TOLD BY A SURVIVOR.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIII, Issue 989, 9 May 1911, Page 4

TOLD BY A SURVIVOR.

OF BURKE AND WILDS SEARCH PARTY.

THE FINDING OF KING

AND THE REMAINS OF THE LEADERS.

An historic tragedy of the early days of Australian colonisation has been recalled by documents which have been placed in the possession of the Waibi Daily Telegraph by Mr A. Aitkeu, of Waihi, the tragedy consisting of the death by starvation of the famous explorers, Messrs Burke and Wills, of the patty kt own as Burke, Wills and Kiug. April 26th was the 62nd anniversary of the finding of the only survivor, Mr Kiug. Mr Aitkeu, who was one of the search party which went out to find the whereabouts of the missing explorers, has supplied a graphic description by himself of the journey. After an account of the vicissitudes of the party the narrative goes on to say :

The natives, who for the past few days had been calling out to us “Gow Gow,” and pointing down the creek, began to use a word that sounded very like “White fellow,” and were now more numerous than they bad been hitherto. About seven miles from our last camp we came near one of the finest and most extensive waterholes we had seen, and we followed it downward on its northern bank, following a well-beaten native track for a distance of about four miles. Ahead of us we saw where the waterhole ended, and the dry, shingly bed of the creek began. Here we could see a number of natives, men, women, and children (about 30 or 40 all told), coming towards us across the dry bed of the creek. One of the Darling natives we had with us expressed the opinion that there was a white man among them, and immediately after Sampson, who was riding the leading horse of the party, called out that a white man, clothed in ragged garments, was with the natives, who were all naked, had no weapons, and appeared friendly.

Sampson and myself at once dismounted, tied up our horses to some scrub, went down the bank, and walked across the dry bed of the creek to meet them.

The natives all stopped, and one man advanced to meet us, clothed as described by Sampson. We saw him drop on his knees and get up again, and in a few seconds more we met. The first question we asked was, “What is your name ?” and he at once answered “Kiug.” We then asked, “Where are Burke, Wills, and Grey ?”and he answered, “All are dead. Burke died a few miles up the creek, and Wills a few miles down the creek, about ten weeks ago, and Grey died some time before them.” We then said, “Have you beeu ou Cooper’s Creek ever since you left the depot,” and he drew himself erect, and replied. “No, wr have been to the Gulf and back, and we aii reached t he de,>ot with .he exception of Grey, v-Siu died ;, n the return journey bcK:-.; we reached Cooper’s Creek.” He also staled that tln-y hart got lire provisions buried oy Brane on the-evening of the day Brahe had left the depot,

and had attempted to reach the settled districts of South Australia, but had failed in the attempt, as the country through which they tried to pass was waterless.

Other members of the party then came down, but as King was in a very nervous and excited condition, we retrained from asking any more questions. We then brought him up to where the horses and camels had been left, where we camped and erected a tent for his accommodation.

The first food we gave him under the doctor’s instruction was some arrowroot, with a tablespoonful of pale brandy. We had six bottles of pile brandy when we started from Menindie, and we brought back with us on our return five untouched.

For several days after we found King he was in a very weak and unsatisfactory state, and wandered very much in his mind. Every day Mr Howitt sat down with him for an hour or more, according to circumstances, and made full notes of the journey to the Gulf and back, which were afterwards published as “King’s Narrative,” and I feel certain that it is a true and faithful account of everything that happened so far as King could recollect. On the 18th September, Mr Wills, who died about seven miles down the creek, was buried by the party, and on the 21st we buried Mr Burke, Mr Howitt reading the Church of England service on both occasions.

As King was in a very weak state, we did not start on the return journey until the 25th, and on the 29th October we again reached Burke’s Camp, on the Darling, near Menindie,

On November 7th King started for Melbourne, accompanied by Messrs Welsh and Phillips, while Mr Howitt and the rest of the party remained at the camp to await further instructions.

On the 22nd, instructions were received to proceed again to Cooper’s Creek and make further explorations, and render assistance, if necessary, to any of the other search parties that had not returned to the settlements. All the members of the first party refused to go out a second time except four, and Mr Howitt had to go to Melbourne to get more men. He returned to the camp on January Ist, 1862, with fresh men, making up the party to eleven whites and one Darling native.

We started again for Cooper’s Creek, via Mount Murchison, on January 9th, and after exploring the country to the north-west, beyond Sturt’s Desert, and to the south-west to the first occupied country in South Australia, we dug up the remains of Burke and Wills, and carried them with us until we reached Kapnnda, where they were placed in a casket, conveyed by rail to Adelaide, and thence by sea to Melbourne. I proceeded overland to Victoria with the camels and horses. We crossed the Big Desert on New Yea ’s Eve, 1863, and handed over the camels and horses to the manager of Wilson’s station, on Ibe Vv itnmera, and arrived m Melbourne in time for the public funeral of the remains of Burke and Wills.

The finding of King by Mr Welsh alone, as described in the Argus of 10th September, 1904,

and in the Picturesque Atlas is not correct. It any single individual has a right to the credit it is Mr Howitt, our leader, who directed the search, while Mr Welsh and the rest ol the party simply carried out his instructions. That Mr Howitt was an able leader, and a thorough bushtnan, may be gathered from the fact that during both expeditions he Ipst neither man, horse nor camel, and was never at fault, while that portion of the original party under Wright and Brahe lost four men and several camels and horses.

From the time we found King until we returned to Menindie, I was always near him, both day and night, and many of the incidents of the journey to Carpentaria i and back were described by him. There is no doubt that the tragic end of Burke and Wills was attributable to the failure of Wright in carrying out Burke’s instructions. He should have pushed on to the depot on Cooper's Creek with fresh men and provisions, and should have been there months before Brahe and his party left. Many men of the several parties connected with the Burke aud Wills expedition came over to New Zealand. McDonnough (one of Burke’s original party) was for years a travelling agent for the Government Insurance Department ; Phillips was in Hokitika in the early days of the West Coast; Dr Wheeler was in practice at Stafford, in the Waimea district: and McPherson (Burke’s saddler) was lor more than 20 years a resident of Maori Creek, and he died not long since in the Greymouth Hospital. Mr Charlton Howitt (a brother of A. W. Howitt) was leader of a party sent from Christchurch to explore the West Coast. He reached Lake Brunner, which he attempted to cross in a dug-out, and he and his companions were never heard of again, nor was any trace of them ever found.

The following letter was received by Mr Aitken in October, 1863, from Mr King (the sole survivor): —“It is with much pleasure that I pen you these tew lines in grateful acknowledgment of your kindness and attention in travel, and as one that can sympathise with a sufferer. And I can say you were highly esteemed by your leader, Mr Howitt, and by each man of the party for your agreeableness and good conduct, and lor your honesty and fidelity in discharging the duties of the office you held. And in all your future undertakings you have the best wishes for your success and happiness of yours truly,—John King.”

Mr Aitken has also shown the original telegram (dated Kapuuda, Bth December, 18O2), received by him from Mr Howitt relative to the burial of the remains of Messrs Burke and Wills: —“ Send me down the dimensions of case to contain the remains. Telegraph from Auburn to York Hotel, Adelaide.” The reply was sent as follows: “Dimensions of the remains are each two feet long, one foot broad, and one foot deep.”