Page:Journals of Several Expeditions Made in Western Australia.djvu/87

 The soil in the uplands and hills being chiefly composed of a light sandy loam, with a stratum of clay about a foot underneath the surface, rendered the travelling from the late excessive rains rather fatiguing, as we were obliged to tread on tufts of grass to avoid sinking in many places into this wet and hollow ground. On the banks of the river were numerous holes, the burrows of some animal which we were unable to see. We also found a litter of native dogs; the mother having left them at our approach, we succeeded in bringing two of them alive to Perth.

August llth,—,Having only brought two days' provisions with us, we regretted now being obliged to retrace our steps to where we had left our horses, and proceeded N. by W. We in seven miles arrived at the base of that part of the Dyott hills which rises so abruptly from the river. In twenty minutes we reached the summit, after a fatiguing ascent, and were amply rewarded by it in commanding from it a greater expanse of country than could be observed from Mount Mackie. To the eastward it presented a view of lightly timbered forest land, rising in alternate undulations, and expanding itself from nearly north to S.S.E., till it finally disappeared in the distance from twenty-five to thirty miles off, seemingly partaking, as far as we could discover, of the same character as the adjacent country.

This being the most conspicuous hill of the range, I propose to name Mount Bakewell, in compliment to a friend. I had also an imperfect view of an elevated peaked hill, which I nad ascended while on an expedition into the interior in December last, being nearly S.W. Quitting these hills, we at the termination of seven miles reached our old encamp-