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Its level bed was composed of a stiff bluish clay, without vegetation, mostly dry, and cracked by the heat of the sun; but its depressions were still moist, and treacherously boggy; in many parts of this extensive level, rose isolated patches, or larger island-like groves of Pandanus intermixed with drooping tea-trees, and interwoven with Ipomaeas, or long belts of drooping tea-trees, in the shade of which reaches of shallow water, surrounded by a rich sward of grasses of the most delicate verdure, had remained.
We crossed Beames's brook without difficulty, and travelled about two miles north-west, over a plain, when we came to a river with a broad sandy bed and steep banks, overgrown with large drooping tea-trees. Its stream was five or six yards broad and very shallow. Parallel lines of deep lagoons covered with Nymphaeas and Villarsias were on its west side.
We consequently continued our journey to the north-west, through tea-tree forest, and over some very large tea-tree swamps, and came at last to a creek and to a small river, along which we travelled until darkness compelled us to encamp. It had fine water-holes, and was densely shaded with drooping tea-trees; but the holes were dry, with some few exceptions of small wells of the natives.
There is no timber around the lake, beyond a few xamias, grass trees, and some stunted tea-trees; neither was there much grass. In other respects, I could not have pitched upon a more favourable place to have halted at: for near the lake abounded the flag reed, of which the root was so valuable for food.
You quicken your pace, and escape again into the open plains and the full moonlight, and through the slender tea-trees catch the gleam of the river, and in the exquisite fineness of the atmosphere hear the soothing sound of its murmur. Pisistratus. "And this land has become the heritage of our people!
The scrub now opened, and the last four miles lay through a fine box-flat, bounded by long hollows surrounded with drooping tea-trees and the white water-gum, the bright foliage of which formed a most agreeable contrast with the dull green of the scrubs and the box-trees.
We reached lat. 14 degrees 16 minutes 17 seconds, having travelled about nine miles north-west by north. A range composed of baked sandstone, approached so close to the banks of "Flying-Fox Creek," that we were obliged to cross the range; to the east-ward of which tea-tree flats extended, with many deep but dry water-holes, fringed with fine drooping tea-trees.
A cloudless sky, the long grass wet with the night's gentle shower, a thin veil of mist on the hills, a glassy, steel-blue sea, the air saturated with the essences from myriads of leaves and scented with the last whiffs from the tea-trees and the primal blossoms of the wattles such are the features of this smiling morn.
Box-tree flats of various sizes were separated by long tracts of undulating country, covered with broad-leaved tea-trees, Grevillea ceratophylla, and G. mimosoides, and with the new species of Grevillea, with broad lanceolate leaves. We had to skirt several impassable thickets and scrubs of tea-tree, in one of which Pandanus abounded.
About eight miles from our camp, we crossed a small creek with good water-holes; and at four miles and a half further, came to a river with several channels, separated by high and irregular bergues, with a sandy bed containing large pools of water surrounded with water Pandanus and drooping tea-trees.
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