As soon as the ebb-tide began to make Mr. Roe embarked on his return; and during his passage down saw as many as twelve alligators. Two were fired at but the balls glanced off their tough coats of mail without hurting or scarcely frightening them. A small trickling of water was noticed among the rocks, which they found to be fresh but in too small a quantity to be of any use. The boat was six hours and a half pulling down although for the first five hours the tide was favourable. The river was named after the rector of Newbury, the reverend father of my zealous and diligent assistant Mr. Roe. It appears to be a very considerable stream and, as Mr. Roe justly observes, in the rainy season or at any other time of the year than during the months of September and October, which terminate the dry season, will doubtless afford a large quantity of fresh water. The opportunity that offered in Hunter's River of filling our water-casks was not to be lost. September 14. And the day after the boat returned from the examination of Roe's River the cutter was moved to an anchorage about half way up the first or sea reach of Hunter's River. September 15. And the next morning before daylight the boats were despatched; but owing to the darkness of the morning and the ebb-tide having left the shores dry and almost inaccessible, from the quantity of mud that lined them, they did not reach the spring until late in the day. In the mean time, however, they contrived to wade through the mud to the shore; and then explored the bed of the river for half a mile beyond where our previous examination terminated. In this space they passed several pools of fresh water which, in some parts, was running over a pebbly bottom; but the supply was so trifling as to be not sufficient to alter the taste of the seawater. Our gentlemen described the country to be as destitute of soil as we had found it lower down; and so rugged as to be scarcely passable. The ravine is formed by precipitous rocks of sandstone rising perpendicularly on both sides to the height of two hundred feet, here and there lightly sprinkled with a few shrubs which had lately been burnt. Some of our party thought they saw both an emu and a black swan amongst the bushes on the banks of the river. In some parts of the north coast we have certainly noticed marks on the sand like the impressions of an emu's foot, but as we have never seen the bird it is probable that we have mistaken them for the traces of the Ardea antigone. Black swans we have never seen at all within the tropic and it is equally likely that in this instance we may have also been deceived by the appearance of a bird of similar size and plumage. On the return of the boat two alligators swam past it. September 19.