Part 2 (1/2)

PARTY REDUCED BY THE RETURN OF MR HODGSON AND CALEB--MEET FRIENDLY NATIVES--NATIVE TOMB--THE DAWSON--VERVAIN PLAINS--GILBERT'S RANGE--LYND'S RANGE--ROBINSON'S CREEK--MURPHY'S LAKE--MOUNTAINOUS COUNTRY--EXPEDITION RANGE--MOUNT NICHOLSON--ALDIS'S PEAK--THE BOYD

Nov 3--For the past week, the heat was very oppressive during the day, whilst, at night, it was often exceedingly cold; for two or three hours before dawn, and for an hour after sunset, it was generally delightful, particularly within the influence of a cheerful cypress-pine fire, which perfu resin

It had now becouine in ame to furnish my party with anith We had also been coreater extent than I wished; and I saw clearly that my party, which I had reluctantly increased on e for our provisions

I, therefore, co our number: all, however, appeared equally desirous to continue the journey; and it was, therefore, but just that those who had joined last, should leave Mr Gilbert, however, ould, under this arrangeson, who had perhaps suffered ues; so that he and Caleb, the Aro, prepared for their return to Moreton Bay Previous, however, to their departure, they assisted in killing one of our steers, the meat of which we cut into thin slices, and dried in the sun This, our first experiment--on the favourable result of which the success of our expedition entirely depended--kept us, during the process, in a state of great excitereat joy, and inspired us with confidence for the future The little steer gave us 65lbs of dried meat, and about 15lbs of fat The operation concluded, we took leave of our coh our material was reduced by the two horses on which they returned, Mr Hodgson left us the greater part of his own equipment The loss of the two horses caused us some little inconvenience, as it increased the loads of the animals The daily ration of the party was now fixed at six pounds of flour per day, with three pounds of dried beef, which we found perfectly sufficient to keep up our strength

Whenever it was necessary to delay for any tireat trouble: they would continually stray back in the direction we came from, and we had frequently to fetch theson's horses had returned even to the camp of the 21st October, and three days were required to find the them back These matters caused us considerable delay; but they were irre, ere hailed by natives, from the scrub; but, with the exception of one, they kept out of sight This e of Darling Downs; he seemed to be familiar with the country round Jimba; and asked permission to come to the camp: this, however, I did not peruns, and bring forward two horses to the caain, and co in a very friendly way: they pointed out honey in one of the neighbouring trees, assisted in cutting it out and eating it, and asked for tobacco; it was, however, i to spare

They particularly adht of a large sword, which they treht be returned into the sheath, and wondered at the ticking of a watch, and at thecountenance; the children remained in the distance, and I only sao to their statements, the scrub extends to the Condamine

The scrub was crossed in every direction by tracks of wallabies, of which, however, we could not even get a sight The glucking bird--by which nauished--was heard through the night They live probably upon the seeds of the cypress-pine; the female answers the loud call of the male, but in a , rese the one described in Sir Thomas Mitchell's journey, but specifically different froht in the water-holes of the creek, which I called ”Dried-beef Creek,” in memorial of our late occupation

A Goodenoviaceous shrub, a pink Hibiscus, and a fine prostrate Sida, were found between the camp of the 27th October and Dried-beef Creek

Nov 4--Having previously exah the scrub, we travelled through it for about eight miles on a north by west course The head of Dried-beef Creek, was found to be for the scrub; and, when these disappeared, ere n of drainage, but occasionally passing isolated holes, now for the greater part dry On our left, our course was bounded by a dense Bricklow scrub; but, on our right, for the first four miles, the country was comparatively open, with scattered Acacias; it then became densely timbered, but free froht A natural opening, which had recently been enlarged by a bush fire, enabled us to pass into a dense Ironbark and cypress-pine forest; and then, bearing a little to the right, we caht watercourse to the northward, which rapidly enlarged as it descended between ranges, which seemed to be the spurs of the table land we had just left

Nov 5--We observed the tomb of a native near our camp It was a simple conical heap of sand, which had been raised over the body, which was probably bent into the squatting position of the natives; but, as our object was to pass quietly, without giving offence to the aborigines, we did not disturb it It is, however, rehout our whole journey, we never raves or toain; with the exception of a skull, which I shall notice at a later period Several isolated conical hills were in the vicinity of our ca us with good whetstones

After travelling about four h a fine open undulating country, we came to, and followed the course of, a considerable creek flowing to the ard, bounded by extensive flooded gues, clothed with a forest of silver-leaved Ironbark

Large reedy lagoons, well supplied with fish, were in its bed Our latitude was 26 degrees 4our cattle enabled me at last to mount every one offairly set in, and no thunder-stor cooled the at during the middle of the day had become very severe From Jimba we started with a few horses without load, which only enabled us to ride alternately; but, as our provisions gradually decreased in quantity, one after the othereverybody on horseback

We travelled along the valley of the river about ten miles, in a west-northerly course; our latitude of this day being 26 degrees 3 minutes 44 seconds Fine box and apple-tree flats were on both sides of the creek, now deserving the appellation of a ”River,” and which I called the ”Dawson,” in acknowledgment of the kind support I received from R

Dawson, Esq, of Black Creek, Hunter's River At the foot of the ridges sooons were observed, as also several plains, with the soil and the vegetation of the Downs, but bounded on the northward by i through this scrub, sandstone cropped out, in which impressions of fossil plants were noticed byto observe how strictly the scrub kept to the sandstone and to the stiff loa upon it, whilst the mild black whinstone soil ithout trees, but covered with luxuriant grasses and herbs; and this fact struckmy travels in the Bunya country of Moreton Bay, I found it to be exactly the reverse: the sandstone spurs of the range being there covered with an open well grassed forest, whilst a dense vine brush extended over the basaltic rock The phenomenon is probably to be explained by the capability of the different soils of retaininginto account the distance of the localities from the seacoast I called these plains ”Calvert's Plains,” after my companion, Mr Calvert Farther to the e passed over open ridges, covered with bastard-box and silver-leaved Ironbark: the forenerally in rich black soil, which appeared several tihed land, well known, in other parts of the colony, either under that name, or under that of ”Devil-devil land,” as the natives believe it to be the work of an evil spirit

Nov 7--The first two hours of the day were cloudy, but it cleared up and became very hot; the atmosphere was hazy and sultry; cumuli with undefined outlines all round the horizon: wind from south-west and south

I travelled west by north about eightthe foot of bastard-box and silver-leaved Ironbark ridges The country was exceedingly fine; the ground was firm; the valley frorass, and sprinkled with apple-tree, flooded-guentle ascents, and were openly timbered The water-holes seemed to be constant; they are very deep, densely surrounded by reeds, and with numerous heaps of broken muscle-shells round their banks Scrub was, however, to be seen in the distance, and formed the dark spot in the pleasant picture Gaht every body had a duck As ere pursuing our course, Mr Gilbert started a large kangaroo, known by the fae in a water-hole, where it was killed, but at the expense of two of our kangaroo dogs, which wereat our dinner, a fine half-grown emu walked slowly up to us, as if curious to knohat business we had in its lonely haunts; unfortunately for us, the bark of our little terrier frightened it; and, although one of my Blackfellows shot after it, it retired unscathed into the neighbouring thicket Mr Roper killed a Rallus, which Mr Gilbert thought to be new The high land froe to the south-east

Fine-grained sandstone, with iain observed, and a few pieces of silicified wood A Thysanotus with fine large blossoms now adorns the forest The native carrot is in seed; the Eryngiuuminous plant, prostrate with ternate leaves and bunches of yelloers, were frequent; several beautiful species of everlastings were occasionally seen, and the little orange-tree of the Condarew in the scrub

Nov 8--We followed the Dawson for about eight miles lower down About four miles from our camp, it is joined by a fine chain of ponds from the north-east The flats on both sides are covered by open bastard-box forest, of a more or less open character In the rainy season, the whole valley is probably covered ater; for we frequently observed thethe foot of the ridges, ponds and lagoons were frequent The heat of surasses; and it was only in the ihbourhood of the river that there was any appearance of verdure The bed of the river becaed its character considerably

Charley stated, that he had seen a large plain extending for h eons, and ducks were seen Mr Calvert found concretions of reat nu the Condaenerally during the afternoon, ind froht it usually clears up

Nov 10--The country along the river changed, during the last two stages, considerably for the worse The scrub approached very near to the banks of the river, and, where it receded, a disagreeable thicket of bastard-box saplings filled al the river, frequently far above its level; the river itself divided into anabranches, which, with the shalloatercourses of occasional floods from the hills, made the whole valley a maze of channels, from which we could only with difficulty extricate ourselves ”I never saw such a rum river, in my life,” said my blackfellow Charley

The open forest was soht yellow blossorasses and vervain Alrow here Ironstone and quartz pebbles were strewed over the ground; and, in the valley, fine-grained sandstone with layers of iron-ore cropped out

Large fish were seen in the lagoons; but we only succeeded in catching soenus Gristes Muscles continued to be frequent; andthe gunyas of the natives everywhere, although no native rowing on the scrubby hills, a species of Bauhinia, either shrubby or a s branches; the pods are flat, of a blunt form, al The Bricklow seeetation, with the exception of a small shrub, with linear lanceolate aro, alrew in patches a flowers, on a sandy soil Our latitude, of the 9th Noverees 53 rees 47 minutes 55 seconds, at about eleven miles north-west from the camp of the 8th November