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Explorations In Australia
This scarce antiquarian book is a facsimile reprint of the original. Due to its age, it may contain imperfections such as marks, notations, marginalia and flawed pages. Because we believe this work is culturally important, we have made it available as part of our commitment for protecting, preserving, and promoting the world's literature in affordable, high quality, modern editions that are true to the original work.
226 pages, Paperback
First published August 26, 2004
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October 27, 2021
Explorations in Australia is actually a portmanteau of three books: an account of the unsuccessful expedition John Forrest led in 1869 in search of Ludwig Leichardt, who vanished in 1848; a recounting of an expedition from Perth to Adelaide following the coast; a much longer narrative of Forest's own trek from Perth to the transcontinental telegraph line and then south to Adelaide through the south-central deserts in 1870-1871; and then a long section printing encomia from newspapers, speeches, and other ephemera resulting from Forrest's successful west-east expedition.
Forrest's method is just to transcribe his daily journals. It's not clear how much editorial work he did to revise or scrub the drafts. In any case, the result is tedious: mostly endless searches for the next water-hole, occasional skirmishes with the Indigenous; famished horses "knocked up" with dehydration; and reports of his astronomical observations to determine latitude. (He had a chronometer for longitude.) Eventually he and his men reach their destination, the transcontinental telegraph line running from Adelaide to Darwin.
In contrast to many European explorers' earlier practice, Forrest traveled with a slimmed-down team. A few men, horses, no carts, and two Indigenous guides. He expresses envy for Peter Warburton, who availed himself of camels in his crossing of the Great Sandy Desert. Forrest came perhaps belatedly to the conclusion that horses are not really suitable for desert travel.
The book includes useful maps tracing his route and marking the names he assigned to campsites and physical features.
Forrest's method is just to transcribe his daily journals. It's not clear how much editorial work he did to revise or scrub the drafts. In any case, the result is tedious: mostly endless searches for the next water-hole, occasional skirmishes with the Indigenous; famished horses "knocked up" with dehydration; and reports of his astronomical observations to determine latitude. (He had a chronometer for longitude.) Eventually he and his men reach their destination, the transcontinental telegraph line running from Adelaide to Darwin.
In contrast to many European explorers' earlier practice, Forrest traveled with a slimmed-down team. A few men, horses, no carts, and two Indigenous guides. He expresses envy for Peter Warburton, who availed himself of camels in his crossing of the Great Sandy Desert. Forrest came perhaps belatedly to the conclusion that horses are not really suitable for desert travel.
The book includes useful maps tracing his route and marking the names he assigned to campsites and physical features.
Displaying 1 - 1 of 1 review