REMARKS ON CENTRAL AUSTRALIA. 685 
The season was not a favourable one, but it would appear that 
any waters that were found were not of sufficient extent or volume 
to encourage the hope that stock in any numbers could venture 
to adopt this route with any degree of safety. 
So many travellers have visited these ranges at different times, 
especially since the gold discoveries in Western Australia, that it 
may now almost be termed a highway between the two colonies. 
It would be well, then, to turn our attention to the two moun- 
tain chains—the Rawlinson and Petermann Ranges—that lay to 
the north of the Mann and Tomkinson Ranges, and which are 
bounded on all sides by such barren and inhospitable sandy 
wastes, where the powerful rays of the sun scorch the stunted 
vegetation, and which may be said to be the birthplace of the hot 
wind “that scatters death on all that yet can die.” To the best 
of my belief, these ranges have not been visited, except by Giles, 
whose party was much reduced ;—he had been at that time nearly 
twelve months in the field, one man had perished, as also had 
many of the horses, provisions were exhausted, and the members 
of the party were subsisting principally upon the flesh of their 
worn-out and exhausted horses. Under such circumstances, close 
examination of the country was impossible. Many large gum 
creeks were crossed, all trending to the northwards. These were 
erroneously charted as running into Lake Amadeus, which was 
supposed to le in that direction. 
In 1889, an expedition which I had the honor of leading, was 
fitted out under the auspices of the South Australian branch of 
the Royal Geographical Society, one object of which was for the 
purpose of determining the outline of Lake Amadeus. The most 
westerly point reached on this occasion was Mt. Leisler, 2,500 
feet, in south latitude, from the summit of which the view in all 
directions was over an expanse of sand, scrub, and waterless 
country. This mountain is a conspicuous feature from any point 
of observation for very many miles, and serves as a beacon 
warning the traveller against approaching its dreary surroundings. 
Sandhills roll like the tumultuous waves of the ocean up to its 
very base; the scene is one of silent, barren desolation. From 
this point the travellers turned south-easterly towards Mt. Unap- 
proachable, and there found the west extremity of Lake Amadeus, 
which we now know contains an area of about 900 square miles ; 
that it is about 1,000 feet above the level of the sea; that no 
water channel of any consequence empties into it, and that it is 
surrounded on all sides for very many miles by the most inhos- 
pitable spinifex sandhills. 
The Petermann Ranges extend east and west for about 70 
miles and may be said to be the eastern continuation of the 
Rawlinson chain. They are more remarkable for their extent 
than for great elevation or their imposing outline. From Mt. 
