Page:Journals of Several Expeditions Made in Western Australia.djvu/66

 on the 30th, the fourth day after new moon, I found not more than 1¾ feet water at ten minutes past 5,a.m. the water bemg several inches lower than on the 20th. From two meridian altitudes we obtained 32° 33' 15" as the latitude of the entrance. The distance from it to the place where the estuary expands into an irregular square sheet of water, from five to seven miles each way, is about three miles, with a good channel, having on each side of it a low level plain, composed of a surface layer of three or four inches of blackish clay, resting on shells and other marine calcareous deposits. Casuarina trees are growing in some places, and a succulent plant, having some distant resemblance to samphire, occupies the most marshes; whilst on higher and sandy ground, the eycalipti are produced, along with a tolerably good herbaceous vegetation. In the expanded sheet of water there are many extensive flats, partly dry at low water, and not navigable for common boats even at high; they lie a long way from the south side, so far indeed as to preclude our examining the beach in that direction so closely as we wished, and on that account were obliged to leave it uncertain whether any river entered between the Murray at the N.E. angle, and another river I found at the S.W., although I saw no indication of any opening along the line of trees skirting that part. Several good channels traverse this part of the estuary, and one runs along the western bank to the South River. We passed the night on the western bank, amid trees and shrubs, and a thin production of grass, and other herbs, upon a sandy soil, mixed with a tolerable proportion of black mould. The wind blew strong in squalls, accompanied with rain.

November 18th,—Embarked at forty minutes x