At early dawn, a flight of wild geese filed in long line over our camp, the flapping of their wings was heavy, but short, and the note they emitted resembled that of the common goose, but was some-what shriller.  In the box-flat we started a flock of emus, and Spring caught a fine male bird.  It would have been highly amusing for a looker on to observe how remarkably eager we were to pluck the feathers from its rump, and cut the skin, to see how thick the fat was, and whether it was a rich yellow, or only flesh-coloured.  We had, indeed, a most extraordinary desire for anything fat; and we soon found where to look for it.  In the emu it accumulates all over the skin, but particularly on the rump, and between the shoulders, and round the sternal plate.  To obtain the oil, we skinned those parts, and suspended them before a slow fire, and caught the oil in our frying pan; this was of a light yellowish colour, tasteless, and almost free from scent.  Several times, when suffering from excessive fatigue, I rubbed it into the skin all over the body, and its slightly exciting properties proved very beneficial.  It has always been considered by the white inhabitants of the bush, a good anti-rheumatic.

The sea breeze from the northward still continued during the day; the nights were clear and dewy, but ceased to be so cold.

I found a piece of granite and a fragment of fortification agate in the sandy bed of the creek.

Sept. 5.—­We travelled about ten miles west by north, to lat. 16 degrees 48 minutes 22 seconds.  Having passed a rather open forest of bloodwood, apple-gum, and leguminous Ironbark, with isolated patches of scrub, and some dry teat-ree swamps with heaps of calcined mussel-shells, we came to a thick stringy-bark forest, on a sandy soil, with a hard sandstone cropping out frequently.  This opened into the flats of a sandy Pandanus creek, which we crossed; and, three miles farther, we came to another broad creek with salt water.  Its bed was rocky, and we forded it easily.  I followed one of its branches for several miles, and found, after passing its salt-water pools, a small pool of fresh water in its rocky sandy bed, near which I observed an old camping place of the natives.  I was considerably in advance of my train, and the dog was with me.  As I was examining the pool of water and the numerous tracks round it, an emu came walking along the shady bed of the creek; I immediately mounted my horse and pursued it with the dog, and caught it after a very short run; to prevent its wounding the dog, I dismounted to kill it, when my horse became frightened, broke loose, and ran away.  I returned with the emu to the water, and when the train arrived, I sent Charley after the horse, whilst I walked about two miles further up the creek to find a better supply of water.  Not succeeding, however, I returned and encamped at the small pool, which we enlarged with the spade, and obtained a sufficient supply of very good water.  Charley returned with the horse, but my saddlebags, my journals and a calabash were lost.  I was in great anxiety, and blamed myself severely for having committed such an act of imprudence.  Charley went, however, a second time on foot, and succeeded in finding everything but the calabash, which was a great loss to our dog.