he rock, I hunted long and diligently for
water. Numerous rock-holes were to be seen, but all were dry, and my hopes
of making this our base from which to prospect in various directions were
at first short-lived; but before long I was overjoyed to hear the
twittering of a little flock of Diamond sparrows--a nearly certain sign
that water must be handy; and sure enough I found their supply at the
bottom of a narrow, round hole, down which I could just stretch my arm.

CHAPTER II

GRANITE ROCKS, "NAMMA HOLES," AND "SOAKS"

At this point it may not be amiss to give a short description of these
peculiar outcrops of granite, without which the track from York to
Coolgardie could never have been kept open, nor the place discovered, nor
could its early inhabitants have supported life before the condensing
plant came into general use.

The interior of the Colony, between the coast and a point some hundred
miles east of Coolgardie, is traversed by parallel belts of granite,
running in a general direction of north-north-west and south-south-east.
This granite crops out above the surface, at intervals of from ten to
twenty or thirty miles, sometimes in the form of an isolated barren rock,
and sometimes as low ranges and hills several miles in extent. From them
small creeks, and sometimes larger watercourses, run down, to find their
way into the stony and gravelly debris which usually surrounds the rocks.
Much of what little rain does fall is absorbed by the trees and scrub,
and much is taken by the sun's heat, so that a very small proportion can
sink below the surface soil, and only when there is some underground basin
in the rock beneath will water be found by sinking, except immediately
after rain.

Round the granite base a belt of grass of no great extent may be found,
for the most part dry and yellow, but in places green and fresh. It is in
such spots as these that one may hope to tap an underground reservoir in
the rock. To these shallow wells has been given the name of "Soaks."
They seldom exceed fifteen feet in depth, though similar subterranean
basins have been tapped by a well perhaps a hundred feet deep, sunk some
distance from the foot of the outcrop. A good soak will stand a heavy
drain for perhaps months, but not having its origin in a spring the supply
ultimately ceases.

The soil, being alluvial, is in most cases easy to dig, and when the bed
rock is reached it becomes an open question whether to go