birds drew my attention, as I perceived I had attracted theirs. They
descended to the lowest branches of the tree in whose shade I stood, and
seemed to regard my horse with curiosity. On my imitating their chirp one
fluttered down, and attempted to alight on my horse's ears. On my
whistling to them, one whistled some beautifully varied notes, as soft as
those of an octave flute, although their common chirp was harsh and
dissonant. The male and female seemed to have very different plumage,
especially about the head; that on the one having the varying tint of the
Rifle bird, the head of the other more resembling in colour, that of the
DACELO GIGANTEUS. They were about the size of a thrush, and seemed the
sole residents of that particular spot, and I had not seen them
elsewhere. The carts came slowly forward, the horses being much
distressed. I continued to ride some miles ahead, and passed through a
scrub in a clay hollow, to which succeeded another open forest country
with more of the soft red sand. The people with the cart could not
overtake me, and I returned. Meeting them at a rather bad place, I
determined to encamp at some patches of grassy ground somewhat out of our
line, in latitude, 27 deg. 43' S. It is remarkable that, according to the
barometer, we had not ascended higher than our depot camp on the river,
at a distance of nearly forty miles from it. I had just quitted my
horse's back, and had resolved to return, when two horsemen were seen
approaching along our track. They were two of our party come from the
depot to bring me a despatch, which had been forwarded by Commissioner
Wright, communicating the news of Dr. Leichardt's return from Port
Essington, and enclosing the Gazette with his own account of his journey.
Thus it became known to us that we could no longer hope to be the first
to reach the shores of the Indian Ocean by land. Thermometer, at sunrise,
62 deg.; at 4 P. M., 93 deg.; at 9, 71 deg.;--with wet bulb, 64 deg..

19TH APRIL,--I left the men with the cart, to follow while I rode forward
along its track, and sat down to peruse the newspapers sent me, until the
cart overtook me in the evening, the horses being quite exhausted by the
heat and the heavy sand. Thermometer, at sunrise, 61 deg.; at noon, 86 deg.; at
9, 63 deg.;--with wet bulb, 59 deg..

20TH APRIL.--The men who brought the despatches yesterday having been
ordered to bring fresh horses this day from the depot, I sent our tired
animals o