e. I did not like this creek much more than the
Alberga, and decided to try the country still farther north-west. This
we did, passing through somewhat thick scrubs for eighteen miles, when
we came full upon the creek again, and here for the first time since
we started we noticed some bunches of spinifex, the Festuca irritans,
and some native poplar trees. These have a straight stem, and are in
outline somewhat like a pine-tree, but the foliage is of a fainter
green, and different-shaped leaf. They are very pretty to the eye, but
generally inhabit the very poorest regions; the botanical name of this
tree is Codonocarpus cotinifolius. At five miles farther we dug in the
bed of the creek, but only our riding-horses could be watered by
night. White pipeclay existed on the bed. The weather was oppressive
to-day. Here my latitude was 26 degrees 27', longitude 134 degrees. It
took all next day to water the horses. Thermometer 92 degrees in
shade, hot wind blowing. The dead limb of a tree, to which we fixed
our tarpaulin as an awning for shade, slipped down while we were at
dinner; it first fell on the head of Jimmy Andrews, which broke it in
half; it also fell across my back, tearing my waistcoat, shirt, and
skin; but as it only fell on Jimmy's head of course it couldn't hurt
him. The country still scrubby on both sides: we now travelled about
north-north-west, and reached a low stony rise in the scrubs, and from
it saw the creek stretching away towards some other ridges nearly on
the line we were travelling. We skirted the creek, and in eleven miles
we saw other hills of greater elevation than any we had yet seen.

Reaching the first ridge, we got water by digging a few inches into
the pipeclay bed of the creek; a more extended view was here obtained,
and ranges appeared from west, round by north-west, to north; there
were many flat-topped hills and several singular cones, and the
country appeared more open. I was much pleased to think I had
distanced the scrubs. One cone in the new range bore north 52 degrees
west, and for some distance the creek trended that way. On reaching
the foot of the new hills, I found the creek had greatly altered its
appearance, if indeed it was the same. It is possible the main creek
may have turned more to the west, and that this is only a tributary,
but as we found some surface water in a clay-hole, we liked it better
than having to dig in a larger channel. Here for the first time for
many week