Soon After, We Came To Another Creek, To The Left Of The First; But It Disappeared In The Same Manner As The Other.

We came upon several lagoons, and found some very fine grass:

The scrub reappeared on the rising ground about six miles north from the large sheet of water. A little farther on, we came to ridges of basaltic formation, openly timbered with silver-leaved Ironbark, and richly covered with young grasses and herbs, identical with those of the Darling Downs. Water holes with fine water were found at the foot of the hills. Mimosa terminalis was frequent; numerous flights of partridge pigeons (Geophaps scripta) were also seen.

Dec. 24. - We returned towards the camp, but, through some inattention, kept too much to the eastward, and passed through a country of an extremely diversified character, and very different in appearance from that we had just left. Here we passed an extensive Myal forest, the finest I had seen, covering the hilly and undulating country, interspersed with groves of the native lemon tree; a few of which were still sufficiently in fruit to afford us some refreshment. Occasionally we met with long stretches of small dead trees, probably killed by bush fires, alternating with Bricklow thickets: and then again crossed small plains and patches of open forest ground, which much relieved the tediousness of the ride through thick scrubs, which we had frequently to penetrate with both hands occupied in protecting the face from the branches. We also crossed chains of water-holes surrounded by a coarse stargrass; these now changed into creeks with deep and irregular beds, lined with Melaleucas, and now again dwindled into shallow channels, scarcely to be recognised amidst the surrounding scrub. A week before, these holes were hopelessly dry; but a recent thunder-storm had filled them; and had also made the ground soft and heavy, and had called into life thousands of small frogs, which, by an incessant croaking, testified their satisfaction at the agreeable change.

Dec. 25. - We returned to Brown's Lagoons, and entered our camp just as our companions were sitting down to their Christmas dinner of suet pudding and stewed cockatoos. The day was cloudy and sultry; we had had a heavy thunder-storm on Christmas eve.

Dec. 26. - During the night, scud passed from the east; in the morning we had some heavy showers without wind; it cleared up at ten o'clock, and we took advantage of four hours fair weather to travel on. We again passed the huts of the natives, and encamped about seven miles farther down the creek. We were, however, scarcely housed, when heavy showers of rain began to fall, and rendered the soil, which was a stiff loam, heavy and boggy.

Dec. 27. - Though we had hobbled our horses with straps and stirrup leathers, they had strayed, during the night, to the more open country, where they separated from each other in search of food; and it was not until after three hours search that Charley found the greater part of them.

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