As no grass grew on the poor soil, the bush-fires--those scavengers of the forest--are unable to enter and consume the dead wood, which formed the principal obstacle to our progress.

Difficult, however, as it was to penetrate such thickets with pack-bullocks, I had no choice left, and therefore proceeded in the same direction.

In a short time, we reached an open Bricklow scrub containing many dry water-holes, which, farther on, united into a watercourse.

We passed a creek flowing to the eastward to join the Mackenzie, and continued our route through patches of Bricklow scrub, alternating with Bastard-box forest, and open Vitex scrub, in which the Moreton Bay ash was very plentiful.

About eight miles from our camp, we came upon an open forest of narrow-leaved Ironbark (E.
resinifera) and Bastard-box, covering gentle slopes, from which shallow well-grassed hollows descended to the westward.