chhardt,
who never encountered a rainy season during the journey to Port
Essington.

Latitude by Aldebaran and Capella 16 degrees 27 minutes 20 seconds.

15th January.

Started at 6.45 a.m. and followed the river to the west-south-west; the
hills coming close to the bank for some miles, caused the journey to be
slow and difficult; crossed two large creeks coming from the
west-north-west, the second seventy yards wide; at 10.35 encamped in a
fine grassy flat. The course of the river was now more from the south,
and the valley expanded into a plain several miles wide.

16th January.

As several of the horses required a day's rest, at 6.0 a.m. I started
with Mr. H. Gregory to examine the country to the southward, and followed
the river through a fine grassy plain till 10.0, when it entered the
sandstone ranges, and the valley contracted to half a mile; the hills
were steep, but the level ground in the valley, except where intersected
by gullies, was good travelling and well grassed. The river is much
reduced in size and the water is confined to the smaller channels of the
principal bed; the water is clear, and had not that muddy appearance
which characterises it lower down. The geological character of the rocks
is unchanged; but the bed of the river being less deeply excavated, the
lower beds of limestone and jasper are not so largely developed, the
summit of the hills are not quite as level, and large blocks of
sandstone, the remains of an upper stratum, gives the country a very
rugged appearance. Returned to the camp at 6.30 p.m. In the evening there
was a heavy thunder-squall from the north, but the weather cleared at
midnight.

LOSE A HORSE.

17th January.

Started at 7.5 a.m. and steered a south-west course till 10.30 a.m.,
passing over a level grassy flat the whole distance; but the soil became
more sandy as we proceeded up the river; there is very little wood of any
description; the few trees that exist are white-stem eucalypti and a few
acacia with pinnate leaves; the horse Sam is very weak, and two other
horses are lame and can scarcely travel; since the 3rd of January the
distance travelled has not exceeded ten miles per diem; water and grass
everywhere abundant, and the loads not heavy, yet the greater part of the
horses appear to be unable to perform a greater amount of work.

Latitude by Aldebaran 16 degrees 36 minutes 43 seconds.

18th January.

Some of the horses having strayed towards our las