The loss of his nephew greatly afflicted poor Toonda,
who sobbed over it for a long time. We could not understand why the
natives had thus detained the boys; but, I believe, they were members of
that tribe, between which and a tribe higher up the river some ground of
quarrel existed. After the departure of these boys we had only three
natives with us, who had been with the party from Lake Victoria, i. e.
Nadbuck, Toonda, and Munducki, a young man who had attached himself to
Kirby, who cooked for the men. The latter turned out to be a son of old
Boocolo, a chief of the Williorara tribe, whom I shall, ere long, have
occasion to introduce to the reader. Mr. Browne, with the assistance of
Nadbuck, gathered a good deal of information from the natives then with
us, as to the inhospitable character of the country to the north-west of
the Williorara, or Laidley's Ponds, that agreed very little with the
accounts we had previously heard. They stated that we should not be able
to cross the ranges, as they were covered with sharp pointed stones and
great rocks, that would fall on and crush us to death; but that if we did
get across them to the low country on the other side, the heat would kill
us all. That we should find neither water or grass, or wood to light a
fire with. That the native wells were very deep, and that the cattle
would be unable to drink out of them; and, finally, that the water was
salt, and that the natives let down bundles of rushes to soak it up.
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