VALUABLE SERVICES OF THE NATIVES. 477 
an old story of the affray with Major Mitchell some 
years before. As Captain Sturt was still at the 
Rufus (150 miles from Moorunde) when he received 
the account, as he imagined, of so sanguinary an 
affray, he felt anxious to communicate the occurrence 
to the Colonial Government as early as possible, and 
for this purpose, induced two natives to bring down 
despatches to Moorunde. Upon their arrival there, 
the policeman was absent in town, and I had no 
means of sending in the letters to the Government, 
but by natives. Two undertook the task, and 
walked from Moorunde to Adelaide with the letters, 
and brought answers back again to the station within 
five days, having walked 170 miles in that period, 
Moorunde being 85 miles from Adelaide. 
Again upon the Government wishing to commu- 
nicate with Captain Sturt, letters were taken by 
the natives up to the Rufus, delivered over to other 
natives there, and by them carried onwards to 
Captain Sturt, reaching that gentleman on the 
eleventh day after they been sent from Moorunde, 
at Laidley’s Ponds, a distance of 300 miles. 
By this means a regular intercourse was kept up 
with the exploring party, entirely through the aid 
and good feeling of the natives, up to the time I left 
the colony, in December, 1844, when messengers 
who had been sent up with despatches were daily 
expected back with* answers. For their very labo- 
rious and harassing journeys, during which they 
must suffer both some degree of risk in passing 
