from Moreton Bay to Port. Essington. 
31 
trees, and several others, which I have not yet been able to deter¬ 
mine. Lagoons became larger and larger, and more frequent, as 
we travelled down the river. The country improved, the plains 
grew bigger, the forest land richer, receding further from the 
river. 
In a large water-hole of the Lynd we found a dead saw-fish 
(pristis). In those of the Mitchell alligators were seen by my 
black fellows. 
I expected that the Lynd, and afterwards the Mitchell, would 
turn to the westward, and join the sea in latitudes where the Van 
Diemen, the Staaten, the Nassau, were indicated; but the Mitchell 
passed the latitude of the Nassau, and I could now only expect to 
see it join the sea at the Waterplats, to which its general course 
inclined. I had followed these rivers, more out of scientific and 
geographical interest, than for the benefit of my expedition; for 
I was compelled to go back, in order to head the gull. It my 
provisions had been sufficient, I should have followed the Mitchell 
up to its mouth ; but afraid that I should be short of provisions, 
I left the river and went to the westward. 
Plains, open forest land, lagoons full of fish, and covered with 
the broad leaves and showy blossoms of nymphsea, gave a great 
variety to this fine country, well adapted for the breeding of cattle, 
and particularly horses, though deficient of good timber. 
Here, at one of the lagoons, in latitude 15 deg. 55 min., not 
very far from a large creek, which I consider the upper part of the 
Nassau, Mr. Gilbert was killed by the black fellows, who had 
sneaked upon us immediately after nightfall, just when the greatest 
part of the party had retired to their couches. They wounded 
Mr. Roper and Mr. Calvert severely; but Mr. Gilbert was the 
only one who received a deadly wound, a spear entering into the 
chest between the neck and the clavicle, at the moment when he 
was stooping to get out of his tent. At the first discharge of our 
guns the black fellows ran away. The next morning they were 
wailing for one of their number, who, it seems, had been severely 
wounded. They left the country, and we did not see any more 
of them. 
I passed the Staaten in latitude 16 deg. 27 min. 26 sec. It is 
