The sandy bed of the creek was entirely dry, and we must have encamped without water after a long and fatiguing ride, had not a heavy thunder-shower supplied us; we caught the rain in our pannikins as it dropt from our extended blankets.

The thunder-storm had passed, and the sun had set, when Brown, my blackfellow, suddenly threw back the blanket under which we sat, and pointed out to me a fine comet in a small clear spot of the western sky.  I afterwards learned that this comet had been observed as early as the 1st December; but our constant travelling in level forest land had prevented us from seeing it before.  The creek received the appropriate name of “Comet Creek.”

Dec. 29.—­Following the creek down, we found water in chains of ponds, and watercourses coming from a belt of scrub occupying the ground between the creek and the mountains.  Fine, though narrow, but well-grassed flats extended along Comet Creek.  We observed growing on the creek, the dwarf Koorajong (Grewia), a small rough-leaved fig tree, a species of Tribulus, and the native Portulaca.  The latter afforded us an excellent salad; but was much more acid than I had found it in other parts of the country, where I had occasionally tasted it.  The native melon of the Darling Downs and of the Gwyder, grew here also.  Of animals, we saw several kangaroos, emus, native companions, and wallabies.

During our return to the camp, a hot wind blew from the south-west across Albinia Downs:  the great extent of which sufficiently accounted for the high temperature.  The only thermometer I had was unfortunately broken shortly after we started; this loss was severely felt by me throughout the journey, as we had no means of ascertaining the exact temperature.  I made the latitude of our camp at Scrub Creek to be 24 degrees 25 minutes 42 seconds.

Dec. 30.—­We travelled about seven miles to the north-east, crossed Comet Creek, and encamped at some water-holes, in a small creek coming out of the scrub below the range.

Our sportsmen gave chase to ten emus and a kangaroo on Albinia Downs:  but the rottenness of the ground prevented their capture:  rather tantalizing to hungry stomachs!  I examined the basaltic rock on several spots, and found that it contained numerous crystals of Peridot.  The sand in the bed of the river contains very minute particles of igneous rock.  The slopes of the range of Comet Creek are composed of rich black soil, in some places without trees, in others openly timbered.  Stones of a light coloured rock, with crystals of augite, pebbles of sandstone, of conglomerate, and of quartz, are scattered over the ground, or imbedded in the loamy beds of the water-courses.  The belt of scrub at the foot of the slopes runs out in narrow strips towards the river, and these are separated by box-tree thickets, and open box-tree flats.  A pea-plant, with ternate leaves, and fine yellow blossoms, was found near our camp:  Portulaca was very abundant.  The bronze-winged pigeon lived here on the red fruit of Rhagodia, and the black berries of a species of Jasmine; and seems also to pick occasionally the seed vessel of a Ruellia, which is very frequent on all the flats of Comet Creek.