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55 15th day of August, about 8 o’clock a. m. On passing the duck ponds near Shortland Bluff, a whale-boat, manned with some Sydney aborigines and one white man, came off, and asked “ the news—where from—and whereto,” and told our people that Mr. John Batman, KING of Port Phillip, had bought all the lands and desired all trespassers to keep aloof! '1 he blacks were civil enough, and supplied our people with plenty of good choice fish. The “ Enterprise” was conducted by Captain Hunter, as Master of the vessel, along the southern channel, and the men landed each day to examine the country from five to ten miles inland, the vessel only moving a short distance until they returned on hoard, and pushing a few miles further by night in order to examine new lands the next day. No eligible spot was found on the east side of Port Phillip Bay. The directions were not to finally settle down, except upon a river or copious supply of fresh water. On Thursday the 20th the “Enterprise” came to anchor in Hobson’s Bay, just clear of the bar upon the channel to the Yarra Yarra ; and the new colonists, Messrs. E. H. Moor, Geoige Evans, W. Jackson, and Capt. Lancey, putting some provender into the five oared whale-boat brought for the occasion, on Friday the 21st of August, pushed off with two of the workmen, to explore the inlet. In fact, they all, except Capt. Hunter, Master of the “ Enterprise,” doubted as to that being the debouchement of* any stream. But he found it on his chart, and advised their trying to find what he was sure they would—afresh water river. "With three cheers from the crew for success to the adventurers, they pushed off, and after once or twice touching on the mud fiats, they found plenty of deep water, and pushed on joyfully and thoughtlessly, passed the junction of the Yarra Yarra without much notice, and went up the direct course, named by them the Salt Water Biver, because they could not get up it far enough to find the stream fresh, owing to the vast number of fallen trees lying in the water, which so obstructed the navigation, that after much labour they landed, and could not then discover the fresh water, the place that they landed at not allowing them to see the course of the stream. They returned to the vessel exhausted and fretful, having been most of the day without water to drink, they having on all former occasions found plenty of that element on shore. Mind, this was in August, the wet season. “ The next day they took water as well as food, and pushed up the
