364 NORTHMOST AUSTRALIA 



had secured licences. Next day she went through the BASILISK 

 PASS to COCO-NUT ISLAND, where a Scotchman had recently 

 established a pearl-shell fishery and a model village. The 

 population was estimated at 150. Fresh water had to be brought, 

 in bamboo tubes, from Sue Island, 15 miles distant. 



On 8th February, DARNLEY ISLAND was visited. This moun- 

 tainous island was then the centre of the beche de mer industry. 

 This dainty, destined for the Chinese market, was at the time 

 worth from So to 140 per ton. 1 " This," remarks Moresby, 

 " is the only island in Torres Straits in which SAGO PALMS 



GROW." 



The MURRAY ISLANDS were touched at and left behind on nth 

 February, and the " Basilisk " " stood across the Gulf of Papua 

 for REDSCAR BAY [9 10' S.], about 200 miles distant, on the east 

 New Guinea coast [presumably she went out by Flinders Passage, 

 and north of Portlock and Lagoon Reefs, and thence E. 12 N. to 

 Redscar Bay. R. L. J.], to visit the missionary station established 

 there, where the MISSIONARIES were said to be sick and half- starving, 

 and to glean KIDNAPPING INFORMATION. " Some large rivers," 

 says Moresby, " were reported to exist in this neighbourhood, and 

 we determined to explore sufficiently to make sure." This portion 

 of the coast had been partly surveyed by CAPTAIN OWEN STANLEY 

 in 1849, but it was reserved for CAPTAIN MORESBY to discover and 

 survey PORT MORESBY (9 30' S. ; 147 10' E.) and the Inner or 

 FAIRFAX HARBOUR. 



On 5th March, the " Basilisk " returned to SOMERSET. On 

 the 7th she was joined by Messrs. CONNOR AND PITT, who, with 

 nine men, had been left at Saibai Island six weeks before. They 

 had made a survey of SAIBAI and CORNWALLIS ISLANDS and a part 

 of the adjacent NEW GUINEA COAST. 



The barque " Springbok " was lying at Somerset, with eighty-five 

 disappointed diggers, returning from the goldfields behind Port 

 Darwin, and was short of provisions and stores. Moresby acted 

 with promptitude and vigour, convened a naval court, deposed 

 the skipper, whose incompetence for command was established, 

 and put the barque in charge of Sub-Lieutenant Allan Waters, 

 who navigated her to Newcastle, New South Wales. 



The REV. A. W. MURRAY and his wife, from Sydney, had 

 recently arrived at Somerset, where they were housed in quarters 

 provided by Mr. Jardine. From this station, without even 

 possessing a boat, Murray had essayed the impossible task of 

 conducting, controlling and protecting the various mission stations 

 scattered among the islands of Torres Strait and as far as 

 Redscar Bay. Moresby addressed to him a remonstrance in the 

 form of a report on the wretched condition of the missionaries 

 whom he had met with. The result was that the missionary 



1 It rose to ^600 per ton in 1920. 



