ing night, which would refresh the horses
and bullocks.

TWO RED-PAINTED NATIVES.

September 2.

Two natives came towards our camp, having hideous countenances and being
savagely painted with crimson on the abdomen and right shoulder; the nose
and cheek-bones were also gules, and some blazing spots were daubed, like
drops of gore, on the brow. The most ferocious-looking wore round his
brow the usual band newly whitened. He, like all those more savage
natives, had neither a word nor even a smile for us.

UNCERTAINTY OF MR. CUNNINGHAM'S FATE.

The other my men recognised to be Werrajouit, the native who formerly had
in his possession the handkerchief which was supposed to have belonged to
Mr. Cunningham. I thought that if that gentleman had really been
sacrificed, some of these fellows had been guilty of his murder; but we
were still uncertain of his fate; and perhaps his life had been saved by
some of these very natives whom the men were now much inclined to seize
as his destroyers. A gin and child were brought to us that we might give
some clothes to the latter, a practice we had foolishly encouraged at the
first interviews; so that they almost persecuted me with young children,
expecting that they should receive something. This gin had an English
haversack, and Burnett, by my orders, examined the contents; but he found
nothing likely to have belonged to Mr. Cunningham except a piece of
cloth. This search was made after they had disappointed us respecting a
waterhole and when the man who had promised to be our guide had decamped.

All the ponds in which we had found water before were dry, nor could we
obtain it elsewhere, although Burnett had examined the Bogan to Burdenda.
I knew by the result of our former search for Mr. Cunningham that no
water was to be procured down the bed of the river for many miles; and I
therefore cut off four miles of this day's route and continued our
journey as far as possible, having provided against a night without
water by carrying as much in barrels as supplied the whole party, and
afforded half a gallon to each of the horses and bullocks. We encamped on
a grassy plain, about five miles on in our journey of the 1st of May.

MR. LARMER OVERTAKES THE PARTY.

September 3.

I sent Burnett and two men forward to examine some ponds beyond our
former camp of the 30th of April, while the rest of the party followed.
Mr. Larmer overtook us during this day's journey, having last night be