e but natives, and that the hiding-place had not been touched.

Having deposited the field-books and a note, with an account of their
sufferings and a pitiful and useless appeal for food and clothing, he
started back to rejoin Burke, terribly fatigued and weak from his long
walk.

It had taken him eleven days to cover the seventy miles to and fro, and
he had had very little to eat.

However, to his surprise, one morning, on his way back he heard a cooee
from the opposite bank of the Creek, and saw Pitchery, the chief of the
friendly blacks, beckoning to him to come to their camp. Pitchery made
him sit down by a fire, upon which a large pile of fish was cooking.

This he thought was to provide a breakfast for the half-dozen natives
who sat around; but to his astonishment they made him eat the whole lot,
while they sat by extracting the bones.

Afterwards a supply of nardoo was given him; at which he ate until he
could eat no more. The blacks then asked him to stay the night with
them; but as he was anxious to rejoin Burke and King, he went on.

In his absence Burke, while frying some fish that the natives had given
him, had set fire to the mia-mia (a shelter made by the blacks of bushes
and trees).

It burnt so quickly that every remnant of their clothing was destroyed,
and nothing saved but a gun.

In a few days they all started back towards the depot, in the hope that
they could live with the blacks; but they found they had again
disappeared.

On again next morning to another of the native camps; but, finding it
empty, the wanderers took possession of the best mia-mia, and Wills and
King were sent out to collect nardoo.

This was now absolutely their only food, with the exception of two crows
which King shot; he alone seemed to be uninjured by the nardoo. Wills
had at last suddenly collapsed, and could only lie in the mia-mia, and
philosophically contemplate the situation.

He strongly advised Burke and King to leave him, as the only chance for
the salvation of any one of them now was to find the blacks.

Very reluctantly at last Burke consented to go; and after placing a
large supply of nardoo, wood, and water within easy reach, Burke said
again:

'I will not leave you, Wills, under any other circumstance than that of
your own wish.'

And Wills, again repeating 'It is our only chance,' gave him a letter
and his watch for his father.

King had already buried the rest of the field-books near the mia-m