136 REGAIN THE NAMMOY. [CH. VI. 



It occurred chiefly on the sides of slopes, and in the midst 

 of forests of eucalypti, where 1 should have expected the 

 hardest kind of surface. We made the Nammoy, however, 

 in good time ; this being the first of our former stages, which 

 we had been able to accomplish in one day, since the wet 

 weather commenced. The late rains had produced no 

 change in the waters of this river ; a circumstance shewing, 

 perhaps, that less had fallen in the south-east than on the 

 plains where we had been. 



Noneof the kind offish, that we most prized (Gristes Peelii), 

 could now be caught in this river, though abundance of 

 that which the men commonly called bream {cernua h'ldyana), 

 a. very coarse but firm fish, which makes a groaning noise 

 when taken out of the water; and here it may be observed, 

 that the colour of the cod or Peel's perch was lighter, and 

 that of the Eel-fish (Tandamis), darker, in the Karaula, than 

 in any other river. 



Feb. 24. — A fine cool morning. I attempted to cut ofi" a 

 slight detour in our old track, by travelling nearer to the 

 course of the Nammoy; but a soft and swampy flat soon 

 compelled me to seek the former wheel-marks, and even to 

 proceed still nearer to the base of the hills, for the sake of 

 hard ground. We next travelled westward of our line, 

 thus crossing an excellent tract of country; and without 

 furtlier impediment, we arrived on Maule's creek, which we 

 crossed with all our carts and equipment to encamp on 

 the left bank. The limpid stream was not much, if at all 



augmented. 



From this side of the country, now that smoke no longer 

 obscured the horizon, the outline of tha great range was 

 very bokl, a lofty and very prominent })yraniid ci'ovvning the 

 most elevated south-western extremity, and forming as im- 

 portant a point for the survey of the country to the south- 

 west, as Mount Riddell presents for that towards the north- 

 west. This point I named Mount Forbes, after my friend 

 Capt. Forbes, 3!Jlli Repiment, then comnianding the mounted 



