ft 



44 



MANGROVE CUEEK. 



the inlet, which gradually narrowed and wound 

 about for the first three or four miles, when we found 

 ourselves near some rocky, woody hills, with steep 

 banks, and the inlet having all the aspect of a river. 

 We landed at one or two points, but could get no 

 view for the trees ; and proceeding, came on more 

 mangrove flats, till at length our winding channel 

 ended when about five yards wide and five feet deep, 

 having a mangrove swamp on the right, a thick 

 jungle ahead, and a steep hank of gravel, about 

 twenty feet high, on our left hand. Climbing up 

 this, we found a level grassy woodland, stretching 

 away to S. and W. as far as we could see for the 

 trees, and walking about half a mile, found one large 

 and deep water-course and several smaller, leading 

 towards the inlet. They were now all dry, but a 

 little drain of fresh water came out of the jungle 

 ahead of the boat. The small cliffs were composed 

 of gravel ; the lower part a confused heap of quartz 

 pebbles the size of the fist, but ^ie upper part of 

 much finer materials, with layers of sand pretty well 

 sorted and stratified, and of course horizontal. As 

 we were under the necessity of going back imme- 

 diately, in order to save ihe tide, we had not much 

 time for examination, and at half-past ten set out on 

 our return. The ebb tide took us as rapidly down 

 as the flood brought us up ; and after passing a 

 heavy sea on a shoal bar at the mouth of the bay, 

 we made sail for the ship, which had now run down 

 a few miles to the northward. The rocks about 



