Brown Had Taken The Precaution
To Fill Charley's Large Calabash With Water, So That We Were Enabled To
Make A Refreshing Cup Of Tea In The Most Scorching Heat Of The Day.
Towards Sunset We Heard, To Our Great Joy, The Noisy Jabbering Of
Natives, Which Promised The Neighbourhood Of Water.
I dismounted and
cooeed; they answered; but when they saw me, they took such of their
things as they could and crossed to the opposite side of the river in
great hurry and confusion.
When Brown, who had stopped behind, came up to
me, I took the calabash and put it to my mouth, and asked for "yarrai,
yarrai." They answered, but their intended information was lost to me;
and they were unwilling to approach us. Their camp was in the bed of the
river amongst some small Casuarinas. Their numerous tracks, however, soon
led me to two wells, surrounded by high reeds, where we quenched our
thirst. My horse was very much frightened by the great number of hornets
buzzing about the water. After filling our calabash, we returned to the
camp of the natives, and examined the things which they had left behind;
we found a shield, four calabashes, of which I took two, leaving in their
place a bright penny, for payment; there were also, a small water-tight
basket containing acacia-gum; some unravelled fibrous bark, used for
straining honey; a fire-stick, neatly tied up in tea-tree bark; a
kangaroo net; and two tomahawks, one of stone, and a smaller one of iron,
made apparently of the head of a hammer:
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