pools of water in the channel; in
following down the creek in search of a sufficient supply of water for
the horses, we passed some blacks sitting at a fire near the creek; at
3.30 came to a pool sufficient for the supply of the whole party, below
which the channel was dry; returning to the pool we met the blacks
following our tracks, but, observing us, they ran away, and on being
followed hid themselves; having unsaddled, we commenced our dinner and
soon saw the blacks watching us from their hiding places, and after some
time spent in making signs, they were induced to approach, the oldest of
the party feigning to weep bitterly till they got close to us, when we
commenced an attempt at conversation, and they appeared to recognise some
few words of the language of the Victoria River. Their spears were formed
of reeds with large heads of white sandstone, and also with three wooden
points for fishing. They were circumcised and had their front teeth
remaining; at 5.0 steered to the west-north-west for one hour, and
bivouacked to secure ourselves from an attack during the night.

11th July.

At 6.30 a.m., resumed our route towards the camp, and reached it about
1.0 p.m., without observing anything of farther remark.

Latitude by a2 Centauri 15 degrees 2 minutes 49 seconds.

ABSENCE OF WATERCOURSES.

12th July.

The grass near the camp having been burnt off, the horses had scattered
very much, and could not be collected and saddled before 10.0 a.m., when
we followed our track of yesterday and reached the pool of water at
sunset. The country was so level, although we were crossing the watershed
between the north-west coast and the Gulf of Carpentaria, that the
aneroid only varied from 29.55 to 29.62, and even of this change the
greater part was caused by alteration of the temperature. The geological
character of this portion of the country differs slightly from that of
the Victoria River. The upper stratum is a bed of ironstone conglomerate
about twenty feet thick, this rests on sandstone, the upper part of which
is highly ferruginous, then passes away into a variegated sandstone
imperfectly stratified, changing into a hard siliceous sandstone which is
white and breaks with a conchoidal fracture; this rests on a hard cherty
sandstone similar to that of the Victoria River. In this rock many
depressions occur, which is apparently caused by the roofs of caverns
falling in and there are usually deep fissures in the rock at