No 69 Line of cour I ing on bags 1, 2, 19, 20, 11,3.

Think well before giving an answer and never speak except from strong convictions.

16^th December Left Depôt 65; followed by the creek

17^th The same. 66.

18^th The same. 67.

19^th We made a small creek, supposed to be O'Halloran's (transcrobed as Otto Era), or in the immediate neighbourhood of it. Good water. Camp 69

20^th Made a creek where we found a great many natives. They presented us with fish, and offered their women. Camp 70.

21^st Made another creek. Camp 71. Splendid water, fine feed for the camels: would be a very good place for a station. Since we have left Coopers Creek we have travelled over a fine sheep grazing country, well watered and in every respect well suited for occupation.

22^nd December 1860 Camp 72. Encamped on the borders of the desert.

23^rd Travelled day and night and encamped in the night in the bed of a creek as we supposed we were near water.

24^th Encamped on the morning of this day on the banks of Gray's Creek called after him because he was detached on horseback from the party, and found it good water. The third day without it. Now for a retrospective glance: we started from Coopers Creek, Camp 66 with the intention of going through to Eyre's Creek without water. Loaded with 800 pints of water: four riding camels carried 130 pints, each horse 150, two pack camels 50 each and 5 pints each man.

25^th Christmas Day Started at four am from Gray's Creek and arrived at a creek which appears to be as large as Coopers Creek. At 2 pm Golah Sing gave some very decided hints about stopping by lying down under the trees. Splendid prospect.

26^th Dec 27^th Dec 28^th Dec, 29^th Dec - Followed up the creek until it took a turn to the south-east which I thought rather too much to put up with, therefore left it on the morning of the 30^th.

December 12.30 on the road. Started at seven o' clock, travelled eleven hours.

31^st started at 2.20 sixteen and a half hours on the road, travelled thirteen and a half hours.

1^st January - Water

2^nd January - From King's Creek, eleven hours on the road. Started at seven, travelled nine and a half hours. Desert.

3^rd January - Five started. Travelled twelve hours no minutes.

4^th - Twelve hours on the road.

5^th - Water at Will's or King's Creek. It is impossible to say the time we were up, for we had to load the camels, to pack and feed them, to watch them and the horse and to look for water: but I am satisfied that the frame of man never was more severely taxed.

28^th March - At the conclusion of the report, it would be well to say that we reached the sea, but we could not obtain a view of the open ocean, although we made every endeavour to do so.

Leaving Carpentaria - Flour 83 lb. Pork 3 lb. D meat 35 lb. Biscuits 12 lb. Rice 12.lb sugar 10 lb.

[Page 15 blank]

Return party from Carpentaria arrived here last night and found that the D party had started on the same day. We proceed on slowly down the creek towards Adelaide by Mt Hopeless and shall endeavour to follow Gregory's track but we are very weak. The camels are done up and we shall not be able to travel faster than four or five miles a day at most. Grey died on the road from hunger and fatigue. We all suffered much from hunger but the provisions left here will, I think, restore our strength. We have discovered a practicable route to Carpentaria the principal portion of which lies on the 140th meridian of east longitude. There is some good country between this and the stony desert. From there to the Tropic the country is dry and stony between the Tropic and Carpentaria a considerable portion is rangy but it is well watered and richly grassed

[Page 20-21 torn out]

Flour 32
Oatmeal 27
Rice - 14
Meat 24 - 144
Ammunition 17 -
Water bags and tobacco 5
Wills's [?] - 4
P[?....] 8
Billys
Shovel
2 oilcloths 3
3 pads 20

[Page 24-25 torn out]
[Pages 26-34 blank]
[Pages 35-39 torn out]

13^th January 1860 - As I find it impossible to keep a regular diary, I shall jot down my ideas when I have an opportunity and put the date. Upon two occasions at Coopers Creek and at King's Creek on New Years Day, whenever the natives tried to bully or bounce us and were repulsed, although the leaders appeared to be in earnest, the followers and particularly the young ones, laughed heartily and seemed to be amused at their leaders' repulse. The old fellow at King's Creek who stuck his spear into the ground and threw dust into the air, when I fired my pistol, ran off in a most undignified manner.

Names for places - Thackeray, Barry, Bindon, Lyons, Forbes, Archer, Bennet, Colles, O.S. Nicholson, Wood, Wrixon, Cope, Turner, Scratchley, Ligar, Griffith, Green, Roe, Hamilton, Archer, Colles.

18^th January - Still on the ranges. The camels sweating profusely from fear.

20^th January - I determined today to go straight at the ranges and so far the experiment has succeeded well. The poor camels sweating and groaning but we gave them a hot bath in Turner's Creek, which seemed to relieve them very much. At last through - the camels bleeding, sweating and groaning.

[Pages 42-45 torn out]

Depôt No2 Cooper Cr
Camp No LXV.

The returned party from Carpentaria consisting of Burke myself Wills and King (Grey dead) arrived here last night and found that the depôt party had only started on the same day.
We proceed on slowly down the creek towards Adelaide by Mt Hopeless and shall endeavour to follow

2.
Gregory's track but we are very weak. The two camels are done up and we shall not be able to travel faster than four or five miles a day.
Grey died on the road from exhaustion and fatigue.
We have all suffered much from hunger. The provisions left here will, I think, restore our strength.

3.
We have discovered a practicable route to Carpentaria the chief portion of which lies on the 140th meridian of east longitude.
There is some good country between this and the stony desert. From there to the Tropic the country is dry and stony between the Tropic and Carpentaria

4.
a considerable portion is rangy but it is well watered and richly grassed. We reached the shores of Carpentaria on the 11th of Feby 1861.
greatly disappointed at finding the party here gone.
R O'Hara Burke
Leader

April 22nd 1861.
P.S. The camels cannot travel and we cannot walk or we should follow the other party. We shall move very slowly down the creek.

I hope we shall be done justice by. We fulfilled our task but we were aband not followed up as I expected and the Depôt party abandoned their post
ROH Burke

For the Committee - Coopers Creek 26th June 1861.

King has behaved nobly and I hope he will be properly cared for. ROH Burke

and he goes up the creek in accordance with my request June 2[?]th 1861