Oct. 4.—­We were obliged to remain here, as the horses, not finding sufficient food in the neighbourhood of the camp, had strayed so far through the scrub, that they were not found before 2 o’clock in the afternoon, when it was too late to proceed.

Oct. 5.—­We continued our course north by west, through a similar wretched country, and, at the end of about six miles, came to some hills, on the north side of a broad sandy creek, from which we distinguished the white sands of the sea coast, and the white crest of breakers rolling towards the land.  In the bed of the creek as well as on its banks, the back bones of cuttle-fish were numerous.  Charley and John went down to the beach, and brought back several living salt-water shells.  I proceeded up the creek in a south-west direction, and came, at about three miles, to some pools of good water, with a tolerable supply of young feed.  The range we had seen yesterday, was still about eight or ten miles distant, tending from S.S.E. to N.N.W.; it was steep and naked, and was composed of a white rock which proved to be a baked sandstone, nearly resembling quartzite in its homogeneous texture.

Oct. 6.—­One of our bullocks had become so weak that he was unable to carry his load; it was, therefore, put on one of our spare horses, which were still in excellent condition.  I steered for one of the detached mountains at the northern end of the range, and travelled about twelve miles north-west, before we came to its foot.  We had, however, to leave our bullock on the way, as the difficult nature of the country and diarrhoea together had completely exhausted him.  Scrub and dense underwood continued over a rather undulating country to the foot of the range, which was itself covered with open forest.  We passed through a gap between the last two hills of the range, and Charley and Brown, whom I had sent forward in different directions, and who had both been on the highest hill, stated that they had distinctly seen an island in the sea; which could be no other than that marked Cape Maria in Arrowsmith’s map.  They had also seen a large river to the northward, coming from the west; and clearly distinguished large sandy plains extending along it as far as the eye could reach.  At the west side of the range, we soon came to a small salt-water creek with small sandy and sometimes boggy Salicornia plains, surrounded with the scrubby salt-water tea-tree, which possessed an odour very much resembling that of a Blackfellow.  We proceeded about six miles to the southward, when the country became more open, with an abundance of fine young feed for our horses and cattle.  The water was slightly brackish, and, strange enough, it became more so the higher we went up the creek.

Whilst we were at our last camp, Charley met a long file of native women returning, with their dillies and baskets full of shell fish, to the range; near which, very probably, fresh water existed.  We saw their numerous tracks, and a footpath leading to the river; and heard their cooees round our present camp, which may have interfered with one of their camping places.  Our lat. was 15 degrees 14 minutes.