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[Page 1]
Sir
I take the liberty of troubling you with a letter though in England. The map that I so earnestly expressed a wish to be returned is not come to hand. I made repeated enquiries about it, and even asked Gov. Bligh if he was in possession of a copy, but was answered in the negative. It was of some importance to me and I hope you will not forget my telling you, I would not avouch for the accuracy, if it was extended to a larger proportional scale. I have finished the one which I shewed you I had begun. This being on a larger scale, I have been unable to lay down the short winding courses, and the different ranges of hills, which of course, must be considered as the more perfect one. By it being more copious than any other I have constructed, I am unable to copy it, otherwise it would have been convenient for it to be copied or to go out of my hands until I return to England. As Mr Barrelier had not named any of the places I have took the liberty to do it. - the principal of which I am able to point out. Finding that the river at Vaccary Forest was not the main stream, I have adopted the name of Nepean and the principal stream (which is the middle river) I call the Hawkesbury. The farther river I call Dryander: and the riverlet (in which are the fossil shells) that falls into it Shellstone Brook. The high rough hills (which by local custom are called forestland) between the Hawkesbury and Belmont I have named Pecorean Forest, from its appearance of affording support and shelter for cattle and incapable of being converted to arable purposes. The fine flat of rich land on the eastern side of the Hawkesbury I have called Boodee. However I shall not dwell any longer on this subject but proceed to the chief transport of the canoe relating to my sending this letter.
The Native who resides with me having been to get me a Cola, in his way, observed one night a loud noise like the surf beating on the beach of the sea. Enquiring of the other Natives who were accompanying him, and some of them being inhabitants of this part, if that was not the cause, he was told it proceeded from water tumbling down a high rock. The next day he had an opportunity of seeing the place, as it was in the line of their route. The river, he said, washed a rocky bed, run into a small bason-like cavity and formed a whirlpool, from thence it was soon pushed down a high precipice into a large pond, with perpendicular, rocky sides. The water was foaming of a milk white; and there was a continual fog. On questioning him about the height and the distance he heard it, the first I computed might be about 12 yards, and the latter about 5 miles. He complained of the rock being slippy, and the precipice frightful to look down. None of the other Natives would venture near it, and were in pain concerning him, representing in the place from whence the Devils originated! Hearing such a story as this I was anxious to know where it was, and to visit it as early as possible. I learned it was upon the Nepean river higher up than the Cow pastures.
I made every preparation for a journey to this Cataract, and compleated it in July last. I did not find it altogether as the Native had represented, not that he gave me any wrong information, but the water being a foot lower, and which I perceived would make a material difference. On measuring the perpendicular height as near as I could get to the water, which was done by one of the men letting down a line to me below, was 51 feet 4 inches, but the weight rested upon a bed of large stones, which I computed was about 2 or 3 yards above the surface of the pond, so that the fall may be estimated at 20 yards. Its breadth during the time of floods is 67 yards, but at the present the water was confined to about 8 yards; the rise of a few feet would greatly increase it. On examining the river upwards it became very windy and seemingly deep on leaving the shallow rocky bed. It came from the northward as far as I could see up it, which was more than a mile, but it certainly must come from the south eastward. By my reckoning we were 29 miles S½W from Prospect and which at once struck me, this could not be the same river as run within a mile of Poppy Brook (Stone quarry creek). When I quitted it I resolved upon a western route to clear up this matter, and on gaining the surround of an ajoining hill, I saw the hills of Vaccary Forest. And the conflux of the two rivers seemed to bear NW by W. For about 4 miles we had rough mountainous ground. We afterwards came into a sort of brushy forest ground of a very good quality, and which continued until we came upon the confines of the other river. During the night I heard a distant pushing noise of water to the southward. In the morning I made towards it, and found the river seated in a very deep rocky valley, dashing over some craggy rocks. I resolved to trace the river downwards a little, and luckily by so doing, I came to another division, which seemed to be the principal one, and coming from the SSW; the present one I had just traced down here running to the south eastward. And my native told me on the other side of the SSW branch was a tract of forest land called Barago, the extent of which he thought was great