The Explorers of Australia and their Life work - Ernest Favenc
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THE MAKERS OF AUSTRALASIA.
EARLY VOLUMES
(IN PREPARATION).
CAPTAIN COOK and his Predecessors in Australasian Waters, by REGINALD
FORD, F.R.G.S., Member of the British National Antarctic Expedition.
GOVERNOR PHILLIP and his Immediate successors, BY F.M. BLADEN, Chief
Librarian, Public Library, Sydney.
EDWARD GIBBON WAKEFIELD, by THE EDITOR.
SIR GEORGE GREY, by JAMES COLLIER, sometime Librarian, General Assembly
Library, Wellington.
[Illustration. Captain Charles Sturt, aged about 54 years. From the
painting by Crossland.]
THE
EXPLORERS OF AUSTRALIA
AND THEIR LIFE-WORK.
BY
ERNEST FAVENC,
Explorer, and Author of The History of Australian Exploration, The
Geographical Development of Australia, Tales of the Austral Tropics, The
Secret of the Australian Desert, etc., and Voices of the Desert (Poems).
1908.
AUTHOR'S PREFACE.
In presenting to the public this history of those makers of Australasia
whose work consisted in the exploration of the surface of the continent
of Australia, I have much pleasure in drawing the reader's attention to
the portraits which illustrate the text. It is, I venture to say, the
most complete collection of portraits of the explorers that has yet been
published in one volume. Some of them of course must needs be
conventional; but many of them, such as the portrait of Oxley when a
young man, and of A.C. Gregory, have never been given publicity before;
and in many cases I have selected early portraits, whenever I had the
opportunity, in preference to the oft published portrait of the same
subject when advanced in years.
There are many who assisted me in the collection of these portraits. To
Mr. F. Bladen, of the Public Library, Sydney; Mr. Malcolm Fraser, of
Perth, Western Australia; Mr. Thomas Gill, of Adelaide; Sir John Forrest;
The Reverend J. Milne Curran; Mr. Archibald Meston; and many others my
best thanks are due. In fact, in such a work as this, one cannot hope for
success unless he seek the assistance of those who remembered the
explorers in life, or have heard their friends and relatives talk
familiarly of them. Let me particularly hope that from these pages our
youth, who should be interested in the exploration of their native land,
will form an adequate idea of the character of the men who helped to make
Australia, and of some of the adverse conditions against which they
struggled so nobly.
ERNEST FAVENC.
Sydney, 1908.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
The published Journals of all the Explorers of Australia.
Reports of Explorations published in Parliamentary Papers.
History of New South Wales, from the Records. (Barton and Bladen.)
Account of New South Wales, by Captain Watkin Tench.
Manuscript Diaries of Blaxland, Lawson and Wentworth.
Manuscript Diaries of G.W. Evans. (Macquarie and Lachlan Rivers.)
The Pioneers of Victoria and South Australia, by various writers.
Contemporaneous Australian Journals of the several States.
Private letters and memoranda of persons in all the States.
Manuscript Diary of Charles Bonney.
Pamphlets and other bound extracts on the subject of exploration.
The Year Book of Western Australia.
Records of the Geographical Societies of South Australia and Victoria.
Russell's Genesis of Queensland.
Biographical Notes, by J.H. Maiden.
Spinifex and Sand, by David Carnegie.
INTRODUCTION.
In introducing this book, I should like to commend it to its readers as
giving an account of the explorers of Australia in a simple and concise
form not hitherto available.
It introduces them to us, tells the tale of their long-tried patience and
stubborn endurance, how they lived and did their work, and gives a short
but graphic outline of the work they accomplished in opening out and
preparing Australia as another home for our race on this side of the
world.
The battle that they fought and won was over great natural difficulties
and obstacles, as fortunately there were no ferocious wild beasts in
Australia, while the danger from the hostility of the aborigines (though
a barbarous people) was with care and judgment, with a few exceptions,
avoided.
Their triumph has resulted in peaceful progress and in permanent
occupation and settlement of a vast continent.
Of all the Australian explorers the fate of Leichhardt -- "the Franklin
of Australia," as the author so justly terms him -- is alone shrouded in
mystery. "No man knoweth his sepulchre to this day." His party of six
white men (including Leichhardt) and two black boys, with 12 horses, 13
mules, 50 bullocks, and 270 goats, have never been heard of since they
left McPherson's station on the Cogoon on 3rd April, 1848; and although
there have been several attempts to unravel the mystery, there is
scarcely a possibility of any discovery in regard to their fate ever
being made.
There can be no doubt that the fascination concerning the work of the
early explorers of Australia will gather strength as it goes. Hitherto we
have been too close to them rightly to appreciate what was done. This
book therefore comes at an opportune time, and is a valuable record. The
author has already done a great service to Australian explorations by his
writings, and in the present instance has added to our obligation to him
by condensing the records into a smaller compass, and by that means has
brought it within convenient limits for use in schools and for general
readers.
Of the explorers of Australia, eleven have been honoured by being placed
on the Golden Roll (Gold Medallists) of the Royal Geographical Society of
London; Edward John Eyre being the first to receive the honour in 1843,
and Ernest Giles being the eleventh and last to receive it in 1880. In
the order of Nature one generation passeth away and another generation
cometh, and so it comes to pass that every one on the Golden Roll except
myself has gone to the undiscovered country from whose bourn no traveller
returns.
That the Australian people will always remember the deeds of those, who,
in their day and generation, under arduous and difficult conditions
devoted themselves to the exploration of the Continent goes without
saying, and I, who in bygone years had the honour of assisting in the
task, heartily wish that such fruit may be born of those deeds that
Australia will continue to increase and flourish more and more
abundantly, and thus fulfil her destiny as the great civilising and
dominating power in the Southern Seas.
JOHN FORREST.
The Bungalow,
Hay Street, Perth,
Western Australia,
January 7th, 1908.
CONTENTS.
PREFACE.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
INTRODUCTION, by Sir John Forrest.
CONTENTS.
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
TABLE OF CONTENTS.
PART 1. EASTERN AUSTRALIA.
CHAPTER 1. ORIGINS.
1.1. Governor Phillip.
1.2. Captain Tench.
1.3. The Blue Mountains: Barallier.
1.4. The Blue Mountains: Blaxland.
CHAPTER 2. GEORGE WILLIAM EVANS.
2.1. First Inland Exploration.
2.2. The Lachlan River.
2.3. The Unknown West.
CHAPTER 3. JOHN OXLEY.
3.1. General Biography.
3.2. His First Expedition.
3.3. The Liverpool Plains.
3.4. The Brisbane River.
CHAPTER 4. HAMILTON HUME.
4.1. Early Achievements.
4.2. Discovery of the Hume (Murray).
CHAPTER 5. ALLAN CUNNINGHAM.
5.1. Coastal Expeditions.
5.2. Pandora's Pass.
5.3. The Darling Downs.
CHAPTER 6. CHARLES STURT.
6.1. Early Life.
6.2. The Darling.
6.3. The Passage of the Murray.
CHAPTER 7. SIR THOMAS MITCHELL.
7.1. Introductory.
7.2. The Upper Darling.
7.3. The Passage of the Darling.
7.4. Australia Felix.
7.5. Discovery of the Barcoo.
CHAPTER 8. THE EARLY FORTIES.
8.1. Angas McMillan and Gippsland.
8.2. Count Strzelecki.
8.3. Patrick Leslie.
8.4. Ludwig Leichhardt.
CHAPTER 9. EDMUND B. KENNEDY.
9.1. The Victoria River and Cooper's Creek.
9.2. A Tragic Expedition.
CHAPTER 10. LATER EXPLORATION IN THE NORTH-EAST.
10.1. Walker in Search of Burke and Wills.
10.2. Burdekin and Cape York Expeditions.
PART 2. CENTRAL AUSTRALIA.
CHAPTER 11. EDWARD JOHN EYRE.
11.1. Settlement of Adelaide and the Overlanders.
11.2. Eyre's Chief Journeys.
CHAPTER 12. ATTEMPTS TO REACH THE CENTRE.
12.1. Lake Torrens Pioneers and Horrocks.
12.2. Charles Sturt.
CHAPTER 13. BABBAGE AND STUART.
13.1. B. Herschel Babbage.
13.2. John McDouall Stuart.
CHAPTER 14. BURKE AND WILLS.
CHAPTER 15. BURKE AND WILLS RELIEF EXPEDITIONS AND ATTEMPTS TOWARDS
PERTH.
15.1. John McKinley.
15.2. William Landsborough.
15.3. Major P.E. Warburton.
15.4. William Christie Gosse.
CHAPTER 16. TRAVERSING THE CENTRE.
16.1. Ernest Giles.
16.2. W.H. Tietkins and Others.
PART 3. WESTERN AUSTRALIA.
CHAPTER 17. ROE, GREY, AND GREGORY.
17.1. Roe and the Pioneers.
17.2. Sir George Grey.
17.3. Augustus C. Gregory.
CHAPTER 18. A.C. AND F.T. GREGORY.
18.1. A.C. Gregory on Sturt's Creek and the Barcoo.
18.2. Frank T. Gregory.
CHAPTER 19. FROM WEST TO EAST.
19.1. Austin.
19.2. Sir John Forrest.
19.3. Alexander Forrest.
CHAPTER 20. LATER WESTERN EXPEDITIONS.
20.1. Cambridge Gulf and the Kimberley District.
20.2. Lindsay and the Elder Exploring Expedition.
20.3. Wells and Carnegie in the Northern Desert.
20.4. Hann and Brockman in the North-West.
INDEX OF NAMES OF PERSONS.
INDEX OF PLACE NAMES.
[ILLUSTRATIONS.
Captain Charles Sturt, aged about 54 years. From the painting by
Crossland.
Gregory Blaxland. Statue of Gregory Blaxland, Lands Office, Sydney.
George William Evans. Discoverer of the Macquarie and Lachlan Rivers.
John Oxley. From a portrait in the possession of Mrs. Oxley, of Bowral.
The portrait was presented to Mrs. King, widow of Governor King, in 1810,
and signed by him.
The Lachlan River at the point where Oxley left it on the 4th August,
1818, and struck North-East to gain the Macquarie River and follow that
river up to Bathurst. Photo by the Reverend J.M. Curran.
Hamilton Hume, in his later life.
Allan Cunningham.
Memorial to Allan Cunningham, Botanical Gardens, Sydney.
The Darling River, at Sturt's first view point. Photo by the Reverend J.
Milne Curran.
Junction of the Darling and Murray Rivers.
Sir Thomas Mitchell.
A Chief of the Bogan River Tribe. Photo by the Reverend J.M. Curran.
Ludwig Leichhardt.
John Frederick Mann. Born 1819, died September 7th, 1907, at Sydney. The
last survivor of a Leichhardt expedition.
Edmund B. Kennedy.
Wild Blacks of Cape York signalling.
Frank L. Jardine.
Alec W. Jardine.
Statue of John McDouall Stuart, in the Lands Office, Sydney.
Edward John Eyre.
John Ainsworth Horrocks.
Sturt's Depot Glen. The Glen, eroded in vertical silurian slate, is less
than a mile long. Poole rests by the creek where the gorge opens quite
abruptly on to a vast cretaceous plain. Photo by the Reverend J.M.
Curran.
Poole's Grave and Monument, near Depot Glen, Tibbuburra, New South Wales.
Photo by the Reverend J.M. Curran.
B. Herschel Babbage. Born 1815; died 1878.
John McDouall Stuart.
Robert O'Hara Burke. From a photograph in the possession of E.J. Welch,
of the Howitt Relief Expedition.
William John Wills. From a photograph in the possession of E.J. Welch, of
the Howitt Relief Expedition.
Scenes on Cooper's Creek (After Howitt).
1. Burke's Grave.
2. Where King was Found.
3. Grave of Wills.
John King. From a photo in the possession of E.J. Welch.
Edwin J. Welch, second in command of the Howitt Relief Expedition, and
the first man to find King.
Burke and Wills Monument Statue, Melbourne.
Major P.E. Warburton.
William Christie Gosse, Deputy Surveyor-General of South Australia.
Baron Sir Ferdinand von Mueller.
A Camel Caravan in an Australian Desert.
W.H. Tietkins, 1878.
Ernest Favenc.
John Septimus Roe, First Surveyor-General of West Australia.
Sir George Grey.
Rock Painting, North-Western Australia.
Augustus C. Gregory, 1880. Photo, Freeman, Sydney.
Frank T. Gregory.
Maitland Brown.
John Forrest in 1874.
Members of the Exploring Expedition, Geraldton to Adelaide, 1874.
Standing, left to right: Tommy Pierre, Tommy Windich, James Kennedy,
James Sweeny.
Seated, left to right: Alexander Forrest (Second in Command), John
Forrest (In Command).
Alexander Forrest.
W. Carr-Boyd and Camel. Photographed at Laverton, Western Australia,
October, 1906.
Sir Thomas Elder, G.C.M.G. Photo: Duryea, Adelaide.
David Lindsay.
L.A. Wells. Photo: Duryea, Adelaide.
David Wynford Carnegie.
Frank Hann. Explorer of the North-West, and discoverer of a stock route
between South Australia and Western Australia. Photo: Mathewson,
Brisbane.
Aboriginal Rock Painting on the Glenelg River. From a photograph by F.S.
Brockman.
Typical Australian Explorers of the early Twentieth Century.
Ernest Giles.
MAPS AND PLANS.
1. Routes of Blaxland, Wentworth, and Lawson (1813); Evans (1813); Oxley
(1817, 1818, 1823); and Sturt (1828 and 1829).
2. Routes of Hume and Hovell (1824); Sturt (1829 and 1830); and Mitchell
(1836).
3. Routes of Sturt (1829 and 1830); and Hume and Hovell (1824).
4. Routes of Leichhardt (1844 and 1845); Mitchell (1845 and 1846); and
Kennedy (1847 and 1848).
5. Routes of Eyre (1840 and 1841).
6. Basin of Lake Torrens, supposed extent and formation of.
7. Route of Sturt's Central Australian Expedition (1844 to 1846).
8. Routes of Stuart (1858 to 1862); and Burke and Wills (1860 and 1861).
9. Routes of Grey (1836, 1837 and 1839); Forrest (1869, 1870, 1874,
1879); and Giles (1873).
...
PART 1.
EASTERN AUSTRALIA.
CHAPTER 1. ORIGINS.
1.1. GOVERNOR PHILLIP.
Arthur Phillip, whose claim to be considered the first inland explorer of
the south-eastern portion of Australia rests upon his discovery of the
Hawkesbury River and a few short excursions to the northward of Port
Jackson, had but scant leisure to spare from his official duties for
extended geographical research. For all that, Phillip and a few of his
officers were sufficiently imbued with the spirit of discovery to find
opportunity to investigate a considerable area of country in the
immediate neighbourhood of the settlement, and, considering the fact that
all their explorations at the time had to be laboriously conducted on
foot, they did their work well.
The first excursion undertaken by Phillip was on the 2nd of March, 1788,
when he went to Broken Bay, whence, after a slight examination, he was
forced to return by the inclemency of the weather. On the 15th of April
he made another attempt to ascertain the character and features of the
unknown land that he had taken possession of. Landing on the shore of the
harbour, a short distance from the North Head, he started on a tour of
examination, and, in the course of his march, penetrated to a distance of
fifteen miles from the coast. At this point he caught sight of the
distant range that was destined to baffle for many years the western
progress of the early settlers. Phillip, on this his first glimpse of it,
christened the northern elevations the Caermarthen Hills, and the
southern elevations the Lansdowne; and a remarkable hill, destined to
become a well-known early landmark, he called Richmond Hill. In the brief
view he had of this range, there was suddenly born in Phillip's mind the
conviction that a large river must have its source therein, and that upon
the banks of such a river, the soil would be found more arable than about
the present settlement. He at once made up his mind to try and gain the
range on a different course.
A week later he landed at the head of the harbour and directed his march
straight inland, hoping to reach either the mountains, which he knew to
be there, or the river in whose existence he firmly believed.
Disappointment dogged his steps; on the first day a belt of dense scrub
forced his party to return and when, on the morrow, they avoided the
scrub by following up a small creek and got into more thinly timbered
country, their slow progress enabled them to accomplish only thirty miles
in five days. By that time, they were short of provisions; there was no
river visible, and the range still looked on them from afar. What cheered
them was the sight of some land that promised richly to reward the labour
of cultivation.
It was not until the 6th of June, 1789, that Phillip resumed his labours
in the field of exploration. The Sirius had then returned from the Cape
of Good Hope, and he could reckon on the assistance of his friend,
Captain Hunter, to re-investigate Broken Bay with the vessel's boats.
Accordingly, two boats were sent on to Broken Bay with provisions, where
they were joined by the Governor and his party, who had marched overland.
Besides Phillip, the party consisted of Captain Hunter and two of his
officers, Captain Collins, Captain Johnston, and Surgeon White.
For two days they were engaged in examining the many inlets and openings
of the Bay, and on the third, they chanced upon a branch that had before
escaped their notice. They proceeded to explore it, and found the river
of which Phillip had dreamed. The next day, renewed examination proved
that it was indeed a noble river, with steep banks and a depth of water
that promised well for navigation.
After their return to Sydney Cove, preparations were at once made to
follow up this important discovery. On the 28th of June, Phillip, again
accompanied by Hunter, left the Cove, having made much the same
arrangements as before. There was a slight misunderstanding with regard
to meeting the boat; but, after this was cleared away, the party soon
floated out on to the waters of the new-found river. They rowed up the
river until they reached the hill that Phillip, at a distance, had
christened Richmond Hill. On traversing a reach of the stream, the main
range, that as yet they had only dimly seen in the distance, suddenly
loomed ahead of them, frowning in rugged grandeur close upon them, as it
seemed. Struck with admiration and astonishment at this unexpected
revelation of the deep ravines and stern and gloomy gorges that scored
its front, over which hung a blue haze, Phillip, almost involuntarily,
named them on the moment; the Blue Mountains. Next morning the explorers
ascended Richmond Hill, from whose crest they looked across a deep,
wooded valley to the mountains still many miles away. After a hasty
examination of the country on the banks of the river, Phillip and his
band returned to the settlement, he having now realised his brightest
hopes and anticipations.
On the 11th of April, 1791, Phillip again started on an expedition, the
object of which was a closer inspection of the Blue Mountains. He was
accompanied this time by Captain Tench and Lieutenant Dawes; the latter,
in December, 1789, had been sent out with a small party to reach the foot
of the range, but had succeeded in approaching only within eleven miles
of the Mountains, whence he was forced to retire by the rugged and broken
nature of the country. On the present occasion, they reached the river
two days after leaving Rose Hill. They followed it for another two days,
but made no further discoveries, being greatly delayed by the constant
detours around the heads of small tributary creeks, too deep to cross in
the neighbourhood of the river.
This was the last exploring expedition undertaken by Governor Phillip.
Considering that his health was not robust, and that the work entailed
was of a specially arduous nature, his personal share in exploring the
country about the little settlement was noteworthy. It proved him to
possess both the foresight and the energy necessary in an explorer.
1.2. CAPTAIN TENCH.
In the month of June, 1789, Captain Watkin Tench, who, during his short
sojourn in the infant colony showed himself as zealous in exploration as
he was keen in his observations, started from the newly-formed redoubt at
Rose Hill, of which he was in command, on a short excursion to examine
the surrounding country. This trip, inspired by Tench's ardent love of
discovery, became a noteworthy one in the annals of New South Wales. It
was made during the month that witnessed the discovery of the Hawkesbury
River. On the second day after his party left Rose Hill, they found
themselves early in the morning on "the banks of a river, nearly as broad
as the Thames at Putney, and apparently of great depth, the current
running very slowly in a northerly direction."
This river, at first known as the Tench, was afterwards named the Nepean
by Phillip, when its identity as a tributary of the Hawkesbury had been
confirmed. Two other slight excursions were made by Tench in company with
Lieutenant Dawes, who was in charge of the Observatory, and ex-surgeon
Worgan. In May, 1791, Tench and Dawes started from Rose Hill and
confirmed the supposition that the Nepean was an affluent of the
Hawkesbury, a matter over which there had been some doubt since its first
discovery by Tench. Tench returned to England in H.M.S. Gorgon, in
December, 1791.
The names of Paterson, Johnson, Palmer, and Laing are also connected with
exploration on the upper Hawkesbury.
1.3. THE BLUE MOUNTAINS: BARALLIER.
The exploration of that portion of Australia which was accessible by the
scanty means of the early settlers was for many years impeded by the
stern barrier of the mountains, and most of their efforts in the
direction of discovery were aimed at surmounting the range that defied
their attacks. Among the many whose attempts were signalised only by
failure were the gallant Bass, whose name, for other reasons, will never
be forgotten by Australians, the quarrelsome and pragmatic Cayley, and
the adventurous Hack. Amongst them there was one, however, whose failure,
read by the light of modern knowledge, was probably a geographical
success. This was Francis Barallier, ensign in the New South Wales corps,
who was encouraged by Governor King to indulge his ardent longing for
discovery. By birth a Frenchman, Barallier had received his ensigncy by
commission on the 13th of February, 1801, having done duty as an ensign
since July, 1800, by virtue of a government general order issued by
Governor Hunter. In August, 1801, he had been appointed by Governor King
military engineer, in place of Captain Abbott resigned. In February,
1802, he was succeeded by Lieutenant George Bellasis, an artillery
officer. Besides his expeditions to the Blue Mountains, he did much
surveying with Lieutenant James Grant in the Lady Nelson. In 1804, he
went to England and saw service in several regiments, distinguishing
himself greatly in military engineering, amongst his works being the
erection of the Nelson Column in Trafalgar Square, the designer of which
was Mr. Railton. Barallier died in 1853.
Peron, the French naturalist, tells us that when in Sydney in October,
1802, he persuaded Governor King to fit out a party to attempt the
passage of the mountains, and that a young Frenchman, aide-de-camp to the
Governor, was intrusted with the leadership. He returned, however,
without having been able to penetrate further than his English
predecessors.
On the following month, however, Barallier set out from Parramatta, on
his famous embassy to the King of the Mountains. This fictitious embassy
arose from the fact that Colonel Paterson having refused Barallier the
required leave, King claimed him as his aide-de-camp, and sent him on
this embassy. Barallier started with four soldiers, five convicts, and a
waggon-load of provisions drawn by two bullocks. He crossed the Nepean
and established a depot at a place known as Nattai, whence the waggon was
sent back to Sydney for provisions, Barallier, with the remainder of his
men and a native, pushing out westwards. After this preliminary
examination he returned to the depot, and made a fresh departure on the
22nd of November, and, continuing mostly directly westwards, he reached a
point (according to his chart) about one hundred and five miles due west
from Lake Illawarra. If this position is even approximately correct, he
must have been at the very source of the Lachlan River.
I give a few extracts from his diary, which was not even translated until
the Historical Records of New South Wales were collected by Mr. F.M.
Bladen. They refer to the crossing of the range.
"On the 24th of November, I followed the range of elevated mountains,
where I saw several kangaroos. This country is covered with meadows and
small hills, where trees grow a great distance apart...I resumed my
journey, following various directions to avoid obstacles, and at 4
o'clock I arrived on the top of a hill where I discovered that the
direction of the chain of mountains extended itself north-westerly to a
distance which I estimated to be about thirty miles, and which turned
abruptly at right angles. It formed a barrier nearly north and south,
which it was necessary to climb over...At 7 o'clock I arrived on the
summit of another hill, from where I noticed three openings: the first on
the right towards North 50 West; the other in front of me, and which
appeared very large, was west from me; and the third was South 35 West.
...This discovery gave me great hope, and the whole of the party appeared
quite pleased, thinking that we had surmounted all difficulties, and that
we were going to enter a plain, the apparent immensity of which gave
every promise of our being able to penetrate far into the interior of the
country...At six o'clock I found myself at a distance of about two miles
from the western passage...I was then only half-a-mile from the passage,
and I sent on two men in order to discover it, instructing them to ascend
the mountain to the north of this passage...I waited till 7 o'clock for
my two men, who related to me, that after passing the range which was in
front of us we would enter an immense plain, that from the height where
they were on the mountain, they had caught sight of only a few hills
standing here and there on this plain, and that the country in front of
them had the appearance of a meadow...At daybreak I left with two men to
verify myself the configuration of the ground, and to ascertain whether
the passage of the Blue Mountains had really been effected. I climbed the
chain of mountains north of us. When I had reached the middle of this
height the view of a plain as vast as the eye could reach confirmed to me
the report of the previous day...I discovered towards the west and at a
distance which I estimated to be forty miles, a range of mountains higher
than those we had passed...From where I was, I could not detect any
obstacle to the passage right to the foot of those mountains...After
having cut a cross of St. Andrew on a tree to indicate the terminus of my
second journey, I returned by the same route I had come."