I Ludwig Leichhardt — 1 Ludwig Leichhardt came to Australia from Germany in 1841 when he was 28 years old. He was a restless man whose mood could 4 change from optimism to despair in a short time, His first two years in Australia were spent wandering the countryside of northern NSW by himself studying plant life, As a result of his findings he gained a reputation as a naturalist and botanist. In 1844, in an atmosphere of great excitement about finding out more about the great new continent, Leichhardt managed to get together a party of ten men. Their aim was to explore the central north of Queensland then continue west to Port Essington in the Northern Territory. Leichhardt’s enthusiasm for studying the local plant and animal life put the expedition well behind schedule, Supplies began to run low and Leichhardt and his men were forced to live on any wildlife they could catch. At one stage, when he separated from the rest of his party and was temporarily lost, he caught and ate a pigeon, writing, 'l swallowed the bones and the feet of the pigeon to allay the cravings of my stomach’, Another unusual part of Leichhardt's diet was an occasional cupful of emu fat which he believed was good. for his rheumatism. Leichhardt's expedition discovered and named many rivers and landmarks. At one stage the party was attacked by Aboriginal people. John Roper,after whom the Roper River was named, was struck by six spears. John Gilbert, the party's bird expert, died when a spear passed through his neck. The Gilbert River bears his name, ‘On 17 December 1845 Leichhardt's party reached their destination, Port Essington. Their journey which was planned to last six months had lasted fourteen months. ‘The people at Port Essington were surprised to see them. They had given them up for dead. In December 1846, Leichhardt led another expedition. This time his aim was to cross Australia from east to west. This was the wet season and weeks of heavy rain and sickness among the men caused the expedition to be abandoned and Leichhardt and his men to tun back. Of the extreme conditions on this expedition Leichhardt wrote that it was hard to eat without swallowing ‘about twenty flies’ with every ‘mouthful. In April 1848, with six other men, he again set ‘out in an attempt to cross the continent from \ east to west. The seven men, seven horses, twenty \ mules and fifty bullocks were never seen again. nee What became of them is not known. Their fate Z remains a mystery. Leichhardt's first expedition provided much valuable information about the nature of a large part of Australia. Farmers were quick to take up Leicthare’s 1844-5 land holdings in the good farming areas of eastern Expedition and central Queensland,