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and the Fillani were defeated by them near Egbom. Troops were retained at Kabba until 1904. On 1 January 1900, as is well known, Sir Frederick Lugard took over the Government of Northern Nigeria from the Royal Niger Company, Limited and Chartered, and hoisted the British flag at Lokoja. This remained his headquarters for some time. Kabba was formed into a Province with very nearly its present boundaries (except that it included the Kukuruku and Akoko countries west of the Niger), and was administered from Lokoja with Sir William Wallace as its first Resident. The administrative headquarters were then removed to Kabba, where they remained for some years until transferred to Ilorin. The rest of the Kabba Province was opened up from Kabba. Captain A. G. Uniack explored the Igbedde and Yagba country, and in 1903 an expedition was sent against the Igbirra on account of the continual trouble they inflicted on their more amenable neighbours. Koton-Karifi was explored from Lokoja, and the late Hon. David Carnegie, who achieved fame in Australian exploration, met his untimely death outside the hill village of Tawari in that division, in an attempt to arrest a robber chief.

The accompanying map is the result of a survey carried out in 1922, 1923, and 1924.* It is based on a network of intersecting route traverses, supported by an independent system of hill-points fixed by intersecting rays. The heights are only very rough and were obtained by aneroid and Abney level. Much of the route-traversing lay through country which was covered for the greater part of the year with grass of such height and thickness that one could not see for more than a few yards at a time: surveying was reduced to a painful effort, and only 3 or 4 miles a day could be done. It was therefore necessary to produce a fresh method, and the following has resulted. A man with a drum with another man is sent along the path ahead of the surveyor; he beats his drum at a fairly slow rate. When he has gone far enough the surveyor takes a sight on the sound with his compass and blows a whistle, which is heard by the second man, who stops the drummer. The second man walks a little behind the drummer, so that the whistle shall not be drowned by the sound of the drum. He then marks the place where the drummer was standing with sticks or lines on the ground, and on hearing two blasts on the whistle they go on, drumming slowly as before. The surveyor follows at once, pacing or measuring the distance by perambulator, until he reaches the mark left by the first party. Here he halts and jots down his distance from the starting-point or last halt, takes a sight on to the sound, and blows his whistle as before. Before he takes the sight he may point with a stick in what he conceives to be the direction of the sound, and a man standing behind him can verify this direction

* The sketch-map accompanying this paper is based upon Mr. Niven's work. Photographic copies of his survey on the scale of 1/250,000 and 1/100,000 have been deposited in the Society's Map-room, where they may be consulted.

by looking along the stick over the surveyor's shoulder. The result obtained may be as much as 5 degrees out, but it is never more than the thickness of a pencil-point drawing on a fair scale. The distance between the surveyor and the drummer may be lengthened by letting the latter walk on while the former stands at the station, or be shortened by the surveyor increasing his pace or by delaying blowing the two blasts until he has left the last station for so many yards. In good country on a calm day a distance of 300 to 400 yards may be maintained with safety, but in enclosed country and in wind it must be lessened considerably. Simple experiment will show the deduction that must be made to correct the measured distance for plotting in a straight line. This method may sound very poor, and is no doubt full of theoretical weaknesses, but it produces practical results, plotting on a scale 1/50,000 with less than 3 per cent. error on joining up traverses.

THROUGH NORTHERN AUSTRALIA: REPORT OF THE TERRY AUSTRALIAN EXPEDITION

W

Michael Terry

HEN I was privileged to address the Society, in May 1924, on my journey from east to west across Northern Australia, it seemed to me that a more definite and up-to-date presentation of facts would be of use in the understanding of that part of the Empire. Some are firm in the belief that it is a sandy waste; others seem blinded to any drawbacks it possesses by the vision they see of its future. It was in the hope of putting better information before both these schools of thought that I ventured to draw together the organization necessary for a more ambitious visit. To carry out this work a personnel able to examine mineral indications, topographical features, botanical affairs, had to be assembled-able, in short, to return fully informed on the varied aspects of development. As the most convincing argument cannot impress more fairly or vividly than the camera, it was decided to procure both moving and "still" pictures. At the outset it seemed that horse transport would be most suitable that was, till a make of caterpillar-track motor came before my notice. Having viewed its performance, this type of travel seemed to present every attraction for the task, if only as a parallel to the French feat in crossing the Sahara Desert, in so much as it would be the pioneer journey with this type of English vehicle, and, moreover, the first within the Empire. Also the use of motor transport would increase the popular interest in the expedition and, incidentally, in its object; at the same time the performance of the tractors would determine their value as a factor in development.

Accordingly, on July 21 last year the expedition entrained at Darwin,

Northern Territory, en route for Emungalan, the railhead 198 miles to the south. We were equipped with two 1-ton model Guy-Roadless lorries, each with a 10-cwt. trailer. As auxiliary there was an A. J. S. motor cycle and sidecar. Besides general food stores and repair tools there was a wireless receiving set, full mineral prospecting kit, survey and hypsometrical instruments lent by the Society. The party consisted of R. A. Prescott, surveyor, trained in the Society's school; M. Redknap, camera man; A. E. Smitheram, mineralogist; C. F. Syme and E. E. Jolly, drivers; and, last but not least, Lord Apsley, whose interest in settlement possibilities had led to his presence with us. The financial support had been subscribed by a number of private people, and the venture had been further assisted by the Cuthbert Peek Grant awarded to me last year by this Society.

When planning the route during organization in England, it had seemed best to join my previous itinerary at Newcastle Waters, to follow it to Soakage Creek cattle station-now known as Gordon Downsand to travel down Sturt creek en route for the Southesk Tablelands. At that point it was intended to turn westwards, making for Marble Bar by way of Johanna Springs. This proposal embraced every type of country from the well-watered black-soil uplands to the most arid area in the continent. The best portions of Northern Australia and the so-called Dead Heart would be seen; the tractors would be tried under the extremes of easy and difficult overlanding, and their value tested for subsequent use in this class of work or in more ordinary spheres. A fair sample of the North would be brought before our eyes to temper an unduly poor or favourable impression of any one locality.

Before leaving Darwin, the value of shortening the motor route to the upper reaches of the Victoria river was shown to me, so it was determined to take the direct stock route there and abandon the intended and easier way via Newcastle Waters. In effect this meant going along the base of the triangle formed by Katherine, Newcastle Waters, and Wave Hill, instead of traversing the two sides. Lesser-known country would also be seen, so I felt that the change would be to the good. Accordingly we set out from Manbuloo cattle station, 9 miles down the Katherine river from where it was crossed near the railhead. There we joined the Dry River stock route on July 27. This earliest stage of the journey lay for many miles along the course of the Dry river-hence the name of the route, which has been in use for many years by cattle drovers moving stock to and from the holdings at the head of the Victoria river. More recently it has been busy with cattle going to the meat works at Darwin; they are trucked at Emungalan. At first the country was somewhat sandy, but as progress was made higher lands were found where black soil replaced this. For the initial 150 miles the trees, seldom exceeding a height of 25 to 30 feet, were so thick that one could not see more than a few hundred yards: no idea of adjacent country

might be formed. The impression was that one was travelling in a moving clearing in the bush, for mile after mile the view did not change or extend. Tall coarse grasses covered the ground, sunburnt to a yellowish colour by cloudless days since the last of the rains, i.e. April. The annual monsoonal downpour of 25 to 30 inches gives rise to a very heavy growth, averaging from 3 to 4 feet. This screen hid many obstacles over which the cars bumped: fallen tree limbs, stumps, and holes kept the drivers on the qui vive. Even so some nasty shocks were received. The low clearance of the motor cycle sidecar soon got her into trouble, for she caught the frame against a stump, springing it badly. The sidecar had to be dismantled and carried on the car; she was ridden solo till camp at eventide beside Lake Wanulla. There, after some experimenting, it was re-fitted on the offside, a change that increased the clearance to over 12 inches, for the whole frame had to be reversed. Thereafter no trouble was experienced on this account.

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To keep this route open at all seasons, sub-artesian bores are being drilled every 15 to 20 miles, the last, No. 8, being about 135 miles from Manbuloo. Incidentally, this was the farthest point to which a car had previously penetrated.

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The absence of emus and kangaroos, except on the rarest occasions, was a source of surprise to every one. In fact, while passing among innumerable anthills for many miles, Redknap, who developed a humorous trait, suggested they must be tombstones to these absent fauna. seemed one was passing through an enormous graveyard. Had it not been for the profusion of bird-life around the water-holes, the country might have been considered deserted. Their precincts were thronged with whistling duck, teal, galahs, bronze-wing pigeons, cockatoos, corellas, and a plentiful variety of minor bird-life. Wild turkeys were very common, while jabbaroos and brolgas (or native companions) were far from rare. I suppose it would be difficult to find quail more numerous at times the ground seemed alive with them. They used to scurry away between the tufts of grass or whirr through the air in erratic short flights. Many fell to the gun of Jolly, who became our worthy hunter. Pelican and ibis were there as well, but the turkey was the most welcome addition to the pot: the largest specimen, when dressed, weighed about 14 lbs. They are a very hard bird to stalk on foot; the motorist however has an easy task, for they are intensely inquisitive. The buzzing of the engine seems to fascinate them, for they will walk about the tufts of grass, obviously desperately anxious to fly away, yet held to the spot by the mystery of the sound. Not seldom while the cars continued on the journey the faster-moving motor cycle made excursions over the plains chasing turkeys, to rejoin the others later. Needless to say dingoes were very numerous, and their howls round the camp at night, mingled with the mournful wail of the curlew, were disturbing at first. One day a large native cat, jet black and the size of a well-grown lamb, was seen

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