Casuarina, gave to it the character of the rivers and
creeks of the Moreton Bay district. It changed, however, into a shallow
waterless channel, communicating with one of the large swamps which
generally extend along the base of the hills. I rode up Lynd's Range,
passing plains similar to those I have before mentioned, composed of
black soil intermingled with fossil wood and decomposed sandstone, and
densely covered with Burr, (a composite plant) and Verbena, and scattered
tufts either of Bricklow, or of Coxen's Acacia, or of the bright green
Fusanus, or of the darker verdure of Bauhinia, with here and there a
solitary tree of a rich dark-green hue, from forty to fifty feet in
height. From the summit I had a fine view down the valley of the Dawson,
which was bounded on both sides by ranges. A high distant mountain was
seen about N.N.E. from Lynd's Range, at the left side of the Dawson.

The water-holes abounded with jew-fish and eels; of the latter we
obtained a good supply, and dried two of them, which kept very well. Two
species of Limnaea, the one of narrow lengthened form, the other shorter
and broader; a species of Paludina, and Cyclas and Unios, were frequent.
The jew-fish has the same distoma in its swimming bladder, which I
observed in specimens caught in the Severn River to the southward of
Moreton Bay: on examining the intestines of this fish, they were full of
the shells of Limnaea and Cyclas. Large specimens of helix were frequent
on the Vervain Plains, but they were only dead shells. The fat-hen
(Atriplex) and the sow-thistle (Sonchus) grew abundantly on the reedy
flats at the upper end of the creek; Grewia, a prostrate Myoporum, and a
bean with yellow blossoms, were frequent all over the valley. Atriplex
forms, when young, as we gratefully experienced, an excellent vegetable,
as do also the young shoots of Sonchus. The tops of the Corypha palm eat
well, either baked in hot ashes or raw, and, although very indigestible,
did not prove injurious to health when eaten in small quantities. In the
vicinity of the swamps of Palm-tree Creek, I noticed a grass with an ear
much resembling the bearded wheat: with the exception of the cultivated
Cerealia, it had the largest seed I ever met with in grasses; even my
Blackfellow was astonished at its remarkable size.

During the night we experienced a strong wind from the northward, and,
during the afternoon, a gust of wind and rain from west and north-west;
but no thunde