Explorations in Australia

John Forrest's 1875 account of the three hazardous expeditions into the interior of Australia which launched his political career.

John Forrest (1847–1918), was an Australian surveyor, explorer, and, later, politician. In this 1875 account of the three expeditions into the Western Australian interior which made him famous, he describes the geology, vegetation, and wildlife of the routes, the constant concern of finding water, and the expeditions' triumphal reception.John Forrest (1847–1918), was an Australian surveyor and explorer. At twenty-two, he led an expedition to determine the fate of Ludwig Leichardt, who had earlier disappeared in the western desert. The following year he surveyed the coastal route from Perth to Adelaide, establishing the possibility of a telegraph line. In 1874, he crossed the central western desert, a two-thousand mile journey which confirmed his heroic reputation. He received the founder's medal of the Royal Geographical Society in London and was appointed Deputy Surveyor-General. His account of these expeditions, published in 1875, is based on his diaries, with extracts from official letters and the newspapers that covered the events. Forrest became Premier of Western Australia, held several positions under the subsequent federal government, and was the first native-born Australian to be recommended for a barony. This book thus illuminates the political history of Australia and that of its geographical exploration.