and being unable to sustain life longer, 
having passed five days without water, its 
emaciated carcase was found stretched out 
on a small plain. 
But Mr. Cunningham had crossed the 
Bogan River about five miles, as it was 
afterwards ascertained, lower down that 
. stream than the spot where the tents of 
the party then stood, and pursuing his 
route with extraordinary vigour along its 
banks downwards, he utterly defeated all 
_ further attempts to recover him, for twenty 
aeui M © o ee 
. miles farther on he fell into the hands of 
the natives, who gave him food, and in- 
vited him to bivouac with them at night. 
During this last distressing night of 
his life, it seems he repeatedly rose, 
doubtless under the influence of much 
mental and bodily anguish, increased by 
having been so long a time without food. 
He walked about, and acted so incohe- 
rently, as to excite the suspicions of the 
Natives, who were otherwise, it would 
appear, favourably disposed towards him. 
Daylight came, probably the dawn of 
the morning of the 24th or 25th of April, 
.. 1835, when the Indians, in doubt whence 
3s ae Stranger came, or of the causes that 
urged his singular conduct, determined 
to destroy him, and that desperate act was 
. Speedily effected by four of these savages 
rushing upon him with their clubs and 
These melancholy particulars of the last 
moments of our excellent friend, are fur- 
nished to us by Lieutenant Zouch, (4th 
Regt.) the officer of the mounted police 
at Bathurst, who had been sent with a 
iiki in October last to ascertain Mr. 
unningham’s fate. The sad details were 
Ee from three of the natives, who 
Perpetrated the horrid deed, by one 
of whom that officer was conducted to the 
m Where it took place, and where the 
"T of the amiable subject of this 
sett were foünd, and, with a truly 
vegan feeling, decently interred. A 
ini cap | earth was raised over the grave, 
being trees around it barked ; these 
‘Toad e only means the officer and party 
marking the spot, whereon a civil 
THE LATE MR. RICHARD CUNNINGHAM. 
221 
servant of the government, entirely devoted 
to science, had (in his zealous persever- 
ance to follow up his beloved pursuit) in- 
cautiously strayed from his companions, 
and meeting with the savage aborigines, 
had fallen a sacrifice to the suspicions his 
distressing appearance and conduct had 
excited in them. He had just attained 
his 42nd year. 
Such was the lamentable termination of 
the life of Richard Cunningham, an ex- 
ceedingly energetic and talented Botanist, 
and a no less generous and benevolent 
man. His mild, humane, and engaging 
disposition, had endeared him, during the 
short time he had been in the colony, to 
many friends, who were induced for some 
time fondly to cherish the opinion, after 
he was officially reported at Sydney to 
have been lost, that he was still alive; and 
that even savages of the most ferocious 
character could not be induced to offer 
violence to a man, whose whole conduct 
and pursuits were eminently amiable and 
peaceful. 
It is gratifying to know that his talented 
brother, Mr. Allan Cunningham, has ac- 
cepted the appointment, thus vacant by 
the death of Richard, of Colonial Botanist 
at Sydney, for which place he sailed in 
October last. Previous to embarkation 
he arranged his brothers notes on the 
Botany of New Zealand, combining with 
them the result of his own researches, and 
those of others in that group of islands; 
thus forming a valuable *' Flore Insula- 
rum Nove Zelandie Precursor,” which 
will soon appear in the pages of the pre- 
sent work. Should his life be spared we 
cannot doubt but that vast acquisitions 
will be made to our knowledge of Austra- 
lian Botany, and we trust he will live for 
many years, to follow up the investigation 
on which his lamented brother had so suc- 
cessfully entered, and on a field where his 
own exertions had previously been re- 
warded by most abundant harvests. 
