f islands on
the north-west coast of Carpentaria, Wessel's, the English Company's, and
Bromby's Islands, remarks, that he had "frequently observed a great
similarity both in the ground plans, and the elevations of hills, and of
islands, in the vicinity of each other, but did not recollect another
instance of such a likeness in the arrangement of clusters of islands."*
The appearances which called for this observation, from a voyager of so
much sagacity and experience in physical geography, must probably have
been very remarkable; and, combined with information derivable from the
charts, and from the specimens for which we are indebted to Captain King
and Mr. Brown, they would seem to point out the arrangement of the strata
on the northern coasts of New Holland.

(*Footnote. The following are the proportions assigned by Captain de
Freycinet to the principal divisions of the globe. Voyage aux Terres
Australes page 107.

COLUMN 1: DIVISION OF THE GLOBE.
COLUMN 2: AREA IN FRENCH LEAGUES SQUARE.
COLUMN 3: PROPORTION.

Asia : 2,200,000 : 17.
America : 2,100,000 : 17.
Africa : 1,560,000 : 12.
Europe : 501,875 : 4.
Australia : 384,375 : 3.

The most remote points from the coast of New South Wales, to which the
late expeditions have penetrated (and the interior has never yet been
examined in any other quarter) are not above 500 miles, in a direct line
from the sea; the average width of the island from east to west being
more than 2000 miles, and from north to south more than 1000 miles.)

(*Footnote. Flinders 5 2 page 246; and Charts, Plates 14 and 15. King's
Charts, Plate 4.)

Of the three ranges which attracted Captain Flinders' notice (see the
Map) the first on the south-east (3, 4, 5, 6, 7) is that which includes
the Red Cliffs, Mallison's Island, a part of the coast of Arnhem's Land,
from Cape Newbold to Cape Wilberforce, and Bromby's Isles; and its
length, from the mainland (3) on the south-west of Mallison's Island, to
Bromby's Isles (7) is more than fifty miles, in a direction nearly from
south-west to north-east. The English Company's Islands (2, 2, 2, 2) at a
distance of about four miles, are of equal extent; and the general
trending of them all, Captain Flinders states (page 233) is nearly
North-East by East, parallel with the line of the main coast, and with
Bromby's Islands. Wessel's Islands (1, 1, 1, 1) the third or most
northern chain, at fourteen miles from the second range, stretch out to
more than e