Explorations by McLaren, Flaxman and Morphett (3)

This instalment concludes the series :— McLaren makes no comment as to the return voyage down the western coast after declaring his intention to return to Port Adelaide, but he said, "We bore, however, for Hardwicke Bay which is a large capacious bay with a beautiful sandy beach several miles long." He then gives a long description of the bay and the adjacent land. All that is outside the scope of this article. In leaving, he said, "Hardwicke Bay is not likely to be occupied except as a whaling station (if as such) for a long time to come."

They then ran across to Boston Bay to get a supply of fresh water. They found the Porter and the Abeona in the harbor and saw the new settlers, and said that the settlement was progressing. They landed on Boston Island to inspect the land included in the S.A. Company's special survey, and observed distinctly the reef or sand spit running out from the north-west end, but having a ship channel a mile or two in width and from seven to 11 fathoms of water, the soundings having been taken on his first visit to that beautiful and capacious harbor. They found deep water along the beach, the land grassy but poor, no trees nor surface water. They did not dig to see if any water could be found underground.

Mr. A. Leech, of the 'Times,' will have "pleasant" recollections of the spit at the north west of the island. He kindly consented to go there with a flag to indicate its northern termination, when angles were being taken for the colored sectors for the Kirton Point jetty light. That must have been in 1907. The Nereus reached Holdfast Bay on Saturday, April 6, about 10 p.m., to find that a very general and deep, interest had been excited on their behalf under the misapprehension that some disaster had befallen them, being so long overdue. Mr. E. Stephens (brother to Samuel) of the bank had made arrangements for the despatch of the John Pirie inquest.

McLaren records one of the petty troubles which they were subjected to. Captain Hay was to take the ship in place of Captain Martin, who did not wish to continue in the service of the company. Although desirous of relinquishing the command, he (Martin) did not desire to hand in the ship's register etc. McLaren asked E. Stephens to write to London, his version of the affair. This would show the directors the trials of the Adelaide office, but more so as the "proof of the judgment and kindly feeling cherished on the part of my esteemed and active coadjutor."

Thus ends the first investigation of the coast and ports of the lower Eyre Peninsula, subsequent to Flinders' and Baudin's voyages of 1802 and 1803. Whalers and sealers had been along the coast but left no record of their doings and impressions. Neither Flaxman nor the South Australian Company benefited from these trips. The greatest result was involving George Fife Angas in serious financial difficulties which has been previously narrated. Very shortly I will have something to say of how Angas got out of his Port Lin coln difficulties.

PREPARING FOR TRIP TO STREAKY BAY

In the 'Port Lincoln Times' August 2, 1935, the trip in the Rapid by Messrs. Hill and Stephens was told. The event leading up to it was then unknown. Through the Morphett papers we now get an insight thereto. In 1839 and thereabouts the demanding of special surveys, whereby applicants had the right to select 4,000 acres which necessitated the Government surveying at least an additional area of 11,000 acres of land in that vicinity, was the vogue. Flaxman's and McLaren's trips referred to the above were for the purpose of selecting suitable sites.

We have lost sight of the fact that the earlier journeys of Eyre were also for this purpose and we think more of his trips as purely geographical and philanthropic. The South Australian Company had some agreement with Eyre whereby they had the privilege of acquiring any information from Eyre to enable them to demand special surveys in the country found and explored by Eyre. Eyre in conjunction with Gilles took up a special survey on the River Murray as the result of his first northern trip.

John, afterwards Sir John Morphett was another that kept his eye open for suitable sites. On May 16, 1839, he wrote to his brother George in England, and after dealing with the Murray and the Lakes sites, said, "For the maritime town I have my eye fixed on Streaky Bay, and only regret that the season is so far advanced that I cannot with prudence go along an unknown coast or at least that I cannot send anyone. I shall, how ever, take this course the first moment I can do so safely after the winter season. I regret most deeply that Colonel Light (who is about to leave this for England) will not be able to take charge of this important trust." This was written after the return trip taken by McLaren and Stephens in the previous month.

The directors advised John Morphett that he had been appointed the Adelaide representative of the Secondary Towns Association formed in England. The directors stated their wish to take up two special surveys, one inland and one on the sea coast, with the idea of founding secondary towns consisting of 600 acres with 100 rural sections attached of 40 acres each, and expressed a wish that John Morphett should accompany the exploring party selecting the site of an inland scheme and named a gentleman who they wished to take charge of the maritime expedition. In reply he wrote on June 17, 1839, that the wishes of the directors would be attended to as regards the inland party, "but regret that I cannot," he said, "secure for them the valuable ser vices of Colonel Light. That gentleman has been suffering for a long time past from a general weakness and asthmatic affection and is now in a very dangerous state."

About this time Light had returned for an inspection of the Lyndoch Valley and in his diary he records, "Very unwell all day" (13th) ; "very unwell all day and my cough very bad" (14th) ; "unwell all day, though rather better than yesterday" (15th) ; "unwell all day" (16th) ; and so the sorrowful tale continued until the end, 3¾ months after the time Morphett penned the words above quoted.

The association apparently had suggested sites for investigations at Mount Barker, Port Lincoln, Boston Bay, Coffin's Bay, Hardwicke Bay or Elbow Hill. Morphett told them that all these had been examined and such as were considered worth taking had been secured prior to his receiving the instructions. For the inland site he was depending on one on the River Murray or near the Lakes. That left the maritime scheme to be dealt with, the one we are concerned with. So he wrote, "I shall as soon as I can get a vessel and despatch Mr. Stephens to Streaky Bay, as I am inclined to think that is almost the only good harbour on the coast left unexplored. I know there are great risks at this season of the year in sending to an unknown coast, but there is so much danger in delay and if there be anything of a harbour with fresh water, the place will be so desirable, that I have determined on taking the risk." He assured the directors that every prudence would be exercised in the expenditure of their funds but he said "I consider in an undertaking of this importance that expense is a secondary consideration."

Events were moving faster than contemplated by Morphett, so within three weeks he reported that he had made an offer, to take upon charter the Lord Hobart for two months to despatch a party to Streaky Bay. The John Pirie was offered instead, on her return from Sydney.

On July 16, 1839, he decided to take immediate action to determine the value or worthlessness of Streaky Bay as a site for a secondary town. So on that date he wrote to his directors "the intended departure of Mr. Eyre from Adelaide to Port Lincoln thence to explore inland towards the northward and westward has induced me to make arrangements with Mr. Hack the owner of the Rapid for a trip as soon as possible. I should not have made an arrangement of this kind if I could avoid it, because as the Rapid is employed as a tender to the whaling stations at Encounter Bay and other places along the coast, I know I shall have to pay a heavy sum for her charter, and indeed. I had difficulty in obtaining her. I shall make the best arrangement I can, and will inform you of it as soon as it is pos sible. ... I have made arrangements for going to Streaky Bay myself, as I think the interests of the association may be thereby beneficially affected." As far as I can trace, Mor hett did not accompany the party, probably he sent J. Hill in his stead to get the benefit of his advice.

Eyre left Port Lincoln on August 5, 1839, and reached Streaky Bay August 25th. The Rapid, with Stephens and Hill as representatives of John Morphett for the Secondary Towns Association, arrived at Streaky Bay on August 15, so the Secondary Towns Association was the first to have Streaky Bay inspected. How ever fierce the race neither profited in the way of being able to select a site for a special survey, with a site for a secondary town. Stephens' and Hill's reports of the trip as the out come of Morphett's correspondence, as above, was told in the 'Port Lincoln Times' of August 2, 1935, and Eyre's trip from Port Lincoln to Point in the September 6, 1935, issue of the same paper.

In a recent paragraph ('Times' of March 28, 1940), I suggested that the trip on which Eyre and the Rev. Mr. Wix voyaged to Port Lincoln was inordinately long. I had then not correlated the information, in Morphett's letters with the Rev. Mr. Wix's information. However, it will be noticed on July 16, 1839, Morphett refers "to the intended departure of Mr. Eyre." The statement is open to two interpretations. Did it infer that on, the 16th Eyre had not left, or did it mean that in the intended departure of Eyre some time before the 16th; forced Morphett to enter into arrangements for the charter of a boat ?