Tour of the Gold-fields 229 



April 2jd. The whole country to the north and 

 east of Stockton through to the Calaveras is most 

 rich and splendid soil, but in many places too low 

 for farming, but the grazing was excellent, quan- 

 tities of wild oats, rye grass (I think), clover and 

 a species resembling red-top. In many places the 

 grasses were breast high as I waded through them 

 but generally full knee-deep. As we neared the 

 Calaveras we lost our way trying to avoid some 

 bad arroyos, and followed a trail off to the east- 

 ward, perhaps three miles, and the country if 

 changed at all, changed for the better. Finding 

 the trend of the trail we were following did not 

 suit our ideas of direction, we turned back at even 

 more than a right angle, and in half an hour 

 entered a wood of open timber, with here and 

 there a lagoon or quagmire of mud and mire; but 

 we worked through and Layton went ahead to 

 reconnoitre, and in about twenty minutes reported 

 the river, which we followed down on a good firm 

 cattle trail, and in half an hour more had come to 

 the upper settlement of the ferry, and were stopped 

 by the fences of newly made farms, and again 

 driven to the swamps to get only a few hundred 

 yards down to the ferry. 



We crossed the river after having assisted some 

 Germans with about six hundred sheep, and 

 camped for the night tired enough, having made 



