Feb., 1907.] 



THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 177 



through the scrub as best we could, cutting saplings as occasion 

 required. 



On two occasions my guide's horse, which was not so clever as 

 the one I rode, got himself so tangled up with a sapling wedged 

 between his hindquarters that he was unable to extricate himself 

 until some perilous chopping had been done. 



Fortunately, with only the loss of a little time, all our obstacles 

 were surmounted, and soon we found ourselves come to the only 

 piece of level ground we were to meet with — a plain of a few 

 acres, thickly carpeted with lush green grass, and lying between 

 the range and a stretch of most picturesque cascades. 



Next BuUer Creek was passed, hurrying to swell the volume of 

 the river and not long after, finding the way here close to the 

 river bank barred by driftwood which had piled itself up against a 

 stranded tree trunk, we were obliged to cross and recross the 

 stream, with some little trouble getting our nags to take to the 

 water, down the steep banks, and trouble again in scrambling 

 them up the other side. 



Crossing the river again some distance further on, the right 

 bank was followed until the track leading over to Mount Cobbler 

 was reached, when we branched off down to the river, and over 

 again for the last time. 



Up to this point nothing uncommon had been noticed — just the 

 usual river vegetation. One fine mass of Clematis aristata was 

 seen, the loveliness of its fine ivory-white flowers making one 

 regret the neglect it shares with half a dozen more of our climbing 

 plants at the hands of our nurserymen. Glycine clandestina 

 was frequent, as was Pomaderris afetala, both in bloom, but 

 Prostanthera lasiantha, Cassinia aculeata and longifolia, which with 

 Aster argophyllus, A. stellulatus, and Senecio bedfordi formed the 

 bulk of the scrubs, were hardly yet in bud. The same was the 

 case with Panax sambucifolius, Sambucus gaudichaudiana, 

 Cojyrosma billardieri and 0. hirtella, but Candollea serrtdata, 

 Brunonia australis, Veronica derioentia, Stellaria jjungens and 

 fiaccida were blossoming. 



After the last passage of the river the ascent began in earnest, 

 and just here the handsomest shrub seen all day was met with in 

 fine shapely bushes oi Daviesia latifoUa up to 8 to lo feet high, and 

 covered with orange-yellow coloured blossom. On the way we 

 flushed a Lyre-bird, and this, with the usual hawk poised near the 

 summit, were almost the only feathered things seen. As we went 

 flowers became even more infrequent, and practically nothing was 

 noticed until the Snow Gums were reached, when clumps of 

 Hovea longifolia occurred and prevailed even up to the cairn. 

 The summit being now near at hand on our right, with patches of 

 snow lying on its eastern side, we cheerfully engaged in a tussle 

 with the Snow Gums, through which there was no visible track, 

 and which reminded one rather forcibly of a nightmare of 



