The Geographical Journal (Journal of the Royal Geographical Society): Volume IX, No. 4 [‎231v] (133/172)

450
THE MONTHLY RECORD.
of trees. The highest peak reaches a height of about 12,850 feet. Sir A\ .
Macgregor thinks that this mountain-top would be a good centre for prospecting
operations. It is connected with Mount Albert Edward to the north-west (13,100
feet) by a high range (named Wharton chain by the explorers), and an easy road
leads also to the Owen Stanley range. This was the direction taken by the
travellers. Mount Victoria was ascended (the party suffering severely from cold),
and the route thence to the coast did not deviate to any great extent from that
followed in 1889, the old track still existing in places. The natives were most
friendly. Latitudes were taken throughout the journey by astronomical observa
tions, and the place of longitudes was supplied by accurate bearings of Mount
Victoria and other peaks. Sir W. Macgregor insists on the importance, at. least
from a surveyor’s point of view, of the use of a distinguishing name for the highest
summit of the Owen Stanley range.
Mr. Collingridge on the Discovery of Australia.*— Mr. George Colling-
ridge, who for some years has given his attention to the subject of the discovery
of Australia, has published a volume in which he brings together the results of his
investigations, largely concerned with the evidence supplied by early maps. The
fact of his residence in Australia, with few facilities for consulting original records,
has placed him somewhat at a disadvantage, and many of the facts recorded are
derived from previously published works on historical geography. But as the
difficult subject of Australian discovery has never been exhaustively treated, and
much new material has been collected since Mr. R. H. Major published his collec
tion of documents for the Hakluyt Society, the mere bringing together from various
sources of so large a body of facts will be of use to those interested in the subject.
The text is accompanied by numerous copies of early maps by Mr. Collingridge s
own hand, and, though wanting the exactness of photographic reproductions, they
are apparently faithful representations both of the style and subject-matter of the
originals. The conclusions arrived at by the author are in many cases little likely
to meet with general acceptance. Without formulating any distinct theory, the
general tenor of the book is to suggest that Australia was known to the rest of
the world at a much earlier date than has been supposed. The old belief that
the circumfluent ocean occupied the equatorial regions, may account, Mr. Colling
ridge thinks, for portions of the southern hemisphere being wrongly drawn by the
ancient geographers north of the equator. He holds that Marco Polo's name “ Java
Maior,” applied to the modern Java as distinguished from Sumatra (Java MinorX
indicates that the Venetian traveller was aware of the existence of a vast land
in those regions. He states that in the time of Nicolo de Conti the western coasts
of Australia were known, though without supporting the statement by argument.
And when dealing with the class of maps of which Bchaim’s globe is one of the
best known examples, he deduces a knowledge of the west coast of Australia from
the exaggerated southward extension of the Malay peninsula, which happens to
fall within the latitudes really occupied by Australia. The numerous representa
tions of a great southern continent in maps subsequent to Magellan’s voyage, with
their enigmatical legends “ Regio Patalis,” “ Psittacorum terra,” etc., are of course
dealt with, and a statement of one of them (the Paris wooden globe of about 1535)
is adduced as indicating a southern discovery in 1499. With regard to the
“ Dauphin ” map and others of its class, from which the probability of a Portuguese
discovery of Australia early in the sixteenth century has been deduced, Mr.
Collingridge claims to have proved conclusively, from a study of their nomenclature,
* ‘The Discovery of Australia.’ P>y George Collingridge. Sydney: Hayes
Brothers. 1895.