23.]
When on my return to the depot, I had seen the natives creeping after me
with their spears, I and the native boy at once halted, turned round and
went slowly towards them, upon this they retreated. They would see by
this that we did not fear them, and as the party at the camp had been
increased in number by our return, I thought they might probably be more
cautious in their hostile demonstrations, which for the present was the
case, for we saw nothing more of them for some time.
During my absence, the overseer, according to my instructions, had put a
party of men to dig for water in the bed of the creek, about four miles
from the depot, in a westerly direction and down upon the plains. They
were busy when I arrived at the depot; the soil already dug through had
been a very hard gravel, but as yet no water had been found, they had got
to a depth of about ten feet; but from the indurated character of the
soil were proceeding very slowly.
I was, however, too much fatigued to go and inspect the work immediately,
the boy and myself as well as the horses being completely worn out. We
had ridden in the last five days and a half, about two hundred miles, and
walked about twenty up and down rocky and precipitous creeks, whilst, for
the last two nights before our arrival we had scarcely been off the
horses' back.
