The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1924-02-22
CAPTAINS OF
ADVENTURE

By ROGER POCOCK

Hungarian cavalry and the Royal
Irish constabulary, serving as an off,
Ger in the Victorian police. Wills was
Devon man, with some frontier train
ing on the sheep runs, but had taken to
astronomy and surveying. There were
several other white men, and three
Afghans, W it'll a train of camels.
They left Melbourne with pomp and
circumstance, crossed Victoria through
civilized country, and made a base
camp on the Darling river at Menindie.
There Burke sacked two mutinous fol-
lowers and his doctor scuttled in a
funk, so he took on Wright, an old set
tier who knew the way to Cooper's
Creek, four hundred miles farther on.
Two hundred miles out Wright was
sent back to bring up stores from Me-
nindie. while the expedition went on
TO make an advanced base at Cooper's
Creek. Everything was to depend on
the storage of food at that base.
While they were waiting for Wright
TO come up with their stores, Wills and
another man prospected ninety miles
north from Cooper's Creek TO the Stony
Desert,
Wills, having mislaid his three cam
els. came back ninety miles afoot with
out water, to find the whole expedition
stuck at Cooper's Creek, waiting for
stores. Mr. Wright, at Menindie,
burned time, wasting six weeks before
ba attapoptad 70 Srort Will, tba StoroS
and Burke at last could bear the delay
no longer There were thunder-storms
giving promise of abundant water for
once in the northern desert, so Burke
marched with Wills, King and Gray,
taking a horse and six camels.
William Brahe was left in charge at
the camp at Cooper's Greek, to remain
with ample provisions until Wright
turned up, but not to leave except In
dire extremity.
Burke's party crossed the glittering
Stony Desert and, watching the birds,
who always know the way TO water.
they came TO fine lake, where they
spent Christmas day. Beyond that, they
came to the Diamantina, and again
there was wafer. The country i'm
proved, there were northward flowing
streams TO cheer them on their way,
and at last they came to salt water at
the head OF the Gulf Of Carpentaria.
They had crossed the continent from
south to north.
With blithe hearts they set out on
their return, and if they had to kill
the camels for food, then to eat snakes,
which disagreed with them, still there
would be plenty when they reached
Cooper's Creek. Gray complained Of
being Ill, but pIlfering stores is not a
proper symptom of any disease, so
Burke gave him thrashing by way OF
medicine. When he died, they delayed
one day for his burial; one day too
much, for when they reached Cooper's
Creek they were just nine hours late.
Thirty-one miles they made in the last
march and reeIed exhausted into an
empty camp ground. Cut in the bark
Of a tree were the words: dig, 81
April 1851" They dug a few inches
into the earth, where they found a box
of provisions and bottle containing
letter:
THE depot party of the Y. e. E.
leave this camp today to return to the
Darling. l intend to go S. E. from
camp sixty miles to get into our old
track near Bulloo.
They were too heart-sick to make an
inscription on the tree, but left letter
in the bottle, buried. A few days later
Brahe returned with the Industrious
Mr.. Wright and his supply train. Here
Is the note in Wright's diary:
MAY eighth. This morning reached
the Cooper's Creek depot and found
no sign of Mr.. Burke's having visited
the creek, or the natives having dis
turbed the stores"
Only few miles away the creek ran
out into channels Of dry sand, where
Burke, Wills and King were starving,
ragged beggars, fed by the charitable
blackfellows on fish and seed called
nardoo, Of which they made their
bread.
Again they attempted to reach the
mounted police outpost, but the cam
els died, the water failed, and they
starved. Burke sent Wills back to
Cooper's Creek. mo trace" wrote
Wills in his journal, 'of anyone except
the blacks having been here since we
left" Brahe and Wright had left no
stores at the camp ground.
Had they been bushmen the tracks
would Lave told Wills of help within
his reach, the fishhooks would have
won them food in plenty. 1t is curl
Gus, too, that Burke died after meal
OF crow and nardoo, there being neither
sugar nor fat in these foods. without
which they cannot sustain a mans life.
Then King left Burke's body, shot
three crows and brought them to Wills.
who was lying dead in camp. Three
months afterward a relief party found
King living among the natives, wasted
to shadow, and hardly to be distin-
guished as a civilized being but by the
remnants Of the clothes upon him"
"They should not have gone" said
one pioneer of these lost explorers.
They weren't bushmen." Afterward
Mr.. Coils and his wife lived four
years in plenty upon the game and fish
at the Innaminka water-hole where
poor Burke died of hunger
Such were. the first crossings from
east to west. and from south to north,
Of the Australian continent.
Of 400 tons in those days. Archi-
medes doubtless helped to build it
q nrpsenf To PfnIpnv Of Errnt