these feelings must have
possessed him. While we were thus standing together, his two wives came
up, to whom, after pointing to the spears and tomahawk, he said something,
without, however, looking at me; and they both instantly burst into tears
and wept aloud. I was really embarrassed during so unexpected a scene,
and to break it, invited the native to the camp, but I motioned with my
hand, as I had not my gun with me, that I would shoot any other of the
blacks who followed me. He distinctly understood my meaning, and intimated
as distinctly to me that they should not follow us; nor did they. We were
never again molested by them.

I left him then, and, returning to the camp, told M'Leay my adventure,
with which he was highly delighted. My object is this procedure was to
convince the natives, generally, that we came not among them to injure or
to molest them, as well as to impress them with an idea of our superior
intelligence; and I am led to indulge the hope that I succeeded. Certain
it is, that an act of justice or of lenity has frequently, if well timed,
more weight than the utmost stretch of severity. With savages, more
particularly, to exhibit any fear, distrust, or irresolution, will
inevitably prove injurious.

But although these adventures were happily not attended with bloodshed,
they harassed the men much; and our camp for near a week was more like an
outpost picquet than any thing else. This, however, terminated all
attempts on the part of the natives. From henceforth none of them followed
us on our route.

BREACH THE DEPOT.

At noon, I stopped about a mile short of the depot to take sights. After
dinner we pulled on, the men looking earnestly out for their comrades whom
they had left there, but none appeared. My little arbour, in which I had
written my letters, was destroyed, and the bank on which out tents had
stood was wholly deserted. We landed, however, and it was a satisfaction
to me to see the homeward track of the drays. The men were sadly
disappointed, and poor Clayton, who had anticipated a plentiful meal, was
completely chop fallen. M'Leay and I comforted them daily with the hopes
of meeting the drays, which I did not think improbable.

Thus, it will appear, that we regained the place from which we started in
seventy-seven days, during which, we could not have pulled less than 2000
miles. It is not for me, however, to make any comment, either on the
dangers to which we were occasionally expos