Journals of Two Expeditions of Discovery in North-West and Western Australia Volume II Part 15

THEIR ADVENTUROUS MODE OF LIFE.

The life of an Overlander in the bush is one of great excitement which constantly calls every energy into action, is full of romantic and novel situations, and habituates the mind to self-possession and command. The large and stately herd of cattle is at least a fine if not even an imposing sight. The fierce and deadly contests which at times take place with the natives, when two or three hardy Europeans stand opposed to an apparently overwhelming majority of blacks, call for a large share of personal courage and decision; whilst the savage yells and diabolic whoops of the barbarians in their onsets, their fantastically painted forms, their quivering spears, their contortions, and s.h.i.+fting of their bodies, and their wild leaps, attach a species of romance to these encounters which affords plentiful matter for after-meditation. As the love of war, of gaming, or of any other species of violent excitement, grows upon the mind from indulgence, so does the love of roving grow upon the Overlanders, and few or none of them ever talk of leading a settled life.

SUDDEN ACc.u.mULATION OF WEALTH.

And it is not to be wondered at that the young and ardent eagerly embrace a line of life so replete with exciting events and incidents, and which at once enriches the successful speculator, and fills with plenty and prosperity the region which he enters. The first individual who opens a market, which no other Overlander has yet visited, rides into the district an ill clothed way-worn traveller; the residents do not at first deign to cast a glance upon him till presently it is noised about that an overland party has arrived, that a route from the stock districts has been formed, and that the incalculable advantage of abundance of cattle at a cheap rate has been secured; landed property instantaneously rises, perhaps to double the value it had a few hours before; numbers of persons find themselves suddenly made rich without an exertion on their own part, and from all sides individuals flock to see their benefactor. The ill clothed way-worn traveller now finds himself at once invested with the dignity of a conqueror. On all hands he is feted, dinners are given to him, a piece of plate presented, and as he feels the sweets of renown and of the wealth which he has won he meditates fresh conquests on the trackless desert, new adventures with his tried stockmen, and further acquisitions of riches.

EFFECTS OF THEIR ENTERPRISES.

Then comes a strange change over the unoccupied Overlander; he has brought with him every head of stock which he could muster, and in the course of a few days his last beast is disposed of; his establishment is broken up, he awakes some morning and finds himself a rich man, but he has no stock; he has so much money but no cattle. He no longer follows the long array of his stately herd and bleating flocks, his loaded drays and bearded stockmen, through the free wilderness; no longer regulates and watches their perilous course through the intricate ford of a deep river, or stands upon some solitary hill to reconnoitre the trackless country and select the line along which the motley a.s.semblage is to pa.s.s.

He is now an idle unoccupied gentleman, the inhabitant of a boarding-house, with no object in the world before him; but ere long the plans of fresh achievements and speculations are sketched out. You see a muster of bearded weather-beaten men, carrying short-handled whips. The Overlander enters the group, a short consultation takes place, and in a day or two more himself and his followers are under weigh for some district where he can purchase stock cheapest and make a good start for another market.

MAGNITUDE OF THEIR OPERATIONS.

The magnitude of the operations of the Overlanders would scarcely be credited; a whole fortune is risked, and in the wilderness: its safety depends upon good guidance; yet far from being intimidated by the thought the adventurers are only stimulated to a greater degree of activity. The stock of an Overlander is the capital which he has invested in a single speculation; and to give an idea of the amount of this I will show, at a moderate estimate, the value of a herd, the property of an Overlander who arrived in Adelaide in the month of March 1840 from the district of Illawarra, New South Wales.

HORNED CATTLE.

260 Cows, many broken in.

230 Bullocks, 3 1/2 years old and upwards.

190 Steers, 2 1/2 years old and upwards.

39 Steers, 1 1/2 years old and upwards.

70 Heifers, two to three years old.

32 Heifers, one to two years old.

9 Bulls.

5 Calves.

20 Working Bullocks, two shafters.

855 Total head of Horned Cattle.

HORSES.

22 Mares, all in foal, 3 to 5 years old.

5 do., 5 to 8 years old.

7 Fillies, do., 2 to 3 years old.

3 do., rising 3 years, not in foal.

5 do., rising 2 years, not in foal.

10 Saddle and Draught Horses.

5 Colts, rising 4 years old.

1 Colt, rising 3 years old.

1 Colt, rising 2 years old.

1 Blood Stallion.

1 Draught entire Horse.

1 Entire Pony.

62 Total number of Horses.

900 Fat Wethers.

AMOUNT OF STOCK VENTURES.

Now, striking a low average, the value in pounds of this herd of cattle, horses, and sheep, in South Australia, was:

Horned Stock 8,550.

Horses 3,720.

Wethers 1,575.

Total: 13,845 pounds.

But between this and an ordinary mercantile risk no parallel can be drawn. A merchant insures his cargo so that his total loss can but be a small portion of the whole. The Overlander cannot do this with his stock and runs a far greater proportionate risk. It must also be borne in mind that the statement of the herd, which I have above given, does not include all that started for South Australia, but only the survivors, who, after traversing so many hundred miles, reached in safety the destined mart.

INFLUX OF STOCK TO SOUTH AUSTRALIA.

When the Overlanders drive sheep alone, without horned stock or horses, the number of heads is much increased, as from 8000 to 12,000 sheep are brought over at one time. They are driven in separate flocks of about 1000 each, and these follow one another in regular succession. The value of a flock of 6000 sheep cannot be estimated under 10,500 pounds.

RAPID INCREASE OF WEALTH IN NEW SETTLEMENTS.

So much for the operations of single parties; but when once a road to a new market is opened numbers follow up the tracks of the first hardy adventurer, and the operations of the whole combined are not less startling in their magnitude than are those of enterprising individuals.

From New South Wales into the province of South Australia the Overlanders introduced, in 1839:

4,200 Head of Horned Cattle, 130 Horses, 35,000 Sheep;

and within the three succeeding months of 1840, upwards of:

7,000 Head of Horned Cattle, 100 Horses, 25,000 Sheep;

making, in fifteen months, a total of:

11,200 Head of Horned Cattle, 230 Horses, 60,000 Sheep.

The value in pounds of the above stock being in the whole about:

Horned Cattle 112,000, Horses 13,800, Sheep 105,000,

Total: 230,800 pounds.

And this wonderful amount of stock was brought into a country which, three years before, only resounded to the war-cry of the naked savage; and the soil of which, hardened, baked, and unstirred for centuries, nursed not within its bosom seeds from which a plenteous harvest might spring, but, as if irritated by neglect and indifference, gave forth unwillingly only acid roots and scanty bulbs.

PROSPERITY CREATED BY THE OVERLANDER.

The first entrance of an Overlander into a district may be compared to the rising of the Nile upon the thirsty land of Egypt; then does the country bear fruit and the land give forth her increase, he enters the district silently, noiselessly, unexpectedly, but his influence is soon felt everywhere; merchant vessels can now obtain cargoes of wool, and no longer sail empty away. England receives raw materials, and in exchange are sent out luxuries and manufactured goods. New clearings are made by the farmer, who has now abundance of manure; the artisan plies useful trades, and ceases to labour in the place of beasts of draught or burden; hateful scurvy, the scourge of new colonies, is expelled, not by medicine, but by fresh meat, milk, and vegetables. But the worker of all this good is unmindful of it; he has bargained to get the highest price he can for his stock, and is already plotting new enterprises; he sought to serve himself, not others, and has accomplished both.

The first Overlander having entered a district nothing can check the tide that follows on. It is in vain for him to declare (perhaps really conscientiously) that he conceives the risk of loss of stock to be so great that none should undertake the journey; this is only ascribed to his cupidity and a desire to keep others out of the market; HE has done it, and why cannot more? This argument is irresistible, and adventurer after adventurer marches upon his track.

CONSEQUENCES OF HIS SUCCESS UPON OTHERS.

Now comes a hurrying into the new district of speculators from the old colonies: the fact of a road being found to it from the stock country is a guarantee that it will succeed, and it is in a new settlement that the largest profits are realized. These arrivals bring with them from the older colonies experience, capital, and extensive connexions; fresh sources of industry and speculation are at once opened up by them; all town-land and landed property to be purchased at a cheap rate they secure; money circulates from hand to hand, and an impetus is given, and a progress made, which must be seen to be credited.