COASTS OF AUSTRALIA. 
313 
recently visited by the Indians : we afterwards 1819. 
landed upon some dry rocks that lie in the mid- Oct. 3 . 
channel, and, whilst I was occupied in taking 
bearings, the boat’s crew fished, but with little' 
success on account of the rapidity of the tide. 
After this we found and examined a tolerably 
wide and deep channel on the eastern side of 
the Middle Rocks ; through which, as it ap- 
peared to be free from danger, the cutter was 
worked the next morning, and afterwards anchored 4 . 
near the western side of the bay; where the 
verdant appearance of the grass and trees, that 
clothed the sides of the hills, induced me to land 
for the purpose of searching for water ; we were, 
however, disappointed: large streams of water 
had evidently very lately poured down the gul- 
lies ; but there was not the least vestige of any 
remaining. 
On the beach of one of the sandy bays, the 
traces of natives were more numerous than usual ; 
for we counted as many as forty small fire-places 
arranged in a straight line along the beach ; 
near to each were lying the stones on which the 
Indians had evidently been bruising seeds, par- 
ticularly of the fruit of a new species of sterculia , 
the husks of which were strewed about: near 
the fire-places were the remains of two huts ; one 
of them was thrown down, but the other was 
