xliv 
CHAKACTER OF THE SOIL 
only from the remains of debris in the branches 
of the trees high above, can he judge of the 
furious torrent they must occasionally contain. 
This seeming deviation on the part of Nature 
from her usual laws will no longer appear such, 
if we consider its results for a moment. The 
very floods which swell the rivers to overflowing, 
are followed by the most beneficent effects ; and, 
rude and violent as the means are by which she 
accomplishes her purpose, they form, no doubt, 
a part of that process by which she preserves 
the balance of good and evil. Vast quantities of 
the best soil have been thus washed down from the 
mountains to accumulate in more accessible 
places. From frequent depositions, a great ex- 
tent of country along the banks of every river 
and creek has risen high above the influence of 
the floods, and constitutes the richest tracts in 
the colony. The alluvial flats of the Nepean, 
the Hawksbury, and the Hunter, are striking 
instances of the truth of these observations ; to 
which the plains of O’Connel and Bathurst may 
be added. The only good soil upon the two 
latter, is in the immediate neighbourhood of the 
Macquarie River : but, even close to its banks. 
