Wretched appearance of the country.

I came up with with Mr. Hume about 1 o’clock and we again pushed forward at 3, and halted for the night without water, the want of which the cattle did not feel.  The river held a general westerly course, and the country in its neighbourhood became extremely depressed and low.  On the following day we moved forward a distance of not more than nine miles, through a country on which, at first, the acacia pendula alone was growing on a light alluvial soil.  The river had many back drains, by means of which, in wet seasons, it inundates the adjacent plains.  It was evident, however, that they had not been flooded for many years; and, notwithstanding that the country was low, the line of inundation did not appear to be very extensive, nor were there any reeds growing beyond the immediate banks of the river.  Swamp-oak and rough-gum again prevailed near the stream at our halting place, and the improvement that had taken place, both in the country and in the Castlereagh, had induced us to make so short a journey; for not only was there abundance of the grass for the animals, but large ponds of water in the river.  Some natives had only just preceded us down it:  we came upon their fires that were still smoking; and upon them were the remains of some fish they had taken, near which they had left a cumbrous spear.  The circumstances cheered us with hopes that an improvement would take place in the country, and that some new feature would soon open upon us.  In the course of the following day, however, every favorable change, both in the river and in the country, disappeared.  The latter continued extremely depressed, and in general open, or lightly covered with acacia pendula; the former dwindled into a mere ditch, choked up with brambles and reeds, and having only here and there a stagnant pool of water.  We travelled on a N.W. 1/2 W. course for about ten miles, and again stopped for the night without water.  In the course of the afternoon, we traversed several flats, on which the rough-gum alone was growing.  These flats were evidently subject to flood; and contained an alluvial soil.

They became more frequent as we travelled down the river, and the work was so heavy for the animals, that I was obliged to keep wide of them, in doing which we struck upon a creek of large size, coming from the N.E. and, having crossed, we traversed its right bank to its junction with the Castlereagh, and stopped close to it at a pond of water, though the feed for the animals was bad.  The country to the left of the river, though somewhat high, was the same, in essential points, as that to the right.