40 DfSCOVERY OF THE VICTORIA. 



mystery. Still we ran on keeping close to the eastern 

 low land, and just as we found that the course 

 we held no longer appeared to follow the direction 

 of the channel, out burst the moon above the hills 

 in all its glory, shedding a silvery stream of light 

 upon the water, and revealing to our anxious eyes 

 the long looked for river, rippling and swelling, as 

 it forced its way between high rocky ranges. Under 

 any circumstances the discovery would have been 

 delightful, but the time, the previous darkness, the 

 moon rising and spreading the whole before us like a 

 panorama, made the scene so unusually exciting, that 

 I forbear any attempt to describe the mingled emo- 

 tions of that moment of triumph. As we ran in be- 

 tween the frowning heights, the lead gave a depth of 

 eighteen and twenty fathoms, the velocity of the stream 

 at the same time clearly shewing how large a body 

 of water was pouring through. " This is indeed a 

 noble river !" burst from several lips at the same 

 moment ; " and worthy," continued I, " of being 

 honoured with the name of her most gracious majesty 

 the Queen :" — which Captain Wickham fully con- 

 curred in, by at once bestowing upon it the name 

 of Victoria River. 



A glance at the map will shew that we have not 

 overrated its importance, or acted hastily in calling 

 it the Victoria ; and it must be admitted that as 

 the Murray is to South-eastern Australia, so in value 

 and importance is the great river Victoria, to the 

 opposite side of the continent. 



