22nd September.
Being Sunday, we only moved a mile lower down the river to a fine reach
of water, on the banks of which was a rich sward of green grass for our
horses. Shortly after we had made ourselves comfortable for the day we
were startled by six of the horses coming into camp at a gallop in their
hobbles, followed by eighteen armed natives. Everyone sprang to their
arms in a moment, which caused the intruders to fall back. I tried to
make them comprehend that we did not approve of the horses being hunted;
but as they would not go away, and they had a strong party concealed in
the brushwood, I fired at a tree to show them the use of our arms. The
moment they heard the report of the rifle and saw the splinters fly, they
took to their heels and did not again trouble us. We afterwards found a
spear sticking in the ground in the track of the horses, having evidently
be thrown while in pursuit. Camp 88.
Latitude 20 degrees 25 minutes; longitude 119 degrees 21 minutes.
23rd September.
The river soon passed round the southern foot of a range of hills of 400
or 500 feet elevation, the country to the south again becoming very
fertile, and clothed with a rich sward of kangaroo-grass; at ten miles we
struck the Shaw River, coming from the south-east, with a broad, deep,
and well-defined channel, in which were many fine pools of water. Below
the confluence of the rivers the DeGrey widened out considerably, turning
rather more to the northward, and seven miles further was joined by the
Strelley, in latitude 20 degrees 16 minutes, and longitude 119 degrees 5
minutes east; the river being diverted to the northward by a rugged range
of volcanic hills; its course being now direct for Breaker Inlet, which
was distant about eighteen miles. Camp 89.