14G 



Report of a Journey of Discoveby into the Interior of AYestern 

 Australia, between Sth September, 1848, and Brd February, 1849; 

 bff J. S. EoE, Esq., Surveyor-General, 



(Coniinuedfrom p, 123.) 



On the 38 th of November, the horses having been sufficiently re- 

 cruited, and all practicable repairs effected in our clothes and appoint- 

 ments, we commenced our return, passing from one to another of 

 various hills, composed of granite and gneiss, which we had noticed 

 from the interior, and generally finding around them sufficient grass 

 and water for our purposes. Grass-trees and Zamia? were again met 

 with at less than twenty miles from Eussell Eange, as also the kanga- 

 roo, which afforded us a welcome relief from our long^salt diet. 



The soil of the country we now traversed was generally of a light 

 sandy character, but it improved as we proceeded westward, and en- 

 countered the novelty of numerous open fresh lakes, rushy lagoons, and 

 abundance of fresh water, in a country lying low and level- Clumps of 

 Yeit-trees scattered about it afforded our horses abundance of grass ; 

 and we had the satisfaction of seeing them improve daily in spirit and 

 condition, for the country was once more open and accessible, and gave 

 us reason to hope that all formidable scrubs had been finally left behind. 

 Fragments of limestone, of oolitic formation and variegated colours, 

 were in many places abundantly scattered over the surface ; and the 

 same rock frequently formed the basis of the low rocky ridges which 

 traversed the level country between the granite hills. The latter were 

 usually bare naked masses of close solid granite or gneiss^ 300 to 500 



r 



feet above the surrounding plains, from which a sloping platform as- 

 cended for half a mile to the base of the bare rock. These hills fre- 

 quently presented the extraordinary appearance of deep yawning rents 

 or fissures, three inches to a foot in width across their entire breadth, 

 some being open, but the greater part filled up with loose stones and 

 rubbish. The rock itself was too compact and solid to exhibit much 

 dip or stratification ; but wherever any such were observable, the dip 

 seemed to be to the S.S.E., at an angle of 20"^ from the vertical. We 



ige masses 



rock of which these hills were composed had from some unknown 

 cause, probably subterranean, undergone a complete and violent dis- 

 ruption; and that, whilst one end of a mountain-mass would be piled 



