rnett, who had charge of the arms, carefully
sought, as he felt a commendable and soldier-like desire to carry back to
Sydney, in good order, our full complement of firearms.

RECOVER THE CART AND TRUNKS.

A lonely cart and two dead bodies covered by the remains of Mr. Finch's
equipment now marked the spot where we had formerly encamped. The two
bullocks were no longer to be seen. The natives had revisited the spot
since Mr. Finch last quitted it, and had carried off the remainder of the
flour, and great part of the canvas of the tent. The bodies were covered
by a pile of various articles such as saddles, bows and yokes, harness,
packsaddles, trunks, canisters, etc. The savages appeared to have been
ignorant of the use of sugar, tea, and tobacco, articles which the
aborigines nearer to our colony prefer to all other things. A large
canister of tea had been emptied on the ground, a similar canister, more
than half full of sugar, lay on its side, so that its contents were still
good, the lids of both canisters having been carried off. The whole stock
of tobacco lay scattered about the ground and destroyed by the late
rains. A spade, a steel-yard, and a hammer were left; although iron had
been so desirable that one of the iron pins of the cart was carried away.
The two hair trunks belonging to Mr. Finch and which contained his
clothes, papers, etc. remained on the heap, uninjured and unopened, while
the truly savage plunderers had carried off, apparently as stuff for
clothing, the canvas of the tent. From these circumstances it was obvious
that the murderous were quite unacquainted with the colonists or their
habits.

BURY THE BODIES.

The bodies were now in the most offensive state of putrefaction, and
already so much decayed that we could not even distinguish the persons,
except by the smaller frame of Bombelli. The body of the bullock-driver
lay under the cart, where he had been accustomed to sleep; that of
Bombelli about four feet from it. No dress appeared to have been on
either besides the shirts, and one side of each skull was so shattered
that fragments lay about on removing the remains into a grave. It seemed
most probable that the natives had stolen upon them when asleep.

I ought to state here that Mr. Finch, on first leaving the settled
districts, had five men, two of whom, having behaved ill, he had been
obliged to send back to the colony.

COLUMNS OF SMOKE.

Having interred the bodies we loaded the ca