Backbencher
Weblog for HIST 381 at NDSUSaturday, May 06, 2006
The Dig Tree by Sarah Murgatroyd Melbourne:Text Publishing Co., 2002
The Dig Tree was about the famous Australian explorers Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills. They were to lead an expedition north to map the Australian interior.
This expedition was doomed from the start Burke was chosen to lead it but he had no experience, and his lack of experience would affect the group greatly.
They started out with: 26 camels, 23 horses, 19 men, 6 wagons, and so much equipment; most of which they didn't need.
They could have shipped most of the equipment on ahead and saved the precious animals but Burke chose not to.
People kept coming and going from the expedition so it was hard to establish a group unity.
He meets Wright, a sheep station manager, and Wright gives him advice: leave the Menindee as soon as possible, and keep the group together so they all arrive when the watering holes are full. Burke took the first piece of advice but ignored the second.
Then Burke split the party and left Wright to come up to Cooper's Creek at a later time, but without sending back help Wrights group never makes it.
Then he split the group again and he leaves behind the only camel handler.
Gray, King, Wills, and Burke make it to within 20 kilometers of the northern most part of Australia but are forced to turn back, Gray dies and when they return to the big coolibah tree where they left Brahe, he had left earlier that morning.
They dig up the supplies and leave a note of their own but don't change the carving so it looks like no one was there.
Burke and Wills die and King goes to live with the Aborigines he is the only survivor of that group of four and many others that were in the other two groups also die.
This expedition marks Australian's most famous one and without Wills it would not have happened, but Burke's rash uneducated decisions is what caused the downfall in the end.
This book states plainly about how harsh the Australian climate can be, which we learned about in class. Also I think we should have done a little more on Burke and Wills in class because they are such interesting gentlemen.
The pictures were really beautiful and very interesting.
This expedition was doomed from the start Burke was chosen to lead it but he had no experience, and his lack of experience would affect the group greatly.
They started out with: 26 camels, 23 horses, 19 men, 6 wagons, and so much equipment; most of which they didn't need.
They could have shipped most of the equipment on ahead and saved the precious animals but Burke chose not to.
People kept coming and going from the expedition so it was hard to establish a group unity.
He meets Wright, a sheep station manager, and Wright gives him advice: leave the Menindee as soon as possible, and keep the group together so they all arrive when the watering holes are full. Burke took the first piece of advice but ignored the second.
Then Burke split the party and left Wright to come up to Cooper's Creek at a later time, but without sending back help Wrights group never makes it.
Then he split the group again and he leaves behind the only camel handler.
Gray, King, Wills, and Burke make it to within 20 kilometers of the northern most part of Australia but are forced to turn back, Gray dies and when they return to the big coolibah tree where they left Brahe, he had left earlier that morning.
They dig up the supplies and leave a note of their own but don't change the carving so it looks like no one was there.
Burke and Wills die and King goes to live with the Aborigines he is the only survivor of that group of four and many others that were in the other two groups also die.
This expedition marks Australian's most famous one and without Wills it would not have happened, but Burke's rash uneducated decisions is what caused the downfall in the end.
This book states plainly about how harsh the Australian climate can be, which we learned about in class. Also I think we should have done a little more on Burke and Wills in class because they are such interesting gentlemen.
The pictures were really beautiful and very interesting.
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