These Were, In Fact, The Principal Cause Of The Poverty And Debility Of The Poor Brutes, Who Could Never Get A Moment's Rest To Feed Or Sleep. Twenty-Two Miles Were Accomplished To-Day, Despite Their Difficulties.

'February' 8.

- The journey was continued to-day up the Escape, the course of which was very crooked, but generally N.W. by N. The horses knocked up a few miles after starting. The party were therefore obliged to walk and drive them before them. The country traversed was similar to that of yesterday, so that they could not get more than a-mile-and-a-half an hour out of the poor jaded beasts. Three times they tried to make into the river bank, but without success, from the great width and the density of the belt of mangroves, and the soft mud. An old black's camp was passed in which they found heaps of shells, turtle, and shark bones. In the evening they caught a quantity of whelks and cockles, which, with an iguana, and three turkeys' eggs, made a good supper.

'February' 9. - The course of the river to-day was even more crooked than yesterday, the nature of the country continuing the same, save that the swampy ground was occasionally broken by ridges of bloodwood, and stringy-bark. From a tree on one of these they had a fine view of Newcastle Bay, and what was supposed to be Mount Adolphus Island, the latter about 25 miles away, and could trace the course of the river to where it debouched, by the stretch of mangroves.

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