GREGORY 267 



would be provided if necessary. The command was given to Mr. 

 (afterwards Sir) AUGUSTUS CHARLES GREGORY, then Assistant Sur- 

 veyor, Western Australia. The full party was thus composed : 



Commander : A. C. Gregory. 



Assistant Commander : H. C. Gregory. 



Geologist : J. S. Wilson. 



Artist and Storekeeper : J. Baines. 



Surgeon and Naturalist : J. R. Elsey. 



Botanist : Ferdinand von' Mueller (afterwards Baron and Sir 



Ferdinand). 



Collector and Preserver : J. Flood. 

 Overseer : G. Phibbs. 

 Stockmen, &c. : C. Humphries, R. Bowman, C. Dean, J. Melville, 



W. Dawson, W. Shewell, W. Selby, S. Macdonald, H. Richards, 



J. Fahey. 



The proceedings of the expedition are summarised in a British 

 Parliamentary Paper, 1 while the Diary is given in a Collection of 

 Mr. Gregory's Journals published by the Queensland Government. 1 



The expedition was conveyed to the scene of its land operations 

 by the barque " Monarch " and the schooner " Tom Tough," which 

 left Sydney on i8th July, Brisbane on I2th August and Port 

 Albany on 2/th August, 1855. After passing through ENDEAVOUR 

 STRAIT, PORT ESSINGTON was reached on 1st September. The horses 

 were landed at POINT PEARCE. The " Monarch " went on to 

 Singapore while the " Tom Tough " was sent up the VICTORIA 

 RIVER to establish a depot at the highest convenient point. 



After preliminary rides, during which the McADAM RANGE 

 was crossed and the FITZMAURICE RIVER was reached, the land 

 party left POINT PEARCE on 6th October. The VICTORIA RIVER 

 was reached on I7th October, but it was not until the 2oth that 

 Elsey and two men were found camped at a spring, and they told 

 that the schooner had grounded lower down the river (below 

 Mosquito Flat). With infinite labour the damaged ship was 

 brought up the river to a point in 15 39' 43", near STEEP HEAD, 

 where a depot was established. Further reconnaissances con- 

 nected the explorer's route with the points named during the 

 voyage of the " Beagle" 



Finally, a party consisting of A. C. and H. C. Gregory, Baines, 

 Mueller, Flood, Phibbs, Bowman, Dean and Fahey started out, 

 on ^rd January, 1856, to the south-west to carry out the main 

 purpose of the expedition in the exploration of new country, 

 A second depot was established in 17 43' S. (approx. longitude 



1 Papers relating to an Expedition recently undertaken for the purpose of Exploring 

 the Western Portion of Australia. Presented to both Houses of Parliament, London, 

 1857- 



a *Journals of Australian ExplorationsTby Augustus Charles Gregory, C.M.G., 

 F.R.G.S., etc., and Francis Thomas Gregory. Brisbane Government Printer, 1884. 



