e
centre of the trunk, served the same purpose at the stern: a platform of
small poles, well covered with dried grass, gave a sufficient flooring to
this rude specimen of a raft. I could not survey it without allowing my
thoughts to carry me away in pleasing reflections upon the gradual
progress of human ingenuity by the advance of which, the same intellect
that first contents itself with the mere floating of the single tree, at
length shapes a forest into timbers and launches the floating fortress in
triumph on the deep!

RETURN TO PORT USBORNE.

We were now about 40 miles in a direct line from Port Usborne, and
perhaps 70 by the winding course we were obliged to follow; only two
days' provisions remained, and as we were still deficient of material for
the chart of this archipelago, I was reluctantly obliged to abandon the
idea of attempting to reach Collier Bay. The mainland we had explored,
since leaving Port Usborne, may be described as forming eight bays,
varying in depth from three to eight miles, and in width from two to
five; their general trend is East-South-East; many islets skirt their
shores, and almost more than can be counted fill their mouths.

March 26.

With the first grey of the morning we left Bathurst Island, on our return
to the southward. Whilst passing inside the cluster of isles of slate
formation, we heard a "halloa," and on looking in the direction from
whence it proceeded, a native was observed on a raft: the boat's course
was immediately altered so as to cut him off should he attempt to escape,
but to my great surprise he paddled towards us with all possible haste.

THE NATIVE YAMPEE.

He was soon alongside, and with great satisfaction we at once recognized
our strange friend of yesterday, who amongst the boat's crew, went by the
sobriquet of Yampee. He again made use of the word Yampee according to
our orthography, and after repeating it several times, I offered him some
water, which he very eagerly accepted, twice emptying a canister that had
originally held 4 pounds of preserved meat; this afforded me additional
proof of Yampee being the word the natives of these parts use for water.
At Swan River, the native name for water is gab-by, which differs so much
as to lead us to suppose the dialect of the two places is quite distinct.
This supposition is also borne out by the fact, that Miago, the native of
Swan River we had on board, could never understand the language spoken by
his coun