From this he descended to the westward, and, at
length, struck upon the river, where a reef of rocks crossed its channel
and formed a dry passage from one side to the other; but the bend which
the river must have taken appeared to him so singular, that he doubted
whether it was the same beside which we had been travelling during the
day. Curiosity led him to cross it, when he found a small pond of fresh
water on a tongue of land, and immediately afterwards, returned to
acquaint me with the welcome tidings. It was too late to move, but we
had the prospect of a comfortable breakfast in the morning.
On the 6th February we journeyed again through a barren scrub, although
on firmer ground, and passed numerous groups of huts. At about eight
miles from our last encampment, we came upon the river where its banks
were of considerable height. In riding along them Mr. Hume thought he
observed a current running, and he called to inform me of the
circumstance. On a closer examination we discovered some springs in the
very bed of the river, from which a considerable stream was gushing, and
from the incrustation around them, we had no difficulty in guessing at
their nature; in fact, they were brine springs, and I collected a
quantity of salt from the brink of them.
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