Latitude by e Pegasi 19 degrees 29 minutes 43 seconds.

23rd October.

At 7.0 a.m. steered south-south-east and south-east over ridges of sandstone, timbered with ironbark and thinly grassed, for an hour and a half; again struck the river and passed at the foot of some limestone hills and ridges; this limestone contained fragments of shells and coral.  Altering the course to south, traversed fine open flats half a mile to a mile wide, beyond which the country rose into low ridges of limestone.  At noon basalt appeared covering the limestone and sandstone.  The steep slope which formed the boundary of this rock was very rugged; but the level surface was covered with black soil and well grassed.  At 12.55 p.m. camped in a fine grassy flat, walled in by steep rocks of basalt.  We experienced some difficulty in watering the horses, as the bank of the river was so steep that they frequently fell back into the river in ascending it.  The limestone rocks seen on this day’s journey appear to rise from beneath the sandstones, some of which are very hard and close-grained; it dips about 10 degrees to the west and some of the adjacent sandstones 20 degrees west, in well-defined strata.  The basalt covers all the other rocks, filling up the former inequalities of the surface and forming a perfectly level plain; where the softer sandstones were in contact, they were only baked into a coarse brick-like mass, which had had much the appearance of having been formed from the alluvial banks of the river.

Latitude by e Pegasi and a Gruis 19 degrees 42 minutes 10 seconds; variation of compass 6 degrees 15 minutes east.

Ducks, geese, and pelicans.

24th October.

Leaving our camp at 6.0 a.m., steered south-south-east over well-grassed basaltic flats, timbered thinly with ironbark, etc.; the soil a red loam.  At 9.0 a.m. came on a large reedy lagoon or swamp with considerable patches of shallow open water, on which were great numbers of ducks, geese, pelicans, etc.  A broad and deep stream flowed from it to the south-east, varying from thirty to eighty yards in width, with a thick belt of reeds along the margin, beyond which the ground rose about fifty feet to the level surface of the basaltic plain.  Following the winding of the stream till 10.35 a.m., crossed it at a ledge of basaltic rocks, when it formed a fine rapid with vertical fall of eight to ten feet.  Beyond the running channel a dry sandy creek ran parallel at a distance of 80 to 100 yards from it.  Our course was now between the creek and the steep rocky edge of the basaltic plain, which was too rugged for the horses to ascend till 11.20 a.m., when, crossing the basalt, we passed to the south of a shallow lake about half a mile in diameter.  The country now became scrubby, with patches of grass.  Altering the course more to the east, we again entered an open ironbark forest; at 2.0 p.m. crossed a large dry sandy creek, beyond