BY THE REV. J. E. TEXISOX- WOODS, F.G.S., F.L S. oG7 



On the rising ground one may find clumps o£ Pine {Callltris 

 rohusta) and in the clay flats open forests of Box {E. hemipliloia) 

 but otherwise the Mallee is a dense thicket of Eucalypts, bushes 

 of the whipstick pattern I have described. The view over one of 

 these areas of Mallee is very peculiar. From the top of any 

 moderate elevation, one looks over an immense undulating sea of 

 yellowish-brown bushes. In the far distance one may observe a 

 blue outline of some solitary hill or granite peak, otherwise the 

 monotonous dun outline of the horizon is unbroken, silent, and 

 motionless except where the scrub hen {^Leipoa ocelJataJ raises 

 its mournful note, or the wind stirs the stiff branches near. 



Such thickets as these are absolutely impenetrable. The 

 bushes oppose an effectual obstacle to both man and horse. But 

 there is nothing for which they need be penetrated. They are 

 waterless regions and there is no grass. A few of what are 

 called scrub cattle have tracks on the outskirts, where they live 

 and breed much to the annoyance of the settlers near. Horse- 

 men sometimes follow them but any attempt to go off the track 

 is sure to result in the clothes being torn to pieces. As an 

 instance of what a barrier these scrubs are, I may mention that 

 in 1859 I had to ride a distance of 25 miles to skirt a scrub 

 between two stations in the Tatiara country (Victoria and South 

 Australia) that were only six miles apart. This was the usual 

 road between Yarrak and Lowloit the stations in question. In 

 1860 the blacks w^ere induced by threats and promises to cut a 

 road through the Mallee which is now generally used and has 

 become a good beaten track. 



Such scrubs as these are not known in Queensland, but there 

 are others quite as impenetrable. But in order to institute a 

 better comparison, I will describe some other thickets. In South 

 Australia, on the borders between that colony and A'ictoria it is 

 not uncommon to meet with almost impenetrable thickets of 

 Baiiksia marc/inata (Honeysuckle) in marshy places. The trees 



