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April 19th.—I have only this night been able to return here. We were longer on our trip to the Sound than we expected, but as we touched at several settlements on the coast which I had great desire to see, and, the weather being fine, the delay has been rather agreeable than otherwise. A vessel was lying at the Sound when we were there. We anchored on Sunday evening at Port Leschenhault. Where we landed, we found Mr. Bull, Lieut. Armstrong, and a droll sort of East India establishment, consisting of seven Indians of the class called "hill coolies," under charge of a Scotchman called Miller. They had with them, as the commencement of flocks and herds, one young hunchbacked bull, and two hairy sheep. There is an extensive estuary there, into which the river Preston and the Collie discharge. The land on the estuary is low and well watered (where we saw it), having shelly marl underneath, and having the appearance, to a great extent, of having been recently recovered from the sea. But on an excursion of nine miles up the Collie, we were rather disappointed in the land. There is, however, a tract of good country higher up the river, but we had not time to reach it. Sharks are very numerous in the estuary and river, so that we dared not bathe. There are several low promontories of columnar basalt near to this place, just south of Port Casuarina, which form part of the port. After ten days delay, we sailed to the Vasse inlet, which is in Geograph Bay. Here there are great estuaries and much land, apparently recently recovered from the sea. The substratum is of recent limestone with shells. The land is consequently fertile, though in general very sandy. There is much grazing ground, and the swamps are extensive. The sandy lands bear good grass also. This place was named "Vasse" after a man belonging to the French expedition in 1804 (or thereabouts), who was lost or abandoned. Some natives of that neighbourhood recollect him. They treated him kindly and fed him, but he lingered on the sea coast, looking out for his vessel. He gradually
