The Sun.
London, England, 1860-03-15 00:00:00

ROYAL GEOGRAPHICAL SOCIETY.

A meeting of this society was held on Monday
evening, Sir Roderick I. 'Murchison,
in the chair. vice-president,

The papers read were-1. " South Australia.
Exploring Expedition into the Interior of the Con-
tinent," by J. Macdougall Stuart. Communicated
by the Duke of Newcastle, F.R.G.S.
Mr. Macdougall Stuart, whose previous impor-
tant explorations have been brought at different
times under the notice of the society, and were re•
warded last year by the presentation of a geld
watch, succeeded, accompanied by two persons, in
penetrating to a point a little higher thin 27 S. lat.,
and 131 E. long., a distance of
about 300 miles be-
yond the farthest point reached by Babbage and
Warburton, the result of which has been the dis-
covery of an immense tract of country, exceeding in
richness of pasturage and abundance of water any-
thing that has yet been met with. Mr. Stuart
started from the Emerald Springs early in April,
and reached his farthest point about the middle of
May, and during the entire journey was never a
day without water. The country traversed con-
sisted of immense plains, interspersed with innume-
rable hillocks, from 100 to 150 feet high, from the
summits of which gushed out springs of pure fresh '
water, intersecting the plains and discharging them-
selves
into numerous creeks and rivers, running in
an easterly direction. One of the rivers discovered
is described as being, in one part of its course, three
miles wide. Mr. Stuart made occasional detours of
between 20 and 25 miles, and found the character
of the country everywhere, as far as the eye could
reach, the same, and considers the difficulties in the
way of crossing the continent to the northern coast
in the vicinity of Cambridge Gulf by no means
great ; in fact, he proposes to accomplish this by
penetrating with a highly equipped party to dis-
tances of two or three hundred miles from the
farthest point gained, where he purposes forming
depots with supplies, and by this weans to cross
the continent. If this be accomplished it would
form a direct route for telegraphic wires, which
might eventually connect the colonies of Australia
with India and Europe. A considerable portion
of the district traversed is represented as auriferous,
and Mr. Stuart reports the probable existence of
an extensive gold field (about lat. 28 S., long. 135.50
E.), in a basin surrounded by low hills.
Col. GAWLER said that the discovery by Mr.
Stuart of a fertile, well-watered country to the north-
west of Port Augusta confirmed the predictions he
had made from meteorological observations. Ile had
always observed that when the wind blew from that
direction it was charged with moisture; whilst the
wind from the north-east, which had been ascer-
tained to be a saline desert, was extremely dry and
parching. He said that Australia resembled in its
physical conformation an immense crater, there
being high mountains all round the coast, from which
the land inclined inwards, forming a hollow, and he
believed that in the centre of that island-continent
there would be discovered a large lake.
2. " Discovery of a new hat b-ur on thc exist
of Australia ;" communicated
through the Duke of
Newcastle, F.R.G.S., through Sir G. F. Bowen,
F.R.G.S., Governor of Queensland. In forwarding
extracts from the log-hook announcing this dis-
covery, Sir G. Bowen observes that, northwards of
the southern boundary of Queensland (about ht. 29
deg. S.), ranges of considerable elevation, and ex-
tensive plateaux of table-land, extend northward to
the Gulf of Carpentaria and Torres Straits. This
territory, though a large portion of it lies within
the tropics, enjoys a comparatively cool and salu-
brious climate. It is in rapid process of occupation
by the flocks and herds-of the settlers. Between the
table-land above mentioned and the coast of the
Pacific lie extensive tracts of soil, admirably adapted
for the growth of cotton, sugar, &c. ; timber in vast
quantities, and gold, and other minerals abound.
These facts rendered the existence of capacious
harbours a matter of the highest practical import-
ance—consequently, Capt. Sinclair and his party,
anticipating a handsome reward for the discovery
of a good and secure harbour, sailed from Rock-
hampton (Fort Curtis) in search of one, and also of
the mouth of the Burdekin river. After visiting
various points and islands to the north (some of which
•

Mr. JUKES then briefly descrihel the character of
the coast of Australia, particularly that of the north-
east, and the coral reefs that extend along it, and
said that those coral reefs, which rise only as high
as low water, extend for 1,200 miles, with an
averaEe width of thirty miles, and the sea close to
the Loral rocks has been sounded to a depth of 1,800
feet without reaching the bottom, The coral
polypes which have produced that range of lime-
stone rocks under the sea cannot live at a greater
depth than fifteen fathoms; therefore it is assumed
thatin the course of the countless ages during, which
the rocks have been forming the land must have
been gradually depressed. Mr. Jukes said that the
country along that coast is more fertile than on any
other part of the shores of Australia. The moun-
tains are about 30 miles distant, and the interven-
ing seaboard is capable of producing cotton, sugar,
or any other produce of tropical climates.
Sir EDWARD BELCHER dissented from Mr. Jukes's
theory of the formation of the coral reefs, and said
he had dredged up the living polypes from depths
of 1,000 feet. ,He mentioned variations in the level
of the rocks at different times of observation, which
showed that they were subjected to local depres-
sions not dependent on any assumed depression of
the land.

Mr. CRAUFURD said`he was glad to 'congratulate
the meeting that there had at last been discovered
a tract of land in British possessions within the
tropics where cotton might he produced in abun-
dance, with the assistance of Chinese labour.
After some observations from Mr. Wilson and
Mr. Saunders, the meeting adjourned to the 26th
instant.