Our Route Lay Through A Low Wet Country For The First Eight Or Ten
Miles, The Flats Covered With The Acacia Pendula; The Last Three Miles
Were Rather More Elevated:
The soil in general a loose, red, sandy loam,
with small cypress, box, and acacia trees; a few acres in patches had
been burned, occasionally relieving the eye from the otherwise barren
scrubby appearance of the country.
We passed through two or three small
eucalyptus scrubs, and upon getting out of one, having gone thirteen
miles and a quarter, we fortunately happened to fall in with a native
well, containing a few gallons of water sufficient for our own supply;
whilst the open level land which the scrub led to having been burnt, we
hoped would afford succulent herbage sufficient for the horses, and
prevent them from suffering from the want of water. Our course was
N. 69 E. thirteen miles.
August 5. - The water for our breakfast drained our little well to the
dregs. Hoping that we should be more fortunate in this day's route, at
half past eight o'clock we again set forward, on the same point as
yesterday.
The first four miles of our course led through one of those dreadful
scrubs of eucalyptus dumosa, and prickly grass, which we had often
before experienced; it was on rather an elevated plain, and, exclusive
of the difficulty of forcing a passage through it, was extremely boggy
and distressing to the horses. After passing through it, the country for
five or six miles farther was more open, the same elevated plain or
level still continuing, being thinly studded with box and cypress trees,
with abundance of acacia and other shrubs: the soil a loose, red, sandy
loam. At the tenth mile we providentially found a small muddy hole of
water which, bad as it was, refreshed both men and horses extremely;
fearing, from the appearance of the country, that we should not find any
water farther on, we filled our small keg, containing nearly three
gallons, which would at all events free us from absolute want. We went
four miles farther through the same desert country, when evening drawing
on, and the small trees and shrubs becoming thicker, we thought it best
to stop before we again encountered an eucalyptus brush; which not
affording the smallest fodder for the horses, would, added to the want
of water, render them in all probability unable to take either us or
themselves out of the desert in which we were.
The spot we halted on afforded some dry tea-grass and a few syngeneceous
shrubs; and praying for a heavy dew to moisten them, we hoped the
animals would not on the whole fare much worse than ourselves.
The rain which had fallen while we were on the river was not perceptible
here; indeed I think sufficient to deluge any other country must fall,
before it is seen on the surface of such a soil as prevails in this part
of New South Wales.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 66 of 184
Words from 33859 to 34360
of 95539
