ied off. This creek runs parallel to the river for about ten
miles, and enters the marshes at the S.E. angle. This I ascertained one
day in riding to carry on my survey of the southern extremity of the
marshes, and to join my line of route by making the circuit of that
part of them. I found that the river was turned to its northerly course
by a rising ground of forest land, which checks its further progress
westerly. I proceeded round the S.W. angle, and then, taking a
northerly course, got down to the bottom of the first great marsh, thus
completing the circuit of them. I did not return to the camp until
after 10 p.m., having crossed the river at day-light, nor did we
procure any water from the time we left the stream to the moment of our
recrossing it.

WALLIS'S PONDS.

Having completed our various arrangements, and closed our letters, we
struck our tents on the morning of the 7th March; we remained, however,
to witness the departure of Riley's party for Wellington Valley, and
then left the Macquarie on an E.N.E. course for Wallis's Ponds, and
made them at about 14 miles. They undoubtedly empty themselves into the
marshes, and are a continuation of that chain of ponds on which I left
the party in Mr. Hume's charge. About a mile from Mount Harris, we
passed a small dry creek, that evidently lays the country under water
in the wet seasons. There was a blue-gum flat to the eastward of it,
which we crossed, and then entered a brush of acacia pendula and box.
The soil upon the plain was an alluvial deposit; that in the brushes
was sandy. From the extremity of the plain, Mount Harris bore, by
compass, S.W. by W.; Mount Foster due west. The scrub through which we
were penetrating, at length became so dense, that we found it
impossible to travel in a direct line through it, and frequent ridges
of cypresses growing closely together, turned us repeatedly from our
course. The country at length became clearer, and we travelled over
open forest of box, casuarina, and cypresses, on a sandy soil; the
first predominating. For about two miles before we made the creek, the
country was not heavily timbered, the acacia pendula succeeding the
larger trees. The ground had a good covering of grass upon it, and
there were few of the salsolaceous plants, so abundant on the western
plains, to be found. The rough-gum abounded near the creek, with a
small tree bearing a hard round nut, and we had the luxury of plenty of
water.

We remained s