The Kimberiey Gold Fields.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XI, Issue 1712, 19 May 1886, Page 4

The Kimberiey Gold Fields.

The Canterbury Times contains a specially written article upon the new El Dorado which will b« read with interest :— ThoHKh t»o Dorih coast of Western Australia- was probably the first part ofihe contiuent visited by white m#M, nothing was known of the interior until . qiirte recently. Some four or five years aeo Mossrs John and Alexander Forrest (the former of whom is now SurveyoriJineial) explored Ihe counliy i« the irtVehbonrliood of Cambridge Gulf > and King Sound. Influenced by the glowing reports given by them, the Government decided to declare it a pastoral district, under, the name of Rimberley, •nd m order to encourage settlement, the annnal rental of pastoral holdings was fixed at 10s per 100 acres. A. Rite for a township was seltcted on iho east•rn>hore of King Sound, and the work of settlement was commenced. Capitalists m the southern district!, and also, in the sastern Colonies, attract•d br the possibilities of development m a land wheredrought is unknown, look up large tracts. The King Sound Pastoral Company, of Melbourne, chartered the stoumer Euxino to convey stock, nnd Messrs Dnre nnd Emanuel, of Sydney tngngr.d the Victoria fwr n Bitnilnr purpose. The route decided on was v<a Torres JSlrails. it being dfetned snfer to ruk the effects of the tropical In-at of the Gulf of Carpentaria than to incur tliw danger of a rough passage round Cape Lcuwiu. Sailing vessels were employed to carry sheep from the Swan river. Owing'to the Bhallowness of the water and the great rise and fall of tide (over 30ft), vespels are compelled to lie about live miles from the shore. Stock have consequently to be taken off m boats— rather a tedious and risky operation, especially during the hurricane season, when the frequency and violence of thf squalls (locally known as "Cluck-eyed Bobs") make I'Oflling a perilous pleasure, as the writer can testify froiir>xpsri«uce. The- country between the Fitzroy and Lennard rivers is undulating, ami for the most part covered with dense scrub, except, on tbe rjrers, where large open glades occur at intervals. The grass attains a height of six feet m places, and forms a harbour for all sorts of vermin. Snakes, -Hcorpions, rats and other abominations too numerous to mention abound everywhere, and at night the weary traveller has cause to anathematise the mosquitoes and ants. The flora nnd fauna affords ample material for scientific research, ninny of the plants and animals found being peculiar to the district. The must noticeable, nnd certainly tho most beautiful tree is the baebah. Though not' so lofty as the encalprfi, this tree covers more gronnd, and affords an excellent shade m which to enjoy the noonday cit-sta so necessary m a tropical climntf. Tim wood (.if it can be called such) is of a soft, spongy nnture. The sap, which tocudes when it is cut, tnstes somnwhat like sorghum, nnd fonng a very fair substitute for waror. The fruit i« a nut nearly a* large as nn, egg. The nativis une it" for .food, but even when roasted it takes a Native palate to appreciate tho flavour. Another peculiar tree is tho geranium, the loaves ef which resemble m form nnd scent the , common garden plant ot that name. Wild graphs, melons, neannd various edible berries are plentiful m places.