After stopping for half-an-hour upon its banks, to rest our animals, we again pushed forward.
We had not as yet risen any perceptible height above the level of the marshes, but had left the country subject to overflow for a considerable space behind us.

The brushes through which we had passed were too sandy to retain water long, but the plains were of such an even surface, that they could not but continue wet for a considerable period after any fall of rain.

They were covered with salsolaceous plants, without a blade of grass; and their soil was generally a red sandy loam.

There were occasional patches that appeared moist, in which the calystemma was abundant, and these patches must, I should imagine, form quagmires in the wet season.
On leaving the last-mentioned creek, we found a gently rising country before us; and about three or four miles from it we crossed some stony ridges, covered with a new species of acacia so thickly as to prevent our obtaining any view from them.

As the sun declined, we got into open forest ground; and travelled forwards in momentary expectation, from appearances, of coming in sight of water; but we were obliged to pull up at sunset on the outskirts of a larger plain without having our expectation realized.
The day had been extremely warm, and our animals were as thirsty as ourselves.