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Dringwch gyda ni, gyfeillion, i ben yr “ail bennod” i gael golwg ar y “wlad dda hon.” YR AIL BENNOD.“Llwyni fyrdd yn llawn o faeth, DARLUNIAD CYFFREDINOL O’R CYFANDIR AUSTRALAIDD.Australia, neu fel ei gelwir weithiau gyda phriodoldeb “Gorynys y Deheu,” a gynhwysir o fewn y Dosraniad daearyddol a elwir “Australasia,”—gorwedd rhwng y 10fed ar 39eg linellau o ledred deheuol, a’r 113 i’r 153 o hydred Dwyreiniol. Ei hamgylchoedd ydynt: yr ochr ogleddol, cyfyng fôr Torres, a môr Arafura; yr ochr ddeheuol y Deheufôr Tawel, a chyfyngfôr Bass; yr ochr orllewinol, y cefnfôr Indiaidd; a’r llechwedd ddwyreiniol, y Tawelfor mawr. |
Climb with us, friends, to the top of “chapter two” to get a view of “this good land.” CHAPTER TWO.“Many groves with food replete, GENERAL DESCRIPTION OF THE AUSTRALIAN CONTINENT.Australia, or as it is sometimes quite properly called “The Great Southern Island,” is included within the geographical Division called “Australasia,”—lying between the 10th and the 39th lines of latitude south, and the 113th to the 153rd of longitude East. Its neighbours are: on the northern side, the Torres strait, and the Arafura sea; on the southern side the Southern Ocean, and the Bass strait; on the western side, the Indian Ocean; and along the eastern edge, the Pacific Ocean. |
DARGANFYDDIAD.Lled anhawdd ydyw nodi gyda phenderfynolrwydd, i bwy y perthyn yr anrhydedd o ddarganfyddiad y Cyfandir Australaidd. Rhoddai yr hen athrawiaeth ddaearyddol, arwynebedd gwastadlyfn (plane) i’r ddaear, ac nid un crwn, fel y deallwyd ei fod yn ol llaw. Tybid, oddiar y gred gyfeiliornus hon, y gweddai fod Cyfandir deheuol i fantoli yr un iaeth hon, cawn hen ddarlun-len (map) Marc Polo, yn dynodi rhyw “Ddeheudir Mawr,” yn amgylchu y pegwn Deheuol. Mewn map arall, o ddyddiad 1542, gwelir y tir dychymygol hwn yn myned dan y cyfenw “Iava Fawr,” (Great Java); yr hyn a gyfnewidiwyd mewn amser diweddarach, i “Terra Australis,” sef y Deheudir. Gwybydded y darllenydd, nad oedd hyd yn hyn well sail na gwag ddychymyg i’r darnodiad. Creda rhai yn modolaeth y “Terra Australis”—a gwawdiai ereill y dyb hyd wybr. O’r diwedd, yn ystod y flwyddyn 1605, anfonwyd llynges fechan gan yr Yspaenwyr, i ymweled â’r môr deheuol, ar hynt ddarganfyddol. Ymwelsant â gororau ynys “New Guinea,” ac oddiyno yn eithaf difwriad iddynt hwy, hwyliasent hyd arfordir yr hen “Ddeheudir Mawr,” y breuddwydiasai eu teidiau gymaint am dano. I’w anrhydeddu yn fwy cyfenwodd y llywydd ef yn “Australia del Espiritu Sancto,” sef Deheudir yr Ysbryd Glân. Oddeutu yr un yspaid, ni wyddom ai cynt ai diweddarach, darganfyddwyd yr un Cyfandir gan Gadpen llong Hollandaidd, a gyfenwid y “Dwyfhen.” O’r flwyddyn hon allan, deuai ‘Deheudir dieithr Mawr,’ (Great unknown South Land) yr hen ddaearyddwyr hygoelus, yn fwyfwy adnabyddus i deyrnasoedd morwrawl Ewrop. Yn mhlith ei ymwelwyr mynychaf, ydoedd yr Hollandiaid, y rhai yn y flwyddyn 1663, a honasant berchenogaeth yr holl Gyfandir, er na wyddent, mewn gwirionedd, faint ei amgylchiad, na pha le y ceisid ei derfynau. Nodir ef yn eu darluneni hwynt, megis “Hollandia Nova,” (Holland Newydd). Credir mai’r môr-lywydd, os nad môr-leidr Dampier, ydoedd y Prydeiniwr blaenaf a sangodd ddaear Australia. Arosodd ychydig yn “Shark’s Bay,” ar y llechwedd orllewinol, er adgyweiriad ei lynges, yn y flwyddyn 1688. Yr ymwelwr Prydeinig nesaf a deilynga ei gofnodi ydoedd yr hyglod Gadpen Cook; glaniodd y môrwr anturiaethus hwn yn Australia, ar y 12eg o Ebrill, 1770. Cyfyngasid y darganfyddiadau blaenorol braidd yn hollol i ororau gorllewinol yr Ynys; ond i Cook perthyna yr anrhydedd o ddarsylliad trwyadl y llechweddau dwyreiniol. Enwodd yr holl ochr hono, oblegyd tebygolrwydd arfordirawl, yn “Ddeheudir Cymru Newydd,” (New South Wales); ac arganmolodd yn ddirfawr y llanerch a nodasai yn “Botany Bay,” (y môr-gilfach llysieuawg), yn ei adroddiad i’r Llywodraeth Brydeinig. Cymerodd Cook feddiant, mewn enw, o’r holl Gyfandir dan oruwch-awdurdod “Sior III., Brenin Prydain Fawr a’r Iwerddon.” Achosodd hyn ffromiad aruthrol yn y meddwl Hollandaidd, ond yr oedd yr afael Brydeinig yn rhy sicr. Arosodd perchenogaeth y Cyfandir cyfan, ac efallai ryw ddydd, eisteddle teyrnasoedd nerthol, yn ei dwylaw. Ond, awn yn ymlaen y |
DISCOVERY.It is rather difficult to know with certainty to whom belongs the honour of discovering the Australian Continent. The old geographical doctrine accorded a planar surface to the earth, and not a round one, as was subsequently understood. It was supposed, on account of this mistaken belief, that it was appropriate that there should be a southern Continent to balance this icy one. There is an old map by Marco Polo, showing a “Great South Land,” encircling the South pole. In another map, dated 1542, this imaginary land appears under the name “Great Java”, which was altered at a later date to “Terra Australis,” that is, the South Land. The reader should know that there was no other basis to this doctrine than vain imagination. Some believed in the existence of “Terra Australis”—and others poured scorn on the idea. Eventually, in the year 1605, the Spaniards dispatched a small fleet to visit the southern sea, on a mission of discovery. They visited the coasts of “New Guinea,” and from thence quite unintentionally they sailed on to the coast of the old “Great South Land,” about which their grandfathers had dreamed so much. To accord it more honour the commander of the fleet named it “Australia del Espiritu Sancto,” that is South Land of the Holy Spirit. About the same period, we cannot know whether earlier or later, the same Continent was discovered by the Captain9 of a Dutch ship, called the “Duyphen.” From that year on, the ‘Great unknown South Land’ of the credulous geographers of old became more and more known to the maritime kingdoms of Europe. Among its most frequent visitors were the Dutch, who in the year 1663 claimed possession of the whole Continent, though they did not know in reality its size, nor where its bounds would be found. It was noted on their charts as “Hollandia Nova,” (New Holland). It is believed that the navigator, if not pirate, Dampier was the first Briton to set foot on Australian soil. In 1688 he stayed a while in “Shark’s Bay,” on the western side, for repairs to his fleet. The next British visitor to deserve recording was the renowned Captain Cook; this adventurous seaman landed in Australia on the 12th of April, 1770. The early discoveries were almost entirely confined to the western coasts of the Island; but to Cook belongs the honour of thoroughly surveying the eastern coasts. That whole side he named, because of the resemblance of its coast, “New South Wales”; and he strongly recommended the spot he had noted as “Botany Bay” in his report to the British Government. He took nominal possession of the whole Continent under the authority of “George III., King of Great Britain and Ireland.” This caused a prodigious rage in the Dutch mind, but the British grasp was too sure. Ownership of the whole Continent, and perhaps some day, the seat of powerful kingdoms, remained in his hands. But now let us move on to the |
DESGRIFIAD.Mesura Australia, o ogledd i ddeheu, 2,000 o filltiroedd, ac o ddwyrain i orllewin 2,500. Ei hamgylchiad arfordirol sydd oddeutu 8,000 o filldiroedd, a chynwysa ei harwynebedd dros 3,000,000 o filldiroedd ysgwar, neu 1,920,000,000 o erwau. Nid yw arwynebedd yr oll o gyfandir Ewrop ond prin 3,700,000, eto poblogir ef gan 277,000,000; pryd nad yw poblogaeth Australia ond 300,000! |
DESCRIPTION.Australia measures, from north to south, 2,000 miles, and from east to west 2,500. The total length of its coast is about 8,000 miles, and its surface area is over 3,000,000 square miles, or 1,920,000,000 acres. The total area of the whole of Europe is scarcely 3,700,000, yet it is inhabited by 277,000,000 people; while the population of Australia is only 300,000! |
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Y mae cyflead arwynebol yr Ynys hefyd yn gwahaniaethu yn ddirfawr oddiwrth yr eiddom ni. Ychydig o fôr-gilfachau mawrion a geir yn bylchu ei hymylon, ac nid yw y rhai hyny ond megis craciau bychain yn ei chantell eangfaith: ni fedd (am a wyddom) foroedd tufewnol, ac nid yw ei hafonydd yn eu nifer a’u maintioli, yn gydmariaethol â’r eiddom ni. Fel Cyfandir y mae yn gorph cyfan-grwn o ddaear, heb aelodau iddo; tra yr ymleda yr eiddom ni gymaint a hwnw, a’r can-llaw gynt. Amgylchir yr Ynys, megis â chantell, gan drum o fynyddoedd uchel, (oddeutu 3,500 i 4,000 o droedfeddi). Ni chyfleuir yr ymyl anferthol hon, yn union, ar fin ei harfordir, ond oddeutu 200 milldir o fewn y cylch allanol hwnw. O lethrau y fodrwy fynyddawg hon i’r môr, ac am ryw yspaid o’r tu fewn, ceir gwastadleoedd eangfaith, gwigoedd agored, diderfyn o’r bron, a dyffrynoedd breision, wedi eu cyfleu rhwng trumoedd o fynyddoedd isel, coediog. Am ganol-barthau yr Ynys, ni sangodd troed Ewropaidd ar hyd-ddynt erioed, eithr credir yn gyffredinol na cheir ynddynt namyn diffaithleoedd gwastadlyfn, tywodlyd, sych, a chras-boeth; gydag, efallai, ambell gors annirnadwy ei ehangder, yn ymledaenu, megis tir hanner-cauledig yma ac acw. Tystiolaetha yr Ymdeithwyr mwyaf anturiaethus, mai ynfydrwydd hollol yw ceisio ymlwybro o fewn y Canoldir diderfyn hwn, na cheid ynddo braidd y lleiaf o angenrheidiau arbenicaf dyn ac anifail; eithr “gwastad-leoedd neu ddyffrynoedd tywodlyd, morfeuydd halenawg, a dyffeithleoedd cerigog” a gyfansoddant ei arwynebedd. |
The formation of the Island is also vastly different from ours. A few large inlets breach its margins, and those are but little cracks in its enormous rim: it has (as far as we know) no interior seas, and its rivers are not comparable to our own in number and size. As a Continent it is a unitary body of earth, without parts; while ours stretches out like the battlements of old. A ridge of high mountains (about 3,500 to 4,000 feet) encircles the Island, like the rim of a wheel. This colossal brim does not run along the coastline, but about 200 miles within that outer limit. From the slopes of this mountainous ring to the sea, and for some distance within it, there are immense plains, open, almost endless forests, and rich valleys, set between low, wooded mountain ridges. As for the central parts of the Island, no European feet have ever trodden them, but it is generally believed that they contain nothing but dry, sandy deserts, scorched and polished by the sun; with, perhaps, the occasional marsh of indeterminate extent, spread out here and there like molten land. The most adventurous of Travellers testify that it is complete madness to venture into this boundless Interior, and that not even the least of the principal necessities of man and beast are found there, only the “sandy plains or valleys, salty marshes, and stony deserts” of which its surface consists. |
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Nodasom eisioes fod yr afonydd Australaidd yn ychydig a bychain, mewn cyfartalwch i’r hyn a ddysgwyliasid. Y maent hefyd yn hynod aniscr eu dyfroedd. Gorlifant eu glanau, ac ymledaenant yn foroedd ar adegau gwlawogydd trymion, gan ddyrchafu eu dyfroedd haner can’ troedfedd mewn noswaith. Ar brydiau eraill, megis yn ystod yr hirfaith haf, ymddolenant yn arafaidd rhwng erchwynion eu gwelyau llydain; neu ymgollant i gadwyni o gòr-byllau dyfnion, ac heb efallai ond ychydig ofer yn treiglo o honynt. Y mae yr “Elfen deneu ysplenydd,a ymarllwys yn ffrydiau tryloywon, ar hyd pob nant a chornant, ac i lawr aneirif aberoedd Cymru, yn ddiffygiol drwy ranau ehelaeth o Ynys Australia. Mewn canlyniad i’r gwall arbenig hwn, gesyd y preswylwyr eu hymddiried am foddion i ddisychedu eu hanifeiliaid, yn benaf ar y “water holes,” sef pyllau cloddedig, yn mha rai y gellir disgwyl cyflawnder ar bob adegau. |
We have already remarked that the Australian rivers are few and small, in comparison to what had been expected. They also run unreliably. In heavy rains they overflow their banks and become seas, their waters rising fifty feet in a night. At other times, as during the long, hot summer, they wind slowly between the sides of their broad beds, or dwindle into a series of deep puddles, with, perhaps, just a runnel of water trickling out of them. This “Good element, fine and rareand which rushes in pellucid torrents along every stream and ravine, and down the innumerable rivers of Wales, is deficient in large parts of the Island of Australia. In consequence of this scarcity, the inhabitants rely chiefly on the “water holes,” or excavated reservoirs, to quench the thirst of their animals, and from these a sufficiency can be expected at all times. |
ANSAWDD Y TIR, FFRWYTHAU, &c.Mewn Cyfandir mor ddirfawr, y mae ansawdd y tir, fel y gellir disgwyl, yn amrywiol hynod. Er y cynhwysa yr Ynys erwau afrifed o dir llafur, na fedd Cymru ei gyfartal, etto ar y cyfan tir gwan ac ysgafn ydyw, ac o herwydd ansicrwydd dwfr addasach i’w bori na’i lafurio. Nid yw mor drwm-lwythog o goedwigoedd a’r taleithiau Americanaidd, ac y mae y prenau a gyfansoddant y gwigoedd hyn, lawer yn fwy gwasgaredig. Anaml y ceir, oddieithr ar ymylon afonydd, y cyfryw frysgllwyni, tywyll, anhyffordd, ac a oresgynant yr Amerig. Ni chynwysa y coedwigoedd hyn ond ychydig o’n coed cyffredin ni, gwneir hwy i fyny braidd yn hollol o brenau caledion, hir-hoedlog, megis y “Gum Tree, Stringy Bark,” &c. |
QUALITY OF THE LAND, FRUITS, &c.In a Continent so vast, the quality of the land is, as one would expect, remarkably varied. Though the Island contains countless acres of arable land, unequalled in Wales, still it is on the whole weak and light land, and on account of an uncertain water supply, more suited to grazing than to tilling. It is not as heavily wooded as the American states, and the trees of which these woods consist are much more scattered. One does not often find, other than on the banks of rivers, the kind of dark, untrained thickets which infest America. These woods contain but few of our common trees; they are almost wholly made up of long lived hardwoods, like the “Gum Tree, Stringy Bark,” &c. |
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Yn ei chyflwr anniwylledig ychydig a diwerth ydoedd cynnyrchion Australia, eithr drwy driniaeth gyfaddas ceir ynddi, yn eu perffeithrwydd uwchaf, yr oll braidd o brif gynnyrchion Cymru. Fe ffrwytha’r Winwydden, yr Orange, y Lemon, a’r Peach mor rhwydd a didrafferth o dan awyr gynes, agored, Australia, ac y gwnaent yn eu hinsoddion cynhenid eu hunain. |
In its unimproved condition Australia’s products were few and worthless, but through suitable cultivation almost all of the chief products of Wales are now grown, in the highest perfection. The Vine, the Orange, the Lemon, and the Peach bear fruit as readily and as effortlessly under the warm, open sky of Australia as they do in their native climes. |
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Codir gwenith am ddeg mlynedd olynol, yn yr un llannerch heb y mymryn lleiaf o wrtaith, a chynnyrcha yn gyffredinol oddeutu deg Bwsiel a’r hugain yr Erw. Ffynna yr Haidd yn gyfartal; ond y mae yr hinsawdd yn rhy dwymn i’r Ceirch. Am y Pytatws, arganmolant eu lle, drwy gynnyrchu o bedair i bum’ tunnell yr Erw. |
Wheat is raised for ten successive years on the same plot without the least bit of manure, and generally produces about thirty Bushels an acre. Barley thrives just as well; but the climate is too hot for Oats. As for Potatoes, they recommend themselves by producing from four to five tons an Acre. |
Y TRIGOLION BRODOROL.Perthynant i’r dosraniad hiliogaethol a gyfenwa anianyddion y Papuas. Efallai nad oes greaduriaid cethinach, chwedl pobl Meirion, yn dynwared dynoliaeth, mewn un rhan o’r ddaear. Y maent o liw cochddu’r ddafad, llygaid bychain, soddedig; gwefusau tewion, fel dau glawdd yn diogelu rhyw agendor anferthol o geg, a bol codog, yn ymollwng i wared, er eithaf ymdrechion, dwy bawl o goesau meinion. Noethion hollol ydynt, eu crwyn yn fudr, seimllyd, a’u gwallt crogedig dyryslyd, mor beryglus ymhel ag ef, a thocyn morgrug. Eu hymborth cyffredin, yw man-fwystfilod a gwraiddiach; ond bwytant gnawd eu cydryw hefyd ar adegau. Ni addolant un gwrthrych fel Duw, ac ni phroffesant un syniad neu ddychymyg, fel crefydd, etto rywfodd credant yn modolaeth diafol, a chymmerant drafferth anghredadwy i ddiogelu cyrph eu perthynasau rhagddo. Y maent yn llwfr gywilyddus, ac yn ddiog druenus. Buasai y trefedigion wedi ei dieneidio, flynyddau cyn hyn, oni buasai amddiffyniad deddfau Prydain drostynt. Eu rhifedi tebygol yw oddeutu 530,000. |
THE NATIVE INHABITANTS.They belong to the racial division which physiologists call the Papuas. Perhaps there are no uglier creatures, as the people of Merioneth say, mimicking mankind, in any part of the earth. They are the colour of undyed black wool, with small, sunken eyes; fat lips, like two dykes guarding a huge chasm of a mouth, and a sagging belly, giving way, despite its utmost efforts, to two slender legs like poles. They are quite naked, their skin filthy greasy, and their hair hangs in tangles, as dangerous to meddle with as an anthill. Their common sustenance consists of small animals and mean roots, but they sometimes eat the flesh of their own kind as well. They do not worship anything as God, and profess no idea or fancy as religion, yet in some way believe in the existence of a devil, and take incredible pains to conceal the corpses of their relations from him. They are shy and timid, and wretchedly lazy. The settlers would have done away with them years ago, had they not been under the protection of British law. Their likely number is about 530,000. |
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9 Dirk Hartog. |