the
boughs of trees, at a considerable height from the ground, pieces of
sandstone, nearly circular in form, about an inch and a half in
thickness, and from four to five in diameter, so that they resembled
small millstones. What was the object in thus fashioning and placing
these stones I never could conceive, for they were generally in the least
remarkable spots: they cannot point out burial places, for I have made
such minute searches that in such a case I must have found some of the
bones; neither can they indicate any peculiar route through the country,
for two never occur near one another.

PREPARATION TO BUILD A BOAT.

On my return to the camp I found that the schooner had not yet arrived; I
now began to fear that some accident had occurred, and made my
preparations accordingly. The party was fully prepared to meet such a
misfortune and, as we had the means of constructing a boat large enough
to take us to Swan River, I felt more anxious for the safety of those in
the vessel than for our own. That no time however might be lost I
examined the neighbourhood of the encampment and found that within our
immediate vicinity were plenty of trees well adapted for the purpose,
which I marked, and had some of them felled.

CHAPTER 7. HANOVER BAY AND ITS VICINITY.

OCCUPATION AT THE CAMP.

During the absence of the schooner we had our attention fully engaged in
forming a garden, collecting specimens, and building sheds for the
stores. So difficult and rocky was the country we were in that I was
employed for several days in finding a route by which unloaded horses
could travel from the beach in Hanover Bay to the point where we were
encamped, for the landing-place at the end of the ravine was so rocky as
to be impracticable for that purpose. Mr. Walker at length discovered a
pass in the cliffs, and by constructing a winding path in this he thought
that we should be able to get loaded horses out of the valley. I feared
that he was too sanguine, and therefore daily renewed my search in all
directions. I travelled up the entire length of the ravine that we were
encamped in but found that, even granting it was not flooded, we should
find great difficulty in emerging by this route.

These circumstances made me resolve upon the return of the schooner to
re-embark the stores, and land them again either upon a point I had fixed
upon on the south bank of Prince Regent's River, or upon the neck of land
I have before mentioned,