advance party might have returned to the depôt, so he and Brahé left his party in the encampment and made for Cooper's Creek.

On the 8th of May, while Burke and his two companions were down at the lower part of the creek making for Mount Hopeless, Wright and Brahé arrived at the depôt, and seeing the place undisturbed they concluded that the advance party had perished in the journey northwards. Wright and Brahé made a terrible blunder in not digging to see if the provisions deposited by Brahé had been removed. After a careless look around they returned to the encampment at Koorliatto, and then the whole party set out for the River Darling. Their progress was slow, and another fatality occurred near Torowotto. On the 6th of January, Patten, who had been gradually sinking since he left the depôt with Brahé, succumbed under his privations. Wright's party reached the Darling on the 18th of June, and immediately sent despatches to the Exploration Committee, begging that search might be made for the advance party.