ARID PORTIONS OF SOUTH AUSTRALIA. 97 



Quorn is situated about 20 miles to the east of Port Augusta and 

 has an altitude of about 1,000 feet above that place. It is at the junc- 

 tion of the railroad leading to Port Augusta and Western Australia, 

 on the one side, and to Copley, Farina, Maree, William Creek, and 

 Oodnadatta in the far north, on the other. The country between 

 Copley and Quorn, east of Lake Torrens, has many points of interest. 

 Leaving Copley, which is situated in the angle where the Mount De- 

 ception Ranges take off from the main masses of the Flinders, the 

 railway goes through a pass with rugged, arid hills on either side and 

 emerges on the Lake Torrens Plain, over which it passes until it nears 

 Hawker. Here it enters more outliers of the Flinders Ranges and, 

 turning, takes a more southwesterly direction, climbing somewhat, 

 and crossing the Willochra Plain, it finally gets to Quorn. For much of 

 the distance from Copley to Quorn, therefore, the picturesque and 

 abrupt western edge of the Flinders parallels the line to the east, 

 while on the west the plain stretches into the haze of the region of 

 Lake Torrens. On the Torrens Plain, halophytes dominate, but species 

 not well adapted to excessive amounts of salts are to be seen following 

 water-courses across the plain. The presence of a fairly abundant 

 vegetation acts to protect the soil for the most part, although in 

 places moderate winds suffice to set it going, much to the discomfort of 

 the traveler, and in high winds the amount of soil so transported must 

 be very great indeed. 



In the Flinders Ranges between Copley and Quorn there are rela- 

 tively high summits, the effect of the altitude of which is accentuated 

 by the western scarp and the sudden rise from the plain. There are 

 interesting formations in the Flinders of this region for example, the 

 well-known Wilpena Pound, which has resulted from a circumclinal 

 faulting and is accessible from one side only. The mountains here 

 have abundant rains and hence possess rich flora. Species of Eucalyp- 

 tus are said to attain to large size at and in the region of the pound. 



The Willochra Plain, which the railroad crosses just before reaching 

 Quorn, is an alluvial plain formed by delta fans from the mountain 

 washes. It extends from Melrose (to the south of Quorn) to Lake 

 Torrens and is in part subject to inundation from Willochra Creek and 

 its branches. The surface of the plain is fairly level and the run-off 

 following rains is inconsiderable, so that the water soaks into the 

 ground very largely where it falls. The drainage of the plain is through 

 Willochra Creek into Lake Torrens. 



Quorn is connected with the plain east of Spencer's Gulf by Pichi 

 Richi Pass, through which the railroad goes to Port Augusta. The 

 altitude of the pass is 1,335 feet and it is about 6 miles to the west of 

 Quorn. 



The topography about Quorn is varied and interesting. The altitu- 

 dinal differences are relatively great. There are rugged hills and 

 mountains and valleys, narrow in the hills but widening as they de- 



