The object when approached turned out to be the bald, dried, half-decomposed body of a blackfellow.
"This is some of your men's doings, my friend," said Brown, glancing at Columbus, who grinned complacently.
The sides of the lake were firm and hard, and the thirsty horses ran eagerly in and commenced drinking greedily. Overhead the white correllas and pink and gray galars chattered noisily amongst the boughs, on the opposite side a group of objects like native gunyahs were visible. When the horses finished drinking, they rode round the edge of the lake to them.
Not a sound was heard, and nothing was seen to move as they approached the spot, nor was any smoke visible. Gorged carrion crows and hawks arose as they drew near, and flapped unwillingly away; the crows protesting loudly at being disturbed, after the manner of their kind. Two or three eagle-hawks gazed fiercely down from the branches of neighbouring trees. A pestilential smell hung heavy in the air, an odour soon accounted for, for around the ravished camp lay at least a score of corpses, all in the same stage of decay as the one they had first passed on the plain. These appeared to be mostly old men and women, although here and there the smaller bodies of children could be seen amongst their slaughtered parents. Brown and the others drew a long breath as they gazed on this scene of murder.
"What a blessing it is," he said, "to know that all those wretches who did this are crushed into jelly underneath tons of rock."
"Yes," replied Morton in a low voice; "and for two pins I could find it in my heart to send that hoary old sinner there to keep them company."
This sentiment was a common one, and Columbus received some very savage glances, even Billy looking at him, and handling his carbine as though anxious to use it on the blackfellow. The old cannibal, however, was quite unconscious of the feeling he had aroused, and smiled sweetly as though he was showing them a highly interesting little exhibition.
"They must have killed and captured the whole tribe," said Morton at last. "No hope of finding Stuart now."
"I am afraid not. We had better look out a camp as far to windward of these poor wretches as possible," returned Brown.
Just then Billy whistled, and when his master looked towards him, he indicated by a motion of his head the direction of the hill with the granite boulders on it.