April 23. Wednesday. Barcoo River, Camp 54.
During the second watch last night our lives depended on the vigilance of our watchmen. The blacks came up and probably would have overpowered us if they had found all asleep; but Jemmy the native trooper, who always keeps his watch well, awoke us, and all of our party except one discharged their guns in the direction from where we heard the blacks. I reserved my charge to shoot at them when I caught sight of them, which I did not succeed in doing until after daylight. We set off two sky-rockets but they did not go up well because they were bruised or because the sticks we attached to them were unsuitable. When the first rocket exploded it made the blacks laugh; at the explosion of the second we did not hear them do so, as they had probably retired to some distance. After the conduct of the blacks last night, and as they approached Gregory's party in a similar way in the same neighbourhood, I fully intended to shoot at them if we had a chance; but this morning, although three approached to within one hundred yards of us while we were eating our breakfast, I did not fire at them until Jemmy had warned them of our hostile feeling towards them, and until they, instead of attending to the warning they had received to be off, got most of their companions, who were heavily loaded with clubs and throwing-sticks, to approach within about the same distance of our position. I then gave the word and we fired at them. The discharge wounded one and made the rest retire. Some of us followed them up as far as the horses and again fired, and shot the one who had been wounded previously. Afterwards Jackey slightly wounded another when Jemmy and he went for the horses. Perhaps these blacks, as they said they had visited the settled country, may have had a part in the massacre of the Wills family. We followed the river up today for about eighteen miles. About sixteen miles of the distance was along the western bank. On that side the country is inferior and the place is thickly wooded with western-wood acacia. Near sunset we crossed several channels of the river. There was a change in the character of the country when we left the northern bank; the ridges were sandy, caused, I judged, by the junction of the Alice River, which I was afraid of following up in mistake for the Barcoo River. We were not certainly, according to the chart, so far to the northward as it; but Mr. Gregory discovered when he went through the country that the north bend was laid down on the chart too much to the northward. From where we crossed the watercourse we steered south-east and, after crossing several dry watercourses, in about two and a half miles reached one with water in it and encamped. In following up the river today we saw several blacks; some of them wished to speak to us but we passed them without stopping to do so. We came here on the following courses from 53 Camp: 11.27 north-east half north three miles; 12.20 ---- miles; 1.40 east-north-east three and a half miles; 2.25 east by north three and a half miles; 4.25 north-east six miles; 5 east one and a half miles to our crossing-place; 5.50 south-east two and a quarter miles. Total eighteen and a half miles.
April 24. Camp 55.
We left camp this morning 9.25 and travelled up the river for about seventeen miles. We encamped 4.55 on the bank of a small creek. The country we have seen from the path we have traversed, since leaving what I thought was the Alice River, is very good with the exception of a few patches of land too thickly wooded with western-wood acacia. The land generally is thinly wooded with myall and well grassed with the best grasses. We came from Camp 54 in about the following courses: 11.30 east for five and three-quarter miles; 12.45, 1.20 south-east and by south for one and a quarter miles; 4.20 east and by south for eight and a half miles; 4.55 south for one and a half miles to camp. Distance seventeen miles.
April 25. Camp 56.
We left Camp 55 this morning at 8.23. When we had journeyed for about twenty miles we reached a creek, which I thought perhaps was a channel of the Barcoo River, and encamped on the northern side of the left bank of the creek. We came during the forenoon in nearly a south-east direction, and during the afternoon about a point to the eastward of south. By the latter course we crossed from the left to the right bank of the creek on which we had our two last camps and left it. The creek was too small to be the Barcoo River, and the ground on both sides of it too high to admit of it being an ana-branch. To the southward of our path we observed a long range of hills, one of which was remarkable for its tabled summit. The country we saw was more undulated than that we saw yesterday, but otherwise of a similar description. We came here in about the following courses: 10.23 south-east for five and a half miles; 11.43 south-south-east for three and a half miles; 2.35 south and by east for four and three-quarter miles; 4.55 south for five and a half miles; 5.15 west and by south for three-quarter miles. Distance twenty miles.
April 26. Camp 57.
We left Camp 56 this morning 9.30. We steered south, and by that course left the small creek on which we had encamped, and reached another creek with here and there water in its channel. We followed the creek up nearly to its source in the fine range of hills I mentioned in yesterday's journal. Having left the creek we came nearly east for three and a half miles to the left bank of a watercourse with plenty of water in it and encamped. The country we saw today was very rich with undulating features and the best grasses; the timber upon it consisting of myall, western-wood acacia, brigalow, white-wood and box. The brigalows are few and far between. The box grows along the watercourses. We came here from last camp in about the following courses: 2.40 south for ten and three-quarter miles; 3.10 east for one and a quarter miles; 4 east-south-east two and a quarter miles. Distance fourteen and a quarter miles.
April 27. Camp 57.
This being Sunday we rested ourselves and our horses. Yesterday I discovered that I had not repaired my sextant in a satisfactory manner. The index showed it to be easily put out of adjustment. I made the meridian altitude of the sun today A.H. 102 degrees 26 minutes; latitude 24 degrees 43 minutes.