A BOTANIZING EXPEDITION TO WEST AUSTKALIA. 



289 



joined us at Bridgetown, and came with us to our j&rst camp ; but unfor- 

 tunately the weather was so bad that he was, > wing to his health, unable 

 to continue, and I sent them the next day to the nearest railway siding 

 in time to catch the daily train towards Perth. It rained all that day 

 till 4 P.M., so we did not shift camp. We, however, got a good many 

 specimens of plants — Hibbertias, Hakeas, Dryandras, Leucopogons, 

 and the brilliant blue Dampieras, and many very bright-flowering 

 Leguminous plants. On the 9th we got away from our wet camp about 

 10 A.M. betweeen two squalls, and until we got near the Blackwood 

 Eiver fresh plants were scarce. We made a midday halt on the 

 Blackwood, and poked about there for a couple of hours. The squalls 

 were very heavy, and it hailed like mad ; but towards the evening the 

 weather improved, and we reached a homestead belonging to our driver 's 

 brother, who most hospitably took us in. 



The country all about this place, Dinninup, is becoming more 

 settled. The land when cleared is good, and there is good grass of 

 native sorts, but very few introduced grasses yet. The soil being 

 derived from granite dries very quickly in the summer, and the intro- 

 duced grass does not have a chance, especially when the farmer 

 finds he cannot afford to shut a paddock off from the stock and give 

 the new grass an opportunity of establishing itself. Introduced grasses, 

 therefore, are said not to do; but I feel sure this is really not the case, 

 by the fact of the presence of introduced grasses invariably found in 

 small paddocks and gardens around the homestead, where stock are not 

 usually turned in, except as casuals. 



On the 10th we drove thirty-six miles into Kojonup, and had a 

 rather long but most interesting day. It was, for instance, our first 

 introduction to the gorgeous red Leschenaultia, which is inclined to 

 spread itself over the ground, somewhat after the manner of Lotus 

 peliorynchus , but outrivaliing it altogether in colour effect. The track 

 about midday became rather heavy and boggy, and we nearly got 

 stuck up once or twice ; but we found a great many plants which were 

 new to us, especially in a small open patch, just after we passed through 

 the worst bit of bog. These plants turned out to be a small outlying 

 patch of the flora of the sand-plains, so distinct from that found in the 

 gum forest. After the midday halt, we had a journey of only about 

 sixteen miles into Kojonup. The white gum. Eucalyptus redunca, began 

 to take the place of the Jarrah and red gum, and we found a Kangaroo 

 Paw {Anigozanthus) new to us. 



The Kangaroo Paw is peculiar to West Australia, and is a 

 most remarkable plant. It has a few small, short, iris-flke leaves, 

 and shoots up a flower-stalk (in A. Manglesii) 2|- feet high, resembling 

 a hand or paw, the knuckles of which are red plush, and the fingers 

 green plush. The variety we found on this occasion was of a terra- 

 cotta colour. There are others — green, black, and pale yellow, and 

 entirely yellow. 



Arrived at Kojonup (10th) we proceeded to wash and brush up 

 and get things dry, press plant-specimens, change the papers on others. 



