CH. v.] NUNDAWAB RANGE. 121 



who flourished a laro-e iron tomahawk over his head. An- 

 other of our party who came in contact with a native, and 

 who requested him by signs to come to me, understood him 

 to express by similar means, his intention to go northward. 

 The main body, however, amounting to one hundred or up- 

 wards, continued to move parallel to our route, and in lines 

 of twos and threes. Fortunately, we were approaching the 

 open plains, where I knew we should be comparatively 

 secure from any treacherous assaults, and it was, therefore, 

 probable that they would not follow us so far. We were 

 advancing, however, towards those, v^ho were feasting on 

 my supplies, not far from the base of the mountain cone, 

 which was then our land-mark. The natives there were 

 not unlikely to be formidable enemies, encouraged by their 

 late success ; and, with such prospects before us, it was 

 by no means agreeable to be thus followed in rear by others. 

 I was accordingly much inclined to question the intentions of 

 these, if they continued to accompany our party beyond the 

 woods. As we approached the plains, we perceived fire and 

 smoke before us, on the banks of the large lagoon, where we 

 were to encamp, and on an angle of ground where our pas- 

 sage was confined between the lagoon and a narrow muddy 

 channel from the east, we saw seven new but deserted huts, 

 which had been erected on our track, as if to watch our ap- 

 proach. On reaching them we found one large hut in the 

 centre, and the others arranged in a semicircle round it, the 

 whole being of a very substantial construction, and neatly 

 thatched with dry grass and reeds. We arrived at our old 

 ground after a journey of nine hours, which was the time ex- 

 actly in which we had before traversed the same distance. 



Our tents now commanded a view of the open plains 

 between us and the woods, from which we had at length 

 emerged. The bold outline of the Nundawar range in the 

 opposite direction was a comfortable prospect for us; al- 

 though we were still to investigate the particulars of the 

 tragedy which had been acted at their base. A very hot 



