258 
SEND TWO MEN BACK, 
as to afford me reasonable grounds of hope that we 
might succeed in forcing a passage through the 
country to the westward, bad as it evidently was. 
Acting upon the opinion I had arrived at, I sent for 
the master of the cutter and requested him to get 
ready at once for sea, and then communicated my 
decision to the two men who were to leave us, Cor- 
poral Coles, R. S. and M. and John Houston, re- 
questing them to get ready to embark to-morrow. 
They did not appear to experience much surprise, 
and were I think on the whole rather pleased than 
otherwise at the prospect of a return to Adelaide. Both 
these men had conducted themselves remarkably 
well during the whole time they were in the party, 
and one of them, John Houston, had been with 
me in my late disastrous expeditiqn, during which 
his obedience and good conduct had been beyond 
all praise. We had, however, now been absent for 
six months, had traversed a great extent of country, 
and undergone many hardships ; the country we 
had met with had unfortunately always been of the 
most barren and disheartening character, and that 
which was yet before us appeared to be if possible 
still worse, so that I could not wonder that my men 
should appear gratified in the prospect of a termina- 
tion to their labours. With so little to cheer and 
encourage, they might well perhaps doubt of our 
final success. 
December 18 . — Having once decided upon my 
plans, I lost no time in putting them in execution. 
