to spring, through sand hill country, grassland and spinifex. Finally Stuart writes “April 22 Today I find from my observations of the sun LL 111 00’ 30” that I am camped in the centre of Australia.” Next day “Took Kekwick and the flag and went to the top of the Mount but found it to be much higher and difficult of ascent than I supposed; built a cone of stones, in the centre of which I placed a pole, with the British flag nailed to it. On the top of the cone I placed a small bottle in which is a slip of paper stating by whom it was raised with our signatures to it. On finishing we gave three cheers for the Flag the emblem of civil and religious liberty and may it be a sign to the natives that the dawn of liberty, civilisation and Christianity is about to break upon them. I then named the mount Sturt after the father of Australian Exploration for whom we also gave three hearty cheers.” (Later renamed Central Mount Stuart). It must have given Stuart great satisfaction to be the first European, looking at the view from the top of the mount. It was not an arid desert nor an inland sea, but a beautiful country with red sandstone hills, grasslands, gum trees and creeks. The goal being the northern sea, they pushed on. There were many groups of natives in this country. Many times on approaching water, they came to hastily abandoned camps. On 26th June, near dusk, the party was retracing their tracks along the creek “when suddenly up started three tall, powerful men, fully armed, having a number of boomerangs, waddies and spears; their distance from us being about 200 yards,..I then faced them, making all sorts of signs of friendship I could think of. They seemed to be in a great fury, moving their boomerangs about their heads. They were now joined by a number more...upwards of 30 - every bush seemed to produce a man. ...we received a shower of boomerangs,..they then commenced jumping, dancing, yelling...and setting fire to the grass...Still I felt unwilling to fire upon them, and tried to make them understand that we wished to do them no harm; they now came within forty yards of us and again made a charge, throwing their boomerangs which came whistling and whizzing past our ears. One spear struck my horse. I then gave orders to fire...Our pack horses took fright when they heard the firing and fearful yelling...sent Ben after the horses...while Kekwick and I remained to cover our rear. We soon got in advance of our enemies, but they kept following... numerous, bold and daring. Their arrangements and manner of attack were as well conducted and planned as Europeans could do it”. Being such a small party and with the possibility of further hostilities ahead, Stuart reluctantly decided to turn back. By this time food was short and men and horses were weak and very much feeling the effects of deprivation. They reached Adelaide in October and were greeted with great enthusiasm. The courage and skill of John McDouall Stuart was acknowledged by the 8 Australia’s Explorers’ Way Royal Geographic Society’s highest honour, the Patron’s Gold Medal for his discovery of the centre of Australia. There was news of a Note left on Central Mount Stuart Victorian Expedition led by Robert O’Hara Burke with William Wills as surveyor. The Royal Society of Victoria had raised 12,000 for a well-organised expedition; twenty-seven camels, specially imported from Peshawar, twenty-eight horses, several wagons, tents and provisions for seventeen men for eighteen months. It was a gala day when they left Melbourne on 10th August, 1861 and a crowd of ten thousand had farewelled them. They were to proceed along a route similar to that which Captain Sturt had taken to Cooper Creek, and then on to the Gulf of Carpentaria Stuart was urged to go back out there and be the first to cross the continent. Rivalry between the Colonies was strong. So far, all of Stuart’s expeditions had been privately funded. After it was seen that inadequate means alone had led to his retreat, a larger, Government-backed expedition was planned. The outlay of 2500 was modest compared to the Victorian Expedition; however this time, the party consisted of ten men with forty-nine horses. At the beginning of January 1861, Stuart’s expedition was on the way and travelled through the full brunt of the summer sun. Around the Neales area, the natives set fire to grass around their camp. Further on, although there was permanent water, the MacDonnell Ranges were very dry and they were delighted when heavy rain fell which made the creeks run. They passed Tennant Creek, then Attack Creek without incident. The party travelled on through country with stony rises, spinifex and gum, on past the Ashburton Range, across Sturt Plain. The horses were constantly stumbling into holes and cracks concealed under the long grass and men and horses became “quite worn out”. Sturt Plain had once been a freshwater lake, but now finding water was a difficult task. The main party camped at Hawkers Creek while Stuart with two men went out on a series of scouting trips searching for water. In May they discovered “a splendid sheet of water” now known as Newcastle Waters and the main party shifted there. Eleven trips, Stuart Burke and Wills persisted with, pushing the horses’ endurance to the limit, but try as he might, the hot dry waterless plain, bordered by thick impenetrable lancewood scrub could not be overcome. The furthest point reached was “Burke Creek”. They proceeded back through the bitterly cold nights of the Centre and reached Adelaide towards the end of September. Disappointed at being unsuccessful, there was no time for rest or recuperation. Meanwhile, there was news that the Burke and Wills Expedition was causing concern; the party had divided and the leaders had not returned. Search parties had been sent.
