As we approached Williorara the course of the river upwards was somewhat to the westward of north.  The country had an improved appearance as we ascended it, and grass seemed to be more generally distributed over the flats.  We passed several large lagoons, which had already been filled from the river, and were much pleased with the picturesque scenery round them.

On the 7th Jones broke the pole of his dray, and Morgan again broke his shaft, but we managed to repair both without the loss of much time—­and made about ten miles of northing during the day.

We hereabouts shot several new birds; and the dogs killed a very fine specimen of the Dipus of Mitchell, but, unfortunately, in the scuffle, they mangled it so much that we could not preserve it.

On the 8th the weather was oppressively hot, but we managed to get on some fifteen miles before we halted.

Our journey up the Darling had been of greater length than I had anticipated, and it appeared to me that I could not do better than reduce the ration of flour at this early stage of the expedition to provide the more certainly for the future.  I accordingly reduced it to eight pounds a week, still continuing to the men their full allowance of meat and other things.

Nadbuck had assured me on the 9th that if the bullocks did not put out their tongues we should get to Laidley’s Ponds that day, but I hardly anticipated it myself, although I was aware we could not be many miles from them.

We had a great many natives in the neighbourhood at our encampment of the 8th, but they did not approach the tents.  Their families generally were on the opposite side of the river, but one man had his lubra and two children on our side of it.  My attention was drawn to him, from his perseverance in cutting a bark canoe, at which he laboured for more than an hour without success.  Mr. Browne walked with me to the tree at which he was working, and I found that his only tool was a stone tomahawk, and that with such an implement he would hardly finish his work before dark.  I therefore sent for an iron tomahawk, which I gave to him, and with which he soon had the bark cut and detached.  He then prepared it for launching by puddling up its ends, and putting it into the water, placed his lubra and an infant child in it, and giving her a rude spear as a paddle pushed her away from the bank.  She was immediately followed by a little urchin who was sitting on the bank, the canoe being too fragile to receive him; but he evidently doubted his ability to gain the opposite bank of the river, and it was most interesting to mark the anxiety of both parents as the little fellow struck across the foaming current.  The mother kept close beside him in the canoe, and the father stood on the bank encouraging his little son.  At length they all landed in safety, when the native came to return the tomahawk, which he understood to have been only lent to him.  However I was too much pleased with the scene I had witnessed to deprive him of it, nor did I ever see a man more delighted than he was when he found that the tomahawk, the value and superiority of which he had so lately proved was indeed his own.  He thanked me for it, he eyed it with infinite satisfaction, and then turning round plunged into the stream and joined his family on the opposite bank.