Two days’ liberty was allowed to each watch, and as, after we left the year previous, two whale-ships, on the recommendation of our captain, had visited the port, our advent created no surprise. Ships and sailors had become familiar sights, and the inhabitants were not as ready to spend their money, or listen to our yarns, as they were on our former visit. In the town things had changed but little--no improvements, no marriages, and no deaths during our absence. Therefore, as there was little either to interest or divert us, a number of our crew who, during the previous visit were enjoying themselves with rational pleasures, in the absence of former novelties, flocked to the groggeries and passed their time there. Apart from the general jokes and antics of seamen, one circumstance only, worthy of note, occurred; that was the mulcting of one of the publicans for allowing two of our men to play cards in his house; their laws prohibiting card playing even for amusement. On the 1st of February the barque Iowa came in and gave liberty, so that there was quite a number of us ashore for several days; but after that we became tired of listlessly walking through the sand, and preferred remaining aboard the ship. On the 5th our men proceeded some ten miles up the river to the village of Australind. On our way up we passed several grazing farms stocked with noble cattle. Along the river thousands of birds were to be seen, amongst which our pilot pointed out, as peculiarly worthy of notice, the black and white swan. Arriving at Australind we found ourselves in a beautiful country, excellently cultivated, appearing as an oasis in the sandy district that surrounded it. We had received, or understood that we had received (and certainly such was the gist of the message conveyed to us), an invitation from the proprietor of a handsome garden in the vicinity to visit him, and help him to eat some of his abundant fruit, partake of dinner with him, and generally enjoy ourselves at his expense; he wishing no other return than the pleasure of playing the host to an assemblage of Neptune’s sons. This, even to our unsophisticated ears, sounded almost too disinterested for the inhabitants of Australia. Nevertheless, having little else to do, we determined to face the music, providing ourselves with plenty of biscuit in case of disappointment. We landed and went up to milord’s house, which proved to be a neat and substantial brick edifice, and, with the assurance of invited guests who had come ten miles to please their host, we approached the door. We found that the individual who was so liberal in his promises was absent, and in his stead his home was garrisoned by a party of women, the young and pretty of whom were kept in the background by the high shoulders and higher cap of an old dame, whom I afterwards understood was a genuine specimen of the English titled lady; but I doubt it--as I have always understood that