The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1857-09-03
TRACKS IN THE BUSH.

stocKman In my employment was, not
many years ago, missing from a cattle station
distant from Sydney about two hundred and
thirty miles. The man had gone one afternoon
In search of horse that had strayed. Not
having returned at night or the next morning.
the natural conclusion was that he had been
lost In the bush. l at once called in the aid of
the blacks, and, attended by two European ser.
wants, lstockmen, headed the expedition. The
chief difficulty lay in getting on the mans track
and several hours were spent before this i'm
portant object was accomplished. The savages
exhibited some ingenuity, even in this. They
described large circles round the hut whence
the man had taken his departure, and kept on
extending them until they were satisfied they
had the proper footprints. The track once
found, half dozen of the blacks went off like
pack of hounds. Now and then, in the dense
forest through which we wandered in our search.
there was check, in consequence of the ex.
treme dryness of the ground or the wind had
blown about the fallen leaves of the gigantic
gumtrees which abound in those regions but.
for the most part, the course was straight on
end.
We had provided ourselves with -four, salt
beef, tea, sugar, blankets, and other personal
comforts. These were carried on horse
which small black boy, of about IA years of
tlnued our search until the sun had gone down.
and then pitched our camp and waited for day.
light. With their tomahawks the blacks strip
ped OFT large sheets of bark from the gum trees,
and cut down a few saplings. With these we
made hut, at the opening of which we light
ed a lire, partly for boiling the water for tea,
and partly for the purpose of keeping off the
mosquitoes. During the night we had a yery
heavy storm of lightning and thunder, &C.
companied by torrents of rain. This, fancied.
would render the tracking even more difficult,
as the rain was suffi GENTLY heavy to wash out
the footprints of a man, had any such footprints
been previously perceptible. When the sun
arose, however, the blacks, seemingly without
difficulty, took up the track, and followed it at
the rate OF two and half miles an hour until
noon, when we halted to take some rest.
The foot of civilized man had never before
trodden In that wild region, which was peopled
only with the kangaroo, the emu, the opossum.
and wildcat. The stiffness was awful: and
ever and anon, the blacks would cooey IA hail
peculiar to the savages of New Holland, which
may be heard several miles off, but-and we
listened each time with intense anxietv-tbere
was no response.
At about half-past three in the afternoon of
the second day we came to spot where the
blacks expressed, by gestures, that the missing
stockman had sat down; and, in confirmation
OF their statement, they pointed to a stone.
which had evidently been lately removed from
its original place. / inquired, by gestures.
whether we were near the lost man: but the
blacks shook their heads and held up two fin.
gers, from which l CLEANED that two DAYS had
elapsed since the man had been there. At
five we came to another spot where the missing
stockman had laid down, and here we found
his short pipe broken. 1t would be difficult to
describe the satisfaction with which l eyed this
piece of mans handiwork. 1t refreshed nv
confidence in the natives power of tracking,
and made me the more eager to pursue the
search with rapidity. By promises of large
rewards, l quickened their movements, and we
travelled at the rate of four miles an hour.
We now came upon a soil covered with i'm.
mense boulders. This, 1 fancied, would i'm.
pede, if not destroy, the track; but this was not
the case. 1t is true, we could not travel 80
fast over these large round stones; but the
blacks never once halted, except when they
came to spot where they satisfied me the
stockman himself had rested. None but those
who have been in search of felow-creature
under similar circumstances can conceive the
anxiety which such search creates. could
not help placing myself in the position of the
unhappy man, who was roaming about as one
blindfolded, and probably hoping on, even in
the face of despair. Again we came to forest
of huge gum.trees.
AT times, the gestures of the blacks, while
following the footprints of the stockman, in
dicsted to me that he had been running. At
other times, they initiated the languid move
ments of weary and foot.sore traveller They
knew exactly the pace at which the poor fellow
had wandered about in those untrodden wilds
and now and then, while following in his wake
and initiating him, they would laugh merrily.
They were not little amused that should be
angry at and rebuke such a demonstration.
The sun went down, and our second days
search was ended. Again we pitched our camp
and lighted fires. We had now travelled about
thirty miles from the station, and the blacks,
who had now got beyond the precincts of their
district, became fearful of meeting with some
strange tribe, who would destroy them and
myself. Indeed, if and my European COM
panions had not been armed with a gun each,
and plentiful supply of ammunition, my sable
guides would have refused to proceed any
further
All night long lay awake, imagining, no.
ping, fearing, and praying for daylight which
at last dawned. Onward we went through
magnificent country, beautifully wooded, and
we'll watered by streams, and covered with lux
uriant pasture-all waste land, in the strictest
sense of the term. At about ten we came to a
valley in which grew a number of wattle-trees.
From these trees, gum, resembling gum ara
bic in ell its properties, exudes in the warm