Page:Journals of Several Expeditions Made in Western Australia.djvu/131

 we found herbage generally, which affords excellent food for stock at this unfavourable season of the year; many parts had recently been burnt, probably last year, and this year the herbage was quite green and fresh. On the sides of the hills, the lowlands, and crowning the more moderately high hills, grew the white and red gum generally, and the nut tree, near to the rivers and large water courses, a few of the blue gums, and the wattle, and on the immediate banks of the rivers the tea tree, and banksia, &c. In many places the country had a most fertile appearance, not possessing more timber than was necessary for ornament.

As by Mr. Smythe's observations we were to the east of King George's Sound, it was deemed necessary to proceed more westerly. (By his observations we were got quite near to our destination, but experience proved that his observations were erroneous, and that our travelling had been greatly overrated). Seeing, therefore, some elevated lands to the S.W., distant one mile and three-quarters, we turned towards them, and ascending the highest, but not observing any thing satisfactory, we pursued four days and a half a course to the S., making forty miles. We were then, owing to the difficulty, it being mountainous and the underwood extremely thick, obliged to bear away to the S. by W, which course we pursued for a day and a half,       making sixteen miles and a half; thence coming to some granite rocks, and seeing from them some high mountains, three of which were conical and of considerable altitude, one of them had two bare heads,—and Mr. Smythe being of opinion that this two-headed mountain was to the north of King George's Sound—we directed our steps towards it, halting for the night on the banks of a considerable river flowing to the south.