FLOOD'S QUICK SIGHT
FOREST FULL OF BIRDS
NATIVE WELL
BIRDS COLLECT TO DRINK
DANGEROUS PLAIN
FLOOD'S HORSE LOST
SCARCITY OF WATER
TURN NORTHWARD
DISCOVER A LARGE CREEK
BRIGHT PROSPECTS
SUDDEN DISAPPOINTMENT
SALT LAGOON
SCARCITY OF WATER
SALT WATER CREEK
CHARACTER OF THE INTERIOR
FORCED TO TURN BACK
RISK OF ADVANCING
THE FURTHEST NORTH
RETURN TO AND EXAMINATION OF THE CREEK
PROCEED TO THE WESTWARD
DREADFUL COUNTRY
JOURNEY TO THE NORTH
AGAIN FORCED TO RETURN
NATIVES
STATION ON THE CREEK
CONCLUDING REMARKS.

Reflecting on the singular character of the country below me, as I stood on the pointed termination of the ridge the party had just ascended, I could not but think how fortunate it was we had not found it in a wet state, for in such a case to cross it would have been impossible. I felt assured indeed, from the moment we set foot on it, that in the event of rain, while we should be in the more distant interior, return would be altogether impracticable, but we had neither time to pause on, or provide against, the consequences of any heavy fall that might have set in. I do not think that this flashed across the minds of any of the party excepting my own, who would not have been justified in leading men forward as I was doing, without weighing every probable chance of difficulty or success.

As the line of the sand ridges was nearly parallel to that of our course, we descended to a polygonum flat, and keeping the ridge upon our left, proceeded on a bearing of 342 degrees, or on a N.N.W. course, up a kind of valley. Whilst thus riding leisurely along, Flood, whose eyes were always about him, noticed something dark moving in the bushes, to which he called our attention. It was a dark object, and was then perfectly stationary; as Flood however insisted that he saw it move, Mr. Browne went forward to ascertain what it could be, when a native woman jumped up and ran away. She had squatted down and put a large trough before her, the more effectually to conceal her person, and must have been astonished at the quickness of our sight in discovering her. We were much amused at the figure she cut, but as she exhibited great alarm Mr. Browne refrained from following her; after getting to some distance she turned round to look at us, and then walked off at a more leisurely pace. At the distance of about four miles, the sandy ridge made a short turn, and we were obliged to cross over to the opposite side to preserve our course. On gaining the top of the ridge, we saw an open box-tree forest, and a small column of smoke rising up from amongst the trees, towards which we silently bent our steps. Our approach had however been noticed by the natives, who no doubt were at the place not a minute before, but had now fled. We then pushed on through the forest, the ground beneath our horses' feet being destitute of vegetation, and the soil composed of a whitish clay, so peculiar to the flooded lands of the interior. The farther we entered the depths of the forest, the more did the notes of birds assail our ears. Cockatoos, parrots, calodera, pigeons, crows, etc., all made that solitude ring with their wild notes, and as (with the exception of the ducks on the southern side of the Stony Desert) we had not seen any of the feathered race for many days, we were now astonished at their numbers and variety. About an hour before sunset we arrived on the banks of a large creek, with a bed of couch grass, but no water. The appearance of this creek, however, was so promising that we momentarily expected to see a pond glittering before us, but rode on until sunset ere we arrived at a place which had attracted our attention as we approached it. Somewhat to the right, but in the bed of the creek, there were two magnificent trees, the forest still extending back on either side. Beneath these trees there was a large mound of earth, that appeared to have been thrown up. On reaching the spot we discovered a well of very unusual dimensions, and as there was water in it, we halted for the night.

Native Well

On a closer examination of the locality, this well appeared to be of great value to the inhabitants. It was 22 feet deep and 8 feet broad at the top. There was a landing place, but no steps down to it, and a recess had been made to hold the water, which was slightly brackish, the rim of the basin being also incrusted with salt. Paths led from this spot to almost every point of the compass, and in walking along one to the left, I came on a village consisting of nineteen huts, but there were not any signs of recent occupation. Troughs and stones for grinding seed were lying about, with broken spears and shields, but it was evident that the inhabitants were now dispersed in other places, and only assembled here to collect the box-tree seeds, for small boughs of that tree were lying in heaps on the ground, and the trees themselves bore the marks of having been stripped. There were two or three huts in the village of large size, to each of which two smaller ones were attached, opening into its main apartment, but none of them had been left in such order as those I have already described.

Native Village in the northern interior