From the summit, other similar hills could be seen to the East—­hills of quite a respectable height, all bare and rocky.  Numerous small gorges and glens head from the East watershed; without any hesitation our guides started down one, and before long we came to a little pool in the rocky bed.  Here we watered our animals and replenished our tanks and bags; and a nice job we had to make some of the camels approach the pool; on either side were steep cliffs, and to reach the water numerous cracks and gaps in the bed-rock had to be crossed, not wide or deep, but sufficiently so to scare Bluey and some of the others.  The open desert life seems to make camels, and horses too, very nervous when anything the least unusual has to be faced.  The echoes amongst the rocks, and the rather gloomy gorges, seemed to make them “jumpy”; a stone rattling down behind them would be sufficient to cause a panic.  Leaving the pool, we followed the gorge until it ran out as a deep, sandy channel down the valley formed by the horseshoe of the ranges.  The ranges I named the Erica Ranges, after one of my sisters.  All along the banks of the creek splendid green acacia and grass was growing, and a most inviting-looking plant standing some six feet high, with greenish-grey stems and leaves, and a flower not unlike wallflower.  Such a place at once suggested camping, and we were proceeding to unload when Godfrey remarked that this pretty plant was very like a most deadly Queensland poison plant; he was not sure; I had never seen it before, nor had Breaden.  The risk, however, was too great; it might be poison; I could see the camels eyeing its fresh charms, and it grew in such profusion that all would be devouring it in a few minutes.  So we packed up again and moved further on, much to the disgust of the blacks and the animals, for all were very tired.  I collected some specimens of this plant; if Godfrey had never been in Queensland we should have been in a tight corner, for the Government botanist, Perth, says, “The plant in question is very poisonous.  It is scientifically known as GASTROLOBIUM GRANDIFLORUM, occurs throughout the dry, tropical portion of Australia, and is commonly known as ‘Desert poison,’ ‘Australian poison,’ and ‘Wallflower poison bush.’”

Near Mount Bannerman, where our camels were poisoned on the upgoing journey, this plant was not growing.  The suspected plants I collected, but unfortunately the specimens were mislaid or lost.  In such country as this one has one’s whole mind and energies concentrated on how best to cover the ground; and what with well-digging, writing up field-books, observing, and so forth, one’s time is fully occupied; I was therefore unable to collect more than a few plants worthy of notice, since they formed feed for camels, or caused their death.  My companions were of course equally occupied.  Besides the map I was able to make of the country, I set great store by my photographs.  Of these I took over two hundred; owing, however, to defective plates, or rather films, many were failures, and nearly all that could be printed and reproduced are to be seen in this book.