mortification and their intense delight, my gun snapped, and, as they
found the weapon I had with me, and with which I had menaced them in so
authoritative a manner, appeared to produce no effect, they took courage,
and, turning about, made faces at me and an insulting noise which was
meant to imitate the snapping of the gun. Their inimical intentions now
became more manifest; I however ran at them again, and fired my second
barrel over their heads, which caused a rapid retreat; but they halted on
a rising ground about three hundred yards from us, and finding on the
muster of their forces that they had sustained no damage, they made
preparations, as if resolved to commence hostilities in earnest.

NATIVES DISPERSED.

As these natives had now unfortunately learnt to despise our weapons I
was compelled to act promptly, or blood would undoubtedly have been shed.
I therefore took my rifle from Coles and, directing it at a heap of
closely matted dead bushes which were distant two or three yards to the
right of their main body, I drove a ball right through it: the dry rotten
boughs crackled, and flew in all directions, whilst our enemy, utterly
confounded at this distant, novel, and unfair mode of warfare, fled from
the field in confusion, the majority of our party rejoicing at the
bloodless victory: we then wended our way along the native path which led
us down to the flats bordering the estuary, and finding there an
underground stream of water bubbling along through a limestone cavity and
having several openings upwards, we halted to refresh ourselves.

I had hoped that finding hostile natives in our vicinity would have made
the stragglers keep up better with the party, but they would neither
hasten on nor throw away their loads, so that my patience was sorely
tried; a man of the name of Stiles was the worst; nothing could induce