I would have gone on today if Mr. Bourne and Jackey had been with us as
we have only a few days' rations. Not knowing how far I may have to go
down the river before we reach a station where we can obtain a fresh
supply, and knowing from my last trial of going to the eastward how much
the horses suffered from the want of water, I determined not to put them
to such suffering again if avoidable. In the middle of the day Fisherman,
Jemmy, and I heard a loud report of what we thought was a gun probably
discharged by Mr. Bourne or Jackey, and expected them to arrive
immediately. I am very anxious about them, especially as it would be
inconvenient to send Fisherman off to see what has become of them, Jemmy
being so ill he cannot look after the horses. Meridian of the sun A.H. 86
degrees 23 seconds, latitude 27 degrees 5 minutes.

Monday May 19. Camp 72. River.

Fortunately the horses were not all mustered until the afternoon, as
shortly before they were so Mr. Bourne and Jackey arrived. If we had
found the horses as early as usual we would have been looking up the
river for Mr. Bourne and Jackey, where we should not have found them.
They had lost our tracks and followed down the river. We were exceedingly
glad to see them and to find that they had brought a large portion of an
emu with them which they killed yesterday. Mr. Bourne observed in the
course he had pursued a tree marked EO on one side and on the other side
EWC over C. I washed on the edge of the river near a deep waterhole in
some clay and pebbles in search of gold but did not find any. This
afternoon we left Camp 71 at 3.20. Came down on the eastern side of the
river and encamped as it grew dark, within about six and a half miles of
our last camp. I made the meridian altitude of the sun A.H. 85 degrees 51
minutes, the latitude is by that observation 27 degrees 8 minutes. The