e horses bogged.
Proceeded on a north-west course, but at a mile and a half again came
upon springs and running water; the ground too boggy to cross it. Changed
to north; at three miles and a half on the course changed to north-west.
Ascended some very rough stony hills, and got on the top of sandy table
land thick with splendid stringy-bark, pines, and other trees and shrubs,
amongst which, for the first time, we have seen the fan palm, some of
them growing upwards of fifteen feet high; the bark on the stem is marked
similar to a pineapple's; the leaf very much resembles a lady's fan set
on a long handle, and, a short time after it is cut, closes in the same
manner. At half-past one crossed the table land--breadth thteen miles.
The view was beautiful. Standing on the edge of a precipice, we could see
underneath, lower down, a deep creek thickly wooded running on our
course; then the picturesque precipitous gorge in the table land; then
the gorge in the distance; to the north-west were ranges of hills. The
grass on the table land is coarse, mixed with a little spinifex; about
half of it had been burnt by the natives some time ago. We had to search
for a place to descend, and had great difficulty in doing so, but at last
accomplished it without accident. The valley near the creek, which is a
running stream, is very thickly wooded with tall stringy-bark, gums, and
other kinds of palm-trees, which are very beautiful, the stem growing
upwards of fifty feet high, the leaves from eight to ten feet in length,
with a number of long smaller ones growing from each side, resembling an
immense feather; a great number of these shooting out from the top of the
high stems, and falling gracefully over, has a very pretty, light, and
elegant appearance. Followed the creek for about two miles down this
gorge, and camped on an open piece of ground. The top course of the table
land is a layer of magnetic ironstone, which attracted my compass upwards
of 20 degrees; underneath is a layer of red sandstone, and below that is
an immense mass of white sandstone, which is very soft, and crumbling
away with the action of the atmosphere. In the valley is growing an
immense crop of grass, upwards of four feet high; the cabbage palm is
still in the creek. We have seen a number of new shrubs and flowers. The
course of the table land is north-north-west and south-south-east. The
cliffs, from the camp in the valley, seem to be from two hundred and
fifty to