of applying anaesthetics.  During the operations that follow, the men dance and yell round the fires but the women may not be witnesses of the ceremony.  Tribes from all neighbouring districts meet at such times and hold high revel.  Evidently Queen Victoria Spring is a favourite meeting-place.  I regret that I never had the chance of being present at such a gathering—­few white men have.  For except in thickly populated districts the ceremonies are rare; the natives are very ready to resent any prying into their mysteries, and Luck only managed it at some risk to himself.  Whilst camped at the Spring we made one or two short excursions to the southward, but met with little encouragement.  On turning our attention to the opposite direction we found that nearly two hundred miles due north a tract of auriferous country was marked on the map of the Elder Expedition.  Between us and that point, the country was unmapped and untrodden except by black-fellows, and it seemed reasonable to suppose that since the belts of country run more or less north and south we had a fair chance of finding gold-bearing country extending southward.  We should be getting a long way from Coolgardie, but if a rich company could not afford to open up the country, who could?  To the east we knew that desert existed, to the south the country was known, and to return the way we had come would be only a waste of time.  So we decided on the northern course, and chose Mount Shenton, near which a soakage was marked, as our objective point.  We were not well equipped for a long march in new country, since we had few camels and scanty facilities for carrying water.  By setting to work with the needle we soon had two canvas water-bags made; Luck, who had served in the French navy, like all sailors, was a very handy man in a camp, and could of course sew well, and gave me useful lessons in the handling of a sail-needle.

CHAPTER II

IN UNKNOWN COUNTRY

On April 22nd we left the spring, steering due north—­carrying in all thirty-five gallons of water, though this supply was very perceptibly reduced by evening, owing to the canvas being new; loss by evaporation was lessened by covering the bags with a fly (a sheet of coarse calico).  The class of country we encountered the first and second day can stand for the rest of the march.  Spinifex plains, undulating sand-plains, rolling sandhills, steep sand-ridges, mallee scrubs, desert-gum forests, and dense thickets of mulga.  The last were most unpleasant to travel through; for as we wound our way, one walking ahead to break down the branches, the other leading the camels, and Tommy following behind, every now and again the water-camel banged his precious load against a tree; and we walked with the constant risk of a dead branch ripping the canvas and letting out the water.