water overflows the low banks of the different channels. The blacks we
saw today appear to be circumcised; three of them approached us, one of
whom was the old blackfellow we had seen yesterday. Their name for water
we thought from what they said was oto. We presented them with a tin pot
and two empty glass bottles with which they were very much pleased.

Friday December 27. Camp Number 23, situated on the Herbert River.

Left camp at 8.24 a.m. to go down the river; at 8.35 made half a mile
south-south-west to where we crossed, near its junction, a western
channel of the river; at this place there are flats covered with bushes
like saltbush, which the horses eat. These bushes I have observed on the
western plains from Rockhampton and on most of the low situations along
our route on this expedition; at 8.43 made half a mile south; at 8.48
made a quarter of a mile south-west where we crossed, near its junction,
a more western channel of the river; at 9.10 made one mile south-west by
south to where we crossed, near its junction, a river from west, with a
shallow and broad channel; the banks of the river at this place are very
little below the level of the plain on each side of it; at 10.10 made
three miles south-south-west with level plains on each side of us,
without trees or bushes, except along the watercourses; at 10.30 made one
mile south to the right bank of the river, where there are twelve
box-trees growing in its bed; before crossing to its left bank we got
enough water to satisfy the horses; at 11.4 made one mile and a half
south to a junction of a watercourse with extensive flood-marks from the
east. This river has a deeper channel, with trees on its banks, than the
river we have been following down had. At 11.15 made half a mile south,
when Mr. Allison and I went back to the westward, on the plains, and got
the following altitude of the sun: 86 degrees 37 minutes, which makes the
latitude 20 degrees 11 minutes 15 seconds; at 1.35 made three-quarters of