visible, high, rocky and bluff to the edge of the water, seemingly only
seven or eight miles distant, and with several small islands or rocks
scattered over its surface. This was however only deceptive, and caused
by the very refractive state of the atmosphere at the time, for upon
dismounting and leading the horses into the bed of the lake, the opposite
shore appeared to recede, and the rocks or islands turned out to be only
very small lumps of dirt or clay lying in the bed of the lake, and
increased in magnitude by refraction.

I penetrated into the basin of the lake for about six miles, and found it
so far without surface water. On entering at first, the horses sunk a
little in a stiff mud, after breaking through a white crust of salt,
which everywhere coated the surface and was about one eighth of an inch
in thickness, as we advanced the mud became much softer and greatly mixed
with salt water below the surface, until at last we found it impossible
to advance a step further, as the horses had already sunk up to their
bellies in the bog, and I was afraid we should never be able to extricate
them, and get them safely back to the shore. Could we have gone on for
some distance, I have no doubt that we should have found the bed of the
lake occupied by water, as there was every appearance of a large body of
it at a few miles to the west. As we advanced a great alteration had
taken place, in the aspect of the western shores. The bluff rocky banks
were no longer visible, but a low level country appeared to the view at
seemingly about fifteen or twenty miles distance. From the extraordinary
and deceptive appearances, caused by mirage and refraction, however, it
was impossible to tell what to make of sensible objects, or what to
believe on the evidence of vision, for upon turning back to retrace our
steps to the eastward, a vast sheet of water appeared to intervene
between us and the shore, whilst the Mount Deception ranges, which I knew
to be at least thirty-five miles distant, seemed to rise out of the bed