cter, well
grassed, but with patches of triodia, which affects a poor gravelly soil
or deep sand. The country was now so nearly level that scarcely any rise
or fall was discoverable, though the aneroid showed some slight
undulations; at 1.15 p.m. halted for an hour, and at 6.0 camped in a
patch of green grass, which enabled the horses to feed though they had no
water. The weather was clear and hot during the day with a light easterly
breeze, the night cloudy and very warm.

DEPOT CAMP.

28th March.

At 5.10 a.m. resumed our course north 60 degrees east through a grassy
forest of ironbark and bloodwood, with patches of small acacia and
triodia. At 7.45 entered a series of open plains covered with high grass.
The plains continued till 10.0, when we passed through an open gum
forest, and the country declined to the east, and at 11.15 came on a
small watercourse, which was dry and sandy. This we followed down to the
north-east till 11.40, when it passed through a rocky gorge in a
sandstone ridge, which rose at an angle of 30 degrees to the south-west
and 40 degrees to the north-east, the latter being the dip of the strata.
In this rocky gorge we could see some pools of water, but they were quite
inaccessible from that side of the ridge, and we had to make a
considerable detour to the south before we could descend to the plain
below, and found a fine pool of water at the termination of the gorge, at
which we halted and watered our thirsty horses. As we were now only two
hours' ride from the depot camp, we after a short rest started again at
3.10 p.m., and at 5.15 reached the depot camp, where we were welcomed by
Mr. Baines and his party, and I was glad to find them all enjoying good
health, and that the horses were in excellent condition. They had been,
however, somewhat annoyed by the blacks, who had made frequent attempts
to burn the camp, and also the horses, by setting fire to the grass, and
on some occasions had come to actual hostilities, though by judicious
management none of the party had been injured; nor was it certain that
any of the blacks had been wounded, though it had been necessary to
resort to the use of firearms in self-defence and for the protection of
the horses.

29th March.

Returned our surplus provisions into store, when we found that the pieces
of pork, originally four pounds weight each, were reduced to one-fifth of
the original weight, as the long continuance of heat had melted the whole
of