176 JOURNEY OF DISCOVERY INTO 



desirous of ascertaining what facilities existed for its transport by water- 

 Where I quitted this river it was coming from the N.W,, and lay in ir- 

 regular rocky pools, usually salt. The stratified gneiss rock, of dark 

 glittering appearance, which here formed the basis of the country, was 

 observed to lie in the direction of the magnetic meridian, with a de- 

 cided dip to the eastward of about 15° from the vertical. Fragments 

 of red sandstone, several inches square, lay on the surface near our rocky 

 bridge, and contained many perfect' impressions of bivalve shells. Cross- 

 ing to the right bank by the rocky bridge, we came out on the estuary 

 by some good grassy slopes near its mouth. The water in some of the 

 holes in the rocks, from two to twelve feet in diameter, was found to 

 be perfectly fresh and good, whilst in others, almost in contact with 

 them, it was far too brackish for use. The pools and holes were not 

 full, and thin layers of salt, encrusted on the rocks, showed the gradual 

 process of evaporation, as the river had ceased to run. The frag- 

 ments or debris on the banks (for in the actual bed of the river there 

 were none) consisted chiefly of water-worn pieces of granite, quartz, 

 whin, streakstone, red sandstone, oolitic conglomerate, and a variety of 

 fragments of dark slaty colour and very hard close grain. Calcareous 

 rocks and red sandstone had repeatedly occurred during the day, as we 

 passed over a rough undulating country, otherwise uninteresting. 



On the 20th of December, as we advanced westward, the geological 

 indications acquired additional interest in our eyes at every watercourse 

 we crossed, for the intervening scrubby country showed nothing more 

 remarkable than the occasional outcrop of red sandstone, in a gravelly, 

 sandy soil. At three miles and a half from our last camp w^e crossed 

 a river, in pools one hundred yards by twenty^ and perfectly fresh, run- 

 ning slowly to the S.S.W., between banks which frequently broke into 

 red and yellow sandstone cliffs. On examinii^g these, and the interest- 

 ing debris at their feet, the prospects of coal being not very remote, were 

 greater and more encouraging, for we seemed to have got much lower 

 in the carboniferous strata than in the stream-beds to the eastward. 

 Flaky ironstone, of a hard, flinty texture, was found at a low level, to- 

 gether with pebbly concretes ; and layers of water-worn pebbles were 

 also imbedded in the cliffs. Amongst the debris of stones and gravel 

 in the river's bed, were fragments of slate, flint, and apparently chalk, 

 the same being also imbedded in the rocky bank. From this spot, 

 the sharp -peaked summit of the lofty rocky range in advance bore 



