Page:Narrative of a survey of the intertropical and western coasts of Australia, Volume 2.djvu/66

 co, m o AUrrnAUS. 47 recovering from the efthots of his fall, had oh. tained tho sun's meridional altitude upon the JulyS.. islet at the entrance of the river, which gave 1 �' 46 # for its latitude, difl'aring from the  of lt yeas by only fLaeon aands. The following day the boats were despal up tim river, but as tim ebb-tid ran tmtil  four o'clock, it was late at night before they retched the cascade,. Iraring experienezd dty b}r rmnlag upon the sand-banks, which, above Alligator Ishmd, re very numerous, and foun a narrow winding channel of not nwre than twelve feet deep; these banks are dry at low- mUer, m! are composed of a yellow q smi. At midnight, as soon as the l:m_ch and otter were loaded, for it did not take more thaa htlf an hour to fill the cas, I despatched them to the vessel., with orders to return the following night for another lead, and in the mean time I laurposed coutinuing the examination of the river;. of which we knew nothing beyond a few miles above the cascade. We were, however, unable to set out until half flood the next morning, on accotrot of the sh0a!n_ess of the channel. For ten iles we found little or no variation 'ther in its character or course: its windings were only just sufliciont to intercept a clear view f o direct. was its course, that from this part

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