1 00:00:15,410 --> 00:00:25,850 Speaker 1: Pushkin. This cautionary tale was inspired by a suggestion from 2 00:00:25,930 --> 00:00:29,290 Speaker 1: a loyal listener. Thank you, JP, I hope you enjoy 3 00:00:29,330 --> 00:00:39,170 Speaker 1: the episode. Brah, Robert O'Hara Burke calls out the name 4 00:00:39,210 --> 00:00:41,610 Speaker 1: of the man he'd left in charge of the camp 5 00:00:41,930 --> 00:00:43,890 Speaker 1: at Cooper's Creek, Coo. 6 00:00:45,250 --> 00:00:45,690 Speaker 2: Braha. 7 00:00:47,850 --> 00:00:53,170 Speaker 1: Dusk is falling, Burke and his two surviving colleagues recognize 8 00:00:53,170 --> 00:00:58,570 Speaker 1: their surroundings. The camp is close. They've traveled thirty miles 9 00:00:58,610 --> 00:01:02,170 Speaker 1: that day, clinging wearily to the backs of their two 10 00:01:02,330 --> 00:01:05,930 Speaker 1: surviving camels, who are just as exhausted as they are. 11 00:01:07,370 --> 00:01:08,930 Speaker 2: Brah. 12 00:01:09,450 --> 00:01:13,170 Speaker 1: It's been over four months since they saw Braha and 13 00:01:13,210 --> 00:01:16,690 Speaker 1: the other men they left at Cooper's Creek. In that time, 14 00:01:16,810 --> 00:01:21,330 Speaker 1: they've trekked two thousand miles to the northern coast of 15 00:01:21,370 --> 00:01:26,450 Speaker 1: Australia and back again. They're the first white men ever 16 00:01:26,570 --> 00:01:31,090 Speaker 1: to cross the country. Glory and fame await when they 17 00:01:31,090 --> 00:01:34,730 Speaker 1: get back to Melbourne, still nearly another thousand miles away, 18 00:01:35,610 --> 00:01:40,650 Speaker 1: but now they'll have support, more men, fresh camels and 19 00:01:40,770 --> 00:01:46,610 Speaker 1: horses and food and goodness. Been on half rations for weeks, 20 00:01:48,250 --> 00:01:50,090 Speaker 1: But where's Braha? 21 00:01:51,650 --> 00:01:53,490 Speaker 2: Pattern mcdonna. 22 00:01:55,890 --> 00:02:01,650 Speaker 1: No response from anyone, Admittedly, Burke had assured them he'd 23 00:02:01,650 --> 00:02:04,330 Speaker 1: be back at the camp in three months, not four. 24 00:02:05,450 --> 00:02:08,890 Speaker 1: They might by now have assumed he was lost or 25 00:02:08,890 --> 00:02:12,490 Speaker 1: had taken a different route back to Melbourne, but he'd 26 00:02:12,490 --> 00:02:14,770 Speaker 1: asked them to stay at Cooper's Creek for as long 27 00:02:14,810 --> 00:02:18,890 Speaker 1: as their supplies lasted, and their supplies should have been 28 00:02:18,890 --> 00:02:19,970 Speaker 1: replenished long ago. 29 00:02:21,450 --> 00:02:24,850 Speaker 2: Braha pattern mcdonna. 30 00:02:26,530 --> 00:02:30,570 Speaker 1: They can't be far away. They've probably just gone to 31 00:02:30,730 --> 00:02:36,130 Speaker 1: water the camels and the horses. They'll be back any moment. Then, 32 00:02:36,770 --> 00:02:41,170 Speaker 1: Burke's second in command sees the dates carved into the 33 00:02:41,210 --> 00:02:51,810 Speaker 1: Coolibar tree December six sixty April twenty one sixty one. 34 00:02:52,530 --> 00:02:56,490 Speaker 1: The sixth of December eighteen sixty That was when they 35 00:02:56,650 --> 00:03:00,650 Speaker 1: established this camp, four and a half months ago. So 36 00:03:01,130 --> 00:03:06,490 Speaker 1: the other date must be when Braha abandoned the camp, 37 00:03:07,890 --> 00:03:12,530 Speaker 1: the twenty first of eight April eighteen sixty one. That's today. 38 00:03:13,690 --> 00:03:21,690 Speaker 1: They abandoned the camp today, Braha. The ashes in the 39 00:03:21,690 --> 00:03:28,330 Speaker 1: campfire are still worn. Other letters carved into the tree 40 00:03:28,610 --> 00:03:37,450 Speaker 1: DG three ft NW dig three feet to the northwest. 41 00:03:38,770 --> 00:03:44,530 Speaker 1: They dig loosely buried under camel doong and dirt is 42 00:03:44,570 --> 00:03:48,810 Speaker 1: a trunk. In the trunk is a bottle, and in 43 00:03:48,890 --> 00:03:53,290 Speaker 1: the bottle a note. It's signed by William. 44 00:03:52,970 --> 00:03:58,850 Speaker 2: Braha Depot Cooper's Creek, twenty first of April eighteen sixty one. 45 00:04:00,250 --> 00:04:03,610 Speaker 2: The depot party leaves this camp today. 46 00:04:04,650 --> 00:04:06,930 Speaker 1: But why? For medical attention? 47 00:04:07,010 --> 00:04:12,050 Speaker 2: It seems Pattern is unable to walk, his leg has 48 00:04:12,170 --> 00:04:13,570 Speaker 2: been severely hurt. 49 00:04:14,690 --> 00:04:16,210 Speaker 3: But where are the others? 50 00:04:17,050 --> 00:04:20,610 Speaker 1: Where's the third group of Burke's expedition, the ones he 51 00:04:20,730 --> 00:04:24,170 Speaker 1: left at the last outpost of civilization on the Darling River, 52 00:04:24,890 --> 00:04:27,090 Speaker 1: who are going to follow up to Cooper's Creek with 53 00:04:27,210 --> 00:04:29,890 Speaker 1: all the other supplies? Where are they? 54 00:04:30,650 --> 00:04:33,530 Speaker 2: No person has been up here from the Darling. 55 00:04:34,770 --> 00:04:39,450 Speaker 1: So that depot party's supplies haven't been replenished, and Brajo 56 00:04:39,490 --> 00:04:41,570 Speaker 1: will have had to take much of what remained for 57 00:04:41,650 --> 00:04:46,730 Speaker 1: his journey back. Burke and his two companions look again 58 00:04:46,850 --> 00:04:52,570 Speaker 1: in the buried chest. They've been left some flour, sugar, tea, 59 00:04:52,770 --> 00:04:59,090 Speaker 1: and dried meat. Not much, not enough, but at least 60 00:04:59,170 --> 00:05:05,170 Speaker 1: they can eat Tonight. They eat, they rest, they discuss 61 00:05:05,250 --> 00:05:11,570 Speaker 1: their predicament, and then they make a catastrophically bad decision. 62 00:05:13,930 --> 00:05:44,450 Speaker 1: I'm Tim Harford, and you're listening to cautionary tales. How 63 00:05:44,690 --> 00:05:45,970 Speaker 1: the calm. 64 00:05:45,450 --> 00:05:50,130 Speaker 2: Stands fall like shot himself. 65 00:05:54,650 --> 00:05:58,370 Speaker 1: Robert O'Hara Burke sits in the front row of the theater. 66 00:05:59,170 --> 00:06:02,370 Speaker 1: He was there last night. He'll be there tomorrow night too. 67 00:06:03,650 --> 00:06:07,370 Speaker 1: Burke is Irish, a former soldier. Seven years ago he 68 00:06:07,410 --> 00:06:11,690 Speaker 1: moved to the newly established British Crown Colony of Victoria, 69 00:06:12,490 --> 00:06:17,770 Speaker 1: Australia wasn't yet a country with states. Burke became superintendent 70 00:06:17,850 --> 00:06:21,570 Speaker 1: of police in a fast growing gold rush town seventy 71 00:06:21,650 --> 00:06:26,650 Speaker 1: miles from Victoria's capital, Melbourne. He spends his time chasing 72 00:06:26,730 --> 00:06:30,130 Speaker 1: horse thieves or quelling trouble from workers on the railway 73 00:06:30,170 --> 00:06:34,770 Speaker 1: who had disgruntled with their boss. What sort of man 74 00:06:35,050 --> 00:06:39,770 Speaker 1: was Robert O'Hara Burke, Apart from, as it seemed, a 75 00:06:39,810 --> 00:06:45,970 Speaker 1: theater lover, he was untidy, says one account. He dressed 76 00:06:46,010 --> 00:06:50,690 Speaker 1: like a peasant and dribbled saliva down his bushy black beard. 77 00:06:51,530 --> 00:06:54,610 Speaker 1: But he came from a well connected family. He spoke 78 00:06:54,810 --> 00:06:58,330 Speaker 1: several languages, and he was quite at ease in the 79 00:06:58,370 --> 00:07:03,010 Speaker 1: poshest social circles the young colony had to offer. He 80 00:07:03,090 --> 00:07:07,890 Speaker 1: was a daredevil eccentric. You might find him galloping his 81 00:07:08,010 --> 00:07:12,930 Speaker 1: horse madly through swamps and forests, or reading police reports 82 00:07:12,970 --> 00:07:16,530 Speaker 1: in a bathtub in his yard, wearing nothing but his helmet. 83 00:07:18,090 --> 00:07:22,370 Speaker 1: He bore grudges. Burke fell out with a magistrate whose 84 00:07:22,410 --> 00:07:26,450 Speaker 1: particular bugbear happened to be people swinging on his front gate. 85 00:07:27,490 --> 00:07:31,970 Speaker 1: Burke would ride thirty miles just to swing on that gate. 86 00:07:40,650 --> 00:07:46,570 Speaker 1: And a theater lover, not exactly Burke had fallen head 87 00:07:46,570 --> 00:07:51,290 Speaker 1: over heels for a young actress. She sang and starred 88 00:07:51,290 --> 00:07:56,610 Speaker 1: in burlesques and pantomimes, roles like Cupid, the Mischievous God 89 00:07:56,650 --> 00:08:01,210 Speaker 1: of Love. When she played in nearby towns, Burke always 90 00:08:01,290 --> 00:08:05,050 Speaker 1: found an excuse to gallop over. He claimed there was 91 00:08:05,090 --> 00:08:08,850 Speaker 1: a promising lead on a gang of horse thieves, when 92 00:08:09,330 --> 00:08:13,730 Speaker 1: he really just wanted an excuse to watch Julia Matthews. 93 00:08:14,330 --> 00:08:16,370 Speaker 2: I don't think I'm ugly. 94 00:08:17,130 --> 00:08:18,770 Speaker 1: I'm only just twenty. 95 00:08:19,610 --> 00:08:23,050 Speaker 2: I know I shouldn't make a most excellent wife. 96 00:08:23,970 --> 00:08:29,250 Speaker 3: There girls all around me have lovers in plenty, but 97 00:08:29,410 --> 00:08:35,210 Speaker 3: I'm not a sweetheart can get for my life. 98 00:08:35,530 --> 00:08:40,290 Speaker 1: Julia was not, in fact, only just twenty. She was 99 00:08:40,330 --> 00:08:45,450 Speaker 1: still a teenager. Burke was pushing forty. Julia must have 100 00:08:45,490 --> 00:08:49,930 Speaker 1: been disconcerted that a man twice her age was stalking 101 00:08:49,970 --> 00:08:53,890 Speaker 1: her from town to town, gazing adoringly up from a 102 00:08:54,010 --> 00:09:02,010 Speaker 1: front row seat, dribbling saliva. Burke proposed marriage. Julia said no, 103 00:09:02,730 --> 00:09:06,410 Speaker 1: but Burke wasn't discouraged. He bought a piano and hired 104 00:09:06,410 --> 00:09:11,850 Speaker 1: a teacher to teach him the Songsia sang hour after hour. 105 00:09:11,970 --> 00:09:17,250 Speaker 1: He practiced with blankets draped around the piano so he 106 00:09:17,290 --> 00:09:27,370 Speaker 1: didn't wake the neighbour's baby. In Melbourne, meanwhile, the freshly 107 00:09:27,450 --> 00:09:33,090 Speaker 1: minted Royal Society of Victoria was planning an expedition from 108 00:09:33,130 --> 00:09:36,890 Speaker 1: their city in the south to the northern coast. It 109 00:09:37,010 --> 00:09:41,090 Speaker 1: had never been done before. Ships had sailed round Australia 110 00:09:41,530 --> 00:09:46,050 Speaker 1: and explorers from various coastal cities were venturing further inland, 111 00:09:47,010 --> 00:09:51,650 Speaker 1: but the center on a map remained a ghastly blank. 112 00:09:52,530 --> 00:09:57,690 Speaker 1: What was there just desert? Or was there, as some thought, 113 00:09:58,130 --> 00:10:01,450 Speaker 1: an inland sea. Could they map a route for a 114 00:10:01,490 --> 00:10:05,690 Speaker 1: telegraph wire to speed up communication with Europe. Might they 115 00:10:05,730 --> 00:10:08,490 Speaker 1: find land that was good for pasture. 116 00:10:08,650 --> 00:10:10,930 Speaker 3: Or more gold? 117 00:10:13,570 --> 00:10:16,570 Speaker 1: The society had raised the money for the expedition, but 118 00:10:16,770 --> 00:10:20,610 Speaker 1: couldn't agree on who should lead it. Ideally they'd hire 119 00:10:20,690 --> 00:10:25,250 Speaker 1: an experienced explorer, but no one was available, or no 120 00:10:25,330 --> 00:10:30,050 Speaker 1: one from Victoria. The experienced explorers were all from other 121 00:10:30,170 --> 00:10:35,930 Speaker 1: British colonies. Elsewhere in Australia, rivalry was strong. It was 122 00:10:35,970 --> 00:10:39,210 Speaker 1: a matter of pride to the Royal Society of Victoria 123 00:10:39,290 --> 00:10:43,690 Speaker 1: that someone from Victoria should cross the country first. They 124 00:10:43,770 --> 00:10:49,890 Speaker 1: advertised the post and got some unconvincing applicants. One proposed 125 00:10:49,890 --> 00:10:53,730 Speaker 1: to solve the problem of crossing the desert by stretching 126 00:10:53,770 --> 00:10:57,650 Speaker 1: out a very long hose pipe from the last known river. 127 00:10:59,370 --> 00:11:03,450 Speaker 1: Then a major funder of the project, a railway magnet, 128 00:11:04,050 --> 00:11:10,050 Speaker 1: suggested someone had got to know Irish former office now 129 00:11:10,090 --> 00:11:15,450 Speaker 1: a police chief, very effective at quelling trouble from disgruntled workers, 130 00:11:16,250 --> 00:11:22,370 Speaker 1: A manly character with determined energy. Eccentric, yes, but from 131 00:11:22,410 --> 00:11:30,610 Speaker 1: a very good family, Robert O'Hara Burke. Some who knew 132 00:11:30,690 --> 00:11:34,610 Speaker 1: Burke were astonished at the idea of him crossing Australia. 133 00:11:35,090 --> 00:11:37,810 Speaker 1: He was the worst bushman I ever met, said one. 134 00:11:38,490 --> 00:11:41,850 Speaker 1: Another added he could not tell the Norse from the 135 00:11:41,890 --> 00:11:47,250 Speaker 1: South in broad daylight. Burke himself needed no persuading. 136 00:11:48,290 --> 00:11:52,130 Speaker 2: If I come out successful, I have no doubt but 137 00:11:52,210 --> 00:11:56,810 Speaker 2: that Julia will accept my offer of marriage. 138 00:11:57,490 --> 00:12:02,410 Speaker 1: In August eighteen sixty the expedition prepared for departure in 139 00:12:02,490 --> 00:12:07,290 Speaker 1: a park in Melbourne. It consisted of nineteen men, twenty 140 00:12:07,290 --> 00:12:14,050 Speaker 1: three horses, seven camels and twenty one tons of baggage. 141 00:12:14,930 --> 00:12:19,370 Speaker 1: Burke watched it all being piled on wagons and animal's 142 00:12:19,490 --> 00:12:24,730 Speaker 1: backs with mounting alarm. He had somehow lost control of 143 00:12:24,770 --> 00:12:25,850 Speaker 1: what was being packed. 144 00:12:27,170 --> 00:12:29,090 Speaker 2: What are we going to do with all this? 145 00:12:30,610 --> 00:12:30,930 Speaker 3: Who? 146 00:12:30,970 --> 00:12:35,090 Speaker 1: For instance, decided they'd need twelve sets of dan draft 147 00:12:35,170 --> 00:12:39,650 Speaker 1: brushes in the outback. They were taking an oak dining 148 00:12:39,730 --> 00:12:44,930 Speaker 1: table and a gong from China, and a boat. A 149 00:12:44,930 --> 00:12:48,770 Speaker 1: boat on wheels, so it was also a wagon, but 150 00:12:48,890 --> 00:12:52,690 Speaker 1: a boat. Nonetheless, they might need one if they encountered 151 00:12:52,730 --> 00:12:57,690 Speaker 1: an inland sea. Before they set off, Burke had one 152 00:12:57,730 --> 00:13:02,770 Speaker 1: thing he needed to do. It had a photograph taken 153 00:13:03,010 --> 00:13:06,810 Speaker 1: and made into a miniature portrait, which he now placed 154 00:13:06,930 --> 00:13:11,530 Speaker 1: in a locket. He went to see Julia Matthews and 155 00:13:11,610 --> 00:13:16,930 Speaker 1: again asked her to marry him. This time, the teenage 156 00:13:17,010 --> 00:13:21,690 Speaker 1: actress didn't reject the proposal out of hand. Burke might 157 00:13:21,810 --> 00:13:25,810 Speaker 1: be twenty one years her senior, but if he succeeded, 158 00:13:26,410 --> 00:13:30,410 Speaker 1: he'd be the most famous man in the land. Wise, 159 00:13:30,530 --> 00:13:35,650 Speaker 1: perhaps to keep her options open, Julia said she'd consider 160 00:13:35,730 --> 00:13:41,450 Speaker 1: his proposal on his return. For now, she accepted the 161 00:13:41,490 --> 00:13:59,090 Speaker 1: locket cautionary tales, will be back after the break. Robert 162 00:13:59,250 --> 00:14:03,970 Speaker 1: O'Hara Burke was trying to cross Australia from Melbourne, Victoria 163 00:14:04,130 --> 00:14:08,570 Speaker 1: in the south to the unmapped north. The journey hit 164 00:14:08,690 --> 00:14:12,810 Speaker 1: planned had two stopping off points. About a quarterway up. 165 00:14:13,090 --> 00:14:16,530 Speaker 1: A few hundred miles north of Melbourne was the last 166 00:14:16,730 --> 00:14:20,850 Speaker 1: outpost of civilization, a tiny settlement on the Darling River, 167 00:14:21,210 --> 00:14:25,330 Speaker 1: a few houses, a pub, and general store. From there, 168 00:14:25,730 --> 00:14:28,730 Speaker 1: Burke would press on a few hundred miles more to 169 00:14:28,850 --> 00:14:33,850 Speaker 1: Cooper's Creek, almost halfway up the country, the furthest point 170 00:14:33,970 --> 00:14:38,690 Speaker 1: mapped by any explorer. At Cooper's Creek, he'd establish a 171 00:14:38,730 --> 00:14:42,490 Speaker 1: camp and a depot, he'd secure his lines of communication 172 00:14:43,130 --> 00:14:46,010 Speaker 1: back to the outpost on the Darling, and then he'd 173 00:14:46,090 --> 00:14:52,210 Speaker 1: set forth into uncharted territory, a thousand or so miles 174 00:14:52,250 --> 00:14:56,090 Speaker 1: remaining to a gulf in the north. That was the plan, anyway, 175 00:14:56,850 --> 00:15:00,930 Speaker 1: But then they'd accumulated twenty one tons of baggage. 176 00:15:02,050 --> 00:15:03,850 Speaker 2: What are we going to do with all this? 177 00:15:05,530 --> 00:15:10,810 Speaker 1: As it happened, Burke's despairing question had a sensible answer. 178 00:15:11,130 --> 00:15:13,650 Speaker 1: For the first leg of the journey, at least that 179 00:15:13,930 --> 00:15:18,410 Speaker 1: outpost on the Darling River was served by a paddle steamer. 180 00:15:19,130 --> 00:15:21,770 Speaker 1: Burke could have shipped most of his supplies up the 181 00:15:21,850 --> 00:15:25,770 Speaker 1: river and traveled light with the horses and camels that 182 00:15:25,890 --> 00:15:28,770 Speaker 1: arrived fresh and ready for the push to Cooper's Creek. 183 00:15:29,650 --> 00:15:35,890 Speaker 1: That would be sensible. Why not do that? Alas Burke 184 00:15:35,970 --> 00:15:40,290 Speaker 1: had fallen out with the owner of the steamboat company, 185 00:15:40,370 --> 00:15:46,250 Speaker 1: he insisted on hauling everything over land instead. That was 186 00:15:46,290 --> 00:15:50,890 Speaker 1: his first catastrophic decision, if you don't count taking the 187 00:15:50,970 --> 00:15:54,890 Speaker 1: job in the first place. The journey from Melbourne to 188 00:15:54,930 --> 00:15:58,170 Speaker 1: the Darling could be done in ten days by a 189 00:15:58,210 --> 00:16:04,250 Speaker 1: messenger on horseback. It took Burke's expedition fifty six days. 190 00:16:05,490 --> 00:16:08,570 Speaker 1: In that time. Of the nineteen men who had set out, 191 00:16:09,090 --> 00:16:13,530 Speaker 1: Burke had lost eleven, either he fired them or argued 192 00:16:13,570 --> 00:16:17,290 Speaker 1: with them till they quit. He hired five more along 193 00:16:17,290 --> 00:16:21,730 Speaker 1: the way and lost three of them. Two He hired 194 00:16:21,770 --> 00:16:25,290 Speaker 1: more wagons to help with the baggage. That ruinous expense 195 00:16:26,170 --> 00:16:30,930 Speaker 1: he kept breaking down. As Burke complained in messages to Melbourne. 196 00:16:31,290 --> 00:16:33,010 Speaker 2: The roads are very bad. 197 00:16:36,050 --> 00:16:39,570 Speaker 1: He wrote so many checks for wagon repairs. The Royal 198 00:16:39,610 --> 00:16:44,010 Speaker 1: Society of Victoria's bank account round dry, and the checks 199 00:16:44,090 --> 00:16:49,050 Speaker 1: began to bounce. Burke finally decided he'd have to dump 200 00:16:49,090 --> 00:16:53,770 Speaker 1: some supplies. In a small town, he held a public auction. 201 00:16:54,690 --> 00:16:57,250 Speaker 1: Among the stuff he got rid of was their lime juice, 202 00:16:57,850 --> 00:17:01,850 Speaker 1: which helps prevent scurvy. As we heard about in another 203 00:17:02,090 --> 00:17:08,130 Speaker 1: cautionary tale, when limeers get scurvy, scurvy creeps up on 204 00:17:08,250 --> 00:17:12,730 Speaker 1: you with lack of vitaminc. It starts with aching gums, 205 00:17:12,890 --> 00:17:18,370 Speaker 1: then slowly rots your body. Burke really shouldn't have ditched 206 00:17:18,370 --> 00:17:23,170 Speaker 1: the lime juice. As the expedition stutted on, news reached 207 00:17:23,210 --> 00:17:27,410 Speaker 1: Melbourne that another explorer from another Crown colony was also 208 00:17:27,450 --> 00:17:30,210 Speaker 1: setting off with the aim of crossing the country first. 209 00:17:31,250 --> 00:17:35,970 Speaker 1: Members of the Royal Society of Victoria's Exploration Committee hen 210 00:17:36,290 --> 00:17:37,610 Speaker 1: anxious letters. 211 00:17:38,210 --> 00:17:42,730 Speaker 2: My dearest Burke, well know to a certain extent the erase, 212 00:17:43,530 --> 00:17:46,570 Speaker 2: I know how exciting this must be to you. The 213 00:17:46,650 --> 00:17:52,010 Speaker 2: honor of Victoria is end your hands. Oh and the 214 00:17:52,090 --> 00:17:57,130 Speaker 2: committee were rather alarmed that, finding the expense greater than 215 00:17:57,170 --> 00:17:58,930 Speaker 2: they anticipated. 216 00:18:00,650 --> 00:18:05,010 Speaker 1: Burke tried a shortcut to make up time. The wagons 217 00:18:05,050 --> 00:18:07,850 Speaker 1: sank so deep in sand they had to be dug 218 00:18:07,890 --> 00:18:13,330 Speaker 1: out with shovels. The horses got so exhausted they simply stopped. 219 00:18:15,050 --> 00:18:19,130 Speaker 1: After fifty six days, Burke and what remained of his 220 00:18:19,170 --> 00:18:24,330 Speaker 1: expedition staggered towards the handful of houses on the Darling River. 221 00:18:25,250 --> 00:18:28,770 Speaker 1: They had completed barely a quarter of their outward journey, 222 00:18:29,490 --> 00:18:32,210 Speaker 1: and it should have been the easiest part through land 223 00:18:32,290 --> 00:18:37,010 Speaker 1: that was already colonized. As they arrived, they watched the 224 00:18:37,130 --> 00:18:41,770 Speaker 1: parbon General's store unload a new shipment of stock from 225 00:18:41,770 --> 00:18:47,890 Speaker 1: a paddle steamer. At the outpost on the Darling River. 226 00:18:48,450 --> 00:18:53,010 Speaker 1: Burke assessed his options. It fired his second in command, 227 00:18:53,090 --> 00:18:56,810 Speaker 1: so he needed to promote someone. He chose an earnest 228 00:18:56,850 --> 00:19:02,170 Speaker 1: young Englishman called William Wills. Wills's mum hadn't wanted him 229 00:19:02,170 --> 00:19:05,650 Speaker 1: to go on this expedition, but, as he wrote. 230 00:19:05,330 --> 00:19:09,010 Speaker 3: Her, were we born to be locked up in comfortable rooms, 231 00:19:09,330 --> 00:19:11,610 Speaker 3: never to incur the hazard of mishap. 232 00:19:13,290 --> 00:19:17,770 Speaker 1: Unlike Burke, Wills was a scientist, a trained surveyor. It 233 00:19:17,890 --> 00:19:20,650 Speaker 1: was his job to find their way with a compass 234 00:19:21,130 --> 00:19:24,250 Speaker 1: and by observing the stars at night, and to keep 235 00:19:24,370 --> 00:19:28,890 Speaker 1: meteorological observations. Wills had quite enjoyed the journey so far. 236 00:19:29,850 --> 00:19:32,730 Speaker 3: Riding on the camels is much more pleasant than I anticipated. 237 00:19:33,410 --> 00:19:35,770 Speaker 3: I sit on the back portion behind the hump, and 238 00:19:35,850 --> 00:19:38,650 Speaker 3: packed the instruments in front. I can thus ride on, 239 00:19:39,210 --> 00:19:43,730 Speaker 3: keeping my journal and making calculations. 240 00:19:44,770 --> 00:19:48,530 Speaker 1: By now it was late in spring. The summer heat 241 00:19:48,610 --> 00:19:52,450 Speaker 1: would soon make it dangerous to travel further north. It 242 00:19:52,530 --> 00:19:55,210 Speaker 1: would be sensible to wait a few months and resume 243 00:19:55,290 --> 00:20:00,650 Speaker 1: their travels in autumn. Sensible, but Burke was in a race. 244 00:20:01,850 --> 00:20:05,170 Speaker 1: He decided to split the party up. He'd take the 245 00:20:05,170 --> 00:20:08,570 Speaker 1: fittest men, horses and camels, and a few months worth 246 00:20:08,570 --> 00:20:13,210 Speaker 1: of food and press on to Cooper's Creek in charge 247 00:20:13,210 --> 00:20:16,930 Speaker 1: of the others. He left a man he'd met in 248 00:20:17,050 --> 00:20:21,370 Speaker 1: the pub who'd managed a local sheep station and seemed 249 00:20:21,370 --> 00:20:24,410 Speaker 1: to know what he was doing. Burke sent a letter 250 00:20:24,450 --> 00:20:25,730 Speaker 1: to Melbourne to explain. 251 00:20:26,930 --> 00:20:30,330 Speaker 2: I informed him that I should consider him third officer 252 00:20:30,370 --> 00:20:33,810 Speaker 2: of the expedition, subject to the approval of the committee. 253 00:20:34,290 --> 00:20:36,690 Speaker 2: In the meantime, I have instructed him to follow me 254 00:20:36,770 --> 00:20:39,330 Speaker 2: up with the remainder of the camels to Cooper's Creek. 255 00:20:41,570 --> 00:20:44,450 Speaker 1: But was the man from the pub expected to wait 256 00:20:44,450 --> 00:20:48,250 Speaker 1: for the committee's approval before he followed up to Cooper's Creek. 257 00:20:49,250 --> 00:21:00,410 Speaker 1: Burke's instructions alas were unclear. When I've talked about civilization, 258 00:21:01,250 --> 00:21:05,410 Speaker 1: I've been using quote marks on the colonial maps. The 259 00:21:05,450 --> 00:21:08,890 Speaker 1: center of Australia might have looked like a ghastly blank, 260 00:21:09,690 --> 00:21:12,970 Speaker 1: but it was of course home to ancient civilizations of 261 00:21:13,010 --> 00:21:19,010 Speaker 1: its own. Near Cooper's Creek lived four main groups of 262 00:21:19,130 --> 00:21:22,970 Speaker 1: Aboriginal people. They moved around to find food and water, 263 00:21:23,130 --> 00:21:26,250 Speaker 1: but they knew whose land was whose, and when you 264 00:21:26,370 --> 00:21:30,250 Speaker 1: visited others land there were conventions to follow, much as 265 00:21:30,650 --> 00:21:33,090 Speaker 1: I might knock on your door and wait to be 266 00:21:33,170 --> 00:21:38,570 Speaker 1: invited in Burke and Wills neither knew nor cared about 267 00:21:38,610 --> 00:21:41,970 Speaker 1: these conventions. They simply marched straight up to the watering 268 00:21:42,010 --> 00:21:46,410 Speaker 1: holes with their horses and camels. The Aboriginal people didn't 269 00:21:46,450 --> 00:21:50,010 Speaker 1: know what to make of these white fellers. They tried 270 00:21:50,050 --> 00:21:52,450 Speaker 1: to be friendly. Wills was having none of it. 271 00:21:53,050 --> 00:21:55,610 Speaker 3: A large tribe of blacks came pestering us to go 272 00:21:55,690 --> 00:21:58,410 Speaker 3: to their camp and have a dance, which we declined. 273 00:21:59,130 --> 00:22:01,970 Speaker 3: They were very troublesome, and nothing but the threat to 274 00:22:02,090 --> 00:22:05,690 Speaker 3: shoot will keep them away. 275 00:22:06,210 --> 00:22:11,410 Speaker 1: The desert heat was stifling. Will's thermometer showed one hundred 276 00:22:11,450 --> 00:22:16,010 Speaker 1: and nine, but they found Cooper's Creek to be teeming 277 00:22:16,130 --> 00:22:22,250 Speaker 1: with life, fish and birds and trees, though also rats 278 00:22:22,250 --> 00:22:27,410 Speaker 1: and flies and mosquitoes. On the sixth of December eighteen 279 00:22:27,490 --> 00:22:31,810 Speaker 1: sixty they set up their camp like the jolly Swagman 280 00:22:31,970 --> 00:22:37,210 Speaker 1: of Song, under the shade of a kolibar tree. Remember 281 00:22:37,250 --> 00:22:41,530 Speaker 1: what Burke was supposed to do at Cooper's Creek, establish 282 00:22:41,730 --> 00:22:45,370 Speaker 1: a depot, secure his lines of communication back to that 283 00:22:45,530 --> 00:22:52,170 Speaker 1: outpost on the Darling, and only then explore the uncharted 284 00:22:52,290 --> 00:22:56,410 Speaker 1: territory to the north. It would have been sensible to 285 00:22:56,450 --> 00:22:59,450 Speaker 1: wait for the man from the pub to arrive with 286 00:22:59,530 --> 00:23:03,570 Speaker 1: the rest of the supplies, but Burke was sure he'd 287 00:23:03,570 --> 00:23:07,610 Speaker 1: be along soon, and anyway, there was a race on 288 00:23:09,610 --> 00:23:13,650 Speaker 1: split his party again. He'd push for the northern coast. 289 00:23:13,810 --> 00:23:17,410 Speaker 1: With Wills and two others in charge of the depot, 290 00:23:17,730 --> 00:23:21,810 Speaker 1: he left a quiet but capable young German, William Braha. 291 00:23:22,810 --> 00:23:26,690 Speaker 1: Burke told Braha they'd be back in three months. He 292 00:23:26,890 --> 00:23:30,010 Speaker 1: was taking only three months worth of food, after all, 293 00:23:31,330 --> 00:23:35,410 Speaker 1: And if Burke wasn't back in three months, well, he 294 00:23:35,490 --> 00:23:38,850 Speaker 1: might have found a route to another settlement in another colony. 295 00:23:39,770 --> 00:23:42,130 Speaker 1: That had also been vague talk of a ship being 296 00:23:42,170 --> 00:23:44,050 Speaker 1: sent to meet him at the Gulf in the north 297 00:23:44,090 --> 00:23:47,210 Speaker 1: he hoped to reach, but the man from the pub 298 00:23:47,410 --> 00:23:51,130 Speaker 1: would have come with more supplies by then, so Braha 299 00:23:51,210 --> 00:23:54,970 Speaker 1: could stay at Cooper's Creek anyway, whatever, it'd be fine. 300 00:23:55,210 --> 00:23:57,890 Speaker 2: You must not fret. I shall be back in a 301 00:23:57,890 --> 00:23:58,530 Speaker 2: short time. 302 00:24:00,850 --> 00:24:04,050 Speaker 1: Caution, retales will also be back in a short time. 303 00:24:12,290 --> 00:24:17,290 Speaker 1: In his nineteen sixty book The Strategy of Conflict, the game, 304 00:24:17,370 --> 00:24:21,250 Speaker 1: theorist Thomas Shelling asks us to imagine a couple who 305 00:24:21,330 --> 00:24:25,890 Speaker 1: lose each other in a department store. It's nineteen sixty, 306 00:24:25,970 --> 00:24:29,890 Speaker 1: so they can't just call. But the chances are good, 307 00:24:30,330 --> 00:24:34,410 Speaker 1: says Shelling, that they'll find each other. They'll each think 308 00:24:34,490 --> 00:24:37,970 Speaker 1: of some obvious place to meet that will obviously be 309 00:24:38,250 --> 00:24:43,170 Speaker 1: obvious to the other. Shelling calls this a coordination game. 310 00:24:43,850 --> 00:24:48,330 Speaker 1: Can you coordinate if you can't communicate? You win the 311 00:24:48,370 --> 00:24:51,530 Speaker 1: game if you give the same answer as the other player. 312 00:24:52,690 --> 00:24:55,850 Speaker 1: The question, he says, is not what would I do 313 00:24:55,970 --> 00:24:58,810 Speaker 1: if I were she? But what would I do if 314 00:24:58,850 --> 00:25:01,050 Speaker 1: I were she? Wondering what she would do if she 315 00:25:01,090 --> 00:25:03,330 Speaker 1: were I wondering what I would do if I were she. 316 00:25:04,650 --> 00:25:07,610 Speaker 1: The trick is to look for what Shelling calls a 317 00:25:07,770 --> 00:25:12,210 Speaker 1: focal point in the situation. Different places in the department 318 00:25:12,290 --> 00:25:17,890 Speaker 1: store will seem obvious to different couples, but we can 319 00:25:17,930 --> 00:25:22,330 Speaker 1: play coordination games with strangers too. Shelling asks people to 320 00:25:22,370 --> 00:25:25,530 Speaker 1: imagine they've been told to meet someone in New York, 321 00:25:25,970 --> 00:25:30,490 Speaker 1: but not a time or location. Where might they try 322 00:25:31,050 --> 00:25:34,850 Speaker 1: In an age when most people arrived by train, many 323 00:25:34,930 --> 00:25:39,210 Speaker 1: gave Shelling the same answer by the famous clock at 324 00:25:39,250 --> 00:25:45,250 Speaker 1: Grand Central Terminal at noon. How do you play the 325 00:25:45,290 --> 00:25:51,650 Speaker 1: coordination game? Logic helps, says Shelling, but usually not until 326 00:25:51,810 --> 00:25:56,450 Speaker 1: imagination has selected some clue to work on from among 327 00:25:56,530 --> 00:26:00,930 Speaker 1: the concrete details of the situation. The problem comes when 328 00:26:00,970 --> 00:26:04,610 Speaker 1: you're so confident in your own answer you don't bother 329 00:26:04,730 --> 00:26:12,810 Speaker 1: to look for a backup plan. In Cooper's Creek in 330 00:26:12,890 --> 00:26:18,770 Speaker 1: April eighteen sixty one, William Braher wonders how long it's 331 00:26:18,850 --> 00:26:22,890 Speaker 1: reasonable to keep waiting for Burke Wills and their two companions. 332 00:26:23,570 --> 00:26:27,450 Speaker 1: They have been gone for over four months. Maybe they're dead, 333 00:26:28,450 --> 00:26:31,330 Speaker 1: maybe they're on a ship back to Melbourne. He has 334 00:26:31,370 --> 00:26:34,090 Speaker 1: no way to communicate with them. The man from the 335 00:26:34,130 --> 00:26:38,850 Speaker 1: pub never arrived. Pattens hurt his leg and can't walk, 336 00:26:39,690 --> 00:26:44,490 Speaker 1: but more worryingly, his gums are bleeding too. Wait much 337 00:26:44,570 --> 00:26:48,090 Speaker 1: longer and they risk never making it back to civilization 338 00:26:48,370 --> 00:26:52,530 Speaker 1: at all. They decide to leave on the morning of 339 00:26:52,610 --> 00:26:57,090 Speaker 1: April or twenty first. Braha writes a letter just in 340 00:26:57,130 --> 00:27:00,290 Speaker 1: case Burke eventually makes it back. He puts the letter 341 00:27:00,290 --> 00:27:03,370 Speaker 1: in a bottle, and the bottle in a chest with 342 00:27:03,410 --> 00:27:07,370 Speaker 1: as much food as he can spare. He buries the chest. 343 00:27:09,090 --> 00:27:12,330 Speaker 1: Now will Burke no, it's there? The focal point for 344 00:27:12,410 --> 00:27:17,650 Speaker 1: coordination seems obvious, the coolibar tree in the shade of 345 00:27:17,690 --> 00:27:23,010 Speaker 1: which they made their camp. He carves instructions into the tree, 346 00:27:23,890 --> 00:27:29,850 Speaker 1: dig three feet northwest. He adds the date and abandons 347 00:27:29,890 --> 00:27:38,290 Speaker 1: the camp. That evening, Burke, Wills, and one more man, 348 00:27:38,410 --> 00:27:43,330 Speaker 1: John King, stagger into the camp. The fourth man died, 349 00:27:44,290 --> 00:27:47,250 Speaker 1: and the three were so weak it took a whole 350 00:27:47,450 --> 00:27:52,050 Speaker 1: day to dig his grave. If they hadn't buried him 351 00:27:52,210 --> 00:27:55,810 Speaker 1: that had been back at Cooper's Creek a day earlier. 352 00:27:56,810 --> 00:28:01,130 Speaker 1: They try not to think about that. Burke, Wills, and 353 00:28:01,250 --> 00:28:05,930 Speaker 1: King assess their options. Should they follow Braha back along 354 00:28:05,970 --> 00:28:10,050 Speaker 1: the track towards the outpost on the Darling River. It's 355 00:28:10,250 --> 00:28:13,850 Speaker 1: hundreds of miles but never make it. But if a 356 00:28:13,890 --> 00:28:18,330 Speaker 1: search party comes, it would be from that direction. Burke 357 00:28:18,370 --> 00:28:22,930 Speaker 1: has another idea. The incomplete maps of Australia show another 358 00:28:23,210 --> 00:28:27,290 Speaker 1: tiny outpost only one hundred and fifty miles away along 359 00:28:27,450 --> 00:28:33,530 Speaker 1: Cooper's Creek. It's called Mount Hopeless. The food from the 360 00:28:33,650 --> 00:28:38,610 Speaker 1: chest might just be enough for that shorter journey. Burke 361 00:28:38,850 --> 00:28:41,450 Speaker 1: writes a letter outlining his plans. 362 00:28:42,530 --> 00:28:48,770 Speaker 2: We proceed on tomorrow slowly down the creek towards Mount Hopeless. 363 00:28:49,810 --> 00:28:55,290 Speaker 2: We are very weak, we have all suffered much from hunger. 364 00:28:56,490 --> 00:29:02,730 Speaker 2: Greatly disappointed at finding the party here gone, we shall 365 00:29:02,770 --> 00:29:06,370 Speaker 2: move very slowly down the creek. 366 00:29:07,890 --> 00:29:10,530 Speaker 1: He puts the letter in a box, puts the bottle 367 00:29:10,570 --> 00:29:13,610 Speaker 1: in the chest, and buries it in the same place. 368 00:29:15,210 --> 00:29:18,930 Speaker 1: The three men briefly discuss whether they should also add 369 00:29:18,930 --> 00:29:22,730 Speaker 1: a mark to the tree. They decide not to bother. 370 00:29:23,570 --> 00:29:26,050 Speaker 1: As King later explained. 371 00:29:26,410 --> 00:29:28,850 Speaker 3: We thought the word deg would answer our purpose as 372 00:29:28,890 --> 00:29:29,530 Speaker 3: well as ours. 373 00:29:31,410 --> 00:29:35,210 Speaker 1: Obviously, if a search party came to the camp, let's 374 00:29:35,210 --> 00:29:40,130 Speaker 1: see the word dig and dig up the chest, wouldn't they? Burke, 375 00:29:40,370 --> 00:29:44,090 Speaker 1: Wills and King spread dung over the chest so it 376 00:29:44,090 --> 00:29:47,090 Speaker 1: doesn't look like the ground has been disturbed. They don't 377 00:29:47,130 --> 00:29:50,810 Speaker 1: want the locals to steal it. They leave the abandoned 378 00:29:50,850 --> 00:29:58,770 Speaker 1: camp looking almost exactly as they found it. Just ninety 379 00:29:58,810 --> 00:30:03,290 Speaker 1: miles south of Cooper's Creek, William Braher bumps into the 380 00:30:03,290 --> 00:30:07,130 Speaker 1: man from the pub, William Wright. So he is making 381 00:30:07,170 --> 00:30:11,090 Speaker 1: his way from the Darling to Cooper's Creek, just months 382 00:30:11,170 --> 00:30:17,810 Speaker 1: later than expected. Wright's instructions remember were unclear. He'd explained 383 00:30:17,850 --> 00:30:20,530 Speaker 1: to Braha that he had assumed he should wait for 384 00:30:20,570 --> 00:30:25,810 Speaker 1: the Royal Society of Victoria to approve his appointment. Burke's 385 00:30:25,930 --> 00:30:28,810 Speaker 1: checks had been bouncing. He didn't want to set off 386 00:30:28,890 --> 00:30:33,650 Speaker 1: until he got explicit assurance that he'd be paid in Melbourne. 387 00:30:33,690 --> 00:30:37,210 Speaker 1: The Society's committee assumed there was no rush to confirm 388 00:30:37,290 --> 00:30:41,730 Speaker 1: Right's appointment because he would have set off already. When 389 00:30:41,890 --> 00:30:45,570 Speaker 1: Wright eventually did set off, his journey was slow because 390 00:30:45,610 --> 00:30:50,770 Speaker 1: some of his men were suffering from scurvy. Braha and 391 00:30:50,850 --> 00:30:54,290 Speaker 1: Wright agreed there was no longer any point in lugging 392 00:30:54,330 --> 00:30:57,890 Speaker 1: the rest of the supplies to Cooper's Creek. They should 393 00:30:58,010 --> 00:31:02,130 Speaker 1: all now return to the Darling. But they shared a 394 00:31:02,250 --> 00:31:07,250 Speaker 1: nagging worry. What if Burke had made it back. The 395 00:31:07,290 --> 00:31:10,890 Speaker 1: ill men could use a few days rest. Braha and 396 00:31:11,010 --> 00:31:15,330 Speaker 1: Right decided to ride together quickly back to Cooper's Creek. 397 00:31:16,370 --> 00:31:16,970 Speaker 3: Just to check. 398 00:31:21,730 --> 00:31:26,810 Speaker 1: At Cooper's Creek. Braha and Right see no sign that 399 00:31:26,850 --> 00:31:31,010 Speaker 1: Burke's been there. The camp looks just like we left it. 400 00:31:31,530 --> 00:31:36,410 Speaker 1: Braha tells Right. They don't bother to dig up the chest. Obviously, 401 00:31:36,490 --> 00:31:39,490 Speaker 1: if Burke had put a message there, he would mark 402 00:31:39,530 --> 00:31:46,650 Speaker 1: the tree. Burke, Wills, and King were moving very slowly 403 00:31:46,770 --> 00:31:50,890 Speaker 1: down the creek, as their note had said, they were 404 00:31:51,090 --> 00:31:55,890 Speaker 1: just a day's ride away. When Braha and Right didn't 405 00:31:55,970 --> 00:32:01,730 Speaker 1: read that note, the task of reaching Mount Hopeless was 406 00:32:01,770 --> 00:32:02,570 Speaker 1: looking hopeless. 407 00:32:03,930 --> 00:32:08,690 Speaker 3: The rations are rapidly diminishing. Our clothing, especially the boots, 408 00:32:08,770 --> 00:32:12,930 Speaker 3: all going to pieces. Camel is completely done up and 409 00:32:13,090 --> 00:32:16,330 Speaker 3: can scarcely get along. I suppose this will end in 410 00:32:16,410 --> 00:32:19,530 Speaker 3: our having to live like the Blacks for a few months. 411 00:32:20,850 --> 00:32:25,290 Speaker 1: But they couldn't live like Aboriginal people. They didn't have 412 00:32:25,290 --> 00:32:29,970 Speaker 1: the skills to catch fish or over sixty thousand years 413 00:32:30,050 --> 00:32:34,450 Speaker 1: worth of accumulated nohow on how to extract nourishment from 414 00:32:34,450 --> 00:32:38,890 Speaker 1: the local plants. The Aboriginal people tried to be kind, 415 00:32:39,210 --> 00:32:43,850 Speaker 1: bringing gifts of food. Burke fired his revolver to scare 416 00:32:43,930 --> 00:32:44,370 Speaker 1: them away. 417 00:32:46,370 --> 00:32:49,850 Speaker 3: King recalled he was afraid of being too friendly, lest 418 00:32:49,850 --> 00:32:51,130 Speaker 3: they should always be in our camp. 419 00:32:54,210 --> 00:33:00,130 Speaker 1: Burke got his wish. They were left alone to slowly starve. 420 00:33:01,530 --> 00:33:06,250 Speaker 3: My legs and arms are nearly skin and bone. 421 00:33:06,530 --> 00:33:12,210 Speaker 1: Burke had learned one noble lesson. At least, he told King. 422 00:33:13,090 --> 00:33:18,610 Speaker 2: This is my wish that you leave me unburied. 423 00:33:22,410 --> 00:33:25,810 Speaker 1: Wright and Braha made it back to the outpost on 424 00:33:25,890 --> 00:33:30,450 Speaker 1: the Darling and sent news to Melbourne. Burke was missing. 425 00:33:31,850 --> 00:33:36,850 Speaker 1: The newspapers were aghast. The Royal Society of Victoria organized 426 00:33:36,890 --> 00:33:40,610 Speaker 1: a search party and this time found a proper explorer 427 00:33:40,650 --> 00:33:43,250 Speaker 1: to lead it. They were asked to take a letter 428 00:33:43,330 --> 00:33:45,570 Speaker 1: with them from Julia Matthews. 429 00:33:48,810 --> 00:33:52,130 Speaker 2: My dear Sir, I dare say you almost forget me, 430 00:33:52,410 --> 00:33:55,490 Speaker 2: But if you scrape your various reminiscences of the past, 431 00:33:55,570 --> 00:33:58,450 Speaker 2: you will recollect the laughing and joyous etc. 432 00:33:59,250 --> 00:34:04,290 Speaker 3: Cupid. All the citizens in Melbourne join in love to you, 433 00:34:04,810 --> 00:34:06,010 Speaker 3: bless your little heart. 434 00:34:12,330 --> 00:34:15,770 Speaker 1: The search party eventually found a white man living with 435 00:34:15,850 --> 00:34:18,970 Speaker 1: the Yandruanda tribe not far from Cooper's Creek. 436 00:34:20,450 --> 00:34:22,410 Speaker 2: Who, in the name of wonder are you? 437 00:34:23,770 --> 00:34:27,290 Speaker 3: I am, King Sir of Bug's exploring expedition? 438 00:34:28,650 --> 00:34:30,010 Speaker 2: Where is he? And Wills? 439 00:34:31,570 --> 00:34:35,650 Speaker 3: Did? Both dead? Long ago? 440 00:34:40,090 --> 00:34:45,050 Speaker 1: After Burke and Wills expired John King had understood that 441 00:34:45,210 --> 00:34:52,530 Speaker 1: only friendliness could save him. The news of Burke's death 442 00:34:52,810 --> 00:34:57,250 Speaker 1: reached Melbourne, and the news from King that they actually 443 00:34:57,330 --> 00:35:00,330 Speaker 1: had made it to the north, not quite as far 444 00:35:00,410 --> 00:35:04,250 Speaker 1: as the ocean, but to impenetrable mangroves, where the water 445 00:35:04,410 --> 00:35:09,610 Speaker 1: was salty and moved with the tide close enough, and 446 00:35:09,970 --> 00:35:14,650 Speaker 1: the news they might have made it home if only 447 00:35:14,730 --> 00:35:22,010 Speaker 1: Braha had stayed one day longer. Burke was a hero, 448 00:35:22,930 --> 00:35:28,250 Speaker 1: a tragic fallen hero. As the city mourned, a young 449 00:35:28,290 --> 00:35:31,330 Speaker 1: woman went to a newspaper to place an ad in 450 00:35:31,370 --> 00:35:34,890 Speaker 1: the Lost and Found column Lost. 451 00:35:34,610 --> 00:35:38,810 Speaker 2: In the Botanical Gardens yesterday afternoon, a gold bracelet with 452 00:35:38,890 --> 00:35:44,490 Speaker 2: carbuncle in center and miniature The finder will be handsomely rewarded. 453 00:35:47,530 --> 00:35:52,650 Speaker 1: The newspaper reported the story behind the ad. The miniature 454 00:35:52,730 --> 00:35:58,130 Speaker 1: portrait lost by Julia Matthews was of none other than 455 00:35:58,250 --> 00:36:04,290 Speaker 1: Robert O'Hara Burke. Yes, this star of the stage was 456 00:36:04,330 --> 00:36:11,850 Speaker 1: the fallen hero's sweetheart. Hmm. Had Julia really lost Burke's 457 00:36:11,890 --> 00:36:17,650 Speaker 1: gift or had she spied an opportunity for publicity. If 458 00:36:17,690 --> 00:36:27,330 Speaker 1: it was a stunt, it was cynically brilliant. Robert O'Hara 459 00:36:27,450 --> 00:36:34,170 Speaker 1: Burke made one catastrophic error after another. He overpacked, he 460 00:36:34,330 --> 00:36:38,970 Speaker 1: ditched the lime juice, he gave unclear instructions, he didn't 461 00:36:39,050 --> 00:36:44,530 Speaker 1: plan for contingencies, and he failed to appreciate that Aboriginal 462 00:36:44,610 --> 00:36:49,290 Speaker 1: people had skills he lacked. Yet he still might have 463 00:36:49,370 --> 00:36:52,250 Speaker 1: been saved if he had played a better game of 464 00:36:52,290 --> 00:36:55,930 Speaker 1: what would I do if I were he wondering what 465 00:36:55,970 --> 00:37:00,490 Speaker 1: would he do if he were I? To bra Her 466 00:37:00,610 --> 00:37:04,690 Speaker 1: and Wright, marking the tree was so obvious that they 467 00:37:04,690 --> 00:37:08,770 Speaker 1: didn't bother to check the chest. To Burke and Wills, 468 00:37:09,570 --> 00:37:13,170 Speaker 1: checking the chest was so obvious that they didn't bother 469 00:37:13,250 --> 00:37:18,570 Speaker 1: to mark the tree. Playing the coordination game, says Thomas Schelling, 470 00:37:19,330 --> 00:37:26,050 Speaker 1: takes both logic and imagination. Burke and Wills were undone 471 00:37:26,610 --> 00:37:43,770 Speaker 1: by a failure of both. For a full list of 472 00:37:43,810 --> 00:37:52,370 Speaker 1: our sources, see the show notes at Timharford dot com. 473 00:37:52,570 --> 00:37:56,250 Speaker 1: Cautionary Tales is written by me Tim Harford, with Andrew Wright, 474 00:37:56,570 --> 00:38:01,010 Speaker 1: Alice Fines, and Ryan Dilley. It's produced by Georgia Mills 475 00:38:01,050 --> 00:38:05,130 Speaker 1: and Marilyn Rust. The sound design and original music are 476 00:38:05,130 --> 00:38:09,650 Speaker 1: the work of Pascal Wise. Additional sound design by Carlos 477 00:38:09,690 --> 00:38:14,330 Speaker 1: San Juan at Grain Audio and Dan Jackson bend A. 478 00:38:14,370 --> 00:38:18,450 Speaker 1: Dafhaffrey edited the scripts. It features the voice talents of 479 00:38:18,530 --> 00:38:24,610 Speaker 1: Melanie Guttridge, Genevieve Gaunt, Stella, Harford, Massa Munroe, Jamal Westman, 480 00:38:25,050 --> 00:38:29,170 Speaker 1: and rufus Wright. The show also wouldn't have been possible 481 00:38:29,210 --> 00:38:33,130 Speaker 1: without the work of Jacob Weisberg, Greta Cohne, Eric Sandler, 482 00:38:33,650 --> 00:38:40,410 Speaker 1: Carrie Brody, Christina Sullivan, Kira Posey, and Owen Miller. Cautionary 483 00:38:40,410 --> 00:38:43,890 Speaker 1: Tales is a production of Pushkin Industries. If you like 484 00:38:43,970 --> 00:38:48,050 Speaker 1: the show, please remember to share, rate, and review. It 485 00:38:48,250 --> 00:38:51,410 Speaker 1: really does make a difference to us, and if you 486 00:38:51,490 --> 00:38:54,770 Speaker 1: want to hear it, add free and receive a bonus 487 00:38:54,890 --> 00:38:59,850 Speaker 1: audio episode, video episode, and members only newsletter every month. 488 00:39:00,690 --> 00:39:04,770 Speaker 1: Why not join the Cautionary Club. To sign up, head 489 00:39:04,770 --> 00:39:09,690 Speaker 1: to patreon dot com slash Cautionary Club. That's Patreon, p A, 490 00:39:09,850 --> 00:39:20,210 Speaker 1: t R e o N dot com slash Cautionary clubh