chief of Australian
rivers, the Murray. This last channel collects eventually all the waters
flowing in a westward direction upon the eastern side of New Holland,
between the latitudes of 28 deg. S. and 36 deg. S. The Darling, the
Lachlan, and the Murrumbidgee, without mentioning streams of minor
importance, all find their way southwards into the basin of the Murray,
which is really a noble river, and does not seem subject to the same
deplorable impoverishment, which most of the others suffer in very dry
seasons. It was very earnestly anticipated that the mouth of a stream
like this would probably form a good harbour, and thus afford a reasonable
prospect of its hereafter becoming a busy navigable river, the means of
furnishing inland communication to a considerable distance. This is, of
all things, what New Holland appears most to want, but the want is not
(as we shall shortly find) adequately supplied by the entrance to the
Murray. A like failure occurs at the entrance of other Australian
rivers, as in the instance of a much smaller but very beautiful stream,
the Glenelg, which falls into a shallow basin within the sandy hills of
the southern coast, the outlet being between two rocky heads, but choked
up with the sands of the beach. We cannot, while we read of the scanty
means of inland navigation, with which it has pleased Divine Providence
to favour an island so enormous as New Holland, but feel thankful for
the abundant advantages of this kind which our own native islands
possess; but at the same time there is no reason to despair, even yet,
of a navigable river being discovered in New Holland;[17] or, at the
worst, the modern invention of rail-roads may supersede, in a great
measure, the need of other communication.

[17] "I have myself no doubt that a large navigable river will yet be
discovered, communicating with the interior of Australia."--M. MARTIN'S
_New South Wales_, p. 99.

It would be impossible to compress into a moderate compass the various
interesting particulars, which have been related of the rivers of New
Holland and their neighbouring districts; but for this and much other
pleasing information the reader may be referred, once for all, to the
works of those travellers, whose names have been already so frequently
mentioned. It is a curious fact that almost every stream of the least
consequence in New Holland, appears to have its peculiar features, and a
character and scenery of its own, whic