The Australian Emigrant/Chapter 11
CHAPTER XI.
We need scarcely say, that after the adventure we have narrated, sleep forsook the little party with whom we have more particularly to deal. The sudden appearance and disappearance of Jarrol seemed almost like a dream, and the explorers would willingly have resigned the object which had brought them into the part of the country where they found themselves, had their more experienced companion held out the least hope of a successful pursuit; but the rain which had threatened on the previous evening now poured down in torrents, so as effectually to obliterate every track which the disturbers of their last night's slumbers were likely to leave behind them, they therefore determined, as soon as the weather cleared, on prosecuting the search for a station amongst the hills.
"Now, my boys!" said Dodge, "we must collect some tea-water while the rain lasts, and I'll show you how to set to work." Taking out a moderately clean towel and a tin pot from his budget, he walked amongst the wet grass trailing the towel after him, and when it was sufficiently saturated for his purpose he wrung it carefully into the pot; after many repetitions of the same process he returned to the fire with about a pint of very doubtful looking water. "You see," he said, "I would willingly share it with you; but may be, as you are young bush men, you would find it more agreeable to use your own towels."
Neither Hugh nor Slinger were yet sufficiently thirsty to have recourse to the plan they had seen practised, but they collected some water by catching it as it trickled from the pieces of bark which served them as a shelter from the weather. Dodge suggested that as they would find the water they had procured was not drinkable, they might indulge in a wash, and then follow his example, or they would have to start without a breakfast. Even the dog Lady refused the water. Both in appearance and smell it strongly resembled the liquid usually found in tan-pits; in truth, from the manner in which it was procured there is little doubt that it bore a nearer similitude than simply in appearance.
"Now really," said Dodge, as Slinger was making a desperate effort to taste it, "you had better not: I usually take such stuff as that for physic, of which I have only two sorts; one is the juice from the bark of the gum tree, and the other sea water, half-a-pint to a dose. But you may rely upon it, the best stuff to make tea of, when you are hard up, is rain water filtered through a snow-white towel. Now try it, do: there's nothing like it. Come, taste mine, it's capital." But our friends were not quite bushmen enough for that. "Well," said Dodge, "I shall bottle some, and advise you to do the same, in case we should not fall in with a stream today."
As animal food formed no part of their stores, and the rain ceasing, it was considered advisable to try the neighbourhood for a kangaroo or wallaby before finally bidding adieu to the plains. The intelligent Lady appeared to be quite aware of the necessity of providing for the future, and she was most obedient to her master's commands. Very suddenly Dodge came to a halt, and calling her to his side, desired his friends to look at the picture before them. It was some minutes before they espied several kangaroos feeding quietly in an open space about two hundred yards distant. Giving directions to his friends to conceal themselves in the grass, Dodge retreated, still watching every movement of the animals, until he reached a neighbouring tree. Plucking some small branches which he arranged so as to form a screen, easily carried before him with one hand, he advanced upon his prey, in a direction favourable for the accomplishment of his purpose, and had nearly reached within gunshot, when a slight shifting of the breeze warned the sensitive animals of approaching danger: they ceased to feed, and appeared uneasy and watchful.[1] These signs were not lost upon the wary old bushman, who remained stationary for some minutes, when a further variation of the wind came kindly to his aid, and he again advanced. As soon as he had reached within gun-shot, he dropped the screen of leaves, and the next moment the report of his gun was heard echoing amongst the neighbouring hills. The result of the shot was soon manifest, for a large old man kangaroo, badly wounded, was seen struggling with Dodge and his dog; the latter had fixed her teeth in her adversary's neck, whilst her master had seized its tail, and both were being dragged and jerked about in a most unceremonious manner, without much opportunity of making any resistance. The two friends reaching the scene of action, soon changed the aspect of affairs, and increased the prospect of a substantial meal. The kangaroo, confused amongst its numerous foes, before long afforded an opportunity which Dodge quickly embraced. Drawing his knife, with one sweep of his arm he separated the ham-strings of his antagonist, and laid him powerless at his feet; once there, he was soon dispatched, and a quarter of an hour sufficed for cutting him up, and each man bore off a share of the booty.
"I could tell you a story, and a true one too," said Dodge, "only I'm afraid you are tired of hearing me talk so much about myself, tho' for the matter of that, what else can a man be expected to talk about when he has had very little company but himself for half his life." As Dodge found his companions willing to listen, he commenced his story.
"'Where did you stow him?' inquired the deformed one.
"'Outside' was the reply; 'and now I think on it, I should have put him out of sight: I'll do it at once.' He left the hut for a few moments, and returned with his hands smeared with blood.
"I need not tell you I slept no more for that night, and that I left as early as I could the next morning without exciting suspicion. Not far from the hut I passed a heap of bark, a little pool of blood stood near it which had trickled from some object—I had little doubt what that object was—hidden underneath.
"Very soon after leaving, I was fortunate in meeting with the settler to whom the hut belonged, in which I had slept, and I told him of the conversation I had overheard, and my impression that some dark deed had been committed. We returned together, and I could see that my sudden re-appearance took the inmates quite by surprise. The master asked a few common-place questions, to which it struck me the answers were unsatisfactory and confused.
"Without further hesitation I led him to the heap of bark, underneath which, I had little doubt, lay the victim of a barbarous deed. As the horrible mystery was being revealed, I was not surprised to find the two men narrowly observing our motions from the hut, but when the removal of the last sheet of bark was accompanied by a loud roar of laughter from the owner of the station, I was considerably flabbergasted.—Oh murder! murder!" he cried, 'I shall die o'laughing—why it's an old man sure enough.' There indeed lay the body, but it was of an old man kangaroo—a regular boomer: there was a gash across the throat and one fore arm was broken. Didn't I feel uncommonly small at the 'dreadful revelation.' So the murder was out. Now for the moral," said Dodge, assuming a look of mock gravity.—"Don't put down the ugliest fellows for the greatest rascals, nor jump at conclusions on hearing only the fag end of a yarn."
After our explorers had spent several days and had penetrated some distance into the ranges at the back of Westernport, they could well have imagined themselves in another land. The country was altogether of a different character to any which they had yet passed through. They travelled in the midst of gloom, for the foliage of the lofty trees meeting far overhead, prevented more than an occasional stream of sun-light falling upon the moist earth. The air was laden with a scent of musk which became most oppressive, though the silvery leaves of the straggling shrubs from whence the odour proceeded tended slightly to enliven the prospect. Though the sun had risen some hours, yet the atmosphere was humid and unwholesome. The general silence which prevailed became painfully perceptible by the distinctness with which each drop of water could be heard as it fell on the underlaying leaves, seemingly accompanied by tiny echoes. During the day few sounds of birds or beasts, nor even of insects, helped to dispel the universal gloom. The valleys were, if possible, more thickly timbered than the tops of the hills. They abounded with tree ferns, which there appeared to attain their greatest luxuriance. Such was the general character of the region through which they were passing.
"This don't suit me," said Dodge, almost out of temper; "I don't want to learn the philosophy of a man's eating his boots: I'm not so fond of leather as that; and I don't wish to enjoy such an appetite as would induce me to eat a black fellow stuffed with broken bottles, and I like to know when it's day and when it's night—this ain't neither, and I don't like your high districts: I like a low neighbourhood. A pretty place this in which to be hard up for grub—I haven't seen so much as a flying squirrel for the last two days"
"Never say die," said Slinger encouragingly.
"Of course not," said Dodge, "I ain't saying die, am I? Excuse me, if I'm hasty; but there's two things I must have, my baccy and my grub, and I'm nearly out of both; so are you: my opinion is, we shall find nothing good in this quarter, and that the sooner we leave it the better." So it was at once agreed they should retrace their steps, and Dodge thereupon recovered his wonted good humour. Nothing seemed to escape his notice, and every hollow tree engaged his especial attention.
Whether it was that the effects of hunger lent an additional keenness to his faculties, we will not take upon us to say, but discovering the track of some animal upon the ground he followed it carefully, and finding it terminated at the base of a towering gum tree, upon the bark of which some scratches were visible, he was induced to look higher, and soon espied, perched on one of the topmost branches, an animal, which at the great height, looked scarcely larger than a rat. As he was seeking the most favorable spot from whence to bring down his game, he issued the following verbal invitation, "Mr. Dodge hopes shortly to have the pleasure of Messrs. Slinger and Raymond's company to dinner, and begs to intimate the convenience they will experience in bringing their own knives, forks, and plates. No answer required." As he uttered the last words, the crack of his rifle was heard, and before its echo had ceased, the luckless carbora[2] fell crashing through the branches and lay dead upon the ground. A quarter of an hour found it cooking before a fire large enough to have roasted a sheep instead of an animal not half the size. When served up (which it was on a piece of dried bark) they found it anything but palatable, for it proved to be little more than bone and sinew. After making a series of attacks upon one leg but with small results, Dodge at last resigned it in despair to Lady, and selecting a more promising portion, laid it on a fallen tree, and substituting his tomahawk for his teeth, chopped it vigorously for some time, and at length succeeded in reducing it to such a state that he was enabled to satisfy the cravings of hunger.
They experienced no difficulty in retracing their steps for the first day or two after turning their faces towards home, the tracks then grew more and more indistinct, until at last Dodge advised pushing on in a direction which he indicated, and which in his opinion, bid fair to lead them out of the scrubs. The latter inducement lent energy to their exertions, and with stout hearts, though with empty provision bags, they commenced their arduous task, now rendered doubly hazardous by a sense of weakness, the result of privations already undergone.
It was after a more than usually fatiguing day, and whilst preparing to camp, that Dodge was startled by discovering tracks indicating that some blacks had recently been in the locality. His olfactory powers were also put to the test, and he positively asserted that he could smell fire not far distant. After ruminating on this new and unexpected difficulty, Dodge expressed great apprehension that the blacks, who he was quite satisfied were in the neighbourhood, belonged to one of the untamed Gipps land tribes who occasionally made a foray across the mountains separating their country from Westernport. He would allow no tomahawk to be used nor any unnecessary noise made in constructing a shelter for the night; he was also very scrupulous respecting the fire, which he would not allow to be lighted before a pit had been dug sufficiently deep to prevent the flames rising above the level of the ground. As soon as darkness set in, Dodge desired his friends to resign themselves to sleep, which he assured them they might do with safety, as very few of the native tribes ventured to move abroad after dark. For himself he had decided upon reconnoitering in the neighbourhood, and under the cloak of night to discover where the blacks had pitched their camp, and to make such observations as might serve him on the morrow. Arming himself with care, he left Raymond and Slinger in no very amiable state of mind on account of his positive refusal to allow them to accompany him, notwithstanding they made great efforts to shake his resolution. He stalked away noiselessly, after giving his friends warning not to mistake him for a black when he returned. The two friends watched for a time, but sleep at length overcame their resolution to remain awake until the return of their absent companion.
In the course of a short time, with legs bruised and bleeding, Dodge found himself suddenly immersed in a stream into which he had stumbled. If something like a subdued curse escaped him, let us consider for a moment the unenviable position which he occupied. The night was dark, he was up to his waist in water, in an unknown district with two friends entirely dependent upon his guidance, an empty commissariat, and with every appearance of a new difficulty in the shape of a tribe of hostile savages. It is not to be wondered at that his usual equanimity and coolness momentarily forsook him. The stream into which Dodge had fallen was almost overgrown with trees, and it was some moments before he could extricate himself from his uncomfortable situation. As soon as he was fairly on terra firma his gun and ammunition engaged all his attention. He was glad to find, as far as he was enabled to discover, that the wet had not affected either. After giving himself a shake or two, he carefully followed the winding of the stream, and had not gone far before he detected a glimmering light in the direction he was going. With increased caution he went on his way, and conjecturing, from the fact of several more fires becoming visible, that he had come upon the camp of natives, he got into the bed of the stream in order to avoid leaving any tracks behind him: in this way he soon came abreast of the encampment. There were about thirty weelems, or rude huts, pitched upon the side of a hill, at the base of which the stream ran. The night was cold, and it would have afforded Dodge infinite satisfaction to have left his watery bed and warmed his benumbed limbs at one of the largest of the fires, around which several warriors were conversing in a dialect quite unknown to the watcher. In consequence of the danger which would have attended the use of his pipe, poor Dodge was fain to dispose of a portion of the small store of tobacco he had remaining in another way—alas! for the result. The juice of the weed affected him with a severe fit of coughing which all his efforts were unable to repress, and in a moment the whole camp was in an uproar. A shower of fire-sticks were cast in the direction from whence the sound had proceeded, but they revealed nothing. Dodge foreseeing the turn matters were likely to take had crept into a clump of tall reeds which were at hand: his position was one of extreme danger, but that only rendered his brain more prolific in expedients. Being well aware of the extreme timidity and superstition of the natives at any disturbance by night, and also that there was a universal belief amongst all the tribes that darkness was the favorite time when Bund-gil-carno, the evil spirit, chiefly delighted to take his walks abroad, his plans were soon matured—he would play the very deuce. He plucked a broad leaf from the stem of a reed, and by holding it in a peculiar manner between his hands and blowing upon it strongly, he produced such a series of unearthly sounds as might well, in the dead of night, have startled men of greater courage than Australian blacks. These noises, interspersed with horrible shrieks and yells, produced a general panic. First the women and children, then the old men and warriors, fled in a body, leaving Dodge master of the situation. His first act, after emerging from his concealment, was to collect the spears, clubs, and other weapons, which lay scattered about the huts, and to heap them on one of the fires, at which he was composedly warming himself, when his dog Lady crept up and laid herself at his feet.
"What business have you here, old girl, eh?" said Dodge, patting her head, "are you come to take me the nearest way back? Well, I'm ready to start, so 'show home.'" But Lady evinced no such disposition; she went foraging about amongst the huts, and presently returned to Dodge with a lump of kangaroo's flesh in her mouth.
"Well thought of, old girl," said Dodge; "of course we must sack the town now it is taken, so let us set to work." In a very short time he found himself laden with a large stock of provisions, and, escorted by Lady, who led the way, he was not long in reaching the locality of his friends.
They had been awakened by the shouting, and would have started in search of Dodge had he not previously to leaving them interdicted such a course under any circumstances. They had however, prepared their arms and were so satisfied that something was necessary to be done, that no sooner did Dodge appear than, without any warning, Slinger let fly at him, fortunately without fatal effect.
"That's a good shot," said Dodge, coming forward to the fire with the utmost coolness, and displaying to the penitent Slinger a hole made by the bullet in the side of his hat.—"That's a good shot, but the safest plan always is not to be hasty, and not to aim too high. Now if that shot of your's, had been made rather lower, you would have been in a pretty fix, and I should have been out of it."
After recounting all that had befallen him since leaving, Dodge concluded by desiring them, as soon as they had refreshed, to prepare for starting. "Eat plenty of the kangaroo," he said, as he laid several large lumps of the flesh before them, "but be very sparing of the flour." The latter warning was not altogether unnecessary, for their stock of "the staff of life" was grown very slender. A very little flour, just sufficient to make, when mixed with water, about half a pint of rather thin paste, was all either of our friends could afford to expend at a single meal.
Concluding from the quantity of flesh found at the camp that the late occupiers must recently have come from the plains, and that the fright they had experienced in the night would probably induce them to return thither, Dodge determined to adopt the hazardous expedient of following their trail. The party set off in Indian file, Dodge taking the lead. They soon reached a more level and open country. During the afternoon a deep, though not wide, river barred their progress. Choosing a convenient situation to occupy for the night, advantage was taken of the daylight to look about them. Several gum trees were observed to have been denuded of very large sheets of bark, which Dodge was not long in declaring had been done for the purpose of constructing canoes, and that in all probability one might be found by making a careful search along the banks of the river on the opposite shore. For Dodge to strip and plunge in was only the work of a minute, in another he was across and lost amongst the tall reeds which lined the stream. Presently a long sheet of bark, which scarcely floated, was thrust forcibly towards our friends, and Dodge followed and prevented it from sinking.
"I can't say much for the safety or appearance of the craft at present," he said, scrambling out," but we must tinker her up to serve our turn. We will cruise down the stream tomorrow. We are not far from the plains. See how sluggishly the river runs." The canoe (it scarcely deserved the name,) was drawn out, and after a minute examination, Dodge considered she might be made available by plastering up her two ends with mud and filling several rather serious-looking fractures with the same humble material. When all the repairs possible had been done, and she really kept free of water, Slinger proposed three cheers for their success.
"Steady," said Dodge, clapping his hand before Slinger's mouth, "there's time enough for that when we are out of hearing of the natives; at present I am not quite sure that we are. Make a better use of your time, and sleep two hours in one. My word! we shall not reach home for a few days if all turns out right, and we must be moving sufficiently early tomorrow to get some two miles down the river ere the sun rises."
Long before daybreak Dodge roused his friends, who were most unwilling to respond to the call. So he set to work and boiled some small portions of tea and sugar, which he succeeded in bringing to light from the inmost recesses of the leg of the pair of trousers in which it will be remembered he ingeniously contrived to stow away all his stores. "This kind of beverage requires to be taken hot," Dodge said, as he, accidentally of course, spilt a little upon Slinger's blanket under which he yet remained coiled; "by drinking it then you will not know whether it is double distilled or not. Come, be alive!" he went on to say, shaking his friends and almost lifting them upon their legs; "be alive, my boat is on the shore, and my bark is —where?" he said, casting his eyes in the direction in which he had left the canoe over-night; his bark was not there. Further observation confirmed his belief that the river was a tidal one, and that the plains and the bay of Westernport were not far off. They were not long in recovering the canoe, which was found entangled in the boughs of a tree which overhung the water not far from the spot where they had slept. To get in her with their baggage was a very ticklish affair indeed, and even when once afloat extreme caution was requisite to prevent an upset. Dodge had provided himself with a short pole by means of which he paddled down the stream, and by great dexterity and some experience he avoided many impediments which beset his progress.
As the first blush of morning was tinting the hills, now some distance in the rear, and as our friends were congratulating themselves on the success which had hitherto attended their voyaging, a disagreeable grating was felt under the frail vessel and the splintered end of the bough of a tree made its appearance through the bottom of the canoe. "Sit still," said Dodge, "be steady, and she won't capsize: you shan't drown if she does. Sit more my end, Slinger; Raymond, handle some of the spare mud, and as soon as she clears the snag, which she will do as soon as I am overboard, caulk her—dab up the hole." As Dodge spoke the last words he stepped lightly to a partially immersed limb of the tree of which the offending bough also formed a portion, and gradually relieved the canoe of his weight though at the expense of a ducking. As she rose the hole was stopped with mud, but there appeared a prospect of her momentarily parting amidships, so she was hastily dragged ashore and overhauled, when the damages were found to be of such a nature that she was forthwith abandoned.
A rising ground near attracted their attention, and on gaining the summit, a part of the bay of Westernport was plainly seen, whilst the undulating country which intervened was clothed with the richest verdure. Dodge recognised some distant hills as being in the neighbourhood of his station, now some twenty miles distant. "If we had looked nearer home at first," said Dodge, "we should have done as well, and not have been half starved as we are; however, here is something like a cattle run for you, with miles of water frontage, and room to pasture half the stock in the country. We will just take the bearings of it carefully, for I once knew a man who spent two months in looking for a station, and having found one suitable he returned for his cattle, and never could hit upon it afterwards." This was an event not very likely to occur in the present instance, the landmarks were so well defined, and after a few necessary observations, the party set off in high glee at the prospect of soon again reaching Dodge's station, or, as he would insist on calling it "home." We will leave them to pursue their way, whilst we return for a time to the bushrangers, Bayley and Jarrol.