that dries in part
at low-water, thus affording the natives the means of going over easily
to them, a circumstance of which they avail themselves, as we found them
on the outer island. They would not, however, come near us, moving off as
we landed. Doubtless the terror of some of their party, in a great
measure arose from a vivid recollection of the raft interview, which was
likely to dwell long in their minds; at all events, if not of the same
party, they had heard of us, and it will readily be believed, that we had
been painted in sufficiently terrible and exaggerated colours to render a
second interview, in their minds, very undesirable.

QUAIL ISLAND.

Our discovering them in this place, which we named Quail Island, from
that bird being found in great abundance, quite destroyed the hope we had
previously entertained of procuring turtle there. It was the season for
their incubation, and at that time the island swarmed with them; but our
sable friends had abundantly availed themselves of this fact, as we saw
the remains of several of their turtle feasts. Although low, and composed
entirely of sand, we found a native well of excellent water near the
middle of the island, which, having been enlarged, afforded an ample
supply, a circumstance that at once renders this a spot of importance and
value. Both on this and others of the group there were a few small trees
and a sprinkling of brushwood.

We did not notice any of the singular detached hills seen at Port Darwin,
and the greatest elevation any of the land in the neighbourhood attained
was 200 feet; neither did we observe any primary rocks.

The observations were made at the South-East point of Quail Island, which
by them is placed in latitude 12 degrees 30 9/10 minutes South, and
longitude 1 degree 42 1/4 minutes West of Port Essington. The almost
insulated character of this part of the coast, and the quantity of
soundings the openings required detained us until the 6th of October,
when we passed out on the western side of the large reef in the centre of
the entrance, which is the proper one, and received the name of West
Channel. The western entrance point of Bynoe's Harbour, bearing South 15
degrees East, leads through it. This guide is only, however, of service
to a certain distance within the entrance, as it leads over a small patch
that dries at low-water, distant two and a half miles from the
above-mentioned point on the same bearing. To avoid this danger, i