I have the honour to be, Sir,

Your obedient servant,

W. Landsborough.

Commander of Victorian and Queensland Party Organised at Brisbane.

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In reply to the above he was instructed to sell his equipment and proceed to Melbourne.

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About a month after Landsborough’s arrival in Melbourne intelligence was received that McKinlay and his party, who had gone from South Australia in search of Burke and Wills in August of last year, had safely reached Port Denison in August of this year.  No tidings of McKinlay had been heard from the time of his finding poor Gray’s grave on Cooper’s Creek, where he learned the fate of Burke and Wills.  His future instructions were to proceed to Stuart’s route and search for a goldfield on a part of it which had been described by Stuart as giving indications of being auriferous; but in consequence of the flooded state of the country he was unable to go in that direction.  He therefore proceeded to Carpentaria, exploring the country chiefly in the middle part of his journey on a track betwixt Burke’s and Landsborough’s, and afterwards tracing down the Leichhardt River.  At Carpentaria, where he expected to get supplies of flour, tea, and sugar, the depot being abandoned, his hopes were disappointed, and he was obliged to proceed to Port Denison, a distance of about 700 miles, without either of these articles.  On his arrival at Melbourne with some members of his party the reception given to Landsborough and them by the public was so cordial that we consider the following report (taken from the Argus) of the meeting held to do them honour will be read with interest.

Demonstration in honour of Messrs.  Landsborough and MCKINLAY.

A public meeting of the citizens of Melbourne was held last night at the Exhibition Building, in honour of the leaders of the Queensland and South Australian Contingent Exploration Expeditions and their parties, and to testify the admiration of the inhabitants of this colony at the successful and heroic manner in which those explorers had accomplished their mission.  The doors were advertised to be open at seven o’clock, but it was not until about twenty minutes past that hour that they were unlocked.  In the meantime a vast crowd which had commenced to assemble as early as half-past six o’clock had gathered in front of the building and manifested considerable impatience to be admitted.  Within a very few minutes after the doors were thrown open the spacious edifice was densely crowded in every part.  There were probably nearly 3000 persons present.  On the motion of Dr. Macadam the Honourable Matthew Hervey, M.L.C., was called upon to preside.  He was surrounded on the platform by several members of the Exploration Committee and other gentlemen.  Mr. Landsborough and Mr. McKinlay and some members of their respective exploring parties were present; as was also Mr. King, the companion of the unfortunate Burke and Wills; and also Mr. C. Verdon, who was recently the successful bearer of despatches from the Exploration Committee to Mr. Howitt.