e discovered a leguminous tree, with the
dark fissured bark of the Ironbark, but with large bipinnate leaves, the
leaflets oblong, an inch in length; the pods broad and thin, and two or
three inches long: this tree is common all over the northern part of the
continent, and was found growing abundantly around Victoria, the
principal settlement of Port Essington.

Mr. Roper and Brown, upon an excursion after ducks, which were very
numerous on the lagoons, met with Blackfellows, who were willing to
accost Brown, but could not bear the sudden sight of a white face. In
trying to cross the valley, my course was intercepted every way by deep
reedy and sedgy lagoons, which rendered my progress impossible. I saw,
however, that this valley was also floored with a sheet of lava hollowed
out into numerous deep basins, in which the water collected and formed
the lagoons.

May 5.--I went with Charley to reconnoitre the upper part of the reedy
brook, with a view to find a passage over the table land to the westward;
at the same time I sent Mr. Roper and Brown to trace the river through
the lagoons, and to examine whether there was any connection between
them. I followed the base of the basaltic table land, along which the
brook came down, and, after a two miles' ride on its banks, through oak
trees, low fern trees, and several bush trees, found that it came down a
valley deeply cut into the table land. The floor of the valley was of
basaltic rock, and its steep slopes were covered with boulders of the
same formation. The water ran in two distinct beds through the fissures,
hollows, and caves of the rock. As our horses could not travel over the
sharp edges of the rock without injuring their feet, we ascended the
table land, and rode to the northward about four miles, and then came on
plains, in which we distinguished a meandering band of green verdure,
which proved to be the same brook we had left, or one of its head waters.
We followed it through a series of plains, from one of which a blue
mountain was visible to the north-west. I called it "Mount Lang," after
Dr. Lang, the distinguished historiographer of New South Wales. Smoke was
seen to the westward. At the right side of the brook, a stream of lava
bounded the plains, and was, as usual, covered with dense scrub. Box,
with occasional patches of narrow-leaved tea trees, grew along the
plains. The forest was very open, and principally consisted of
narrow-leaved Ironbark; the grass