COASTS OF AUSTRALIA. 
177 
A very great advantage attending the settling 1819 ‘ 
of this part is its free communication with the May21 ‘ 
interior, and with that vast space of fine country 
situated between Lieutenant Oxley’s Track on 
the parallel of 30°, and Bathurst. This region 
has lately (1823) been travelled over by my in- 
defatigable friend Mr. Cunningham, and found to 
possess a large portion of excellent soil and rich 
pasturage ; it contains altogether at least twelve 
millions of acres, in which it would be difficult 
to discover a bad tract of country of any extent ; 
but as one-fourth part is the general calculation 
in the colony for waste land, nine millions of the 
richest country will be left for future colonization : 
many years, however, must elapse before it can 
be occupied. 
The description of the interior of New South 
Wales is so foreign to my object, and so irrele- 
vant to the subject before me, that I must entreat 
the indulgence of my reader for this digression ; 
and return to the Mermaid, already described as 
having left the port and parted company with the 
Lady Nelson, conveying my friend Lieutenant 
Oxley to Port Jackson, and leaving us to resume 
our voyage. 
As soon as we had obtained an offing, the 
wind freshened up to a strong breeze from the 
westward, attended with squally and unfavour- 
Vol. I. N 
