22 THE RIVERINE DISTRICT 



that my horse (one of the best on the station) seemed 

 unusually tired. I remained two days at Dubbo, and then 

 started on the return journey, with, of course, the same 

 horse. After I had ridden about sixty miles, my horse showed 

 signs of great fatigue, which was quite unaccountable to 

 me, for it was supposed to be an animal of great powers 

 of endurance. Incoming out I had passed a shepherd's 

 temporary hut in (as I thought) this neighbourhood ; and 

 I walked the horse about for some hours in a vain 

 endeavour to find it. Not succeeding in doing this, I 

 resolved to camp out, though it was still early in the day. 



There was a water-hole at the spot I chose, and 

 materials for a fire ; and I amused myself till dark with 

 shooting the ducks, which are found on all the waters of 

 this region during the winter-time. It was very lonely, 

 and I passed a wretched time till the next morning, 

 which seemed an interminable time in appearing. I did 

 not sleep at all ; and the horse, which was certainly unwell, 

 after attempting to graze for a little time, lay down near 

 me, and was as restless during the night as I was myself. 



I lay on the ground wrapped in a cloak, and had to 

 rise every hour at least to feed the fire, as there was only 

 small wood growing thereabouts. As soon as it was light 

 enough to enable me to see the way, I saddled the horse 

 and started to finish the journey home. As every furlong 

 was covered, I became more convinced that there was 

 something serious the matter with the horse, till, when I 

 had ridden six or seven miles, it suddenly fell, and in a 

 few minutes was dead. This was an accident that quite 

 unnerved me. I thought that I was at least sixty miles 

 from home without, so far as I knew, a fellow-man near to 

 me in any direction. I had a skin-bag full of water, but 

 the scanty provision I had brought from Dubbo was 

 exhausted. 



At first I lost my head, and wandered up and down, 

 sometimes thinking I would try to find the shepherds I 

 had seen a day or two before, and sometimes resolving to 

 return to Dubbo. Frightful memories of the fate of lost 

 men in this desert, of which I had heard many stories, 



