in England ; it is not considered necessary, the nights being usually so mild that the people can sleep out of doors with impunity all the summer; and at other times, when the cold is more felt, the slight- est shelter is all they seem to require. The first year of sheep farming is sure not to bring any great return, even though you have more than common luck, but the third or fourth year will be more likely to give you a proper idea of the profit, and also of the loss. That some approximation may be formed of the first expenses of keeping sheep, and of the profit for the first year, supposing the whole of the increase to 140 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. be sold, I shall imagine that the sum of 50GZ. is to be appropriated, and is expended on sheep to the best advantage. So for then as my experience has gone, I should dispose of it thus : — 300 25 10 50 15 3 5 . 6 . 9 10 . 8 . 10 . 50 £486 15 600 clean, well-bred ewes, from 2 to 4 tooth, at IO5, each, and in lamb 50 wedders for the use of the station Hut for the shepherd and 100 hurdles Shepherd, 30^. a year ; hut-keeper, 20^. Rations for both .... Watch-box and cooking utensils Labour and drugs for diseased sheep Shearing and washing sheep and lambs Wool bags, cartage of wool, and provisions Loss of ewes by death (20) Rations, clothes, &c., for sheep farmer . Thus very little less than 500/. is required to com- mence with good clean sheep, and these at a rather low price; and even then without a run for them, which, with the time lost in seeking it, may cost 51., and the squatting license 10/. more. This brings up the sum to nearly the 500/. Now, let us see the profits at the same standard of prices as before. After weaning and shearing, they will run as follows, supposing a good lambing : — 550 lambs at 4s. each 580 ewes' fleeces at 3s. each 550 lambs' fleeces, at Is. Qd. each £ s. d. 110 87 . 41 £238 CH, VI.] SCAB AND FOOT ROT. 141 The profit will be greater if the lambs are not sold until they have reached a better age, as at nine months old they will fetch Ss. each. The calculation on the 500/. after a year's labour and anxiety, will, after pay- ing the expenses, leave about 40/. surplus as profit; and, if the increase be not sold, the owner will for that year be at his wits' end to manage without mort- gaging his property. For farming 600 sheep pro- perly, lOOOZ. is required. With this sum there will be always in hand a few pounds to expend upon them if necessary. If the sheep are kept clean, and properly tended by the shepherds, the shearing is proportionably remunerative; the wool is longer and more plentiful, and altogether in better condition; but if they are diseased, the dressing applied to the fleece renders the wool hard and crisp, and materially diminishes its strength. This makes it less valuable in the market, and the quantity smaller. In lambing, also, very much depends upon the health of the flock; for a scabby lot the average will not often exceed 75, and will sometimes be as low as 30, per cent.; but for good clean sheep it may be as high as 95. Nothing is more material for the prosperity of the flock than a good shepherd, the want of whom will be particularly felt during lambing time, when the flock requires the greatest care and attention, and no in- considerable share of good temper. It is customary to offer a reward to the shepherd who rears the greatest per centage of lambs, and the emulation this excites has many beneficial results. Some masters give one shilling a head for every lamb above 80 to the 100 ewes, and, if the shepherds are careful and fortunate. 142 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. some of them realise a good round sum in this way. In one instance I saw 114 lambs to 100 ewes, but many of these were reared by hand. The chief care in purchasing sheep will therefore be, to obtain them free from disease, especially scab and foot rot, which two complaints are in themselves sufficient to ruin any new beginner; and when once they appear, if they are not attended to, will consume no end of money and labour, and the increase will be born diseased and stunted. The scab is a very contagious disease, not only infecting the young lambs, but, even when not fatal, destroying the crop of wool to such an extent that many sheep, before shearing season arrives, are almost as destitute of wool as the shears themselves. I have seen them perfectly bald, and the skin in parts, as the shoulders, back, &c., as thick and hard as sole leather. The scab occasions great irritation, and the sheep, if they cannot find trees to rub against, will tear their fleeces off' with their teeth, the pain being so great. This disease is very prevalent, and therefore the purchaser should be particular, and ascertain the condition of any sheep before he buys them; if they have the scab, they are cheap to the new farmer at no price, and will never be good for either lambs or wool. The foot rot among sheep is generally confined to wet and rank soils, and is seldom found upon stony hilly ground, which description of run should there- fore be preferred. It is not so prevalent as the scab, though, when it makes its appearance, it is very ex- pensive and difficult to get rid of. I have seen at least the third of a large flock that could not stand CH. VI.] SCAB AND FOOT ROT. 143 upon their fore legs to feed, but were obliged to kneel upon their knees, which, with the constant friction, had become almost worn down to the bone; it would have been a charity to have killed them all, and very little loss eventually to the owner. The best remedy that I know of for the foot rot is, to remove the flock to high dry ground, where the land is hard and stony, which, with well dressing the feet, will soon get rid of the disease. The dressing I use is very simple, consisting of treacle and sulphate of copper, in the proportion of one part of the latter to four of the former: after well washing the part affected, this application may be laid on, spread upon cloth. Some dig a small trench at the entrance of the fold, and fill it with quick hme, so that, when the sheep are driven into the yard, they are obliged to tread in it. This is a good remedy if the sheep are in dry yards during the rest of the night. Great carelessness is often manifested in getting up the wool for the market, although it is an article requiring the utmost attention to ensure a good price. Wools for the last three years commanded very fair profits, and on this account growers and shippers became careless, and the bales sent to London in 1846 were many of them in a bad state. A large proportion of the Australian wools gene- rally passes through the hands of the firm of Simes, whose report is always valuable, and gives good ad- vice where it is required. I should hope that their experience will be attended to by the wool-growers. In their report for 1846 is the following: — " It can- not fail to afford gratification and encouragement to 144 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI, the Australian wool-growers, to learn that the produce of their flocks is at this time in very high and de- served repute in England. This reputation arises chiefly from the pecuHar softness of the cloth and other fabrics made from their wools, and it is there- fore very desiiable that the growers should exert themselves to combine the highest possible degree of firmness with this softness of handle; making it a rule to breed from rams of the finest wool and purest race they can obtain, purity of blood being a great essential towards producing wool of that uniform firmness of fibre, elasticity, and closeness of staple, which alone can enable the manufacturer to make a cloth small on the face as well as soft to the touch. The Tasmanian flocks, although not so long in a course of improvement as those of Australia, are now rapidly advancing in quality, and extensive fur- ther improvement may confidentiv be expected to result from a perseverance in the same system which has been so eminently successful in the best flocks of the sister colony as well as in Germany, the great point, as before stated, being the attainment of purity of blood. Indeed, several of the Tasmanian growers, by their skilful and assiduous management, have so much improved, their flocks in quality, length of staple, washing and assorting, that they have mate- rially raised them in the opinion of the buyers, who have testified their approbation by the increased prices they readily pay for the flocks in question." This is an important subject to all who think of sheep farming, and I strongly advise them to obtain every information in their power before leaving Eng- CH, VI.] CLEANING THE WOOL. 145 land, which can readily be done by applying to the wool brokers connected with the colony, on arrivinpf whither, such information will be found most valu- able. Different modes of cleaning the wool are in vogue; such as washing in tubs filled with warm water, and using soap, which is afterwards rinsed out by letting a stream of water fall on the sheep from an elevation of five or six feet. This is a good method to cleanse the wool from dust and dirt ; it is expensive, but I believe pays, from the wool being so much cleaner than when washed in the com- mon way. This latter consists in making pens in either a running creek or water-hole; then the men stand up to their middles in the water, and receive the sheep that have been soaked by swimming about for some five minutes ; they are then passed from man to man, and each hand rubs them well, and rinses out the dirt from the fleece : they arc at last allowed to swim to land at some convenient place, on a gravelly spot, selected to keep them clean. Some sheep again are shorn in the grease or dirt, without any washing beforehand, and the wool is washed in running water, and dried upon hurdles raised from the ground to allow a current of air to penetrate underneath. Others do not wash the wool, but sell it in its natural state; but then, as the weight is greater, and the wool must be washed eventually, the price is small; and it is generally considered a slovenly way of going to work by every farmer who has any emu- lation in his business. Great attention should undoubtedly be paid to the 146 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. cleaning, in whatever way it may be performed : the careful man will not only obtain a better price for oood washed and made-iip wool, but also will find less trouble in making- an advantageous bargain with the merchants, who know that his "cHp" of the preceding year had been properly attended to. Sheep, besides being valuable for their wool, are capable of being made very fat, if proper care be taken of them while feeding. They never gain flesh, however, if they are driven about from place to place, and rushed or worried by the shepherds' dogs, as is too often the case. This is easily seen, for if, after three or four months of proper feeding, they are care- lessly used by a new shepherd, they soon lose the flesh and jjlumpness they had acquired, and are like so many skeletons ; and also become diseased. This is a curious fact, but it is far too often proved. Be careful with sheep, and they may be a profit; be careless, and drive them about with the dogs, and they are sure to be a loss. Some sheep in South Australia attain what would be a very fair size in England, averaging 100 lbs. each, although fed en- tirely on the grass and herbage that they pick up upon their run. Mr. Gilbert, to the north of Ade- laide, is famous for his fat sheep, and can at all times command a good price. One of his shepherds told me that he had had sheep in the flock that actually died from obesity. Of this fact I cannot speak positively; all I know is, that when dead, and in the butchers' shops, Mr. Gilbert's sheep attract great attention from their beauty. This gentleman, whose CH. VI.] RUNS FOR SHEEP. 147 estate is on the Barossa Range, always pays his shepherds a high price, because he gets the best men, and finds that this is good poHcy. The country to the north of Adelaide is considered much the best for sheep-farming, both from its vast extent and also from the nature of the soil. To the south as well as the east of Adelaide the country is generally hilly and broken ; but this is not the case to the north, where there are immense plains and valleys only slightly wooded, and with chains of water-holes in all directions. The water of these holes in most places is brackish ; but it is found to be nourishing and wholesome for sheep and cattle, both of which fatten well with it. On first tasting, this hard water is any thing but agreeable ; but the dislike to it soon wears off, and I am told, by those who have been ac- customed to it, that the pure fresh water is afterwaids considered insipid. Several gentlemen have declared to me that the brackish water was, to their palates, very pleasant, and I knew one person, in particu- lar, who, when he received a glass of good water, would put salt into it to give it a flavour. At first this water frequently produces dysentery, but this speedily passes off, and I do not remember hearing of any serious consequences from its use. In some parts of the north, springs of fresh water are found ; but these are few and far between, and cannot be considered a feature of that part of the country. Much has been said of scarcity of water over the whole of this colony, but without justice; for althoutrh South Austraha can boast of no navio;able H 2 148 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. rivers, and of hardly any permanent streams, yet the surface water from springs is abundant, the sup- ply of which never fails; and such collections of surfiice water are very equally scattered over all the known available land. I am not aware of a sino-le plot of ground large enough for a sheep or cattle run that is rendered useless by the want of water. For the purpose of procuring runs for sheep or cattle, the best way is to take out a squatting licence, which costs bl. ; for which sum a block of land, two miles square, is allowed : and the only difficulty is, that instead of paying the money for and claiming a tract of land found by the Government, you have to find the spot yourself, and, giving a description of it, claim the whole of the land within such and such boundaries. When this is done, and the money has been paid, the tract of land will belong to you so long as it may remain unsurveyed and unpurchased ; but, when once put up to auction, the person possess- ing the run has no greater right to bid, and no more privilege, than any other individual. The owner of an 80-acre section, in the district in which the run is claimed, can take the tract of land without the above payment, as for every 80-acre sec- tion a run is allowed on payment of \0s. only, if such run can be found by the party purchasing that sec- tion. This is a privilege allowed to the owners of land over those who are not proprietors. On a run of the above extent, two flocks of sheep, each containing about 600 head, can be fed if the CH. VI.] RENTING LAND. 149 grass is good ; and this will keep the sheep for at least a couple of years, after which the increase will require increased pasturage ; when the sheep-farmer must strike out an off-station, and divide the flocks between the two places. The ewe flocks should never contain more than 600, but the diy or wedder flocks may often, at least in an open country, amount to 1000 without any inconvenience accruing from the largeness of the number. These are looked after by only one man, who, if a good shepherd, will be quite adequate for such a charge. One acre of land is only reckoned sufficient to feed one sheep during the whole year ; which is a correct calculation, for the great heat parches the feed, and the sheep destroy a quantity of pasturage by trampling over it. This is particularly the case around the folding ground, which soon becomes quite bare of herbage; on which account it is the best plan to form the sta- tion upon any indifferent poor land close to the feeding ground, and there to fold the sheep, thus saving the better land which is usually used for this purpose. As for cattle, an 80-acre section is only reckoned to feed 16, which seems to be a short allowance to us in England, who hear of keeping a cow and pig, and supplying a cottager with vegetables, from a single acre ; however, the above statement is true, and will continue to hold jrood so lono; as the land is allowed only to bear the natural grasses, and the cattle roam whither they will. It never answers the purpose of the grazier to rent land of private parties for the purpose of depasturing 150 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VI. stock upon it; this should not for a moment be thought of whilst any runs can be obtained upon the Government lands. The laws of the waste lands are as follows :• — The Governor appoints a commissioner to make regula- tions. The commissioner is to adjust all differences between individuals respecting the occupation of their respective stations, &c. He may remove from one place to another the cattle, sheep, and servants of any licensed person found encroaching on the run of another. Persons resisting are liable to a penalty of not less than 201., nor more than \00l. Any one wishing to depasture stock on waste lands, or to oc- cupy the same, by residing or erecting any hut or building thereon, or by clearing, inclosing, &c. ; or to cut, saw, split or remove timber or other natural pro- duce from any part thereof, must obtain a licence from the Governor or such proper officer as he may appoint. The penalty for neglecting to take out a licence is, for the first offence, not exceeding 10/., for the second ditto, not exceeding 20/., for the third or any subsequent offence, not exceeding 50/. Persons occupying waste lands may cut down timber for their own use on the station, unless public notice has been previously given by the Governor, or he has reserved the same for public uses. Depasturing Licences, authorizing only the de- pasturing of stock ; fee, 10s. 6d. Occupation Licences, authorizing building and residing on waste lands, for the purpose of depasturing thereon; fee, 5/. Timber Licences, authorizing only the cutting, CH. VI.] LAWS OF THE WASTE LANDS. 151 sawing, splitting and removing of timber or other natural produce therefrom; fee, II. Occupiers of not less than 80 acres of purchased land, possessing a depasturing licence, may receive an occupation licence without payment of any addi- tional fee. Persons holding a licence, who may vio- late any of the regulations, are liable to have their licences cancelled, and must quit their runs within ten days after notice. All unsurveyed land, occupied or depastured under the authority of a licence, will at any time be liable to be sold or let in the same manner as other unalienate crown lands ; but, in case of any such sale or letting being contemplated, the Government will give one month's notice to the holder of such licence. All sur- veyed land will, of course, as at present, be open to immediate sale or letting; under existing; regulations. Forms of application for licences can be obtained at the office of the Commissioner of Crown Lands, or at the different police stations in the interior. Any person licensed to depasture stock on the waste lands, who may consider that he has just cause of complaint against another licensed person, in any thing relating to the depasturing of stock, shall, at least ten days previously to referring his complaint to the Commissioner of Crown Lands for decision, cause a notice of such complaint to be served on the other party; and if, after the expiration of ten days, the party on whom such notice is served shall fail to re- move the alleged cause of complaint, the complainant may then refer the matter to the decision of the Com- missioner of Crown Lands. 152 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. In adaltioii to money for licences, a tax is paid on the stock in this proportion : — 8. d. For every horse or mare 2 6 For every head of cattle 6 For each sheep 1 Part of this sum was appropriated as salary for the inspector of runs, and also for the inspector of sheep, whose duty it was to endeavour to put a stop to the scab in sheep by making owners of diseased sheep pay a penalty if they neglected their flocks. This was found not to answer, and was discontinued. The comparative return of the number of stock assessed for the years 1844 and 1845 : — Years. Horses above the Homed cattle above age of six months, the age of six months. Sheep, including weaned lambs. ' 1844 1845 902 1044 22,711 26,146 355,689 480,669 Comparative return of the quantity of land under cultivation in the years 1844 and 1845: — Acres under cultivation. Crops. Wheat Barley Oats Maize Potatoes Garden Wheat Barley Oats Self-sown. 1844. 18,980 4,264i 1,045 2411 397i 761' 170 160 1845. 18,838 4,342| 1,485| 86i 459 634 249 56 71 CH. VI.] LAND IN CULTIVATION. 153 The apparent deficiency in the quantity of land, returned as self-sown in 1845, may be accounted for by the fact of the returns for that year not having been collected till the commencement of the harvest season, at which time many of the self-sown crops may have been already cut for hay. — Compiled from Records in the Colonial Secretary's Office. H 3 CHAPTER VII. FIRST INTRODTTCTION OP CATTLE IXTO ADELAIDE. — KANGAROO FLESH. BREAKING IN STEERS FOR DRAUGHT. JOURNEY OVER- LAND. HOSTILE NATIVES. RATe's JOURNET. THE BUSHMAN's FOOD. — PRICE OF CATTLE IN NEW SOUTH WALES. When the colony of South Australia was first be- coming inhabited by the white people, the want of oxen for draught was severely felt, and the few per- sons who possessed any were in a fair way of making a fortune by letting them out ; so great was the demand, that a couple of oxen readily fetched 5/. a day, or 30Z. a week, for their labour ; and the poor creatures were likely to have been soon knocked up with work, being too valuable to have much holiday time, if fresh supplies of cattle had not been brought to the place. A pair of good draught oxen to pur- chase were at that time worth 200/., but now 12/. is a fair price for a couple of strong animals well broken in to work. The first cattle were, I believe, a few brought from the Cape of Good Hope ; these were large, but slow at work ; to the butcher, however, their weight made amends for all other defects. The next supplies were from Van Diemen's land : CH. YII.] FIRST INTRODUCTION OF CATTLE. 155 these fetched a high price, and were soon followed by more, as the cattle-owners in New South Wales heard of the enormous prices to be obtained in Ade- laide ; and a few enterprising gentlemen determined to collect their herds, and drive them overland, a dis- tance of about 800 miles. This was a great under- taking, and one that required no ordinary persever- ance and courage to attempt, for the main part of the distance lay over a country which was not pre- viously known, except that there was the certainty of meeting with numbers of savage and hostile tribes of blacks, who might be naturally expected to wish to retain such plentiful provisions as the cattle would furnish ; and in whose eyes the articles in the drays Avould doubtless seem handy and highly desirable. Captain Sturt had been down the Murray River from New South Wales to Encounter Bay in South Australia, so that the direction was not altooether unknown ; but as his party were in boats, and in most places the river is confined by steep banks, little could be seen of the surrounding country, ex- cept in some parts, where for a few miles there were glimpses of what any traveller would consider a very dreary region. Not cast down by the thought of these perils, it was determined to attempt the passage ; and for that purpose the cattle and horses were col- lected, drays and provisions were bought, and a party of men was engaged to drive and protect the cattle from the many dangers they were likely to encounter on the unusual journey. In a short time the expedition was ready to start in its adventurous course, where it was well known that no assistance 156 'south AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. could be expected from friends, however much it might be required; and where the only human beings that were encountered would be too happy to murder and rob the party if in convenient distress and difficulties. All these dangers were, however, overcome, and, after a weary and toilsome march, the adventurers arrived at their destination, to their own profit and satisfaction, and the great joy and wonder of the Adelaidians, who hitherto had but little idea of such lengthened journeys, and now saw some pro- spect of enjoying meals of fresh beef and mutton, in- stead of the flesh of the kangaroo or emu, or the salt pork, to which they had long been accustomed. Apropos of this subject, I may obsei"ve tliat the kangaroo and emu were for a long time the favourite food of the early settlers, and are now considered in something of the same light as game in England. The flesh of the kangaroo has much the taste of hare, and, when properly cooked, will be ad- mired by those who are fond of the hare flavour. Kangaroos were at first plentiful, and it Avas no un- common sight to see them bounding along through the midst of the embryo city of Adelaide; but the busy life and occupations of the emigrant have scared them away from their favourite resorts, and those which have escaped the gun, or the dogs, have fled to distant secluded parts, where they are rarely seen ; and, indeed, so few are now caught, that the flesh is dear, and reckoned quite a luxury. The dogs kept to hunt these animals were originally brought overland, and are a breed between the grey- hound and lurcher, combining both fleetness and CH, VII.] OVERLAND JOURNEYS. 157 keen scent, with a large size and strength. For a continuance, the flesh of the kangaroo is any thing but pleasant, and the reader may guess the pleasure which the Adelaide gentry manifested, when they saw a large herd of cattle, and flock of sheep, come almost unexpectedly amongst them, and remind them thus practically of the roast beef of old Eng- land. Advantage is often taken of the overland journeys to break in the young steers for draught, which not only makes the work easier for the old bullocks, but renders the newly broken steers more valuable. On first yoking they have for a partner an old, steady, and strong ox; one that they cannot play pranks with, and that is able to pull them to the right or left as ordered by the driver. By this means, and with judicious treatment, they are soon made to work easily and properly, and allow themselves to be handled, and yoked, or unyoked, without trouble. Some drivers, on first yoking, put strong tackle upon them, and then turn them out for two or three days, until they eitlier get accustomed to their harness, or break their necks — one is about as likely as the other; for, when first confined in pairs, they are more like mad brutes than demure animals ; although their ebullitions soon work off, (if, as I before said, the creatures do not kill themselves,) after which they become steady, and may be depended upon. Among the domestic animals I will back the bullock for cun- ning, stuj)idity, and inattention to what is said to him, as well as for strong determination to go his own way ; all which has to be eradicated from his mind 158 SOUTH AUSTRALIA, [CH. VII. and inclinations ; and severe work he undergoes be- fore he has properly learned his duty ; but when once broken in, and well treated, he is docile and obedient, and appears perfectly to understand his place. Each bullock in a team is honoured by a name, to which he readily answers by obeying the orders of the driver. The speculation of driving the cattle overland was found very profitable to all concerned. Some httle account of the preparations for, and the difficulties of, the aftair may be amusing. A party of about twelve men, all used to bush travelling, being formed, and provided with horses to ride upon, and drays to carry their provisions, the expedition is ready to start on the road, and drive the cattle before them, until they arrive at the boundary of the settled parts, where they recruit, to enable the cattle to get into good condition to continue their further travels by land and water, over stream and plain. Beside provisions the drays would be loaded with all kinds of miscellaneous articles, and also with casks for water, and one of the drays should have the body made into the shape of a punt or flat-bottomed boat, to be used crossing rivers, which, without something of the kind, would both prove dangerous and cause much delay. In some parts, for great distances, water is carried in the casks to supply the party for three or four days at a time, for they have to travel over barren, sandy and dry plains, almost without pasture. The natives on the overland route were known to be hostile, and for the protection of the parties am- CH. VII.] OVERLAND JOURNEYS. ' 159 munition and guns were provided. This has always been found necessary by every party, and indeed some, by not taking proper precautions, have had men killed, and all the cattle and other property scat- tered amongst the aborigines. The object of the blacks in attacking a party is to obtain possession of the live stock, which they kill and eat, and for which they will often expose their lives, although never in open fight if they can avoid it. On this account parties travelling with cattle or sheep, whenever they found any of the animals speared so as to be unfit to travel, or killed by the blacks, always made it a rule to burn the carcasses ; or at least any part of them that they did not require for the use of the expe- dition; thus showing the natives that they would not obtain their object by maraudings ; and, if the same thing could invariably be done, I think the destruction of property by the blacks would soon cease, since they could have no object in taking the lives of the cattle. When on the march, two or three of the party ride ahead, to see that there is no ob- stacle in the direct path, and, in case any deviation is requisite, to direct the driver of the cattle and drays. This advanced party keeps at a certain distance in sight of the rest, and is followed by the cattle, which are driven by three or four more men (according to the strength of the party) leisurely along, and these in their turn are followed by the drays which carry the provisions, &c. Every man has a gun and gene- rally a pistol ready loaded, and, in case of the natives beino- seen hoverino; about, the leading men and the 160 • SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. cattle-drivers fall back to the drays, ready to act on the defensive. The drays form a shelter for the party, for the blacks always endeavour to make the attack on them in the plains whilst they themselves are protected by the trees growing at the edges of the open spaces, from behind which they peep, to get an oppor- tunity of throwing their spears. With this weapon they are very expert, and can project it to a great dis- tance, often killing birds and animals eighty yards off. The blacks never collect together to face the white people on the plains, if they can in any way avoid it, but, if there be no trees of sufficient size, seek shelter in the scrub, underbrush, or beds of reeds, which are common on the banks of the Murray River, and grow to a great height. This river lies in the route we are speaking of, and flows with serpentine windings for a great distance. Its course is followed down by the overland parties, and the bights or bends are gene- rally selected as the securest places for putting the cattle into at night ; as the deep water, which they will not attempt to swim in the dark, almost encom- passes them, and the entrance to the little peninsula is occupied by the party. The camp being so placed, the cattle, if attacked by the blacks, can only escape by rushing out and alarming the watchmen. At night, as also indeed by day, tlie cattle seem to be well aware of the approach of natives, and to know their danger, making despe- rate efforts to escape ; and, often for years after, they never see blacks approach without making off at full speed. This also is the case with some sheep, which. ClI. VII.] OVERLAND JOURNEYS. 161 in fact, show as much aversion to the natives as to the wild dog, to which they have so well founded an antipathy. When on the march, the cattle are flanked by the stock-keepers or drivers on horseback, whose busi- ness it is to keep them together, and advancing in the proper direction. This cattle-driving is very wearisome and tiring work. The men have to keep close to the beasts in the sandy, dry plains, and other places where the dust and heat are almost suffo- cating, from which, however, they must not attempt to escape, or they will have the whole herd in dis- order. The drays are frequently driven over hilly, broken country, intersected by large and deep creeks, and almost every other natural obstacle, and yet the untiring perseverance of the men, and the strength of the oxen, surmount all these diflB.culties. I be- lieve that hardly any other animal could bear the labour and privations that these cattle undergo. In some places the hills are almost perpendicular, and then the cattle must "cut" backwards and forwards, like a ship tacking; and in the descent it is not unfrequent for the drays to get the mastery, rush down, and break the necks of the poor creatures, notwithstanding that large drags, composed of trees, are placed behind the drays, and the wheel on one side is locked. The present and best journey overland to Sydney is from Adelaide to Portland Bay, and thence through Port Philip; this route is becoming gene- rally used. It is now common for people to walk from Portland Bay to Adelaide, and the rest of the distance to Sydney is well populated, a station being 162 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. met with every 10 or 15 miles along the road. Lat- terly a mail has run the whole distance, and the journey is performed by the horse police; this is a great accommodation to both settlements, ensuring quicker despatch, and greater safety, than by the trading craft that formerly carried the letters. It was on the road from Adelaide to Portland Bay that the passengers and crew of the Maria were cast on shore, and every one of them massacred by the natives, for which crime two of the offenders were hanged. These natives have done many such deeds, and were nearly killing the crew of a vessel that was wrecked on their coast about two years ago; but there will be more trafhcnow, and the aborigines will, it is hoped, become as quiescent as the Adelaide tribes. A short account of an overland journey has been published in an Adelaide paper, and, as it will give some idea of the dangers to be encountered, I may be pardoned for making use of it. It appears that a report was in circulation that the party had all been destroyed, and the cattle lost; hence, their arrival caused great joy, and not the less because all the cattle were safe, except three horses. The account states that Mr. Rave (with eleven men and a boy under his command, and having in charge 1100 head of cattle, and twenty horses, with the re- quisite provision, drays and appendages, and a sheet- iron boat in addition to the ordinary overland equip- ment) started from Millerere for Adelaide on the loth June, 1846, with the intention of keeping the Darling River all the way, until the party fell in with Captain Sturt's depot at Laidley's Ponds, and with CH. vii.] rate's journey. 163 the track which would indicate that experienced and gallant traveller's line of march. The station known as "Millerere" (at present one of the outposts of civilisation near the western frontier of New South Wales) is distant from Mohanna 170 miles; that place (situate 70 miles north-east from Fort Burke) being 300 miles distant from Laidley's Ponds, as measured by time and travel; and the latter locality a little more than 300 miles from the Darling's junc- tion with the Murray. Subsequently the adventurous band had to cross a country which seemed too wretched for the abode of human beings, and which was, in fact, unin- habited; the only feed for the cattle being contiguous to the bed of the river. From the general appear- ance of the land, it must be quite impassable after a heavy fall of rain, and seemed to afford no safe place of refuge, and no practicable outlet; nor, to the expe- rienced eye, any hope of improving, at least in the direction of the north-west desert described by Cap- tain Sturt. The rates of progress varied with the degrees of local difficulty, from 3 miles a day to 17; 8 miles was the average, the maximum speed de- scribed being of rare occurrence, and the smallest distance diurnally accomplished often the most diffi- cult, requiring the utmost strength of ten bullocks in a dray to overcome the various and often recurring- impediments. Frequently the condition of the sur- face seemed to vie with the worst features of the desert country, so graphically portrayed in the public despatches of Captain Sturt, or those portions of the remote interior described by Mr. Piesse, the 164 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. leader of the gallant Captain's relief party. Such were the appalling difficulties of the way, that four men at a time became sick and disabled, and, upon such occasions, Mr. Raye found it necessary to make a carriage body of the boat, that the sufferers might be relieved from the insupportable fatigue, and have a chance of rest and recovery through this mode of conveyance. The boat was upon other occasions found infinitely serviceable, by enabling some of the party to cross the river after cattle which had been dispersed, or driven over by the natives. On the 17th August, when about 100 miles north of Laid- ley's Ponds, Mount Murchison being in view, Mr. Raye was surrounded by about 270 blacks, whose gins or women, to the amount of a hundred or two, w^ere aloof on the other side of the river, a sure sign of hostile intent. Mr. Raye's men became strongly impressed with the necessity of using their fire- arms, but he would not hear of it, but resolved to make an attempt to satisfy the clamour of the sur- rounding mob by sacrificing a bullock. Singling out, therefore, an old crippled beast, he shot it before their eyes, and, after the act of slaughtering was com- plete, delivered the skinned and disembowelled car- cass to the expectant aborigines, and lent them an axe and sundry knives for the purposes of dissection and subdivision, with which they accomplished these processes cleverly enough. After this they returned him the implements, and then began to prepare for a " spread," which seemed to give the recipients great satisfaction, whilst the giver, happy to part with his troublesome guests, prepared for a long stage. I CH. VII. raye's journey. 165 and accomplished nine miles during the day. These means of pacification (and what a great peace-maker a full belly is), coupled with the formidable appear- ance of Mr. Raye's party, saved the expedition, with- out firing a shot, from the destruction which it was in the power of so numerous a body of armed natives to have inflicted, had they been combined and deter- mined. From these and similar circumstances, and, above all, the impossibility of effecting a retreat in any emergency, owing to the difficult nature of the coun- try, Mr. Raye would not again attempt the same route ; but, on the contrary, would deter others from the like enterprise, as a most perilous one; and espe- cially hazardous for any small ill-appointed and ill- conducted party. The cattle and horses of the expe- dition were frequently more or less dispersed; and upon such occasions the services of the docile native boy, who is of very light weight and an admirable rider, were as invaluable as astonishing, accomplish- ing that which would be almost impossible for a heavy man, in a country where the hoofs of a stockman's horse would alternately be clogged and encum- bered with adhesive clay, or sunk half way up to the shoulders and haunches in the yielding soil or dangerous chasms. The natives would frequently surround the camp at nightfall, as if they contem- plated an attack after dark; and upon one such occa- sion two horses, supposed to have been rushed by them, met with injuries, which rendered it necessary to despatch them. No actual attack on the camp was attempted, in consequence of the vigilance in- 166 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII, variably maintained, six of the party being included in each watch. In the neighbourhood of Laidley's Ponds, the blacks are intelligent as well as nume- rous, and they intimated to Mr. Raye's people, by comprehensible words or signs, that white men had been there not long ago, and offered to show their former places of sojourn. The party found the locality of Captain Sturt's depot, and especially a bough gimga, which had been the abode of some officers or men of his expedition, quite undisturbed; and Mr, Piesse's initials, L. P., were found upon seve- ral trees at different points near to, or on, this side of the depot. At this period of the journey the natives were amicable, and would sometimes follow the ex- pedition in a friendly way, keeping about 200 yards in the rear, and indulging in a variety of grotesque antics, and demonstrations of merriment or good-will. Once upon the well-defined track of Captain Sturt, the progress of Mr. Raye's party became regular, safe, and almost uninterrupted; and they ultimately leached our settled districts upon the IVIurray, with the cattle and horses in such good condition, as to warrant IMr. Raye's demanding the highest current prices. This short account is interesting to such as wish to become acquainted with the mode of life on the over- land expeditions. After the cattle have travelled the dis- tance required per day, generally from 10 to 12 miles, and as they near the spot reported by the leaders as the best to camp at, they are allowed to feed, and the drays, having come up, are unloaded, the tents pitched, and preparations made by the cook for sup- CH. VII.] eaye's journey. 167 per. A large fire is made, close to some dead log, and the kettles for tea are put on to boil; meat is cut up, and fried, or otherwise cooked; and a good substan- tial meal is soon in readiness. The meal is always accompanied by the damper, a species of bread much in use in all the out stations, and which is thus pre- pared: — A quantity of flour is mixed with water until stiff, and is then well kneaded, and made into a mass about two or three inches in thickness, and eighteen inches or more in diameter. A laroe fire havino; been made on the ground, and burned out, the hot ashes are scraped to one side, and the bread is thrown in, and covered up with the ashes until baked, which takes about an hour and a half; it is then taken out, dusted with a cloth, and, if properly made, proves tolerably light and quite clean, and by many persons is much relished. It consists, as will be seen, of nothing but flour, salt, and water. Another method of making it is this: take some dough made as be- fore, and flattening it on a sheet of bark cut from the trees, into cakes about the size and thickness of bis- cuits, put these on the fire to grill or toast, and keep turning them until done, when you will have a good and palatable damper. The blacks in the settled parts are often em- ployed as guides, and are found to be faithful, and thankful for any kindness. I have seldom heard of their taking advantage of their position to do harm to their masters. Some of the overland parties, however, have been badly conducted, and the men allowed either to annoy the blacks, and goad them to revenge, or to fire upon them at first sight, even when they were coming up in a friendly 168 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. and peaceable manner. Nay, I have heard many of these fellows boast of the number of blacks they have killed; but I have charitably suspected their innocence of any such acts of courage, especially in fair fight. However this may be, enough damage has been done to the blacks on the overland route, to make them remember it, and bitterly do they revenge themselves when they can. But to return from this digression. At night large fires are made, to prevent the natives from approach- ing unseen, and some of the party watch the camp and cattle till the morning, the latter being allowed to feed until breakfast is over, and all the things packed up and on the drays, when the cavalcade is again set in motion. Great difficulty is frequently experienced in making the cattle cross over the rivers met with on the jour- ney, and often the party is much detained. In such cases the cattle are collected at any convenient place, the stockmen and dogs do all in their power to urge them to take the water, and after much excitement they perhaps succeed. First one ventures in, then a second, until the whole herd are following close to each other, and generally the head of one rests upon the other's back; and, if nothing oppose them, the work is over; but if the bank on the other side be steep, and the landing-place bad, they turn back, and then the leader coming round, and meeting the hind- most, will place his head on the back of the last, and they all swim round and round in a hollow ring, and, if not separated, would keep this up until all were drowned ; a choice exhibition, in fact, of what we see so often in other thinos— a vicious circle. The men CH. VII,] BOILING DOWN STOCK. 169 have now to break the chain, and guide them over in the best way they can, which is a very dangerous task. I know a gentleman who nearly lost his life by one of the cattle making after him in the water; he was forced to swim from the enraged beast, which became so furious that it required to be shot directly. On arriving near Adelaide, the cattle are halted, and huts built for the men, and they remain here until the former are in good condition, and ready for sale. When cattle were first taken to Adelaide, they were worth lOOZ. each; now the price is about 61., and the same for cows, for which sum, however, they should be good. The cattle were to be bought in New South Wales about that time at 30s. a head, all the young under twelve months old being given in. Indeed, a few years since, the live stock there was so plentiful, that no sum, however small, could be obtained for them. The market was glutted, and trade in a bad state ; and, even later, large quan- tities of cattle and sheep have been driven in to be killed, and boiled down solely for the fat and hide. The fat is worth 4d. per lb.; hence an ox weighing no more than 6 cwts. will be worth about 51. for the fat alone, reckoning 2 cwts. 2 qrs. of fat for the whole carcass. The skin of cattle is worth 7s., and will pay for the boiling; and with these two items the profit is considerable. This mode of disposing of cattle has been, and to the present time is, in active operation both in Sydney and Ade- laide, and sometimes also large flocks of sheep are thus slaughtered. The only parts of the sheep not I 170 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. yielding much fat are the hind legs, some of which are salted, and are to be procured fresh at 6d. each, generally less than Id. per lb., and very fair meat. The above unceremonious mode of treat- ing the cattle is sufficient to prove their great increase, and the little care required for them is shown by the fact, that they are continually wandering about, and calve without any notice being taken of it, except that at two or three months old the calves are got in for branding. Sheep, however, require much care, with which they multiply so quickly, that were it not for their diseases, and for the wild dogs, they would hardly be kept under. A paper from Adelaide mentions that a herd of cattle, amounting to about 6000 head, was expected there every day; and also that a herd of 900 had just arrived, together with considerable flocks of sheep : the road must therefore be well beaten by this time, and indeed stations are springing up every few miles. It is imagined by some that the sheep are infected ^\dth the scab from being over-heated with travelling on their long journeys, which is likely to be the case ; and certainly, the better the shepherd, the less liable are the sheep to become diseased. Calves and lambs brought forth on the journey are generally destroyed, as they cannot keep up with the cattle, or, should they even do so, the exertion would make them of little value for the rest of their lives. Cattle, if yarded for the fii'st two or three weeks, become reconciled to the spot, and will not generally stray away ; but, if not properly tended at first, they CH. VII.] PORT LINCOLN. 171 are sure to make their way to some spot which they like, and have indeed been known to ramble the whole distance back to the Sydney District, on the way to which they have to swim some large rivers, and to pass through a great extent of desert land. I believe instances are known of cattle being brought over two or three times, and always after a time regaining their ancient feeding ground. Some are left behind footsore, and others manage to escape from the herd, and become quite wild ; these breed fast, and there will in time be hundreds of wild cattle in different places along the road. In parts of New South Wales wild cattle abound from the same causes ; also hundreds of wild horses, which are almost impossible to catch. That there are plenty of runs suitable for farmers and_ their flocks there can be little doubt, if we only judge of the tract that was known a couple of years ago ; but since that time the discoveries are great, and tracts of land have been traversed by adven- turous explorers that would more than equal the whole country at present inhabited by the South Australian colonists. Around Port Lincoln some fine land has lately been found, and this at compara- tively a short distance from Adelaide, if approached by w^ater. The explorer in this case was Dr. Gem- mel, in company with some friends, and they came across a vast extent of grazing country, before un- known to parties located in the district. It is situ- ated about seven days' journey, or one hundred and fifty miles, towards the interior, on the route to Streaky Bay; and, from information from parties I 2 172 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [nH. VII. who have since travelled farther over it, the prospects it holds out are very favourable. A quantity of land suitable for pasturage is at present unoccupied around Port Lincoln, and there would be little difficulty in obtaining runs in that part for small flocks. The large sheep proprietors must always require propor- tionably large tracts of country; some of them have their flocks feeding over from twenty to thirty square miles of good land ; but whoever owns not more than two flocks, or from 1200 to 1400 sheep, only wants two square miles to feed them on ; which may easily be had at no great distance from the settled districts. A large pastoral country was lately found at Rivoli Bay, whither many thousand sheep have already gone. This is situated about two hundred miles to the south-east of Adelaide. The South Australian Company alone sent 10,000 sheep to that part, and many of the large stock-owners followed their example ; at present, I should say, not less than 100,000 are depastured, where, only two years and a half since, the country was perfectly unknown. The manager of the South Australian Company, who went to Rivoli Bay with the flocks, returned to Adelaide after an absence of thirty-five days, during which time he had carefully examined a great part of the new country, the good land whereof extends about three hundred miles. He describes the up- lands generally as thickly wooded, and the lowlands as flooded at certain seasons of the year. The low- lands, on this account, are not so valuable for pastu- rage, as sheep fed upon them are liable to be at- tacked by the foot-rot; but they may be used during CH. VII.] DISCOVERIES IN THE INTERIOR. 173 the summer months, and the flocks removed to higher ground before the wet season. In this district an extinct volcano was observed, and named Mount Gambler. The craters, three in number, exhibit some interesting features; one of them is filled with water, and occupies about twenty- acres in extent. A poHce-station has since been formed near this place, to preserve order amongst the settlers, keep the blacks in check, and form a station for the overland mail from Adelaide to Port Philip, which passes here on the road to Portland Bay. This new settlement boasts of a fair harbour at Guichen Bay, where wool and other pro- duce may be shipped with little risk. A township has been formed, and thirty acres of land laid out for that purpose ; and there is every appearance of its becoming a thriving place before long. But other large tracts have been discovered in different parts. On the overland route to Port Lin- coln a fine country exists, and also in other places within two hundred miles of Adelaide. Thus there will be little fear of want of pasturage, even without the splendid and extensive blocks of rich land lately discovered by Captain Sturt, Dr. Leichardt, and Sir Thomas Mitchell. These discoveries are immense, and there is no doubt that they will lead to others of the same kind, which will supply pasturage for cen- turies to come. The minerals in Australia have made a great dif- ference in the price of lands, especially in some dis- tricts where mines are found. In these places, after the land has been advertised, the ground is visited by ] 74 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. numbers of persons armed with hammers and pick- axes, who turn and break every stone they come aoainst, in order to discover concealed treasures. If any metal be found, there is sure to be high bidding for the land at auction, which much injures the far- mer, who only wants land for a station. This does not, however, apply to all parts, as the land sales show ; and land, therefore, can be easily purchased if a section be not selected in the close neighbourhood of the mine. On the 22nd of December, 1846, 4065 acres were sold in blocks varying from twenty-seven to one hundred and fifty acres each, but generally eighty-acre sections. The whole quantity was dis- posed of by pubHc auction for 4450Z. 7s., the aver- age of the fifty-two lots being little more than 1/. per acre. The properties purchased were situate in various districts, from Crystal Brook, on the north, to and beyond Mount Gambier, in the south-east. This is mentioned to show that the average price of land is not high, except where it is known or adver- tised to contain minerals. In case of any land not surveyed being selected, the intending purchaser must give notice to the Sur- veyor-General that he wishes to buy such or such a block, describing its locality, and the number of acres required. In this case it is measured as soon as a party of surveyors is going in that direction, and then it is advertised in the pubUc papers for the space of three months, after which it is brought to the ham- mer, and sold to the highest bidder. If the land be in an isolated situation, at a distance from other surveys, possibly some time may elapse CH. VII.] PASTORAL DISTRICTS. 175 before a surveyor may come thither ; for it does not answer the purpose of the Government, with the pre- sent staff, to send out in all directions, and measure small blocks of land wherever they may be pitched upon. Complaints, it is true, are sometimes made of the present plan,- but it would be both expensive and injudicious to alter it. In December 1846, the Lieutenant-Governor re- turned to Adelaide from a voyage to the head of Spencer's Gulf, undertaken for the purpose of ex- amining some newly discovered harbours, and also a fine tract of land. Two of the harbours were not considered safe for shipping; these were Port Ger- main and Port Ferguson : but it was found that a portion of the gulf, immediately north of Point Lowly, contains a fine harbour, with a depth of from four to seven fathoms. The land close to the gulf at this part was passed over by Mr. Eyre in 1839, and, according to his report, it is favourable for land carriage. Mount Remarkable is in the immediate neighbourhood of this harbour, and the country round it is described as abounding in beautiful pasturage, and as possessing immense, mineral wealth. The distance from Adelaide is about two hundred miles. This will in all probability prove to be an excellent district for sheep and cattle ; a great quantity of land available for pasturage has been found at different times ; and at last a good harbour is explored, whereby the expense of carting wool, provisions or other articles, to and from the stations, will be materially reduced. Finally, the splendid discoveries of Sir Thomas Mitchell will have the 176 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. effect of opening out the interior of Australia to enterprising settlers with flocks and herds. I shall be excused for quoting what Sir Thomas Mitchell says in his despatches : — " On ascending the range early next morning," says he, " I saw open downs and plains with a line of river in the midst, the whole extending to the N.N.W. as far as the horizon. Following down the little stream from the valley in which I had passed the night, I soon reached the open country ; and during ten successive days I pursued the course of that river, through the same sort of country, each day as far as my horse could carry me, and in the same direction, again approaching the Tropic of Capricorn. In some parts the river (Warrego) formed splendid reaches, as broad and important as the river Murray, in latitude 24° 14' S., longitude 144° 34' E. ; in others it spread into four or five channels, some of them several miles apart ; but the whole country is better watered than any other portion of Australia I have seen, by numerous tributaries arising in the downs. The soil consists of rich clay, and the hol- lows give birth to watercourses, in most of which water is abundant, I found at length that I might travel in any direction, and find water at hand with- out having to seek the river, except when I wished to ascertain its general course, and observe its cha- racter. The grass consists of panicum, and several new sorts, one of which springs green from the old stem. The plains were verdant; indeed the luxu- riant pasturage surpassed in quality, as it did in ex- tent, any thing of the kind I had ever seen. The CH. vii.] SIR T. Mitchell's discoveries. 177 myall tree and salt bush {Acacia pendula and Sal- sole), so essential to a good rnn, are also there. New birds and new plants marked this out as an essentially different region from any I had previously explored ; and, although I could not follow the river throughout its course at this advanced season, I was convinced that its estuary was in the Gulf of Carpen- taria; at all events the country is open and well watered for a direct route thereto. That the river is tile most important of Australia, increasing as it does by successive tributaries, and not a mere product of distant ranges, admits of no dispute ; and the downs and plains of central Australia, through which it flows, seem sufficient to supply the whole world with animal food. " The discovery of this river, and the country through which it flows, was the more gratifying to me, after having been disappointed in the course of so many others. The Cogoon, the Maranoa, the Warrego, the Salvator, the Claude, the Belyando, and the Nive are nevertheless important rivers, and a thorouo'h investigation of the mountain ranoes in which they originate will enable me, I trust, to lay before your Excellency such a map of those parts of Austraha as may greatly facilitate the immediate and permanent occupation of the country, and the exten- sion through it of a thorouohfare to the Gulf of Carpentaria, to which the direct way is thus laid open. With a deep sense of gratitude to the Al- mighty, and loyalty to my gracious sovereign, I named the river, watering the best portion of the largest island in the world, the * Victoria,' and I 3 178 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. hastened back to my party on the Salvator. I reached that camp on the 8th ultimo, having been absent about a month ; found the cattle and horses refreshed, and in condition for pursuing our route homewards. In nine days we reached the depot camp, where I left Mr. Kennedy with the heavy drays and cattle, and received the agreeable intelli- gence that, during the long period in which that party had been stationary, the natives had given no trouble; that the men were all well, and the old cattle in oood condition. I had straightened the route in returning, so that it is now a most conve- nient road, well watered by permanent supplies. " Mr. Kennedy's inquiries amongst the natives led to a very important discovery which we have since made, namely, that the Maranoa turns south about thirty miles below where he had his camp, and joins the Balonne only a day's journey above this spot whence I write. We have explored and surveyed the Maranoa downwards, thus avoiding, in travelling by it, parts of the old route where we feared that ponds formerly small would be now dried up. We have also discovered on the banks of this river much rich pastoral land, and, about latitude 26° 30' S., open downs resembling on a smaller scale those on the Victoria ; and whether the vast extent of inter- vening country may not admit of a direct passage across from these to the central downs, without crossing the Plutonic ranges, remains to be ascer- tained during a season when the water holes are better filled. Into that country the channels of the Warrego and Nive turned when I had to leave CH. VII.] SIR T. Mitchell's discoveries. 179 them; much native smoke arose there; and I regret that I cannot now explore the course of these two rivers. " The survey of the Maranoa forms a hue perma- nently supphed with water and grass, from this camp to the farthest hmits I have reached, and directly in prolongation of my road across the Hawkesbury and Hunter, intended originally to have been made to Liverpool Plains. One link only is still wanting to complete the chain ; it is from this natural bridge on the Balonne to the furthest point reached by me in my journey of 1831, a distance of about seventy miles ; and I hope to find the country in that direc- tion passable for this party in its way homewards." Such are some extracts from the despatches sent by Sir Thomas Mitchell to his Excellency the Governor of New South Wales, dated from the camp at the head of the river Salvator, in longitude 147° 25' 40" E., and latitude, 24° 50' 17" S., 9th September, 1846. The passages here inserted give, however, but an imperfect idea of the magnitude of the discoveries ; but enough may be gleaned from them to show the splendid description of country passed over, and also a new feature in Australian discovery, the mighty and navigable rivers that have been partly explored. The Murray is certainly a fine river; but Mitchell describes his new discovery as far beyond it in grandeur, and having also an advantage in the immense tract of verdant plains through which it and its tributaries flow. There is now no doubt that this great river disembogues into the Gulf of Carpentaria, Sir Thomas IVIitchell having succeeded in tracing it to that gulf. Cap- 180 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VII. tain Sturt, the South Austrahan discoverer, explored from longitude 138° almost to longitude 142° E., and from" latitude 30° 40' to latitude 24° 40'; in other words, through four degrees of longitude, and six degrees of latitude, being a much smaller area of land than that passed over by either Sir Thomas Mitchell or Dr. Leichardt; although his journey involved greater privations, and required more devotedness, than those of either of the other gentlemen ; who were more fortunate in their direction. Captain Sturt's trials were great indeed, and his discoveries at best of but a negative kind. Al- together, he had enough disappointment to subdue the stoutest heart; but the great experience and knowledge respecting that sterile region that he has acquired will be most useful and important to future explorers in the same direction. He was expected to make brilUant discoveries, and every one was anxious to hear how he fared in the wilderness ; but even when news arrived of the barren inhospitable country he had seen — when nearly all hope of fine lands in the interior was dashed, the citizens were proud to receive the gallant captain once more among them, and to treat him like a conqueror rather than an unsuccessful explorer; and, from his perseverance and energy in all his difficulties, well did he deserve whatever honours they could shower upon him. A word now respecting the course to be pursued by the emigrant in obtaining a run for any cattle, sheep, or horses that he may purchase. It will not answer his pui-pose to buy land to feed them on, if CH. VII.] RUNS FOR SHEEP AND CATTLE. 181 he intends to make a living by them ; the expense of the land will be more than the sheep or cattle that can feed upon it are worth ; and, therefore, the settler must take a run on which to feed them without great expense, or he must buy food for them, or rent lands in the settled districts. There are always plenty of runs to be procured for small flocks, if not close to the town, yet within a hundred miles of it. This distance is thought little of in the colony, where good and cheap horses abound, that will carry a rider the whole journey in a couple of days. If he be not inclined to a bush life, a steady shepherd to each flock, and a careful hut-keeper, will manage pretty well ; but he must now and then look after them. Residence on the spot, however, is much better than trusting to the best servant that can be procured. It is an old and true saying, which I have already used once before, that " the master's eye makes the horse fat." If the sheep or cattle-owner is above his business, and entirely trusts to his servants, he will find little profit at the end of the year. All persons with flocks of their own are jealous of new comers. The cause is, that as the latter have a run marked out for them, often adjoining some old run, the elder settler is cramped by being obliged to keep his flocks within his boundary, instead of having the whole country before him. When this is the ease, and he is limited v/ithin particular boundaries, and his flocks increase, he has not the power to ex- tend his runs withovxt separating his stations, having one here, another 20 miles ofl", and so on ; this is in- 182 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH, VII. convenient to him, and perhaps forces him to shift altogether. Some large tract of country is frequently being discovered, and to one of these he goes, with his overseer, or a friend. They take their horses, provisions and blankets, and are probably away a month looking out for runs, which, when they have found, must be claimed at the Survey Office, and a license taken out ; after which the settler can take possession. But little trouble is experienced in shifting a sta- tion ; the effects to carry are small, consisting of pro- visions, bedding, clothes, and a few things required for the sheep or cattle. Hurdles are made at the new station, or else a brifjh yard is put up to answer in their stead. A single dray will take all the goods of the station ; the shepherds feed their sheep along the road, or through the bush, to the new station ; the dray follows, and, camping every night, the party in time reaches the fresh run. Here a hut has to be built, hurdles made, and a watch-box for the shep- herd ; a wool shed constructed before the shearing, and other little jobs of work completed, and then every thing goes on in the old way. The expense of forming an extra cattle station need not exceed 30/., inclusive of cartage, cooking utensils, making a hut, and putting up a stock-yard. The timber is cut down and appropriated for all kinds of building and other purposes, without any expense being incurred. A sheep station costs about the same sum, which also purchases hurdles and watch-box, a strong hut, and all cooking utensils, with a large iron pot for CH. VII.] NEW WASTE LAND REGULATIONS. 183 making tobacco decoction for the diseased sheep, and other articles that are required. The following are the regulations at present in force in South Australia for the disposal of Crown lands : — 1. At least once in every quarter one public sale is to be held by auction. 2. Lands to be divided into three classes : town, suburban, and country lots. 3. Intended sales to be notified by proclamation. 4. Sales to be notified not earlier than three months, or later than one month, before day of sale. 5. Government to fix time of sale and size of allotments. 6. Application for land may be made in particular localities. 7. E-egulating the manner in which land is to be brought for- ward for sale. 8. Deposit of 10 per cent, to be paid, and remainder in one month. 9. Condition of sale to be announced. 10. Country and special country lots, put up and not bid for, may be claimed without competition. 11. The same, after deposit has been forfeited. 12. Full price must in these cases at once be paid. 13. Form of application. 14. Money intended for payment of land wUl at any time be received. 15. 16. Certificates of payments given in London. 17. Land receipts transferable. 18. No regulation yet issued with regard to remissions to retired military and naval oflBcers. 19. Priority of application determined by the sale. 20. Deeds to contain grant of every thing above and below the soil. 21. Government reserves coast line to 100 feet from high water mark. 184 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. YII. 22. No quit rent reserved. 23. Fees payable. 24. Persons may apply for 20,000 acres -without competition, the price to be never less than 1^. per acre. I have extracted these land regulations from a very- clever and useful work on South Australia, of which Francis Button, Esq., is the author*. I strongly advise all intending emigrants to read it; and can assert, as far as my own experience serves me, that it is a most correct and authentic account of that colony. The part of it devoted to mines and mining is extremely valuable, particularly as coming from one who is, and has been, no inconsiderable owner of mineral lands from their first discovery to the present time. I have to acknowledge having received much pleasure in readmg Mr. Button's book, and I also have availed myself of its excellent information in writing the present work. * South Australia and its Mines, published by Boone, New Bond Street, 1846. CHAPTER VIII. CLI3IATE. — RAIN GAUGE. — HOT 'WIXDS. — METEOROLOGICAL OBSER- VATIONS. — STORMS. — EARTHQUAKES. — DISEASES. — SEASONS. — gardeners' calendar. — NATIVE TREES. — EUCALYPTUS TRIBE. — MANNA. — ACACIA TRIBE. — GUM ACACIA. — GUMMERS. — CASUA- RINA OR SHE OAK. NATIVE CHERRY. TEA TREE. — HONEY- SUCKLE TREE. — SARSAPARILLA. — GERANIUMS. — THE HOP PLANT. OLIVE. INDIGO. TOBACCO. MULBERRY. All writers on South Australia agree that the climate is equalled by few, and surpassed by none ; and but rare instances are found in the colony of emigrants complaining of it. The atmosphere is so clear and elastic, and causes such buoyancy of spirits, that a greater degree of heat can there be borne than in higher latitudes, as England for instance, where the air is always more or less charged with moisture, in which case the heat produces a suffocating feeling that is never experienced in South Australia. During the winter months (as they are called, but which name gives but an indifferent notion of this season, for there is neither frost nor snow) frequent showers of rain fall, and the surface of the earth is covered with verdure, the weather being so genial that the gradual approach of summer is scarcely per- 186 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VIII. ceptible. The trees, moreover, shed their bark, but there is no fall of the leaf as in England. In the summer months the heat parches the ground, which consequently at this time affords no nourish- ment to the grass, and the latter soon languishes, and becomes so burned up on the plains and hills that are not well sheltered by the foliage of trees, that it appears like the stubble of corn-fields, and will break under the feet when trampled upon. This is the worst season in which to judge of the beauties of the country, and, were it not for the warmth, the appear- ance of the land might be mistaken for the effect produced on vegetation by severe winter ; for ex- tremes meet, heat produces the same result to the herbage as cold, and clothes the ground with a like sombre hue. During the summer, however, there are frequently copious showers of rain, and then the effect is magical, for in the space of two or three days the whole country assumes a delicate green tint, after which, if the showers continue, vegetation is astonish- ingly rapid. It is seldom in South Australia that rain is long- wanted ; and it is a fact, that ever since the colony has been established no droug-hts have been occa- sioned by deficiency in this respect. I subjoin an abstract of the rain gauge kept in Adelaide by G. S. Kingston, Esq., commencing 15th August, 1838, and ending 5th December, 1844. CH. VIII.] RAIN GAUGE. 187 •sAbq •saqaui ■^TflOOOrHTJIlOrHO CO 1^ d d ^ ci t^ o:) ( CO G; CO CO 1 d T-H r-i cm' (jq •sjCbq CCiT}(0«005C505t^«DCi »o 00 »o ; ■ Tt< 00 ^ CO 00 I I r-; CD 00 rH ;q I ' d r-J r-5 r-J CO I •sAbq «0 (M 03Ci00'* O 00 r-< i-H O O O C5 . O 00 O '^ o rH r-i (?q oq (jq r^ CO CO 05 »o t^ Ci t^ r-H CO Oq r-I g4 ,-i rH •SiCbq •sXeq (jqco^oqaot^OOOCDCDO CO o i-H Tl< ^ t^ rH 00 O 05 ^ 1:^ cq CN ■ " 1-5 C0»0 1>'OI>''-<00CDCDC0-^C0 t- oq t^ Tf I CO O 00 1^ o ' '^ CN T)< G-COCDiO»00 O 1-- r-H t1< 1^ 00 »0 CO CO ^" ■ (N CO •S:iB(I •noT:^'BAi9sqo ojij CD CD O CO CO •sananj •uoi^^'BAaasqo o^ C5 00 CO 'i< CO o cq o CD ^ CO 00 CD i-i ■ ^^ '"^:^ r> a> J5 "^kS S :3 S o^ cj o i> 188 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. VIII. The thermometer ranges from 37° to 115° of Fahrenheit, and the ftiange from heat to cold is fre- quently sudden, as much as 50° difference being experienced in a few hours. The quick changes of temperature, however, are not found to injure health, and the cool of the evening is looked forward to with no fear, but with considerable anticipation. This is particularly [the case after a hot wind has been blowing for any time, when to all appearance no speedy change can be expected, and so determined is the current of stifling air (over 90° of heat) that it fills every nook and cranny of the dwellings : under these circum- stances, who can express the pleasure of experiencing a change of wind, accompanied with rain, which beats down the dust, clears the air, and so alters the aspect of affairs, that you may freely inhale the invigorating breeze, and again put on the clothes which were doffed in despair 1 As I said in a former part of the work, the large plains are the only parts of the colony that are troubled with the hot winds, and this only during the heat of summer ; moreover, these winds seldom last more than a few hours ; in other parts, although the heat may be as great, it is not so exhausting, and I have not unfrequently both walked and ridden under the blazing sun for long distances, without feeling oppressed myself, or having my horse injured by it. In short, for my own part, I prefer the unadulterated warm climate of Australia to the murky, suffocating air of London during the heat of summer, even though the latter may have the advantage of a few additional deorees of cold. CH. VIII.] CLIMATE. 189 South Australia seems indeed blessed in its beauti- ful climate above all the other parts of that vast con- tinent ; for, as I before mentioned, it has hitherto, escaped, and it is to be hoped ever will escape, the dreadful droughts that have been so injurious to some of the neighbourino- settlements, l^ew South Wales has been very unfortunate in this respect ; and it is certainly a considerable drawback to any person pro- posing to farm in that country. The effects of the " Great Drought," as it is still called, which com- menced in 1826, and lasted four years, are fresh in the memory of many; as well they may be, for they were dreadful ; ruining many of the settlers, and causing the destruction of horses, cattle, and sheep innumerable. One farmer is said to have lost five consecutive crops of grain, and many other persons were in as bad a plight. February is considered the hottest of the summer months, which comprise November, December, Janu- ary, February, March and April. In order to enable the reader to judge for himself, I shall now insert the average monthly results of the meteorological obser- vations taken at the Surveyor-General's office, Vic- toria Square, Adelaide, during one year, viz., from April, 1844, to March, 1845, both inclusive, at the hours of 10 A.M., 12 a.m., 2 p.m., 4 p.m., of each day, Sundays excepted. 190 ' SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 1 [CH. v; o OJ OS 50 7-H o o CO CO CO ^ 00 oj o o ci oi id o CO lO OS oi o °o o oi lO <» »o CO lO lO >0 ICi ^ 00 t~ t^ CO CO CO O O O t-l O O .-1 o CO OS ooi CO CO CO ' o o C3 o CO CO o o cq c^ T-H O o o CO CO >0 : o CO 1 O (M -)i' 'O CO Ci Cj Ci CO CI CO -M CO C5 Ci CS C5 CO o o CI o o o CI CO CO rH o o o o 1— 1 I-l I-H I-H CO o oq oq ai oi C C5 Ci t- Cq CO ' OS o o < r-l 1-1 I C CQ 2 03 00 CO OS 00 o oo CO oj oi CO »o *^ Oi 00 00 ci OS «o a> OS CO t-. oq oi oi ^ i OS 1 oi I «0 OO OO !3J CO CO «o «o O CO CO r-l O (M CO (M CO CO 00 00 CO »o »o -<* CO 00 OO 00 oo OS OS OS t-oo*-J o .p " ' ' o o •§ o (^J c^ Tj< O ^ -. - - - o :: s s s g O (N , 5 5 ^ s 2 o cfl c^ >* rO ,-( ,-1 o "^ O CO-ri( ^CiCOO J>^CiC5C) ICIOOIO -5jH^*(»OkO ■>!t(-<*-<»<-^ 00 00 OJ OS ^^ "^ "^ ^ CO CO . -4J H 03 O « <,, ^ O 2 r^' •^ tc ^ ^ _, ;-i a r- » m ^3 CO •-• c 5oo o CD X f^ to QD CO 00 ^ -li -tS >3 Oh & CO "&I l-H C3 o Q> I-H s M oi> o !>■ r-H — o o o fO CM CM CM s 2 o o c o o 1— 1 c o o cr< cwt. «0 CD O o o o c o o I— 1 l-H 1— f 1—1 CM oi ^5^"o^ O Tt< ^Ci~ CO Ci CM fl Ci l-H CD t^ »o CM (M CO CD o «0 r-l ir- r- o 1> 1^ ^ -1^ CO -* f-H aj • • '-iS • •43 • 15 o c3 «3 •i • 03 "3 a -^ if^ ^ 3 CO 03 O o o is 03 o =* g C3 -^.g . g o g '"'s ^ fl fl c) o rt'-' P4 CD c 03 o -11 coo HC3 CC5 30 — , X -, -a . -1< ®^ CO CD CO 00 ^i a, ClI. X.] REPORTS AND RETURNS. 289 ^ 2 '^ ci ft a> ft n3 ^ Vi O n fli a ^3 -r:? g 00 5 OQ c3 <3, '3 cs « 2 O OO r— . rt ,£2 t^ o3 2 CN ci en 5h o ■4^ o a ft CQ I-H a r^ o 00 m 00 ^ a5 r^ i-H fN !h . 1-H "73 00 cn (N I-H "S o r— 1 r-1 r-1 ^ o • ^ Ci r^ CO o CO 1^ 0^ CO r-H JS CO 00 I-H ^ GO a ,. O! ,_^ r^ 1— 1 1— t I-H ^^ o ^ CO CO Ci r-- t-H 00 g CO ;(yj o a K^ o a r- r^ I-H 1— 1 r— ( rH .^ o ft o Q> ^ d U3 o o -4^ ^ ■-3 o c3 t*H ci o a) ft _ft o !-l rt 13 O ft U m 290 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. X. ■53 D ^G '^ 2 « QJ 3 J3 03 g o 53 a ^ fc< .« aT o -^ ^l-" 1— I o o vi OJ C/2 o "S -" '^ ^ CO P^ bCo .9 "" " & 10" § O -J< rj c5 OJ P P5 03 j2 ■^ T^ ' CO f-^ 1— ( . rH < qj • • • ■*^ • . « - . ^ 1 • •a"' 1 i^ 1 3 (a 3 fri If ■= OC t— I CO « a) «> O o 5 <1 CH. X.] REPORTS AND RETURNS. 291 oi r^ CO a> -^ o <» 1-1 00 >-i .-< rt rt «0 00 M bo m S ^ o 13 -n S « 1 S << to o M "Ph i « o 3 =« ce 5 ^ bi - tH :3 o l^ «J W r- ■" Pi ^ -^ o S £ S M 13 .2 i.rl^^ H a (» o C4 g pqpq pq 3 Oi ?-. : o J2 O ^ re .2 JS !£ 3 "S -a "3 o E ^ !>s !>. >^ >-> t>> . CM < ^ CO I OS S « ^ o bo" s =* g § O -^ • . '". ^ . .a 5= " 6 O (H o ■ "S'S « • ^ • ^13 T3 . s g :s ^ , &c. 53 to Engl Ade to . bei O « ^ fcl^ § o ci 3 ^ J Z'^^'S o 2 o o o ° o o o x: en UJ HEh H &H Eh H H „;-- g St- B "a '^ 3 t. -ese. Black, fibrous, diverging, massive. Silicious oxide of manganese. Earthy Minerals. Quartz, in great varieties. Woodstone. Flint in nodules, black (not I Opal, in great varieties. the chalk flint). I Jasper. Hornstone. \ Calcedony, blue, botryoidal. CH. X.] MINERALOGICAL SUBSTANCES. 311 Calcedony, red, with opal. Agate, red, blue, and moss. Prehnite, varieties. Garnet, red and black. Cinnamon stone. Angite. Coccolite. Hornblende. Grammatite. Actynolite, green and brown. Amanthus, varieties. Asbestos. Rock wood. Fibrolite. Sappare, white and green. Clay, varieties. Aluminous. Pipe clay, white and pink. Alum, slate and stone. Schori, varieties. Rubellite. Alkaline earthy Minerals. Beryl. Epidote. Talc, varieties. Mica, varieties. Felspar, varieties. ACIDIFEROUS EARTHY MINERALS. Sulphate of lime, Fluate of lime. Dolomite. Bitter spar. Carrara marble. Marble, in great varieties. Calcareous tufFa. stalactites. Silicious tuffa. Wavellite, stellated. ACIDIFEROUS ALKALINE MINERALS. Glauber salts. Chloride of soda. Nitrate of potassa. Combustible or inflammable Minerals. Sulphur, native, inclosed in vein quartz with iron pyrites. Graphite or plumbago. Bitumen. Geological Specimens. Granite, vccrieties. Syenite. Porphyry, red and green. 312 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. X. Stratified Rocks. Grauwacke slate. Clay slates, some good for roofiruj. Flinty slates. Sandstones and Silicious Rocks. Quartz. | Sandstone, in varieties. Calcareous Rocks. White marble, similar to Carrara. Marble, white and veined. • gray. pink. Limestone, in varieties, including arenaceous limestone with fossil remains of shells partly bivalve. Calcareous sandstone. May 14, 1846. A company has been formed in England, and in- corporated by royal charter, named " The Indian and Australian Royal Mail Steam Packet Company." The capital of this company is one million sterling. If it succeed in its objects, the greatest good will accrue to those distant colonies. The export and import of goods will be not only greater, but much more rapid, than at present, and the facilities of communication will be vastly improved. It is reckoned that the whole distance from London or England to Singapore, thence to Port Essington {via Batavia), and from Port Essington to Sydney, will not take more than sixty-four days and a half. (The distance is 12,790 by this route, and the daily quantity to be accompUshed 199 miles.) The coal stations are convenient ; excellent coal from the pits at Newcastle, New South Wales, can be put on CH. X.] AUSTRALIAN STEAM NAVIGATION. 313 board there at 7s. to 75. 6d. per ton, and the freio-ht to Port Essington about 20s. to 22s. per ton ; a coal depot would thus be formed at a rising British settle- ment, at a cost of 27s. to 30s. per ton. Lombock or Batavia can be supplied with coals from our new settlement of Labuan in Borneo, or from Calcutta. There is no doubt that such an extensive system of rapid communication will be a decided improvement to the Australian colonies, the whole of which are embraced in this undertaking. In a steam-boat the room for stowing bulky goods is less than in most sailing vessels ; this would prevent the steamers from taking much of such a cargo as wool, with which most of the vessels from Sydney are loaded ; and therefore would it not be well to take in lead and copper ores to the quantity of dead weight re- quired in Adelaide, and then fill up with wool or other cargo at some other part if no such freight were ready in South Australia ? Lieut. Waghorn is the originator of this company, and I should think that there are few who have for- gotten the very great advantages that have accrued from steam communication to India, which he first was the means of bringing about ; the present scheme is, however, on a grander scale, and certainly leads to the belief that it will eventually be the means of causing a much more safe and rapid communication than heretofore, and therefore become a source of comfort and gain to the inhabitants of all the dif- ferent colonies at which the steamers call. It is intended to circumnavigate the whole island of New Holland, and also Van Diemen's Land, and to p 314 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. X. call at all the different colonies, as New South Wales, Port Philip, South Australia, Van Diemen's Land, Western Australia, and New Zealand, thus giving all and each of them the benefit of much more rapid transmission of both passengers and property. The following abstract of the sales of copper ore at Swansea during the last twelve months, compared with the sales in the preceding year, is taken from the South Australian News, published monthly by Hailes, Leadenhall Street. Mines. 1847. 1846. 21 Cwts. Amount realised. 21 Cwts. i Amount realised. 1 Burra Burra Kapunda 4351 1480 228 100 60 55 £ s. d. 94,263 2 1176 27,769 8 6 831 £ s. d. 20,684 5 6 16,726 1 6 1,259 14 394 5 4,370 12 6 27 4 Kanmantoo Paringa Princess Royal... Montacute Yattagolinga 3,236 6 1,608 6 1,221 15 1,029 18 78 19 265 2 " The increase shown in the above table is the more remarkable, when it is remembered that the sales of copper ore from South Australia only commenced on a small scale in 1845 ; and that it was not until the middle of 1846 the ore from more than one or two of the mines began to appear in the Swansea lists. " The colony has never had a more favourable op- portunity for proving its wealth than is now offered. We accordingly find that the proprietors of the Ka- punda have realised a large amount by disposing of a portion of their property; that the Burra Burra CH. X.] RESULTS OF MINING. 315 Mine has remunerated the adventurers, by dividends amounting to two hundred per cent, on the paid up capital; and there is reason for believing that the South AustraHan Company have profited largely by the revenue from their mining grounds, and still more by the advantages which it is reported must re- sult from future operations. Of course, amidst the many concerns which have been projected, several have proved unremunerative ; but it is evident, that were these mines situated in England, or were smelt- ing carried on in the colony, a considerable profit would be realised from their working. It is to be hoped, indeed, that before long some of the newly patented processes for reducing ores will be adopted, for in that case incalculable benefits must result. " The labouring classes have in their turn derived a share of the good from the great accession of wealth in the colony. The increased demand for labour, for instance, is manifested in various modes, there being, apart from the employment at the mines, the forma- tion of villages and the construction of works, con- stant traffic on the roads with drays, coaches, and all vehicles of transport ; in addition there are supplies of every kind, from complicated machinery to bags * in any quantities ' for the daily use of these im- portant undertakings. Thousands of families are thus dependent for subsistence on the progress of mining, and several have greatly improved their cir- cumstances in fife through their industrious habits, and the fortunate results of their labour. It is an agreeable duty to state, that at these new locations, where so much attention is given to the accumulation p 2 316 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. X. of wealth, there has been no neglect of the moral and spiritual wants of the people. Already there are places of worship, as well as day and Sabbath schools, with every disposition on the part of the people to sup- port and second the efforts made for their improve- ment. There is, in fact, every reason for expecting that the mining population in South Austraha will be fully equal to the same class in this country, display- ing high moral and religious feelings, a bond of fel- lowship which creates a love of home, and a kindness of disposition towards those suffering from accident or distress. " Looking, then, at these important results, which concern the whole community of the colony, we trust that, in future exertions for carrying on this important branch of trade, a continuance of success may be manifested, and especially that the prospects of the colony may not be marred by injudicious speculation, nor the future welfare of the population hazarded by profuse extravagance. A wise policy will dictate cau- tion and prudence. Let but these be observed, and there can be no doubt of South Australia attaining, by her mineral possessions, and by her agricultural and commercial advantages, a position (7f perhaps the highest eminence among the colonial dependencies of the British crown." CHAPTER XL NATIVES. — THEIE HABITATIONS. — WORKING AMONG THE SET- TLERS. GRUMBLERS IN THE STATE OF NATURE. PAINTING THE BODY. — NATIVE WOMEN. CLOTHING. SUPERSTITIONS. — BURIALS. CORROBERIES. FIGHTING. JEALOUSY. STEALING WOMEN. NIGHT ATTACKS. TREATMENT IN CASE OF ILLNESS. NO REGULAR MEDICAL ATTENDANT ALLOWED. — PORT LINCOLN BLACKS. — SUPERSTITIONS REGARDING DEATH. — MR. EYRe's AC- COUNT. — OBSERVATIONS OF W. P. JAMES, ESQ., ON THE ABORI- GINAL NATIVES OP SOUTH AUSTRALIA. — ALSO OF R. G. THO- MAS, ESQ. On the first arrival of the white people in South Australia, the aborigines were found to be harmless, and soon made themselves useful to the emigrants and others, by fetching water, carrying wood, and other work, for which they received biscuit, flour, or any thing they were presented with, and were easily satisfied with but small quantities of goods in return. Down to the present time they have gone on in the same way, making but small improvement, except learning a little English, and getting into some of the ways of the whites, such as clothing themselves when they can ; and in but too many instances they have readily adopted the vices without the virtues of their more enlightened visitors. Endeavours have been made to teach them to live in cottages, to culti- 318 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. vate the ground, to work about the farms, stores, and other places of business in the colony. As to living in the huts built for them, they compHed for a short time with the request to do so, but have always quitted these habitations for little worleys or shelters of their own, which are soon deserted and others formed. This might be thought an evidence of their wandering and unsettled life, but they have a reason for frequent changes. Ask them why they do not live in such and such a place, where there is a shelter of their own making, and they answer, " No good that one; too much plenty jieas ; no sleep; too viuch hite \im black fellow ;" and at the same time they commence scratching their bodies to exemplify their meaning. This is one great cause of the constant shifting of their huts, and not that they like to be always em- ployed in making new ones. When I have gone to town, leaving my hut for a few days, I have left a black with my wife, to get her wood and water, take a letter to neighbouring station, bring flour, tea, sugar, or any thing that was wanted ; and at those times he has slept before the kitchen fire, and has been only too willing to take up his quarters there from time to time, as long as permitted, or in the neighbourhood. In the room, all our scanty fur- niture would be left, together with books, papers, food, tobacco and many favourite objects, but I have never found any thing purloined by the blacks, or even meddled with. So much for their honesty. As to their working amongst the settlers, they will generally assist for days together, as long as there is CH. XI.] THE NATIVES. 319 work to be done and food to be obtained ; but di- rectly this falls short, or they hear of some other place where more can be earned, off they go. A little care must be taken in feeding them ; give them plenty, but do it judiciously ; if you give them ''plenty tuck out " early in the day, farewell to all hopes of their exerting themselves for the next few hours. When their cravings of hunger are satisfied, they see no ne- cessity to work ; therefore, when the day's work is done, let them eat their fill, and they will get over it by next morning. They make themselves very useful in reapino-, lambing, or shearing times, and will get through a fair quantity of work. Some farmers have had the whole of their corn cut by the blacks, and repaid them for perhaps a fortnight's labour by giving them their food, a blanket, some slop clothes, and a little tobacco; this is all they want, and all that they would ask for be- fore engaging themselves. In shearing, they are use- ful to mind the shorn sheep, pitch the hurdles, help to wash the flocks, carry out the shepherd's weekly ra- tions on a horse, or on their own shoulders, &c. &c. Sheep-dressing often forms a part of their occupa- tion ; and, in fine, nothing comes amiss to them. Any person who lives in the bush and treats them properly, will be amply recompensed for his kindness if an opportunity offer of their showing gratitude. I have often known them to report the whereabouts of missing sheep, cattle, or horses, and to bring them in, without so much as expecting a reward ; and they will generally go out, and endeavour to track any sheep that have got adrift ; they will walk about in 320 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. the bush, looking here, there, and everywhere, and if they find the sheep, they show as much pleasure as the owner himself, describing the place they were in, how they stared when they saw them ; tell you at what a rate they ran when observed off a distant hill, and, in fact, quite divert you by their quaint and infantile descriptions. The women, although not handsome, will wash and work about, and seem quite pleased to assist the " white luhra ." We used to have some often about the place, and they were constantly em- ployed in one way or another, if we had any work for them to do. When they were going away, they would come to get our parting blessing in the shape of a crust of bread, or scrap of meat, to tell us where they were going to ; how many " sleeps,'' or days, " moons^'' or months, they expected to be away, and appear quite sorry not to remain with us longer. These were our favourites ; others that we did not like, or know so well, came and went almost without our knowledge, and took little notice of us, except to ask for something to eat, and tell us they were '' plenty hungry.'' Some were never satisfied W\i\\ any thing that could be given them, but these were the exception to the rule ; one, in particular, called " old mother Gibblegobble," was incessantly com- plaining ; nothing was good enough, or in sufficient plenty for her ; it was her disease continually to grumble, and of this disease she was very bad ; her case was hopeless ; but she was good-tempered, would laugh and joke as well as the rest, until her particular faculty or malady was called forth, but, when once set a-going, nothing was able to please her. I re- CH. XI.] THE NATIVES. 321 member her complaining to one of the blacks about some omission on her part, for which she had been checked by a crack on the cocoa-nut. Jack could not stand it, and got a stick to salute her. I saw her scamper off into the creek, and over the hills; and for once m her life she ought to have been satisfied, for she escaped a tremendous beating. It was amusing to see her fly along with her old bits of clothes and skins streaming in the wind ; but I should not wonder if she would have cheerfully compounded for a moderate beating if al- lowed to convert it into a crop of complaints. It is a common custom with the blacks to paint their bodies on different occasions with various sub- stances, such as red ochre, charcoal, and lime or chalk ; these are made up into an odorous mass, by mixture with either oil or fat, and are then rubbed over all parts of the body, after which the blacks think themselres very fine and handsome — shining charac- ters. This custom may have originated from the neces- sity of preventing their naked bodies from being stung or bitten by the insects that swarm about their habi- tations ; and also, like other nations that go without clothes, as the Africans, they may have anointed their persons to prevent the skin from cracking, with either the wet, heat, or cold. It would be well if they would only use clean fat, and obviate that sickening smell that will tell you of their approach when they are yards off. It seems to be pretty general, that where civilised man goes the nomadic savages die off; and no where is this better observed than in AustraUa; for, during p 3 322 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. the short time I was in that country, I could perceive a great diminution in the number of natives, and should say that they were less by one-third than when I first saw them about seven years before. In one part, a tribe of thirty or forty was reduced to twelve or fifteen, and these had joined neighbouring tribes, so that as a distinct tribe they were lost. This was at a part on the coast, between Rapid and En- counter Bays, called the Tunkalilla and Wipinga dis- trict. This I learned from the blacks themselves, who told me that that was their country, but that their friends were crack-a-hack, meaning dead. In other parts the decrease has been great, though not to the same extent. The natives seem to be divided into small tribes, but without any chief or king to rule them ; but they refer their disputes to, or, in case of going to war, ask advice of, the old men of the tribe, who, however, have no great influence over them, if their opinion clashes with that of the petitioners. The women have little to do with their deliberations, but sit silent, and only pass remarks amongst themselves, except when some very exciting subject is broached, when they commence an animated jabbering, and, unless silenced by the men, hold forth at great length. These poor creatures are in an abject state, and are only treated with about the same consideration as the dogs that accompany them ; they are obhged to give any food that may be desired to the men, and to sit and see them eat it, considering themselves amply repaid if they are rewarded by having a piece of grizzle, or any other leavings pitched to them. CH, XI.] NATIVE WOMEN. 323 The women are either not allowed, or do not think themselves able, to cUmb trees for opossums, and therefore their food only consists of those roots and herbs which they can dig up or gather from the earth, and of the grubs, lizards, and snakes that they kill. Birds they seldom obtain, as they cannot throw the spear, and they are also useless in catching fish, but they make the nets which the men employ, and exercise other feminine accomplishments of the same kind. From a peculiar species of grass they construct neat baskets, and mats to cover them- selves with ; these are commenced at a central point, and worked round and round, the women not being acquainted with the mode of making square articles. They sew neatly, with thread made of the sinews of the kangaroo, which they take out of the tail as soon as the animal is killed. Instead of a needle they have a sharp-pointed piece of bone, with which they make a hole in the skins, and then pass the sinew throuoh, somethinq- hke our shoemakers. These skins sewed together are greatly valued by them, and are little, if at all, inferior to blankets ; but, as for the rest of their dress, it generally amounts to no more than a kind of mat tied round the middle, and over the shoulders a rug of skins, or any old bit of cloth they happen to obtain. When on a journey, they bear the baggage, and the men stalk before them, only carrying their spears and other weapons, and a little basket slung from the arm. On arriving at the place where they are to camp, the men break down branches of trees, and strip baik to make themselves a worley or shelter, 324 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. and the women are left to make their own worleys in the best way they can. The worleys are little better as shelters than a hedge, only that they are arched two or three feet over head, and in some cases made rain proof by a covering of rushes or bark. They are in a circular form, with the back towards the quarter from whence the wind blows; when they are con- structed, a fire is lighted in the centre, and wood enough collected to last the whole night; for the natives have a horror of being: left without lio;ht. Their superstition on this point is strong, and hardly any inducement will cause them to move to a distance from their camps after dark; or, if they do so, they may be observed to keep a most anxious eye all around them, evidently expecting to see some enemy or spectre behind every tree or bush on the road. They have some idea of another world, but I have never been able to satisfy myself as to what particu- lar belief they entertain about a Supreme Being whose wish it is to do them good. They believe that the Evil Spirit is very powerful, and continually walking about to catch and kill them, and when any of them have sickened and died they think that the devil has been at him, and given him a squeeze, and they say that de Dehil Dehil iake him; this is one name they give the Enemy; another is, Tong Kmgariall ; but, whether the first has been derived from the English devil, I do not know. The devil has them under his care after they die, and they endeavour to scare him away bv making all kinds of noises, and performing queer antics over the body ; by doing every thing, in fact, that would frighten him, upon the supposition that he was CH. XI.] FUNERAL CEREMONIES. 325 timid. One means is curious; after death the body is placed sitting up, and a strong lashing is put round the neck, and under the legs by the knees, and this, when drawn tight, presses up the knees and head close together; the arms are then tucked close to the body, which now resembles a ball as nearly as it is possible. The body is then covered with what clothes, blanket, or skin rug may have belonged to the deceased, and his different weapons are collected by his side. A kind of hand barrow being formed, and covered with rushes, the body is placed thereon, and carried by four young men quite naked, and evidently prepared for some extraordinary exertion. One or two of the tribe precede the body; the others, men, women, and children, follow close behind it, and sing, or rather howl out, a dirge. The bearers of the body (which I forgot to say is tightly lashed to the frame on which it is placed) first walk at a sober pace, and then gradually increase the speed until they run as hard as they can : this is kept up for some time, when suddenly a yell is heard, and as quick as possible all stop, and fall down on one knee; on which they keep shufflino- alons; the oround for a considerable time: then the other is knelt upon, and they progress as well as they can upon the knees, until another yell sets them on their feet, scampering and stopping, kneeling, crouching along the ground, beating the trees and bushes with their sticks, and tearing their hair, until being quite exhausted, and with the per- spiration streaming down their bodies, they return the body to the little shelter it was in before, and, after a general howl, separate to follow their ordinary occu- 326 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH, XI. pations. This is kept up at intervals for several days, after which the body is either buried, or placed in a tree, or on a scaffolding erected for the purpose. After a death the women blacken the bodies with charcoal and grease, as also do the near male rela- tives of the deceased ; but, for love or war, no other colours are used but red and white, which indeed are enough (with their taste for painting) to make them look rather more than human. For their dances they paint in a gaudy manner; first, being quite naked, they put on a thick coating of red ochre and fat, taking care to rub it well into the hair and beard, and then, with powdered chalk and fat, they put in touches that tell well when seen at night by the light of a blazing fire, and which doubtless go a great way to- wards captivating the native beauties. On the occasion of one of their grand affairs, as many as two or three hundred natives will be often col- lected, scattered over the plain by tribes, and all pre- pared to join in at the grand corroherijy when the proper time comes ; and then they march up to some particular tribe, which has a large fire made, and plenty of boughs covered with dry leaves ranged about. As the guests arrive, the men march into the centre of a circle formed by the women and children, and seat themselves until all are come and ready to commence, when one begins a low wailing tune, in which all join, and gradually raising the voice, in most exact and admirable time, they burst out in full vigour, and, all springing up on the instant, commence their national or tribal dance, the women and children still sitting in a circle, and keeping time by beating CH. XI.] NATIVE DANCES. 327 their hands upon a piece of skin tightly rolled up; this they all strike at the exact moment, givino- to any one a little way off the idea that it is but a single blow. The dance is a medley of curious contortions of the body more than a rapid movement of the feet, and is continued over and over again according to the tune to which they move. In one hand is carried a club, and in the other a branch of some green bush; this last at stated times is moved rapidly over the head, and the noise from the whole number, quickly vibrated at the same time, may be heard to a great distance. The grand dances termed corroheries take place on the occasion of a wedding, or before a fight. In the first instance the whole party is joined together in kindly feeling, but, when the latter is to happen, each side has a dance to itself, and no doubt stimulates itself, and screws up its courage by appropriate lan- guage and gestures. The affair comes off early in the morning, each little army being drav/n out in front of the other, and, according to agreement, the fight takes place either with spears or waddies. If with the former, it commences by some warrior (after haranguing and endeavouring to discourage his oppo- nents by sarcasms and insults) throwing his spear, which is guarded off by the opposite party, who are suppHed with shields for that purpose. This makes a beginning, and the fight is kept up until one party or other has some men wounded, or the spears are all broken and useless; even then, however, if satis/ac- iion be not obtained, the waddies or clubs are brought out, and then another preliminary form is gone 328 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. through. "This consists in one man from each party stepping forth, and when they meet, after plenty of energetic discourse, and perhaps spitting at each other, one will hold down his head, evidently request- ing the other to try to muster courage to strike him. This is soon done, and with hearty good will too, for, raising his weapon in one hand well over his head, he brings it to bear upon his enemy's unprotected cocoa- nut with such force that the hollow sound may be heard at a distance of nearly half a mile. This, which would fracture the thickest-skulled European, brings the native to the ground, and there he remains for a minute or two, until the twitching; of the le^s and arms shows that he is only killed, and not regularly crack-a-hack , The expression killed, with them means only the receipt of a severe blow; but crack-a-hack is the actual quietus. When he again gets up, his eyes perhaps squint a little from the treatment he has received, but they also glisten with pleasure at the prospect of having an opportunity of revenging him- self, as the punisher's turn has now come, and he stoops down his head to take his dose, which may be imagined to be a bitter one; directly that he in his turn has fallen, a great yell shows that the general melee has commenced, and then Donnybrook fair in all its glory is but a shadow of the savage row. Most of the men are extremely jealous of their wives, of which some have as many as three or four. This may perhaps be accounted for by the curious manner they have of obtaining partners. Instead of a regular courtship and match-making among the women of his own tribe, any young man CH. XI.] NATIVE FIGHTS AND MARRIAGES. 329 who has arrived at a proper age, and gone through the requisite ceremonials, sallies out to a distant and generally hostile tribe, and there watches his oppor- tunity of steaHng any woman whom he fancies. For this purpose he lurks about, and when he arrives at a camping place where he discovers that only women and children are together, he, or they (for two or three young men usually travel together) pounce upon the party, and either by persuasion or blows, take away the women they want, and then, by rapid travelling, all the time hurrying the women on before them, they endeavour to regain their own tribe before pursuit can be attempted. This stealing wives is one cause of the frequent wars that take place amongst the natives ; and if the stolen woman be married to another man, who objects to give her up, the conse- quences are sometimes serious. I remember that in one case an Encounter Bay native stole a woman from one of the Murray River tribes. This was during the whaling season, when a number of natives are always collected about the fishing stations, to feed upon the flesh of the whales that are taken. This poor woman and her husband were staying at Encounter Bay, and living comfortably enough (con- sidering that she had been forced away from her former master), and every thing went on well ; no pursuit had been apprehended, and no enemies seen about the districts, when one day, as the woman was with some others looking about the beach for food, a man was seen rushing down to them, armed with his club and spear, and was instantly recognised as the former husband. His looks quite prepared the poor woman 330 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. for bad treatment, and she ran away along the beach, followed by her old master, who overtook her and commenced beating her about the head ; she then ran into the water, which in that part happened to be shallow for a distance out to sea, and when she saw that no chance was left, and that all her intercessions were of no avail, her courage left her, and she stood still to receive her fate. The savage was observed to lift his club high in the air, and, bringing it down upon her temple with all his force, she sank into the sea, and never breathed again. This happened in a populous district, within sight of the natives' huts, and about eleven o'clock in the morning ; and although the wretch was pursued, and the police were out for some days in search of him, I believe that he escaped. A short time before I left Australia, I was visiting at a friend's house, and some natives (two men and three women) were camped at about forty yards' dis- tance. We were making our beds ready, and getting every thing comfortable for the night, when one of the black men opened the door and asked the master of the station to lend him a gun, as some wild blacks were prowling about with the intention of attacking them. The gun was accordingly brought out, and we all sallied forth to see what would happen. It was nearly full moon, and the sky unclouded, every object being seen with distinctness almost to as great a distance as in the day-time. No sound broke the stillness except the distant lowing of cattle, and the unearthly sound made by the bronze-winged pigeons. In front of the hut was a laroe meadow covered with CH. XI.] NATIVE SUBTLETY. 331 high grass, and in this grass had our native seen and heard the crawHng enemy, but whom we searched for in vain ; for they were no where to be seen, although every tree and bush was examined. This was a dis- appointment, for we longed to witness a night attack, and when we had again collected our forces, and were returning to the hut, I asked the blacks to show us how they manage in such cases, supposing one man to be sleeping out, and to be beset. One instantly re- plied, " Berry well ; me sleep, Jackey kill me if he can, but me no let him. Me lay down here sleep. Me put 'um waddy so," placing it on the ground to his head, within easy reach. Jackey then went off a little distance, and instantly seemed to discover his sleeping foe. Putting his hand so as to keep the gleam of the moon from his eyes, he noiselessly sank down on the ground, taking a firm hold of his club, crawled along upon his hands and knees, holding his breath; and whenever he made the least noise, by breaking a dry stick or rustling the grass, he crouched down to the earth, and there remained without mo- tion until he thought that all was right; and then he again advanced, now and then raising his head to narrowly watch the sleeper. When within about thirty feet Ned heard him coming, and slowly raising his head about a couple of inches, and only partially opening one eye that the glistening of the eyes in the moonlight might not betray him, he saw what was intended, and slightly moved the handle of his club, so as the sooner to get a good grip of it. No person could now tell that he was awake, for the position was thoroughly easy and natural, and the loud 332 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. breathing exactly done. Jackey continued to ad- vance until within about ten feet, and then, after a long rest and anxious survey, he laid down at full length on the ground, and pushed forward like a snake, though how he made way as he did I cannot tell, for his limbs were almost motionless. It must have been difficult even to a practised hand, for the big drops of perspiration rolled down his body, and he seemed nearly exhausted with the amazing effort. He had now reached his victim, and raising his body, so that he knelt upon one knee, he prepared to strike the blow, first measuring the exact spot where he in- tended to strike, and then raising the waddy, down it came, but quick as lightning was parried by the other, who had sprung up, and dealt poor Jackey, who was evidently taken off his guard, such an imaginary blow upon the head, that, had it been real, he would have repented disturbing Ned's slumbers. The two men now had a good laugh, and expressed their admiration of each other's acting, but evidently considered that we should pay for our fun, for they asked for tobacco, and, that being given them, wanted some supper, which they also obtained, and went cheerfully to their worleys. As to the blacks of whom they had that evening been in search, they told me that they had been most likely tracked or seen by some roving enemy, who, aware of the poor resistance that two men could make against four or five (which they stated to be the numbers seen), had intended to attack them, and take away their luhras. These poor creatures (the women) did not fancy this any more than the men, CH. XI.] MEDICINE. 333 for they kept up an incessant jabbering and cryino- all night, and at daylight the whole party moved off to where they would meet more of their friends, and be able to sleep in safety. The ideas of the natives concerning medicine are strange ; they compare disadvantageously with those of other savages, who possess useful knowledge of dif- ferent herbs, and are experienced in remedies for wounds and bruises. A friend of mine, a surgeon in Australia, received a small sum from government for supplying medicine to such natives as required it; but he found the greatest difficulty in making them follow his instructions. One case will show what I mean. A black belonging to the Encounter Bay tribe was observed to be ill, and under the following- treatment. A skin rug was placed on the sand, and, as he complained of severe pain in his chest and sto- mach, he was laid upon the rug with his back upper- most. Two men then began rubbing him with their hands, and, after continuing this for some time; they both commenced jumping upon him, and others beat him with the palms of their hands, while he all the time roared and groaned most piteously. This did him no good, and he was brought to the doctor, who gave him a large dose of calomel and opium ; and two or three blankets were lent to wrap him in, and keep him as warm as possible, strict injunctions being given to the natives to keep him quiet. In less than a quarter of an hour my friend saw them carry him to the sea (which was within fifty yards), and continue to duck him under water until he was 334 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. in such a state that he died within six hours after- wards. I think that surgeons should be appointed to ad- minister to those natives that are sick ; this was the case formerly in one or two places, but now it is done away with, and the poor creatures have no chance of obtaining any remedy, unless through the charity of the settlers, who, were they ever so willing to give, might not have the proper remedies by them, or apply them aright. About two years since, the natives to the south of Adelaide were grievously afflicted with a complaint that carried off a great number. On being first attacked with it, their skins were covered with a rash, which itched intensely, and made them scratch off the heads of the elevations : these soon spread, and became larger and deeper, until the whole body was covered with a continuous sore. Two women came and asked me to give them medicine, and, not having any thing but aperient pills and sulphur, I gave them some of the first to take directly, and the other I made into an ointment, which they rubbed upon their sores. In the course of two or three days, more came back with these two, who said they were nearly well, and wanted more ointment ; this they had as long as it lasted, and very sorry they seemed when I told them I had no more to give, and could not buy any nearer than Adelaide, which was sixty miles off. One child was brought by its mother, and both, but especially the child, were in a deplorable state. The dirt and filth that they smear themselves with, had made the poor CH. XI.] MEDICINE. 335 little creature's skin nothing but sores, and it could hardly be moved in its mother's arms without crying. My wife, who was always much liked by the natives got a tub of warm water, and washed the child tho- roughly, and gave the mother clean clothes, which she put on the child, after rubbing its skin with ointment. This was done once or twice ; but it was of no avail, for the little creature was too far gone to recover under our Uniited medical knowledge ; and one night it was fretful, and cried much while the natives were in their camp. The next morning it was not to be seen, for during the night they had kept up a large fire, which told plainly enough what its fate had been. They thought it better to put it out of its misery, which had no doubt been done, for it is unusual with the natives to have larger fires in their camps than they can help. I did not apply to the government for medicines, because I had reason to suppose it would not have been granted ; but really something ought to be done, unless it be the wish of the civilised men that these poor creatures should die off. The following is an extract from a letter which appeared in the Adelaide papers, dated Port Lincoln, 1st August, 1846 :— " A few seasons ago Mr. Schiirman employed the natives to fence in, and assist in the subsequent cul- tivation of, about eight acres of wheat for their own use ; he then wrote to the authorities in Adelaide for a dozen reaping hooks, and got for answer, that the Government tms not in funds. He advocated the forming a location here, such as had been strongly 336 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. recommended, and received 100^. last year from a society in Germany to form one on ground reserved here for this purpose, upon condition of our go- vernor's advancing a similar sum ; this proposition, alas ! was also rejected. With this sample of politi- cal parsimony on the part of the British Government towards a people that it has taken under its fostering care as British subjects, Mr. Schiirman was dis- gusted, and gave up the charge of a flock that can never be put under a better shepherd. During the last harvest, eighty acres of wheat out of every hun- dred were cut by the natives, and there were one or more of them at nearly every station during the lambing, or employed in minding small flocks. At present two of them go out regularly with a flock of 600 sheep each, and the flock of one of these was for some time 900, out of which he never lost one." Many of the superstitions of the natives are curious, and one regarding any dead relative is, I believe, not met with in any other part of the world. The blacks living among civilised people very readily adopt any European Christian name, or in fact any word that they may be called by a white man re- quested to name them. Thus I remember women named Monkey, Cockeye, Pretty Sally, Grumble, Long Mary, &c. ; and men named Jim Crow, Paddy, Long Jack, Jumbo, Encounter Bay Bob, Rapid Bay Jack, &c. Concerning Rapid Bay Jack, the circum- stance occurred to which I allude about their super- stitions. This man was well known to the south- ward, both on account of his superior civilisation, and from his being a sort of chief among the Rapid CH. XI.] RAPID BAY BOB. 337 Bay tribe. This rank does not coincide with the general notions of chiefdom, for such is not known amongst them; but any man who, by his valour and courage, has become conspicuous among the tribe, is consulted, and holds some supremacy, but only as long as his wishes accord with those of the majority. This man was such a chief, and his good behaviour had made him a favourite amongst the settlers, who were glad to see him, and gave him odd jobs to do, for which he was paid in food for himself and wives ; for I believe that he was blessed with a couple, who travelled about the country with him. About four years since he was seized with inflam- mation of the lungs, and remained in a bad state of health for a length of time, until he was too weak to move about of his own accord, and was carried from one place to another on a kind of hand-barrow made by the natives. The tribe removed to the neighbourhood of Yankalilla Bay, close to Mr. Kemmis's station, and here he was treated with the greatest kindness by that gentleman and family. They regularly supplied him with food proper for him, lent him bedding, and frequently went to his worlie to inquire after him, and, as his end ap- proached, spared no pains to render him as comfort- able as possible. The near prospect of death was any thing but unpleasant to poor Bob, for he looked forward to it as freeing him from all trouble, and be- lieved that he would again appear in some other part of the world in a higher state ; in fact, that he would once more arise, but be no longer black, for ^ Q 338 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. he would be gifted with all the advantages and colour of the European. As they say, " Black fellow tumble dotcyi crack-a-hack, dehil take him, jump up white fellow'' Their meaning by " tumble down crack-a-back " is that they die ; and then they believe that their Great Spirit takes the soul, and then they are born again with a white body. When a child is born, it is always said to jump up. At last poor Bob died, and his friends began a loud wailing, and the hills reechoed with their mourn- ful cries, which continued until he was consigned to the earth. Amongst those that bewailed his loss was his old widowed mother, who had lono; looked upon him as the flower of his race; and her wailings were proportionate to her love. After the funeral, this old woman was visited, according to her own account, by her departed son ; and she told me that she had some long and lovins; conversations with him, during which, he told her that he was very happy and comfortable, caught many kangaroos and emus, and was well supplied with the white man's food and clothing ; desired her not to lament his departure, and, in short, said every thing that a son could say. As soon as the breath had departed all mention of his name was discontinued ; and if any of the tribe were asked where Bob was, they looked as if they did not know who was meant ; and if further pressed, would earnestly request that his name might not again be mentioned to them on any account whatever, saying that if he were talked about, it was not unlikely that he would return, and be very angry with them for disturbing him. This is carried CIl. XI.] MR. EYRE ON THE NATIVES. 339 to such a length, that if another of the tribe be called by the same name, they instantly alter it, and it is not again resumed. The following extracts, written by Mr. Eyre, pre- sent a faithful picture of the aborigines, and will no doubt be interesting. Mr. Eyre has, by his constant communication with the natives, obtained so thorough an insight into their ways and notions, that he is more capable of giving an opinion than any man in the colonies, and by the faithful discharge of his duties to his dusky friends, has well deserved the position that he now holds. After saying that it is his anxious wish to see an interest excited in their behalf, he continues: — " For the last twelve years I have been personally resident in one or other of the Australian colonies, and have always been in frequent intercourse with the aboriginal tribes that were near, rarely being without some of them constantly with me as domestics. " To the advantages of private opportunities of acquiring a knowledge of their character, were added, latterly, the facilities afforded by my holding a public appointment in South Aus- tralia, in the midst of a district more densely populated by natives than any in that colony, where no settler had ventured to locate, and where, prior to my arrival in October, 1841, frightful scenes of bloodshed, rapine and hostility between the natives and parties coming overland with stock, had been of frequent and very recent occurrence. "As resident magistrate of the Murray district, I may almost say, that for the last three years I have lived with the natives. My duties have frequently taken me to very great distances up the Murray or the Darling rivers, when I was generally accompanied only by a single European, or at most two, and where, if attacked, there was no possibility of my re- ceiving any human aid. I have gone almost alone among Q 2 340 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. hordes of those fierce and blood-thirsty savages, as they -were then considered, and have stood singly amongst them in the remote and trackless wilds, when hundreds were congregated around, without ever receiving the least injury or insult. " In my first visits to the more distant tribes I found them shy, alarmed and suspicious, but soon learning that I had no wish to injure them, they met me with readiness and con- fidence. My wishes became their law ; they conceded points to me that they would not have done to their own people, and on many occasions cheerfully underwent hunger, thirst and fatigue to serve me. " Former habits and prejudices in some respects gave way to the influence I acquired. Tribes that never met or heard of one another before, were brought to mingle in friendly inter- course. Single individuals traversed over immense distances and through many intervening tribes, which formerly they never could have attempted to pass, and in accomplishing this the white man's naiue alone was the talisman that proved their safeguard and protection. "During the whole of the three years I was resident at Moorunde, not a single case of serious injury or aggression ever took place on the part of the natives against the Europeans ; and a district, once considered the wildest and most dangerous, was, when I left it in November, 1844, looked upon as one of the most peaceable and orderly in the province. "As far as has yet been ascertained, the whole of the abori- ginal inhabitants of this continent, scattered as they are over an immense extent of country, bear so striking a resemblance in physical appearance and structure to each other, and their general habits, customs and pursuits are also very similar, though modified in some respects by local circumstances or climate, that little doubt can be entertained that all have ori- ginally sprung from the same stock. The principal points of difference, observable between various tribes, appear to consist chiefly in some of their ceremonial observances, and in the variations of dialect in the language they speak; the latter are, indeed, frequently so great, that even to persons thoroughly acquainted with any one dialect, there is not the slightest clue CIl. XI.] MR. EYRE ON THE NATIVES, 341 by which he can understand what is said by a tribe speaking a different one." Of the actual condition and future prospects of the aborigines of South Australia, Mr. Eyre gives a gloomy but faithful account : — " The character of the Australian native has been so con- stantly misrepresented and traduced, that by the world at large he is looked upon as the lowest and most degraded of the human species, and is generally considered as ranking but little above the members of the brute creation. Savages have always many vices, but I do not think that these are worse in the New Hollanders, than in many other aboriginal races. It is said, in- deed, that the Australian is an irreclaimable, unteachable being; that he is cruel, blood-thirsty, revengeful, and treacherous ; and in support of such assertions, references are made to the total failure of all missionary and scholastic efforts hitherto made on his behalf, and to many deeds of violence or aggression com- mitted by him upon the settler. " With respect to the first point, I consider that an intimate knowledge of the peculiar habits, laws, and traditions, by which this people are governed, is absolutely necessary before any just opinion can be formed as to how far the means hitherto pursued have been suitable, or adapted to counteract the in- fluence of custom and the force of prejudice. Until this know- ledge is attained we have no right to brand them as either irre- claimable or unteachable. My own impression, after long ex- perience and an attentive consideration of the subject, is, that in the present anomalous state of our relations with the abori- gines, our measures are neither comprehensive enough, nor is our system sufficiently adapted to the singular circumstances they are in, to enable us successfully to contend with the diffi- culties and impediments in the way of their rising in the scale of civilization. " Upon the second point it is also necessary to make many in- quiries before we arrive at our conclusions ; and I liavc no doubt, if this be done with calmness and witliout prejudice, it will be generally found that there are many extenuating cir- 342 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. cumstances which may be brought to modify our judgment. I am anxious, if possible, to place a few of these before the pub- lic, in the hope that by lessening in some degree the unfavour- able opinion heretofore entertained of the aborigines, they may be considered for the future as more deserving our sympathy and benevolence. " Without assuming for the native a freedom from vice, or in any way attempting to palliate the many brutalizing habits that pollute his character, I would still contend that if stained with the excesses of unrestrained passions, he is still sometimes sensible to the better emotions of humanity. Many of the worst traits of his character are the result of necessity or the force of custom — the better ones are implanted in him as a part of his nature. With capabilities for receiving and an aptness for ac- quiring instruction, I believe he has also the capacity for appre- ciating the rational enjoyments of life. " Even in his present low and debased condition, and viewed under every disadvantage, I do not imagine that his vices would usually be found greater, or his passions more malignant than those of a veiy large proportion of men ordinarily denomi- nated civilized. On the contrary, I believe, were Europeans placed under the same circumstances, equally wronged, and equally shut out from redi-ess, they would not exhibit half the moderation or forbearance that these poor untutored children of impulse have invariably shown. " It is true that occasionally many crimes have been com- mitted by them, and robberies and murder have too often oc- curred ; but who can tell what were the provocations which led to, what the feeling which impelled such deeds ? Neither have they been the only or the first aggressors, nor has their race escaped unscathed in the contest. Could blood answer blood, perhaps for every drop of European's shed by natives, a torrent of theii's, by European hands, would crimson the earth. " Let us now inquire a little upon whose side right and jus- tice are arrayed in palliation (if any such there can be) of deeds of violence or aggression on the part of either. " It is an undeniable fact, that wherever European colonies have been established in Australia, the native races of the CH. XI.] MR. EYRE ON THE NATIVES. 34.3 neighbourhood are rapidly decreasing, and already, in some of the elder settlements, have totally disappeared. It is equally indisputable that the presence of the white man has been the sole agent in producing so lamentable an effect ; that the evil is still going on, increased in a ratio proportioned to the num- ber of new settlements formed, or the rapidity with which the settlers overrun new districts. The natural, the inevitable, but the no less melancholy result must be, that in the coui-se of a few years more, if nothing be done to check it, the whole of the aboriginal tribes of Australia will be swept away from the face of the earth. A people who, by their numbers, have spread around the whole of this immense continent, and have probably penetrated into and occupied its inmost recesses, will become quite extinct, their name forgotten, their very exist- ence but a record of history. " NATIVE SCHOOLS. " It may be well to inquire what are likely to be the results eventually under the existing arrangements. From the first establishment of the schools, until June, 1843, the children were only instructed at the location ; their food was given to them to take to the native encampments to cook, and they were allowed to sleep there at night. The natural consequence was, that the provisions intended for the scholars were shared by the other natives ; whilst the evil influence of example, and the jeers of their companions, did away with any good impres- sion produced by their instruction. I have myself, upon going round the encampments in Adelaide by night, seen the school children ridiculed by the elder boys, and induced to join them in making a jest of what they had been taught during the day to look upon as sacred. " A still more serious evil resulting from this system, was, that the children were more completely brought into the power, and under the influence of the parents ; and thus their natural taste for an indolent and rambling life was constantly kept up. The boys naturally became anxious to participate and excel m the sports, ceremonies, or pursuits of their ctjuals, and the girls were compelled to yield to the customs of their tribe, 344 SOUTH AUSTRALIA. [CH. XI. and break through every lesson of decency or morality which had been inculcated. " Since June, 1843, the system has so far been altered, that the children, whilst under instruction, are boarded and lodged at the school houses, and as far as practicable, the boys and girls are kept separate. There are still, however, many evils attending the present practice, most of which arise from the inadequacy of the funds applicable to the aborigines, and which must be removed before any permanent good can be expected from the instruction given. The first of these, and perhaps one of the greatest, is that the adult natives make their encampments immediately in the neighbourhood of the schools ; whilst the children, when out of school, roam in a great measure at will, or are often employed collecting firewood ^ r-< C5 (M r-l ^ ?0 r-H r-H (^ CM rl O >0 CD O O 05 »0 05 C<3 CO r-H oq rH oq (M r^ o C5 o cci O' i>. ^ G<1 IM iM (M 'Z>.P P ,^ Wo wo 0^ 0 (M CO 1^ O 05 o t^ ^ o ^ ^ ^ ; \< a a >~>X r-( CO r^ i" ^ n g S3 rt 2^ OttJiOOThCOOOO c;t^cococo!DOO ^ O ' PhOi !P3. o ^ '.2 8 I^Ph «2 Sh k-t APPENDIX. 385 No. VII. 'S * >0 lO •* OS '<*i C*^ »0 r-<__-.*^(M CO i>^co'"eo CO__ '-' (M CO 1 ■^ »0 t- O 00 1-1 »0 CO * 00 1-1 1-1 . O OS (M 00 O (N 00 o •^ ■^ i-( i-l M4 00 CO t^ O 00 -* O CO CO rH OS r-( CO lO rH > ^ ^ • . • "~ • tJ ■> o • ill '"2 * a -w c ^ 's ' ^ , m ., a< o Ph a -4J O 5:2 p; istablishment ontingent ex •il establishm ontingent ex iastical estab a Gh X^ O a o o es s 1 2 o a S a '^ a o 3 " O -^ U <» o - o o c -3 .S Ji HO H hH ■> 13 o •2 3 " O i-s W 'K t- O C 00 O i-< t- 1-1 O US J-t 1-4 oo T i-l l-l rH rH 1-1 rH 1-1 l» -* 0 lO 00 •* t- (M O t- 1-1 OS C-l t^ in "^ 1-1 1-1 I-l rH 1-1 I-l 1-4 I-i 00 OtDt- t~CSOrH-*0 CO CD (N OO CO I-H 05':t<0 -^Ot^OSOlOO oo OS CO t^ o ^^ ^Oi Oi CO '^^'O i-l^t- o o rH 00 CO lo" c0 CO CO 00 ■* 50 (M O (M . ■^ 1-1 1-1 ■-( —1 1-1 rH rH 00 -*(M01 -^COCOtOOS-*'* CO (N 00 ■^ (M »0 CO t^ O CD CO CO ^ Co OO o" T-T (N" i-T t-^ t^ (N (M ,•• 60 O ■" i« -M S pilo' ) • cour stock tprop er . g Ui i Customs (including and tonnage dues Postage Fees of public office Fines levied in the justice . Licences Auction duty Assessment on live Rents of Govemmen Permits Storage of gunpowd > o 1 pa 0) y. • a> 3 a 3 a o 41 O 01 o a a H c ^ S " « o ••2 c - 0, ^4 Q> W^ c « o Ofi o •S5.S-S.. oaf S3 CCS 5 ■So-^ £ « c ^ « 3g5> ". — .o c o b *• <9 w 2SS- e ^-H .2 386 APPENDIX. No. VIII. Abstract of the Receipts and Expenditure of the Colo- nial Government of South Australia for the Quarter ending March 31, 1846. Receipts. Customs — £ s. d. Spirits imported . . 3,091 19 2 Tobacco imported . 1,455 8 7 Wines imported . 215 9 11 Other goods imported . . 2,144 3 1 Other Customs' receipts . 178 2 3 s. d. 7,085 3 Deduct drawbacks and repayments 191 Postage 6,893 15 1 256 4 1 Fees from — Supreme Court .... 100 14 10 Insolvent Court .... 52 4 8 Registry Office .... 175 1 3 Resident Magistrate's Court 42 Police Magistrate's Court . 22 12 Registration of Dogs . 2 9 Sheriff 44 4 9 Clerk to the Bench and Petty Sessions 109 6 Slaughtering Cattle 91 7 6 Certificates to Legal Practitioners 115 Medical 1 1 Colonial Secretary's Office . 2 12 6 Laud Grant Office 32 9 Fines levied in Police Court 790 17 36 19 827 16 Carried forward 7,977 15 2 APPENDIX. 387 Brought forward Auction Duty Licences — Auctioneers' . . . . 50 Publicans' General . . . 2,200 " Wine and Beer . . 96 Storekeepers' . . . . 20 Assessments under Waste Land Act Licences under ditto (depasturing) Rent of Crown Property . Permits Miscellaneous .... Total receipts £ 5. 7,977 15 74 7 2,.366 285 11 5 186 2 14 3 54 8 10,958 14 3 Expenditure. Governor and Judge Civil Establishment — Establishment of his Excellency Councils of Government Colonial Secretary's Department Colonial Treasurer's Department Auditor-General's Department Customs Department Survey and Land Department Department of Public Works Post Office Department Colonial Store Department Medical Department Harbour Department Police Department Inspector of Weights and Measures Aborigines' Department Carried forward 91 13 4 68 15 288 70 16 8 70 556 1 1 661 18 11 169 12 8 191 8 10 75 182 19 3 608 7 1743 17 1 15 321 5 4,8i)9 10 3 s 2 388 APPENDIX. Brought forward Commissioner of Public Lands . Port Lincoln Judicial — Supreme Court Office Law Officers .... Registrar-General's Department Sheriff's Office .... Resident Magistrate's Court Coroner ..... Clerk to the Bench of INIagistrates Gaol Establishment . Colonial Chaplain Printing Stationery Keeper of Public Offices . Laboui'er at Government Farm . Ditto Government Domain Rent of House in Currie Street Rent of Court and Law Offices . Keeper of Law Offices Fuel for Public Offices Inspector of Slaughter Houses . Public Repairs and Improvements Miscellaneous Unforeseen Expenses Salary to Emigration Agent, and expenses of widows, orphans, deserted women and children . 164 17 4 Debentures for Outstanding Claims 2,088 16 Interest on ditto . . . . 48 15 4 £ s. d. 4,899 10 3 78 15 3 99 18 9 138 117 10 162 10 87 10 155 10 37 10 30 205 15 11 87 10 149 13 9 7 10 25 13 13 37 10 50 20 3 7 3 25 1,756 6 10 757 9 9 9,527 17 9 Carried forward 2,302 8 8 9,527 17 9 APPENDIX. 389 £ s. d. Brought forward . . 2,302 8 8 9,527 17 9 Repayment to Land Fund on ac- count of sums borrowed for pay- ment of Debentures . . . 1,000 3,302 8 8 Total Expenditure 12,830 6 6 Note. — The publication of this Abstract has been deferred until the completion of the Customs accounts for the quarter, from which account the detail of Receipts above shown, under the head of " Customs," has been obtained. W. H. Maturin, Auditor-General. Audit Office, Adelaide, May 27, 1846. S 3 390 APPENDIX. No. IX. Comparative Return of Exports, the produce of South Australia, FOR THE Years 1844 and 1845. Quantity. Alkali Animals, living — Cattle ,, „ Horses „ ,, Sheep Bacon and Hams Barilla Bark Beer Bread and Biscuit Beef and Pork Butter Cheese Com — Barley ,, Bran „ Malt ,, Oats ,, Wheat „ „ Flour Eggs Fish Galls Gum Guano Hay Horns, Hoofs, and Bones Jam Lard Leather Machinery Oil— Black ,, Sperm Ore — Copper , , Lead Onions Potatoes Plants and Seeds Salt Skins and Hides Soap Specimens of Natural History Stone and Slate Timber Tongues Vegetables Wine Wood Wheels Wool Whalebone 62 cwt. 5 tons 856 tons 53 cwt. 2,362 cwt. 2 cwt. 35 cwt. 1275 tuns 4 tuns 277 tons 203 tons Totals 819,897 lbs. 1,213 cwt. Quantity. 16 cwt. 2 cwt. 410 cwt. 74 cwt. 65i qrs. 348 qrs. 10 2 18 1,137 2 268 5 83 3 116 3 8 6 6 3f) qrs. ll,294i qrs. 16,978 cwt. 48 12,014 16 8,014 9 9 2 £ s. d. i66"o i2'io 166 4 20 3,310 67 6 1,500 15 74 18 2 5 264 63 3,375 215 4,009 2,427 2 380 161 5 10 10 10 3 10 3 18 4 42,769 15 9 590 10 82,268 13 8 5 cwt. 30 1 1,150 144 cwt. 2 qr. 4 lbs. 239 tons 14 cwt. 27 gallons 37 t. 19 c. 1 qr. 4 lbs. 11 barrels 390 cwt. 2 qrs. 3 lbs. lot. 2 c. 1 qr. 4 lbs. 15U qrs. 7m „ m „ ,1923 „ '11.27U „ 969 t. 12 cwt. 3 qrs. 50 dozen 335 tons 2 cwt. |2cwt. 6 tons 12 cwt. 18 cwt. 1 qr. 12 lbs. 70 tuns 981 tons 17 cwt. 175 tons 19 cwt. 74 bushels 3 tons 159 tons j26 gallons 1,331,788 lbs. 32 cwt. 1 qr. 19 lbs. 1,839 8 17 6 15 29 549 10 31 1 5 89 104 2 17 35 u 15 01 72,235 12 544 10 u 131,800 6 Compiled from records in the Colonial Secretary's Office. A. M. MUNDY, Colonial Secretary. Colonial Secretary's Office, 31st January, 1846. APPENDIX. 391 No. X. Comparative Return of the Quantity of Land under Cultivation in the Years 1844 and 1845. Acres under Cultivation, j Crops. 1 1844. 1845. Wheat 18,980 18,838 Barley 4,264i 4,342^ Oats 1,045 l,485f Maize 2414 86i Potatoes .... 397i 459 Garden 761 631 self-sown. Wheat 888^ 249 Barley 170 56 Oats Totals .... No. of Proprietors 160 71 26,907* 26,218^ 1,357 1,269 Note. — The apparent deficiency in the quantity of land, returned as self-sown in 1845, may be accounted for by the fact of the Returns for that year not having been collected till the commencement of the harvest season, at which time many of the self-sown crops may have been already cut for hay. Compiled from records in the Colonial Secretary's Office. A. M. Munday, Colonial Secretary. Colonial Secretary's Office, Blst January, 1846. i WORKS LATELY PUBLISHED. EIGHT YEARS OF BUSH LIFE IN AUSTRALIA, By HENRY W. HAYGARTH. Post 8vo, 2s. 6d. 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