SCENEIiy NEAR THE RIVER. 
11 
in a state of rapid decomposition. The Tabragar (the 
Erskine of Mr. Oxley) falls into the Macquarie at Dibi- 
lamble. It bad long ceased to flow, being a small moun- 
tain torrent whose source, if we may judge from the shingly 
nature of its bed, cannot be very distant. Our descent was 
considerable during the day ; the rapids were frequent in 
the river, but it underwent no change in its general ap- 
pearance. Its waters were hard and transparent, and its 
banks, in many places, extremely lofty ; with a red sandy 
loam and gravel under the alluvial deposits. It generally 
happened that where the bank was high on the one side^ 
it was low and subject to flood, to a limited extent at least, on 
the other. Upon these low grounds the blue-gum trees were 
of lofty growth, but on the upper levels box prevailed. 
The views upon the river were really beautiful, and varied 
at every turn ; nor is it possible for any tree to exceed the 
casuarina in the graceful manner in which it bends over 
the stream, or clings to some solitary rock in its centre. 
It here became necessary for us to cross to the left bank 
of the river, not only to avoid its numerous windings, and 
thus to preserve as much as possible the direct line to Mount 
Harris ; but also, because the travelling was much better 
on the south side. We therefore availed ourselves of a 
ford opposite to the ground on which the tents had stood ; 
and then pursued our journey, in a south-westerly course, 
over a country of a description very inferior to that of any 
we had previously noticed. 
Iron-bark and cypresses generally prevailed along our 
