n shone cheerily overhead, and the horses, revelling in the
abundant rich grass and succulent herbage, began to recover their
strength. On September 2nd, they came to a river, which Oxley named the
Peel; and here the expedition narrowly escaped the shadow of a fatality,
one man being nearly drowned whilst crossing. After leaving the Peel,
Oxley still continued easterly, traversing splendid open grazing country.
He was now approaching the dividing water-shed of the Main Range, to the
northward of that portion of it which is known at the present day as the
Liverpool Range. Here the deep glens and gullies with which the seaward
front is serrated, began to interfere seriously with the direct course of
travel, and at the heads of many of them there were cataracts and
waterfalls which compelled the wanderers to turn away to the south; and
on one occasion to revert almost to the west. One of these striking
natural features received the name of Becket's Cataract, and another was
christened Bathurst's Falls. Once again tempests and storms beset them,
and this wild weather found them wandering amongst the steep ravines and
dizzy descents of the mountainous range, seeking a way leading to the
lowlands.

It was on September 23rd that Oxley and Evans, while searching for a
practicable route, climbed a tall peak, and from the summit caught a
glimpse of the sea. It seems to have greatly impressed Oxley, and he
writes in his journal of his emotions on the occasion:--

"Bilboa's ecstacy at the first sight of the South Sea could not have been
greater than ours when, on gaining the summit of this mountain, we beheld
Old Ocean at our feet. It inspired us with new life; every difficulty
vanished, and in imagination we were already home."

The descent was attended with many perils: Oxley says that at one period
he would willingly have compromised for the loss of one-third of the
horses to ensure the safety of the remainder. But the men with him were
tried and steady, and the thick tufts of grass and the loose soil
afforded them help in securing a surer footing, of every chance of
availing themselves of which the men skilfully took advantage, so that
both men and horses reached the foot of the mountain -- now called Mount
Seaview -- without mishap.

They had reached the head of a river running into the Pacific, and
proceeded to follow its course down with more or less difficulty until
they reached the mouth, when Oxley, judging the entranc