and dragging the
horses through as we best could with ropes, after three days of severe
toil we had scarcely accomplished a direct distance of five miles. The
dry weather which followed rapidly hardened the surface of the clay
plains, and I attempted to steer due west to the Thompson, but found the
country so destitute of feed, and covered with dense acacia scrub, that
we were compelled to return to the plains on the bank of the river.

8th May.

The valley of the river trending west was somewhat contracted, and did
not exceed five or six miles in breadth; the plains were firmer,
salt-bush and grass more abundant, and the horses recovered slightly from
the effects of the barren country. Keeping back from the right bank of
the main channel, we passed some ridges of drift sand, and came on a fine
lagoon nearly a mile in length. Here we surprised a party of natives, who
decamped on our approach, leaving a net, fish, etc., which we of course
left untouched, and camped at a spot lower down the lagoon.

9th May.

The next day being Sunday, we remained at our camp, and the party of
natives, consisting of seven or eight men, three or four women, and some
children, approached us, and remained the greater part of the day near
the tents. They were very anxious to enter the camp, but this was not
permitted. By signs they expressed that they had observed we had not
taken away any of their property the evening before, when they ran away
and left their nets, and were therefore satisfied our intentions were
friendly; but we could not procure any information relative to the
objects of our journey or the character of the country before us. At 4
p.m. they informed us they were going to sleep at the most distant part
of the lagoon, and would return next morning at sunrise, and then
departed. After dark, however, the natives were detected attempting to
crawl into the camp through the bushes, and though we called to them in
an unmistakable tone to retire, they would not withdraw. As the position
they had taken up was such as to command our camp, and render it unsafe
in the event of an attack, it was necessary to dislodge them. I therefore
fired a pistol over them, but was answered by a shout of derision, which
no doubt would have been soon followed by a shower of spears had we not
compelled them to retreat by a discharge of small shot directed into the
scrub, after which we were not further molested.

10th May.

We were now approachi