Livistona palm and Cochlospermum gossypium grew on the ridges; the tea-tree, the stringy-bark, the leguminous Ironbark and Eugenia were useful timber. The whole country was most magnificently grassed.
A Porphyritic sienite cropped out at the head of the first swamp, about a mile from our last camp.
We had cut our rifle balls into slugs, with which Charley and Brown shot three geese (Anseranus melanoleuca, Gould).
A low range was seen at the south-east end of the large swamp on which we encamped.
Nov. 26. — We travelled about nine miles and a half N.N.W. to lat. 12 degrees 51 minutes 56 seconds. After having once more seen the river, where it was joined by the broad outlet of a swamp, I turned to the northward, and passed over closely-wooded and scrubby ridges of ironstone and conglomerate, with pebbles and pieces of quartz covering the ground. Livistona inermis, R. Br. formed small groves; and Pandanus covered the hollows and banks of two small creeks with rocky water-holes going to the westward. About six miles from our last camp, an immense plain opened before us, at the west side of which we recognized the green line of the river. We crossed the plain to find water, but the approaches of the river were formed by tea-tree hollows, and by thick vine brush, at the outside of which noble bouquets of Bamboo and stately Corypha palms attracted our attention. In skirting the brush, we came to a salt-water creek (the first seen by us on the north-west coast), when we immediately returned to the ridges, where we met with a well-beaten foot-path of the natives, which led us along brush, teeming with wallabies, and through undulating scrubby forest ground to another large plain. Here the noise of clouds of water-fowl, probably rising at the approach of some natives, betrayed to us the presence of water. We encamped at the outskirts of the forest, at a great distance from the large but shallow pools, which had been formed by the late thunder-showers. The water had received a disagreeable sour aluminous taste from the soil, and from the dung of innumerable geese, ducks, native companions, white cranes, and various other water-fowl. The boggy nature of the ground prevented our horses and the bullock from approaching it; and they consequently strayed very far in search of water. In the forest land, the Torres Straits pigeon (Carpophaga luctuosa, Gould,) was numerous. At sunset, Charley returned to the camp, accompanied by a whole tribe of natives. They were armed with small goose spears, and with flat wommalas; but, although they were extremely noisy, they did not show the slightest hostile intention. One of them had a shawl and neckerchief of English manufacture: and another carried an iron tomahawk, which he said he got from north-west by north. They knew Pichenelumbo (Van Diemen’s Gulf), and pointed to the north-west by north, when we asked for it. I made them various presents: and they gave us some of their ornaments and bunches of goose feathers in return, but showed the greatest reluctance in parting with their throwing sticks (wommalas.) They were inclined to theft, and I had to mount Brown on horseback to keep them out of our camp.
Nov. 27. — The natives returned very early to our camp, and took the greatest notice of what we were eating, but would not taste anything we offered them. When Brown returned with our bullock, the beast rushed at them, and pursued them for a great distance, almost goring one of their number.
We travelled about three miles and a half north-east, but had to go fairly over ten miles of ground. We followed the foot-path of the natives for about two miles, passing over some scrubby ridges into a series of plains, which seemed to be boundless to the N.W. and N.N.W. A broad deep channel of fresh water covered with Nymphaeas and fringed with Pandanus, intercepted our course; and I soon found that it formed the outlet of one of those remarkable swamps which I have described on the preceding stages. We turned to the E. and E.S.E. following its outline, in order either to find a crossing place, or to head it