Government Resident; his son, Mr. T. C. Sholl, magistrate's clerk; Mr. Phelps, surveyor; and besides them were a surgeon, a tidewaiter, three police, and several other persons. It was intended to mark out the site of a town and to supply the settlers with adequate protection and assistance.
Early in 1865 Mr. Sholl and the other officials arrived at Camden Harbour in the Tien-Tsin, and the picture which they saw was gloomy and dispiriting. Mr. Sholl's chief calls were to procure passage for his subjects to other ports of the colony. Instead of establishing a new settlement he was needed to wind up the nascent concern. His first report was not complimentary to many of the Camden Harbour Association people. Upon the whole, he began, they were a good class of people, but yet without unity. Affairs were conducted on a hap-hazard principle; no definite arrangements, apparently, were made prior to embarkation. The new arrivals were all shareholders in the company, and "as shareholders they were all equal—one had no more power than another; all were masters; there were no servants." The sheep, in his opinion, were neglected; they were allowed to wander, were scorched to death by the tropical heat, chilled to death by tropical rains, lamed by sharp burning stones, starved on innutritious grass, killed by native dogs, or lost for ever in the bush. With the provisions the same want of order was maintained: "Hay, bran, biscuit, and bacon were carried away by the high tides, and left rotting on the sea-shore." The young active men carefully examined new country, but found none of great value, except on the river's banks. Then Mr. Sholl gives a description of the country. Of edible fruits the grape, currant, fig, plum, a nondescript apple, a peach, and wild cucumber were collated. The place was deceptive: "What seems a grassy hill—for there are hills everywhere—at fifty or thirty yards distance, upon closer examination becomes a mass of rocks, with grass high enough and so thick as to hide the rocks." He climbed to the top of Mount Lookover and discovered what appeared to be a vast extent of fertile country—"it consisted mainly of grass-covered stones." The district abounded with iron and copper, and he thinks "richer and purer metals will yet be discovered." Butterflies were very beautiful and numerous, the harbour teemed with fish, and the sea-rocks with excellent oysters.
In reply to this report Governor Hampton instructed Mr. Sholl to use his discretion in providing passages for people desirous of leaving Camden Harbour who were unable to defray that expense. Many of them, however, had already gone, and large numbers took passage to Adelaide in the Sea Ripple and Sea Nymph. Numbers more removed to Nickol Bay and availed themselves of the permission to take up land. Among the applications granted there about this time were those of R. Batten, 12,500 acres, at Nickol Bay; M. Bolger, 34,500 acres, and J. Patterson, 11,500 acres, on the Harding River; J. Sloss, 100,000 acres, C. Purdue, 23,000 acres, S. Connell, 11,500 acres, R. Bell, 23,000 acres, J. Inglis, 11,500 acres, and A. Cane, 34,500 acres, on the De Grey River; J. Smith, 11,500 acres, — Stirling, 11,500 acres, and Simmons, 11,500 acres, on the Fortescue River.
In May Mr. Sholl reported that the Camden Harbour Company had ceased to exist; the property was equally divided among its members. A few of the latter still remained in the district, but the duties of the Government Resident were not onerous. On 10th April he left the harbour on an exploring expedition south of the Glenelg, accompanied by Assistant-Surveyor Cowle, Police-Constable Jackaman, Graham, a chainer, and Billy, a native constable. It was by no means an easy journey, for he crossed range after range of rocky precipitous hills, some of considerable elevation, with but little table-land. There was grass everywhere—upon the hills, in the valleys, and even on top of the sandstone ranges. On the borders of the numerous streams was good alluvial land; the spinifex was confined to the high hills south of the Glenelg, with not much of it there. He passed over splendid plains, named the Hampton Plains, where was grass of great height without undergrowth. He never travelled through so much grass in Western Australia. He distinctly mentions seeing indications of gold at one place where the formation resembled that at Creswick, Victoria. The country thereabouts was covered with broken quartz and ironstone. His further progress was stopped by the King Leopold Ranges. On 27th April he returned to the Harbour.
A strange and startling sight greeted him and his companions next day. While seeking to pass the lonely hours they were astonished to observe several unusual craft entering the Harbour. Warning was given, every man was ordered under arms, and the Union Jack was hoisted. Then seven Malay proas and thirty canoes approached,skimming over the water. They made towards Mr. Sholl's camp, who with his men waited with feelings of doubt and consternation. When the singular fleet came to anchor on the beach Mr. Sholl, fully protected, visited the nearest proa. The Malays possessed two rusty cannon of small calibre and a few old flint muskets. There were about 300 men in the canoes and proas. The fleet remained in the Harbour for some days, and Mr. Sholl had a strict watch kept every night. The intruders did but little fishing and came to blows with the natives, who drove them from the watering places. It would appear that the Malays were in the habit of stealing North Australian natives and taking them to the islands as slaves.
Shortly alter this unusual advent, which was not unwelcome to the remote party, Mr. Treverton Charles Sholl and Mr. McRae made an interesting exploration into the King Leopold Ranges, east of Collier Bay. This task was not accomplished without vicissitude, but resulted in very good pastoral country, watered by a fine stream, being found. The stream was named the Walcott, and around it, by Mr.McRae's estimate, there were 350,000 acres of splendid pasture. Unfortunately the journal of this expedition was years afterwards lost, and therefore the narrative cannot be given. Mr. T. C. Sholl and his companion deserve liberal credit for penetrating, under none too favourable conditions, these difficult parts; they gave names to several features in the districts traversed.
The list of disaster at Camden Harbour was not yet full. The natives having stolen a boat belonging to the Government officials, Messrs. R. J. Sholl and T. C. Sholl, with T. Tompkinson, M. Quinlan, W. Gee, and D. Coffee, sailed in the Government pinnace on 4th September, 1865, to search the coast. Next morning, while pulling along the south shore of an inlet or bay in Port George the Fourth, a native tried to decoy them ashore. Gazing round about, the men saw other natives partly concealed behind rocks, and instead of landing in a little creek pointed out by the decoy, they put ashore on a flat ledge of rock. After vainly striving to induce the native to come to them, they turned to get into the boat, but were immediately attacked from the rear. The air was darkened with spears, dowacks, and other missiles, and, turning to discover whence they came, the amazed whites saw behind a rock a few feet away an ominous mass of black heads, breasts, and arms. Mr. T. C. Sholl jumped behind another rock, aimed, and pulled the trigger of his revolver, which, however, missed fire. The other white men fired several shots, and finally the natives decamped. Mr. T. C. Sholl was severely wounded in the arm, and Police-Constable Gee was struck in the shoulder-blade by a blunt spear. After firing desultory shots at any native seen peering over the rocks, Mr. R. J.
