Page:History of Adelaide and vicinity.djvu/128

 I02 ADELAIDE AND VICINITY The Husbandmen •- ^'.p -.<-^*^ The most important exploration was that made by one of the discoverers of the Province— Captain Sturt. He was accompanied, among others, by Mr. J. Poole and Mr. John McDouall Stuart. It was proposed to examine a chain of mountains believed to lie parallel with the Darling; and on August lo, 1844, the party left Adelaide, business being suspended in honor of the occasion. Sturt, with characteristic persistency, pushed bravely into the desert country, and encountered tremendous difficulties. The journey was made in intensely hot weather, the thermometer at one place, fixed in the shade of a large tree, rising to 135' Fahr. at 2.30 p.m. Notwithstanding an outbreak of scurvy and the indisposition of members of the party, Sturt proceeded farther and farther into the interior, carrying water with him. On February 13, 1845, he was nearly abreast of Moreton Bay, in point of latitude, more than 200 miles west of the Darling, and in longitude 141° 22' ; " and yet," says he, "as I looked around, and from the top of a small sandhill I had ascended, I could see no change in the terrible desert into which I had pene- trated. The horizon was unbroken by a single mound from north round to north again, and it was as level as the ocean He was con- vinced that he had been twice within 50 miles Departure of Captain Sturt, August io, 1844 „r .,., inlind Sea He returned to his depot, and, after recuperating, determined to make another attempt to discover whatever lay hidden in the north. Mr. Poole, who had suffered from scurvy, was instructed to go back with a third of the men, but died on June 14 -a day after leaving the depot. Sturt did his utmost to penetrate the waste places of the interior, and on the last occasion rode 843 miles in five weeks, and " for 12 weeks was exposed to the perils of excessive heat, insufficient food, and loath.some water, which resulted in a severe attack of scurvy and a painful affection of the eyes." The country, so far as he could ascertain, consisted of an immense stony desert, which he could neither penetrate nor skirt. He found and named Cooper Creek (after the then Chief Justice), and returned to Adelaide in January, 1846. The appearance of the exj)edition in the streets of the city was interesting. The faces of the men were almost hidden by long beards, and their skin was burnt almost to the color of the natives. " The wheels of the drays were caulked and stopped up with whatever materials could be spared to fill up gaps and cracks to keep them together, the woodwork showing that