The other animals had in some measure recovered, and the additional day of rest they got while we were searching for Flood's horse, enabled me to resume my journey on the last day of August.

Our course being one of 335 degrees to the west of north, or nearly N.N.W., and that of the sandy ridges being 340 degrees we necessarily crossed them at a very acute angle, and the horses suffered a good deal.

In the afternoon we travelled over large bare plains, of a most difficult and distressing kind, the ground absolutely yawning underneath us, perfectly destitute of vegetation, and denuded of timber, excepting here and there, where a stunted box-tree was to be seen.

While on the sand hills, the general covering of which was spinifex, there were a few hakea and low shrubs.

On such ground as that whereon we were travelling, it would have been hopeless to look for water, nevertheless our search was constant, but we were obliged to halt without having found any, and to make ourselves as comfortable as we could.