Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt, logbook of a journey from Port Stephens to Peak Range, 1 October 1846-3 November 1847 - Page 40

the 30th Decbr,  Impatient? Impatient indeed. I'm herding my bullocks and have often frightened the brutes with the outbreak of my puny rage whilst those myriads of flies swarmed round me and tried to get into my eyes without taking the slightest notice of the show of my feelings, until I myself burst out laughing at my own great folly. How trying are the small annoyances of life and how unconquerable are the Liliputian evils of this world. A day before yesterday I sent the two blackfellows Bill and Jacky with a letter to Mr Dennis, principally to have them examined about our mules. I went yesterday morning with Wommai up Koimba Bay to our Old Camp 5. N E from Kents lagoon. I recognised the locality in general without being able to fix exactly where the place where our camp was. Old horse tracks of two horses were observed going down the creek. A broad belt of open country, some very fine Ironbark forest extends on both sides of the creek, which is well supplied with water. Manis has constructed an open shed, which we enjoy during the heat of the day. the light gets more anoying every and every one of us suffers. The lunai caustic is invaluable to me. The mules and horses suffer equally and all their sores turn bad in consequence of the irritation caused by the flies.
Wommai shot two black ducks and we found the nest of a partridge pigeon on the ground with 2 eggs which had a most delicate flavour.
1 January 1847. We have  sent the old year with all its good and its evil to the past and the morning of the New one dawned on us with a clear transparent sky and with the