eamt
that so dark and gloomy an outlet concealed a river that would lead me
to the haunts of civilized man, and whose fountains rose amidst
snow-clad mountains. Such, however, is the characteristic of the
streams falling to the westward of the coast ranges. Descending into a
low and level interior, and depending on their immediate springs for
existence, they fall off, as they increase their distance from the base
of the mountains in which they rise, and in their lower branches give
little results of the promise they had previously made.

The opinion I have expressed, and which is founded on my personal
experience, that the rivers crossed by Messrs. Hovell and Hume had
already united above me, was strengthened by the capacity of the stream
we had just discovered. It had a medium width of 350 feet, with a depth
of from twelve to twenty. Its reaches were from half to three-quarters
of a mile in length, and the views upon it were splendid. Of course, as
the Morumbidgee entered it from the north, its first reach must have
been E. and W., and it was so, as nearly as possible; but it took us a
little to the southward of the latter point, in a distance of about
eight miles that we pulled down it in the course of the afternoon. We
then landed and pitched our tents for the night. Its transparent waters
were running over a sandy bed at the rate of two-and-a-half knots an
hour, and its banks, although averaging eighteen feet in height, were
evidently subject to floods.

ABSENCE OF NATIVES.

We had not seen any natives since falling in with the last tribe on the
Morumbidgee. A cessation had, therefore, taken place in our
communication with them, in re-establishing which I anticipated
considerable difficulty. It appeared singular that we should not have
fallen in with any for several successive days, more especially at the
junction of the two rivers, as in similar situations they generally
have an establishment. In examining the country back from the stream, I
did not observe any large paths, but it was evident that fires had made
extensive ravages in the neighbourhood, so that the country was,
perhaps, only temporarily deserted. Macnamee, who had wandered a little
from the tents, declared that he had seen about a dozen natives round a
fire, from whom (if he really did see them) he very precipitately fled,
but I was inclined to discredit his story, because in our journey on
the following day, we did not see even a casual wanderer.