Holmes County farmer. [volume] (Millersburg, Ohio) 1857-1926, 1865-06-08
Wistsllaneous.
TIE LOST CHILDREN IN
VICTORIA.

AUSTRALIA, as most oil our readers are aware
IS very large country So large that it is
frequently called the mn continent of the
world: Europe, Asia, Africa, and America.
being the other four. People in Australia
have to travel long distance, vcrto,illy un-
inhabited tracts Of wild country, and very
often lose their way and perish. Several
, Wesleyan Methodist ministers have had
very narrow escapes from death through
being lost. We may mention the Rev.
Charles Creed, and more recently, the Rev.
Il. w. Nandeekiste, whose account Of hi,
calamity some Of our young friends have
perhapsread, in his Lost bm Not Foreyer.
The following account Of what lately hap-
pcncd to three dear little children i'm Vic
torla, near Mount Arapies, in that immense
aud terrible desert, marked on maps as the
blasted Heath, will, we are sure, great.
ly interest our young readers. The chill
dren, whose fathers name is Duff, carp.
enter by trade, are named Isaac, Jane, and
Frank and are Of the ages respectively. of
n nine, seven, and three and half years.
God kept these children alive. as you will
see, nine days without any food.
On Friday, the 18th of August, about
nine clock, the two boys were sent BY their
mother to fetch some broom. On such an
errand they had frequently gone before to a
rise about mile from their own home
This morning, and for the first time. their
sister was allowed to accompany them, at
the earnest solicitation Of the elder brother;
and to this fact, perhaps, is to be attributed
the straying Of the children far beyond the
place where the broom was usually found.
1t is known that the boy had been struck
with the beauty of some broom and wild
flowers which he had seen, not far distant
ON an early day Of the week, and it is sup
posed he wished to lead his sister to that
spot, partly to share his pleasures, and part
~ to procure for their mother better broom
than they were accustomed to take. 1t i,
certain the three children scrambled over a
brush fence in the adjoining paddock with
which they were less familiar. There they
gathered wild flowers, and cut their broom
Then proposing to return, but becoming con-
fused, they went in the opposite direction,
crossed the tUtther fence Of the paddock.
and soon wandered, utterly bcwildered, in
the vast heath. Meantime the parents
fears had been naroused, and father and mother
were eagerly searching the paddocks in
cyor-lncrcaslng anxiety and dread. Tidings
OF the children being lost soon reached the
home station men at once turned out and
till long after sunsct-indced till near mid
night when the moon went down-an un.
ceaslng and active search was kept up. But
twas all IN vain. Nc traces Of the children :
steps could be found No return was made
to the eager "coocying' that rcsoundcd
over the plain.
The next day. Saturday, the search wa.
resumed. 1t was continued no less earn
estly, but, alas with as little success. On
this day word was sent to the ncghborinc
stations, and men in numbers flOckcd to
Springhill to render aid Sunday morning
saw above thirty horscmen securing the
heath III all directions, but yet no track was
found. On Monday, at dawn of day, they
returned to their willing labor, all of them
depending, many of them quite hopeless ;
| for as is common in this unsteady cline, on
! Saturday night there was keenfrost so
it was argued, and with some reason, that
little ones SO unsheltered and unprovided
could not thus long survive. On this day,
however, two men, far apart from the Others,
happily came upon the chidrcn's track
Afraid to lose sight Of 1t, they would not for
Il moment leave the spot they spent the
night there, and on Tuesday one of them
carried the joyous intelligence to the Others,
while his companion remained at the place
Mr.. Smith, who had returned from a
Journey only the evening before, now took
command of the company of trackers, and,
III NVHSSl III SOlllCNllu lllUIC Vi an VI
ganized party they repaired to the place
where the track had been discovered, about
ten miles from the home station With
difficulty they followed it through the heath,
and progressed but short distance when
darkness fell, and prevented their going
further. 1t was an unspeakabe grief to
these earnest men to be obliged to give up
the search even for time; but the sorrows
OF that night were greatly increased as the
clouds drew thickly and murkily around, and
the wind rose high, and rain fell in torrents
They thought Of the children, if still living,
exposed to such a tempest; and, if dead,
that their bodice were hopelessly lost, for
after rains so heavy the track which had
yesterday been discernible would be altogeth-
er obliterated. 1t was partly as they feared.
In the morning no traces could be found,
and Wednesday and Thursday were occu-
pied in searching, without success, for some
| signs of the missing ones On Thursday
night all hopes seemed to be given up; but
the father clung to the possibility of yet re-
covering his children, and set out to a sta
ton some thirty miles away, where it was
supposed that natives were at work.
In his absence the search was continued.
Mr.. Alexander Wilson, of Ncctis, neigh
boring settler, joined the party he is Il
man of great colonial experience, and re-
markable acuteness. Before the day had !
far advanced he was happy enough to re-
cover the track. lie followed it on very
slowly but surely. Often he was on his
hands and knees, for near an hour at a time,
still keeping it in view, and pcgging as he
went along, that what was gained might |
not afterwards be lost. Thus was Friday
occupied During the night, the father re-
turned with three blacks from behind Mount
Elgin, n,-Dickey, jerry and Fred and carly
on Saturday the tracking was resumed where
Mr. Wilson had left off the previous eve
ming,
at once the superiority of the blacks was
apparent. They had detected three tracks
where at least only one had been seen, and
they travelled on at IL greatly more rapid
rate. Indeed, the work now became in
tensely interesting. Hope revived in every
heat and the expectation was cherished Of
even finding the little ones alive. Ever and
agaid too, touching incidents in the tray
elcrs' journeyings were being read off by
those keen-sightod men. Here little one
tired sit down. Big one kneel down, carry
him along" "Icrc travel all night; dark;
not see that bush her fall on him. And,
what was indeed affecting, Here little one
tired again; big one kucel down not able
T. n II l. 4 IL !