This excellent and zealous officer sailed from King George’s Sound, on the 10th of April, 1831, and arrived off Cape Jervis on the 13th.  He was attended by Doctor Davies, one of the assistant surgeons of his regiment, and by Mr. Kent, of the Commissariat.  It is to the latter gentleman that the public are indebted for the greater part of the following details; he having attended Captain Barker closely during the whole of this short but disastrous excursion, and made notes as copious as they are interesting.  At the time the Isabella arrived off Cape Jervis, the weather was clear and favourable.  Captain Barker consequently stood into St. Vincent’s Gulf, keeping, as near as practicable, to the eastern shore, in soundings that varied from six to ten fathoms, upon sand and mud.  His immediate object was to ascertain if there was any communication with the lake Alexandrina from the gulf.  He ascended to lat. 34 degrees 40 minutes where he fully satisfied himself that no channel did exist between them.  He found, however, that the ranges behind Cape Jervis terminated abruptly at Mount Lofty, in lat. 34 degrees 56 minutes, and, that a flat and wooded country succeeded to the N. and N.E.  The shore of the gulf tended more to the N.N.W., and mud flats and mangrove swamps prevailed along it.

Inviting country—­mount lofty.

Mr. Kent informs me, that they landed for the first time on the 15th, but that they returned almost immediately to the vessel.  On the 17th, Captain Barker again landed, with the intention of remaining on shore for two or three days.  He was accompanied by Mr. Kent, his servant Mills, and two soldiers.  The boat went to the place at which they had before landed, as they thought they had discovered a small river with a bar entrance.  They crossed the bar, and ascertained that it was a narrow inlet, of four miles in length, that terminated at the base of the ranges.  The party were quite delighted with the aspect of the country on either side of the inlet, and with the bold and romantic scenery behind them.  The former bore the appearance of natural meadows, lightly timbered, and covered with a variety of grasses.  The soil was observed to be a rich, fat, chocolate coloured earth, probably the decomposition of the deep blue limestone, that showed itself along the coast hereabouts.  On the other hand, a rocky glen made a cleft in the ranges at the head of the inlet; and they were supplied with abundance of fresh water which remained in the deeper pools that had been filled by the torrents during late rains.  The whole neighbourhood was so inviting that the party slept at the head of the inlet.

Mount lofty and its environs.