337 
Interior of New Holland. 
water, though the feed was poor; and here we dug our third and 
largest pit. I had remarked before we halted that the country 
was undergoing a change ; and on the following morning this im¬ 
pression was confirmed. Soon after starting, we espied the dry 
bed of a salt lagoon, then ran along a high sandy ridge, which 
terminating suddenly, about noon, we found that we had reached 
the borders of the Stony Desert, unaltered in a single feature. 
As before, it occupied the western half of the horizon; nor was 
there a single object on its dark and gloomy surface on which the 
eye could rest. It was not without a feeling of horror that I 
looked upon this dreary waste, on which my companions gazed 
with utter amazement. I descended to it however, and, trusting 
entirely to our compass bearings, soon found myself advanced 
some distance upon it. It appeared to be taking a direction more 
to the N.E., but I was not satisfied as to the fact. At seven 
miles we sighted the pointed top of a sand-hill not far out of our 
course, for which I turned, and I reached it at five miles, thus 
making the breadth of the desert from the point at which we 
struck it twelve miles. This sand-hill extended longitudinally to 
the N.N.W., so that to avoid the stones I ran along its base, and 
ultimately halted at a small puddle of water just enough for the 
horses to drink at once. The Stony Desert was on our right, so 
that when I pushed on the following morning I still kept the base 
of the sand-hill, but at six miles ascended and rode along the top 
of it. At two miles from where we had slept, however, we were 
lucky in falling on a little channel of water similar to that on the 
grassy plain, at which the horses took a good drink, and we re¬ 
plenished our little kegs. We now journeyed on with greater 
confidence, as I had no doubt we should find water on our return 
to this place, even if we allowed ten days or a fortnight to elapse. 
Riding along the sand-hill, we had large plains on either hand, 
bounded also by sand-hills, beyond which we could see nothing. 
At thirty-three miles 1 halted in a little valley where there was 
some green grass, which I hoped the horses would relish, but they 
partook sparingly of it. In front of us, to the N.N.W., there 
were some low dark hills visible as if covered with scrub, and 
they were distant some ten or twelve miles. Continuing down 
