RAINFALL AND DISCHARGE OF THE RIVER MURRAY, LXVII, 
reference to the diagram, it will be noticed that, in regard 
to the Upper Murray at Jingellic, there is no considerable 
variation of the curved line from the observations, and by 
producing the curve to the base line, it shows that run-off 
would take place with an annual rainfall of 10 inches if it 
were evenly distributed throughout the year. The drought 
year of 1902 was responsible for the lowest run-off, viz., 207, 
whereas the next lowest was 317% in 1896. During the year 
1894, the mean rainfall on the drainage area amounted to 
48 inches, and the proportion of rainfall discharged was no 
less than 55%. 
The Goulburn River, the principal Victorian tributary 
of the Murray River, rises in the Dividing Range where 
the summits reach an elevation of 5,000 feet. The drainage 
area above the Murchison gauging station is 3,966 
square miles, a considerable portion of which is rocky and 
precipitous. By referring to the diagram it will be seen 
that a large proportion of the rainfall is discharged. The 
catchments of the Goulburn River at Murchison, and the 
Murrumbidgee River at Gundagai, seem to bear a strong 
resemblance in point of effectiveness, with the exception 
that when the rainfall exceeds 40 inches, the Murrumbidgee 
has a higher percentage of run-off. 
The Ovens at Wangaratta, which has a drainage area of 
2,090 square miles, and an annual rainfall of about 40 inches 
is the least effective river of the series. The observations 
from which this information has been compiled extend over 
a period of 15 years. Although the gathering grounds of 
the upper reaches of the four rivers are somewhat similar 
in character, the diagram shows the futility of endeavouring 
to arrive at a general formula that would be equally appli- 
cable for the determination of rainfall to run-off for all 
catchments. For instance, with an annual rainfall on the 
catchment of the Upper Murray at Jingellic of 47 inches, 
