THE CAPE YORK TELEGRAPH LINE 669 



On 26th July, steering to the west, the WATERSHED OF THE 

 PENINSULA was recrossed, and CAMP 27 was pitched on one of the 

 heads of the river which Frank Jardine afterwards named the DUCIE, 

 when he was with the Telegraph Construction party. Another 

 horse was abandoned. 



Having learned something from the mistakes of previous 

 travellers in this region, Bradford had taken the precaution to carry 

 a liberal supply of flour, and he began at Camp 27 to serve out 

 rations of FLOUR to the starving HORSES. 



From Camp 27 to CAMP 28, the course was again to the north, 

 and in its last part was almost coincident with the Jardine Brothers' 

 route of 1865 between their 7Oth and 71 st camps. From Camp 28 

 to CAMP 29, the course was still north, and coincident with 

 the Jardine Brothers' route. Both camps were on branches of 

 what the brothers called the NORTH ALICE CREEK, a tributary 

 of the Ducie River. The tale of bogs and of horses having to be 

 dug out of treacherous narrow gullies in " miserable desert country " 

 was repeated on these three stages. Just after nightfall (28th July), 

 a splash startled the men sitting by the fire at Camp 29, and a horse, 

 which had been trying to find grass to eat, was found in a gutter 

 which fitted him so closely that he had to be dug out. 



On 2C)th July, the course was shaped more to the w r est, in the 

 hope of escaping from what Bradford called " THE POOREST AND 

 MOST MISERABLE COUNTRY I HAVE EVER SEEN." Eventually a narrow 

 belt of poor grass was found skirting a stream of water flowing to 

 the south-west, and CAMP 30 was pitched on it. Bradford believed 

 the creek to be JARDINES' SKARDON RIVER. Modern maps show that 

 the SKARDON RIVER, de facto (which I believe to be the CARPENTIER 

 RIVER, de jure), crosses the Telegraph line at McDonnell Station, 

 16 miles north of Camp 30. I take the creek at Camp 30 to be the 

 main head of Jardines' NORTH ALICE RIVER. 



From Camp 30 to CAMP 31 (loth July), the course was north, 

 as far as possible by the supposed Skardon Creek. " For the most 

 part," says Bradford in describing the view from a small ridge, 

 " there was nothing to be seen but heather- and scrub-clad ridges in 

 every direction a veritable DESERT." He adds : "These ridges are 

 entirely DESTITUTE OF GRASS. They bear a sort of heather and a low 

 scrub of oaks, wattles and timbers, the names of which I am 

 unacquainted with." There were the usual bogs, scrubs and narrow 

 treacherous streams. At two of the gutters, crossings had to be 

 made, and where this precaution had not been taken two of the 

 horses came to grief. 



On 3U/ July, Bradford's diary states, regarding the journey 

 northward from Camp 31 : 



" Followed the creek up to ENE. for one mile ; then, as the creek went due east, 

 I steered NE., gradually coming round to NW. at the end of half a mile. We were 

 now again on a desolate heath-clad ridge, with occasional patches of thick low scrub. 



