Hodgkinson’s statement is this—­that Mr. Landells having asked him whether he could keep a secret, told him, after extracting a sort of promise about holding his tongue, that Mr. Burke wanted an excuse for discharging him, and that he had sent him with the camels with an order to him (Mr. Landells) to find fault with him for that purpose.  On hearing this, Hodgkinson wanted to go to Mr. Burke and speak to him about it at once; but Landells prevented this by reminding him of his promise.  This all came out owing to some remarks that Hodgkinson had made to me, and which I considered myself in duty bound to tell Mr. Burke.  On Monday evening Mr. Landells was speaking to me about the best and quickest way of getting to town, when I suggested to him that he might be placing himself in a disagreeable position by leaving in such a hurry without giving any notice.  He replied that he did not care, but that he meant to propose certain terms to Mr. Burke, which he read to me from his pocket-book, and on these terms only he would go:—­“That Mr. Burke should give him a written agreement that he, Mr. L., should have full and unqualified charge of the camels, and that from that time Mr. B. should not interfere with them in any way; that they should travel no further nor faster than Mr. L. chose, and that he should be allowed to carry provisions for them to the amount of four camels’ burthen.”  Just after this, Mr. B. came up and called Mr. L. aside, and, as the former told me, read to him a letter that he had written to accompany the resignation.  The contents of this letter had a considerable effect on Mr. L., who said that it was a pity they should have had any quarrel, and so acted on Mr. B.’s feelings, that he allowed him to withdraw his resignation.  I believe that the information which had arrived about a steamer being on its way up the river had had a great influence in making Mr. Landells desirous to withdraw his resignation; but the chief reason was, no doubt, that he feared, from the concluding sentence of Mr. Burke’s letter, that the committee would refuse him his pay.

After this, everything appeared to be healed for a day or two; but on Wednesday, from various matters that had occurred, I considered it my duty to mention to Mr. Burke about Hodgkinson and some things that Mr. Landells had said to me; whereupon it came out that Mr. L. had been playing a fine game, trying to set us all together by the ears.  To Mr. Burke he has been abusing and finding fault with all of us; so much so, that Mr. B. tells me that Landells positively hates me.  We have, apparently, been the best of friends.  To me, he has been abusing Mr. Burke, and has always spoken as if he hated the Doctor and Mr. Becker; whereas with them he has been all milk and honey.  There is scarcely a man in the party whom he has not urged Mr. Burke to dismiss.