98 
PARLEY WITH A NATIVE. 
The rapid pace at which I had been pursuing 
prevented my reining in my horse, but by suddenly 
spurring him when within but a few yards of the 
native, I wheeled on one side before the weapon had 
time to leave his grasp, and then pulling up I tried 
to bring my friend to a parley at a less dangerous 
distance. 
Finding that I did not attempt to injure him, the 
native stood his ground, though tremblingly, and 
kept incessantly vociferating, and waving me away ; 
to all my signs and inquiries, he was provokingly 
insensible, and would not hear of anything but my 
immediate departure. Sometimes he pointed to 
the north, motioning me to go in that direction, but 
the poor wretch was in such a state of alarm and 
trepidation that I could make nothing of him and 
left him. He remained very quietly until I had 
gone nearly a quarter of a mile, and then thinking 
that he had a fair start, he again took to his heels, 
and ran away as fast as he could in the direction 
opposite to that I had taken. 
Continuing our course northerly I steered for 
what appeared to be a small lake not far away to 
the N. W. and crossed over some heavy ridges of 
white sand ; upon reaching the object of my search 
it proved to be a winding arm of the main lake 
(Torrens) at first somewhat narrow, but gradually 
enlarging as we traced it downwards. The bed 
of this arm was coated over, as had been the dry 
part of the bed of the main lake, with a very pun- 
