Discoveries in Australia, Volume 1. / With an Account of the Coasts and Rivers Explored and Surveyed During / The Voyage of H.M.S. Beagle, in the Years 1837-38-39-40-41-42-43. / By Command of the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty. Also a Narrative / Of Captain Owen Stanley's Visits to the Islands in the Arafura Sea.

by John Lort Stokes

ORONTES REEF.

The least depth on the Orontes reef is about a fathom, but the generally discoloured state of the water, renders it impossible to determine its exact position, and thus greatly increases the injury done by its presence to the mouth of the harbour. The same difficulty prevents the end of the reef fronting Point Smith from being made out. After rounding the latter, we hauled to the wind, South-West by South up Port Essington.

CHAPTER 1.11.

Port Essington.
Bearings from shoals in the Harbour.
Appearance of the Settlement.
Meet Captain Stanley.
Church.
Point Record.
Prospects of the Settlement.
Buffaloes escape.
Fence across neck of Peninsula.
Lieutenant P.B. Stewart explores the Country.
Natives.
Uses of Sand.
Tumuli-building Birds.
Beautiful Opossum.
Wild Bees.
Escape from an Alligator.
Result of Astronomical Observations.
Geological Formation.
Raffles Bay.
Leave Port Essington.
Popham Bay.
Detect error in position of Port Essington.
Melville Island.
Discover a Reef in Clarence Strait.
Cape Hotham.
Native Huts and Clothing.
Geological Formation.
Discover the Adelaide River.
Interview with Natives.
Attempt to come on board.
Messrs. Fitzmaurice and Keys nearly speared.
Exploration of the Adelaide.
Its capabilities.
Wood-ducks.
Vampires.
Another party ascends the Adelaide.
Meet Natives.
Canoes.
Alligator.
Visit Melville Island.
Green Ants.
Thoughts of taking ship up Adelaide abandoned.
Tides in Dundas Strait.
Return to Port Essington.
Theatricals.
H.M.S. Pelorus arrives with Provisions.
Further remarks on the Colony.

PORT ESSINGTON.

The expanse of water presented to our view in standing up Port Essington, quite delighted us. It is in truth a magnificent harbour, and well worthy of having on its shores the capital of Northern Australia, destined, doubtless, from its proximity to India, and our other fast-increasing eastern possessions, to become not only a great commercial resort, but a valuable naval post in time of war. Many circumstances combine to render it a desirable station. Its great size, having an extent sufficient to hold the largest fleet, is in itself of vast importance, while, as a shelter for distressed vessels, or the surviving crews of wrecks, it cannot be too highly rated: the more so that excellent wood for repairing ships grows in the neighbourhood, especially teak and oak, specimens of which with others, Captain Laws forwarded, in 1828, to one of the dockyards in England.

As we advanced the shores of the harbour contracted, and at the distance of thirteen miles from the entrance are only one mile apart; scarcely half, however, of this space is navigable, from a bank extending off the west side, which is a rocky head called Spear Point, from the circumstance of Captain King having been there nearly speared by the natives. The bearings for clearing the extremes of this reef are as follows. For the south-eastern, Adam Head South 20 degrees West, for the eastern, Middle Head South 18 degrees West, and for the north-eastern, Oyster Head North 47 degrees West. This great decrease in the breadth of the passage, necessarily gives the tide at this spot great rapidity, by which a channel, thirteen fathoms deep, has been formed close to the eastern shore, a low sandy tongue of land called Point Record. This name was given to it on the occasion of Port Essington and the contiguous country, being taken possession of by Sir Gordon Bremer when on his way to settle Melville Island, in 1824. A bottle containing an account of their proceedings was buried, and hence the name. The same cause which influences the tides, has rendered the sides of the narrow channel very steep, and a vessel standing towards the bank fronting Spear Point, should, accordingly, tack when the water shoals to nine fathoms, as the soundings in approaching that part fronting Port Record are 12, 9, 7, and 2 fathoms.

Beyond these points, the harbour again widens and forms a large basin nearly five miles in extent; but from a broad point projecting two miles from the south-east side, the inner harbour is proportionably decreased in size. From the extreme of this cliffy point, called by Captain King, from its position, Middle Head, a narrow bank extends some distance in the direction of Point Record, forming the only danger in this part of the harbour.

BEARINGS FOR THE HARBOUR.