408 
SURVEY OF THE INTERTROPICAL 
1820, trended alternately S.b.E. and S.b.W. for fifteen 
SeptTi2. miles ; at this part the river was upwards of 
seventy yards wide ; the banks were lined with 
mangroves, but the rocks rose precipitously be- 
hind them to the height of three hundred feet. 
Here our party landed to pass the night, and, 
before dark, Mr. Roe and his companion Mr. 
Cunningham with one of the boat’s crew climbed 
the ridge over their heads, but encountered 
much difficulty before they reached the summit, 
from which they could discover nothing but 
ridges beyond ridges of rocky wooded hills, pre- 
cisely similar to what they were upon. One 
higher than the rest was discerned about ten 
miles off to the eastward. No signs of human 
beings were noticed. 
The top of the hill was strewed about with 
ant-hills constructed of dry dusty sand, and this 
was the only substance that could be called soil ; 
but, notwithstanding all this sterility, there were 
trees of the eucalyptus family growing from 
twenty to forty feet high ; and one was measured 
whose diameter was as much as eighteen inches. 
The rocks are of sand-stone, in nearly hori- 
zontal strata, coated with a crust of crystallized 
quartz, and coloured by a ferruginous oxide. 
On their return to the tent, they made pre- 
parations to pass the night; and, as it was 
