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This morning at daybreak, Captain Gardiner told me he had been seriously considering the propriety of returning to the station, for first, neither of us would be able to reach Port Famine which was the nearest inhabited place. Secondly, our provisions would fail before we could get there; thirdly, it would be the utmost we could do to reach the station before our strength failed; and, lastly, there was now little hope of our falling in with the natives and possibly from the appearance of the recent smokes, they were now between us and Cape Gregory. I suggested that it was possible that we might find them if we persevered a little longer, but could not deny that it would be staking our lives on the possibility of meeting with them, for if we went a day's journey further from the station, we should not be able to undergo the additional exposure to fatigue etc. by day and the cold damp air at night.

It was therefore determined that we should set out home by the most likely route to fall in with the people, calling on our way to get our memorandum books: we hoped to reach home on Saturday night, if not, early on Sunday morning; otherwise, not to walk on that day but lie out another night and reach the station on Monday. This concluded, we set off early. Captain Gardiner soon thought he saw two natives coming towards us but it soon appeared that the figures were not human beings, so after about an hour's stay we took up our burdens and recommenced our journey towards the station.

Captain Gardiner pointed out a mountain as the one under which we had left our things as we went. I expressed a doubt as to its being the same, nevertheless towards it we turned our steps and after a weary walk, during which we only met with water once, we reached the mountain and going round three sides of it without finding the two bushes under which we had hid the things (and these the only two there were) it was manifest that Captain Gardiner was mistaken. Still he persisted in examining the only remaining side, although I reminded him that it faced the very opposite point of the compass to that towards the real hiding place faced.

Leaving the mountain we soon found ourselves in quite a different kind of country to that over which we had walked on our way out: we were now surrounded with muddy lakes whereas the part we expected to find was a vast plain, covered with the roots of grass blackened by recent fires: we therefore made for the coast, as by so doing we could not get very far wrong. An hour or two more brought us to our halting place for refreshment; there we ascertained our locality beyond a doubt, as we were in full view of the N. W. bluff of Gregory range of mountains, which is about ten miles from the station.

We therefore determined to make a desperate push and walk so far that we could not afterwards mistake our way, then lie down in the early part of the night, when it was not so very cold, for three or four hours, and afterwards attempt to reach the station by four or five the next morning, that we might see how things had been going on during our absence before the Lagoon Indians were stirring about. As we were cut off from every other retreat, our hopes were as sincere and earnest as our prayers, that God would put His fear upon the Indians so that they might not destroy and rob the station, otherwise our fate would be at once decided, there being no other food or shelter within our reach and we, utterly unable to sustain fatigue and exposure much longer.

In these circumstances we set out again and, by our best efforts, reached a hill whence we could ascertain our direct course for the rest of the way, so that, with the assistance of the compass we might easily find our path in the night. But Captain Gardiner neglected to take the bearings, saying afterwards that it was too much trouble to look at the compass as we walked. Consequently, when after about three hours rest, we got again on our feet, at about 11 o'clock p.m., we were of very different opinions as to which was the direction of the station. The Gregory range was the chief directing mark but, in the dark, the intervening hills altered the appearance of their outline, which caused Captain Gardiner to affirm that some hills to the south of us were the range, while I was of the opinion that others, to the north, were they; every step we took confirmed my belief till I, in my turn became positive.

Here I must do myself the justice to say that never, since our leaving England, did I express a positive opinion differing from Captain Gardiner's, that did not prove to be correct. In general I gave no opinion at all and very seldom a positive one and then, only when the circumstances were critical; in fact Captain Gardiner generally told me he had made up his mind and I, as often, found that my opinion, even when it was asked for, for form's sake, put him upon his prerogative which I had the least possible wish to dispute; although in such questions as "Which was our nearest way home?" I might reasonably ask to express an opinion but I preferred following him, as I told him, like a dog would follow his master, to raising a dispute about any matter.

In our present uncertainty we questioned the compass, which decided that I was right; and this happened three times within half an hour, which was much oftener than we should have had to consult it, if the bearings had been taken by daylight, on the hill to which we had walked for that very purpose. However, we walked on in the direction indicated by the compass for about another half hour, when a neighbouring hill coming between us and the range, its apparent outline was again altered, which caused Captain Gardiner again to affirm that he was sure we were wrong and therefore we must lie down again till morning, which we accordingly did on the side of a hill near a bush.