on his clothes.  There had, however, been a distinct refusal to obey the orders of the officer in charge of the party, and those orders were neither vexatious or unreasonable, as they were simply in enforcement of well-established regulations.  I therefore cautioned Mr. Flood that unless his future conduct was more satisfactory than it had hitherto been I should remove his name from the list of officers taking command in the Expedition, according to the general orders of the 27th August, 1855.  The weather continues cloudy and calm, and, though the temperature is not extreme, it is very oppressive.

31st March.

Examining and packing stores in readiness for the exploration of the valley of the Victoria to the east of the depot.  Found the stores in good condition, though the bags had been much injured by the rats and white ants.  Although in some respects it would be more convenient to move the party at once to the bank of the Victoria before examining the country beyond, yet as the horses were now accustomed to the run near the depot, and the huts and stockyard rendered the station a more safe and convenient spot than any we could elsewhere select, I therefore decided on leaving the party here until I had explored the country to the east, and then move the whole party down the right bank of the river, by which the number and magnitude of the tributaries from the east would be ascertained, as this was an important point with reference to the contemplated journey to the Gulf of Carpentaria.

1st April.

Preparing equipment for a light party to explore the country to the east of the camp; shod six horses, and packed eighteen days’ provisions for four persons.  The weather continues cloudy, with light variable winds.

Explore east of the depot.

2nd April.

At 6.45 am started from the depot with Messrs. H. Gregory, Baines, and John Fahey, taking four riding and two pack horses, carrying eighteen days’ rations, etc.  Steered east over an undulating grassy country of basaltic formation with occasional sandstone ridges; the soil was generally good, but very stony.  I had already traversed this country, and as the day was very misty with much rain, nothing worthy of further record was observed.  At 1.30 p.m. altered the course to east-south-east, and at 3.15 camped on a large creek trending north-east, in the bed of which were large pools of a permanent character.  The hills were basaltic, but the creeks having cut through the rocks and excavated the sandstone, the valleys were not of such a fertile character as the plains and ridges.  Timber was wholly absent, and only a few small trees were seen at intervals on the hills.  The morning was cloudy with light rain, but it cleared towards sunset.

Latitude by e Argus 17 degrees 4 minutes 6 seconds.

3rd April.