CHAPTER XXIII.

CHAPTER XXIII.

_Excursion into unknown countries._

It is scarcely necessary to relate, that my first thought the

next morning, was to fetch the sledge from the wood. I had a

double motive for leaving it there, which I had refrained from

explaining to my wife, to avoid giving her uneasiness. I had

formed a wish to penetrate a little further into the soil, and

ascertain whether any thing useful would present itself beyond

the wall of rocks. I was, besides, desirous to be better acquainted

with the extent, the form, and general productions of our island:

I wished Fritz only, who was stronger and more courageous than

his brothers, to accompany me; and accordingly left the three

others, and Ponto, to protect my wife. We allowed Turk to be

our travelling companion, who did not fail to testify his joy

by jumping about, and barking loud. We set out very early in

the morning, and drove the ass before us for the purpose of drawing

home the sledge.

On reaching the wood of ever-green oaks, we found the sow feeding

voluptuously upon the acorns under the trees. We wished her a

good appetite, and begged her to admit us to the honour of partaking

her breakfast; and accordingly Fritz filled the pockets of his

waistcoat with some of them. We perceived with pleasure that

the lecture of the preceding day had rendered the animal more

tractable: she did not now seek to avoid us; and we might even

have induced her to return home, if we had had time to take the

pains. As we were quietly picking up some of the acorns, we observed

some birds, which occupied the wood in every direction, advancing

towards us. Some of them were clothed with a plumage of exquisite

beauty; and for this once, I could not refuse Fritz the pleasure

of firing upon them, that we might in consequence obtain a nearer

view, and inform ourselves respecting their species. He brought

down three. I recognised one to be the great blue Virginia jay,

and the other two were parrots. One of the two was a superb red

parrot; the other was green and yellow.

While Fritz was reloading his gun, we heard a singular sort of

noise which came from a distance: at one moment it resembled

a muffled drum, at another, the noise made in sharpening a saw.

My first idea was of music played by savages, and we retreated

quickly to hide ourselves among the bushes to listen. By degrees

we advanced towards the place from whence the sound appeared

to come; but perceiving nothing to alarm us, we separated some

of the branches with our hands, and then discovered a handsome

bird about the size of the English cock; and, like it too, adorned

with elegantly-formed smooth feathers round the neck, and a comb

upon his head. The animal stood erect on a decayed trunk of a

tree, which was lying on the ground, and at this moment exhibited

some singular gestures. His tail was spread in the form of a

fan, similar to that of the turkey-cock, but shorter; the feathers

round his neck and head were erect and bristling. He sometimes

agitated them with so quick a motion, as to make them appear

like a vapour which suddenly inclosed him; sometimes he whirled

himself round and round on the trunk of the tree; at others he

moved his head and eyes in such a manner as to express a state

of distraction, making at the same time, the singular kind of

noise with his voice, which had alarmed us, and which was preceded

and followed by a sort of explosion. This last was caused by

a motion of his wing striking in a quick measure on the trunk,

which was hollow and dry, and made the noise resemble a muffled

drum. All around him, there was assembled a great number of birds

of the same species, but much smaller, and of a less beautiful

form. One and all fixed their eyes upon him, and seemed delighted

with the pantomime. I contemplated this extraordinary spectacle,

of which I had formerly read an account, with astonishment. The

number of the spectators of the feathered actor, increased every

moment; and the performance increased in spirit also, in proportion,

presenting the idea of a perfect intoxication or delirium of

the creature. At this moment, Fritz, who stood a little behind

me, put an end to the scene by firing off his gun. The actor

fell from the stage, and stretching himself on the sand, breathed

his last, and the spectators betook themselves suddenly to flight.

I must confess, the interest I took in the scene was of so lively

a nature, that I could not refrain from reproaching Fritz in

an angry tone. Why, said I, must we be always applying the means

of death and annihilation to the creatures that fall in our way?

Is not nature a thousand times more exhilarating in her animated

movements, which express life and enjoyment, than in the selfish

scheme of destruction you seem so fond of? Some allowance should

no doubt be made for the curiosity of youth, for necessities

caused by our situation, and even for the taste you have acquired

for sporting; I therefore, as you well know, do not object to

your killing now and then a little game, or some singular or

dangerous kind of animal; but moderation is on all occasions

useful, and the spectacle of this bird, employed in such earnest

endeavours to draw his females around him, was at least as amusing,

as to see him stretched there at length, and lifeless, who but

two minutes ago exhibited such rapid and lively motions! His

pretty hens too all dispersed in terror, and deprived of the

possibility of ever more admiring him or being his companions.

Fritz looked down, ashamed and sorry. I observed to him that

the thing being done, there was now no remedy; that the tetrix[5]

or heath-cock was much esteemed as game; and that as the mischief

had occurred, he had better take it from the ground and carry

it to his mother.

He did as I desired; and in spite of my lecture I saw that he

was rejoiced to have acquired such a prize. Is it not a beautiful

creature, father? said he: but I am most curious to be informed

what all his action was intended to represent.

_Father._—I imagine his gestures and his cries were intended

to assemble his females, of which he has a large number, similar

to the common cock of Europe. I cannot help thinking, Fritz,

how cruel it was thus to interrupt the poor creature’s innocent

amusements.

_Fritz._—I am now extremely sorry for it, father; particularly

when I recollect that we might have caught him alive, and that

it is so desirable to have possessed this kind of fowl at Falcon’s

Stream.

_Father._—This is precisely what I was going to observe; I am

not sure that it is now too late to effect such a plan;—when

we see either of the hens disposed to brood, we will bring the

monkey here to search about for the eggs of these animals; if

we should be so lucky as to find a nest, which I think probable,

we will take away the eggs, and put them under the brooding hen;

by these means we shall procure some of this handsome race of

fowls.

We now laid the dead cock upon the ass’s back, and proceeded

on our journey. We soon arrived at the guava trees, and a little

after at the spot where we had left the sledge in the wood of

gourds, when we found our treasures in the best possible condition:

but as the morning was not far advanced, we entered upon our

intended project of penetrating beyond the wall of rocks.

We pursued our way in a straight line at the foot of these massy

and solid productions of nature, every moment expecting to reach

their extremity, or to find some turn, or breach, or passage

through them, that should conduct us into the interior of the

island, if, as I presumed, it was not terminated by these rocks.

We walked on, continually looking about, that nothing might escape

us worthy of notice, or to be enabled to anticipate and avoid

such dangers as should threaten. Turk with his usual bravery

took the lead, the ass followed with lazy steps shaking his long

ears, and Fritz and I brought up the rear. We met from time to

time with some small streams which afforded a most agreeable

refreshment; we passed a wood of guava trees and fields of potatoes

and manioc, the stalks of which perplexed our way; but we were

recompensed for this inconvenience by the fine views which every

where presented themselves, and which the low stature of the

plants enabled us to see in perfection. To the right, on the

high grounds, we saw hares and agoutis in considerable numbers,

amusing themselves on the grass in the morning sun. Fritz mistook

them for marmots, but not one of them made the whistling kind

of sound which is customary with these animals when they see a

strange object. The idea of my son seemed therefore to be unfounded:

again he wished to be convinced by firing his gun; but fortunately,

the rock on which they were stationed, was at too great a distance

for it to take effect.

We next entered a pretty little grove, the trees of which were

unknown to us; their branches were loaded with large quantities

of berries of an extraordinary quality, being entirely covered

with a wax which stuck to our fingers as we attempted to gather

them[6]. I knew of a sort of bush producing wax that grows in

America, and named by botanists _Myrica cerifera_; I had no doubt

that this was the plant, and the discovery gave me great pleasure.

Let us stop here, said I to Fritz, for we cannot do better than

collect a great quantity of these berries as a useful present

to your mother.

A short time after, another kind of object presented itself with

equal claims to our attention; it was the singular modes of behaviour

of a kind of bird scarcely larger than a chaffinch, and clothed

in feathers of a common brown colour. These birds appeared to

exist as a republic, there being among them one common nest,

inhabited at pleasure by all their tribes. We saw one of these

nests in a tree in a somewhat retired situation; it was formed

with considerable skill of platted straws and bulrushes intermixed;

it appeared to us to inclose great numbers of inhabitants, and

was constructed in an irregular sort of form round the trunk

of the tree where the branches sprout: it appeared to us to have

a kind of roof formed of roots and bulrushes, but more carefully

knit together than the rest of the structure. In the sides, which

were unequally formed, we observed a quantity of small apertures

seemingly intended as doors and windows to each particular cell

of this general receptacle; from a few of these apertures, issued

some small branches, which served the birds as points of rest

for entering and returning: the external appearance of the whole,

excited the image of an immensely large, open, spunge. The birds

which inhabited it were very numerous; they passed in and out

continually, and I estimated that it might contain at least a

million. The males were somewhat larger than the females, and

there was a trifling difference in their plumage: the number

of the males was very small in proportion to the females; I do

not know whether this had been the cause of their thus assembling

together.

While we were attentively examining this interesting little colony,

we perceived a very small kind of parrot, not much larger than

the birds themselves, hovering about the nest[7]. Their gilded

green wings and the variety of their colours produced a beautiful

effect; they seemed to be perpetually disputing with the colonists,

and not unfrequently endeavoured to prevent their entrance into

the building; they attacked them fiercely, and even endeavoured

to peck at us if we but advanced our hand to the structure. Fritz,

who was well trained in the art of climbing trees, was earnestly

desirous to take a nearer view of such extraordinary beings,

and to secure, if possible, a few individuals. He threw his whole

equipage to the ground, and climbed till he reached the nest;

he then tried to introduce his hand into one of the apertures,

and to seize whatever living creature it should touch, in that

particular cell; what he most desired, was to find a female brooding,

and to carry both her and the eggs away. Several of the cells

were empty, but by perseverance he found one in the situation

he wished. But he did not pursue his plan without meeting with

the full punishment of his curiosity and ungenerous behaviour.

He received so violent a stroke from the beak of an invisible

bird, that his only care was now to withdraw his hand, which

he shook in the air to ease the pain, uttering all the time the

most dismal lamentations. But though punished, he was not cured

of his fault: no sooner had the pain subsided, than he ventured

a second time to pass his hand into the nest, and succeeded in

seizing his prey, which he laid hold of by the middle of the

body; and in spite of the bird’s resistance, its cries and wailings,

he drew it through the aperture and squeezed it into the pocket

of his waistcoat; and buttoning it securely, he slided down the

tree and reached the ground in safety. The signals of distress

sent forth by the prisoner collected a multitude of birds from

their cells, who all surrounded him, uttering the most hideous

cries, and flying at him with their beaks, till he had made good

his retreat. The birds pursued him till he was quite close to my

side, when by making a loud noise and waving my pocket-handkerchief,

I succeeded in driving them away. He now released the prisoner,

and we discovered him to be a beautiful little green parrot,

which Fritz entreated he might be allowed to preserve, and make

a present of to his brothers, who would make a cage to keep him

in, and would then tame him and teach him to speak. I did not

oppose his request; but thinking we had spent too much time upon

this singular phenomenon of the bird colony, I bade him prepare

quickly for returning home. The birds were naturally the subject

of our conversation on the road. It was the first time I had

ever witnessed such a spectacle as a swarm of birds living together

in a state of society in one nest; and I was surprised at it.

From the circumstance of so young a bird being nestled within

the structure, it appeared probable that the true right of property

was in this species, and that the brown-coloured birds we at

first observed, were intruders, endeavouring to deprive them

of it. Thus we find, said I to Fritz, the existence of social

dispositions in almost every class of the animal kingdom, which

leads to the combining together for a common cause or benefit.

I have not hitherto observed these dispositions among amphibious

animals, but it is not unlikely that instances will at some time

or other present themselves. A multitude of causes may induce

animals to form a body or society, instead of living singly;

among them may be supposed the deficiency of females or of males;

the charge of the young; providing them with food; or as a means

for their safety and protection. Who shall dare to fix limits

to the instinct, or to the faculties of the animal creation?

_Fritz._—I do not, however, recollect any kind of animals who

live thus together in society, except the bees.

_Father._—What say you then, my boy, to wasps, drones, and different

kinds of ants?

_Fritz._—I did not indeed recollect the ants, though I have so

often amused myself with looking at them: nothing can be more

interesting than the ingenious little houses they construct;

observing them attentively, we perceive their industry, their

economy, their care of their young;—in a word, all their

undertakings, conducted on a plan of society and numbers.

_Father._—Have you also observed with what a provident kind of

instinct they bring out their eggs to be warmed by the sun, and

for this end remove them from place to place till the time of

their maturity?

_Fritz._—Is it not probable, father, that what we take for eggs,

are chrysales of ants, which, like many other insects, are thus

shut up while the process of their taking wings is in the operation?

_Father._—You may be right. Writers on natural history have

considered the industry and frugality of these insects, as a subject

not unworthy of their close consideration[8]; but if the common ant

of our own country excited so much of your admiration, in what

words will you express your astonishment at the almost incredible

labours which are performed by the ants of foreign countries!

Of these there is a kind which build nests of four, six, and

eight feet in height, and large in proportion: the external walls

of these structures are formed so thick and solid, that neither

sun nor rain can penetrate them. These houses contain within,

little streets, arched roofs, piazzas, colonnades, and particular

apartments for the offices of housewifery: and the whole of this

complicated mass is put together with so much solidity of

workmanship, that if emptied and cleaned, it might serve for an oven.

The ant is for the most part an animal of pilfering propensities,

on the profits of which it principally lives; it is also remarkable

for constancy in its designs, and remaining ever in one place:

a species of them exists, however, in America, which is known

by the name of the _cephalate_ or visiting ant; they make their

appearance in numerous troops every two or three years, and disperse

themselves abundantly in every house: as soon as this visitation

is observed, it is customary to open all the apartments, and

every receptacle for stores; they enter every where, and in a

short time it is found that they have exterminated as effectually

the rats, mice, bugs, kakerles (a sort of insect that gives great

annoyance in hot countries);—in a word, all the different animals

offensive or injurious to man, as if sent on a special mission

to remedy the evils these occasion. They do no injury to man,

unless they find in him an enemy, who pursues and disturbs their

quiet; in which case they attack his shoes so violently, that

they are destroyed with incredible rapidity. On the other hand,

they cause terrible devastations in plantations of trees, of

which they will entirely strip the leaves in a single night:

some of the ants crawl up and separate them from the tree, and

then throw them down to their fellow-labourers, who are in waiting

to receive and carry the leaves to the ant house. This curious

species does not build its house above ground, but they dig holes,

sometimes not less than eight feet in depth, and plaster the walls

according to the rules of the art of masonry[9]. Some travellers

assert that one of the islands of the South Sea is infested by

them to such a degree, that human beings cannot venture to disembark

in it. The place is therefore, as it were, yielded to them, and

is known to mariners by the name of Ant-island.

_Fritz._—And has no means been found to stop the progress of

their devastations?

_Father._—As to what in this respect relates to the ant-island,

I am not able to answer your question. In Europe, fortunately

for the inhabitants, they are not so formidable: they however

occasion sufficient inconvenience to make us study by what means

we can best destroy them; and the surest methods are found to

be fire and boiling-water. They have, besides, numerous enemies among

insects and birds: the most terrible of all is the _myrmecophage_,

or great ant-eater. Nature, who no doubt intended in this animal

to produce a counterpoise against the abundant increase of ants,

furnished it with a long gluey tongue, which it drops into the

holes of the ant-house: the ants crawl upon it, and remain fixed.

When the tongue is sufficiently covered with them, the ant-eater

draws it back, swallows its mouthful greedily, and drops it again

with the same success. It is pretended, that two ant-eaters hostilely

engaged against an ant-house, will destroy every inhabitant in

a short time. They raise small channels of light sand in the

ants’ road, which the creatures in passing, fall entirely through,

and are received by the enemy, who swallows them in an instant.

Different savage nations, the Hottentots in particular, also

devour ants by handfuls.

_Fritz._—What a frightful idea! I can scarcely believe the account,

father: but this is enough on the chapter of ants. You mentioned

just now, that in each class of the animal creation there were

some individuals to be found which formed themselves into societies;

pray tell me which they are.

_Father._—I know of no instance among birds, but that we have

just been witnessing; but among quadrupeds there is at least

one striking example of the social principle:—try to recollect

it yourself.

_Fritz._—It is perhaps the elephant or the sea-otter?

_Father._—You have not guessed the one I thought of: in reality,

however, the animals you have named discover also a strong

disposition to live in society with their species, but they build

nothing like a common house of reception:—try again; when you

mentioned the sea-otter, you were not far from the right creature.

_Fritz._—Ah, now I have found it: is it not the beaver, father?

These animals are said to possess so much intelligence, that

they are able to contrive and place dams to such streams or rivers

as obstruct their design of building entire villages: by this

operation they are furnished with a sort of ditch, which they

use for their purpose.

_Father._—This is well observed; and, strictly speaking, the

marmoset also may be included in the number of sociable quadrupeds:

but these latter cannot be said to build, in the literal sense

of the word; they dig themselves a common place of abode, a sort

of cavern, in the mountains, and in these whole families of them

pass the winter comfortably, in a continual sleep. It would have

been more blameable in us to have forgotten them, as they are

natives of our country; for it is principally in the highest

Alps of Switzerland that the animal is found.

We had proceeded a considerable way in this kind of conversation,

and had reached a wood, the trees of which were unknown to us:

they in a small degree resembled the wild fig-tree; at least

the fruit they bore, like the fig, was round in form, and contained

a soft juicy substance full of small grains: there was, however,

a sharpness and sourness in the taste. We took a nearer view

of these trees, so remarkable for their height, which was from

forty to sixty feet: the bark of the trunk was prickly or scaly,

like the pine-apple, and wholly bare of branches, except at the

very top, where they are loaded with them; some growing straight,

and others bent in different directions. The leaves of these trees,

at the extremity of the branches, are very thick; in substance,

tough, like leather; and their upper and under surfaces presented

different tints. But what surprised us the most, was a kind of

gum, or bituminous matter, which appeared by some accidental

means to issue in a liquid state from the trunk of the tree,

and to become immediately hardened by the air. This discovery

awakened Fritz’s whole attention: in Europe he had often made

use of the gum produced by cherry-trees, either as a cement or

varnish in the process of some of his youthful occupations; and

the thought struck him, that he could do the same with what he

now saw. He accordingly collected with his knife a certain quantity.

As we continued walking, he looked frequently at his gum, which

he tried to soften with his breath, or with the heat of his hand,

as he had been accustomed to do with that from the cherry-trees;

but he found he could not succeed. On the other hand, his endeavours

revealed a still more singular property in the substance, that

of stretching considerably on being pulled by the two hands at

its extremities; and, on letting go, of reducing itself instantly,

by the power of an elastic principle. He was struck with surprise

at this phenomenon, and sprang towards me, repeating the experiment

before my eyes, and exclaiming, Look, father! if this is not

the very kind of Indian rubber we formerly used, to rub out the

bad strokes in our drawings: see! I can stretch it, and it instantly

shrinks back when I let go.

Ah! what do you tell me? cried I with joy: such a discovery would

be an invaluable benefit. The best thanks of all will be due

to you, if you have discovered the true _caoutchouc_ tree which

yields the Indian rubber. Quick, hand it here, that I may examine

it.

_Fritz._—Look, father, how it will stretch! But I do not however

understand how it can be so immensely valuable to us: can it

be made to serve any other purpose than rubbing out a pencil

mark? Nor am I quite sure that it is the very same ingredient.

Why is it not black, like that we used in Europe?

_Father._—How many questions you ask at once! But give me time

to breathe, and I will answer them. Caoutchouc is a kind of milky

sap, which runs from certain trees, and no doubt from these before

us, in consequence of incisions made in the bark. This liquor

is received in vessels placed expressly for the purpose: it is

afterwards made to take the form of dark-coloured bottles of

different sizes, such as we have seen them, in the following

manner. Before the liquor which runs out has time to coagulate,

some small earthen bottles are dipped into it a sufficient number

of times to form the thickness required. These vessels are then

hung over smoke, which completely dries them, and gives the dark

colour you allude to. Before they are entirely dry, a knife is

drawn across them, which produces the lines or figures with which

you have seen them marked. The concluding part of the operation

is to break the bottle, which has served for a mould, and to

get out the pieces by the passage of the neck, when the ingredient

remains in the complete form of a bottle; soft to the touch,

firm in substance, yet flexible and convenient to carry about,

from being not subject to break; and may be even used as a vessel

to contain liquor if necessary. In later times it has been discovered

that this remarkable substance would extract the mark of black

lead from paper; and it is common for artists to cut them into

pieces, and to be generally provided with one of them.

_Fritz._—The fabrication of this article seems simple enough;

therefore let us try to make some bottles of it, father, which

will be convenient for carrying something for us to drink, when

we go a long way in pursuit of game. But still I do not perceive

how the discovery is, as you say, of so much value to us?

_Father._—Not by this use of it alone, certainly; but its quality

is admirable for being made into shoes and boots without seams,

if we can add the assistance of earthen moulds of the size of

the leg or foot to be fitted. Now then I suppose you can understand

my reason for the joy I expressed at the sight of so unexpected

a benefit. We must consider of some means of restoring masses

of the caoutchouc to its liquid form, for spreading upon the

moulds; and if we should not succeed, we must endeavour to draw

it in sufficient quantities, when wanted for use and in its liquid

state, from the trees themselves. There is besides another use

for which this substance is both fit and excellent;—that of rendering

water-proof any kind of linen or woollen production to which

it may be applied.

Well satisfied with the discovery we had made, and our fancy

already heated by the image of our fine India rubber boots and

shoes[10], we continued our way, endeavouring still further to

explore the wood, which stretched before us to a considerable

distance. After passing through it, we reached another called

Cœos, with a small part of the skirts of which we were already

acquainted, it being the same which stretches from the sea shore

to the top of the rocks. There we rested ourselves with great

pleasure for a few minutes, and were regaled with two cocoa-nuts,

which Turk had forced from two little monkeys which were playing

on the ground like children. Upon the loss of their food they

left him and scampered to the top of the trees, while we on our

parts devoured the booty. After this refreshment, we once more

resumed our route; we were determined to reach the furthest outlet

of this great wood of cocoa-trees, to examine the dimensions and

limits of our empire: in a short time we had taken some observations

that enabled us to ascertain this point; and looking attentively,

we recognised the great bay on the right, and on the left Cape

Disappointment, which latter had been the furthest point of our

earliest excursion.

In this spot alone, and mixed with a quantity of cocoa-trees,

I discovered a sort of tree of smaller growth which I presumed

must be the sago palm: one of these had been thrown down by the

wind, so that I was able to examine it thoroughly. I perceived

that the trunk of it contained a considerable quantity of a mealy

substance; I therefore, with my hatchet laid it open long-ways,

and cleared it of the whole contents; and on tasting the ingredient,

I found it was exactly like the sago I had often eaten in Europe[11].

The operation of cutting the trunk had disclosed also a new treasure,

and one which confirmed my belief of having found the real sago

palm-tree; it was the perceiving in the powder, the particular

kind of larva which lives entirely on sago, and is considered

the greatest delicacy of the West Indies for the palate. The

interest I felt on the subject, made me eager for an experiment

which would immediately determine my conclusion. I directed Fritz

to get some dry branches and make a fire; I ran a sharp stick

through half a dozen of the larvae, and toasted them on the flame;

the agreeable odour which exhaled from them, and is peculiar

to the species, made me certain I was not mistaken: I soon ate

one or two of them with a potatoe, which served for bread, and

I may venture to assure the epicures of Europe, that if they

desire to obtain a delicious morsel, this alone is worth the

pains of a sea-voyage for the purpose. Fritz, who from the first

had taken the liberty to smile at my fancy, and to assure me

that nothing in the world should induce him to partake of my

dish, attracted by the delicious smell and good appearance of

the food, had no longer the power to desist: he asked me to give

him a small share, and joined me in a chorus of the highest praise.

It was now his turn to search for more, and to use the same ceremony

in dressing them.

After our repast, we got up and began to consider how much further

we would go: the thick bushes of bamboo, through which it was

impossible to pass, seemed to furnish a natural conclusion to

our journey. We were therefore unable to ascertain whether we

should or should not have found a passage beyond the wall of

rocks: we perceived then no better resource than to turn to the

left towards Cape Disappointment, where the luxurious plantations

of sugar-canes we had discovered on our first visit, now again

drew our attention. That we might not return empty-handed to

Falcon’s Stream, and might deserve forgiveness for so long an

absence, we each took the pains to cut a large bundle of the

canes, which we threw across the ass’s back, not forgetting the

ceremony of reserving one apiece to refresh ourselves with along

the road. We soon arrived on the well-known shore of the sea,

which at length afforded us an open and shorter path; we next,

and not long after, reached the wood of gourds, where we found

our sledge loaded as we had left it the night before: we took

the sugar-canes from the ass, and fastened them to the sledge,

and then we harnessed the ass, and the patient animal began to

draw towards home.

We arrived at Falcon’s Stream without any further adventure,

and rather early in the evening. We received at first some kind

reproofs; we were next questioned, and lastly thanked, as we

displayed our various treasures, but particularly the sugar-canes:

each of the boys seized one and began to suck it, as did their

mother also. Nothing could be more amusing than to hear Fritz

relate, with unaffected interest, the recent discoveries we had

made, and imitate the gestures of the heath-cock as he held it

up for them to examine:—the whole company continued to shout

with laughter for many minutes. Then came the history of the

colony of birds and their singular habitation, and of the green

parrot, all of which was listened to with the delight excited

by a fairy tale. Fritz showed them the handsome red parrot dead,

also the great blue jay, both of which they did not cease to

admire; but when Fritz took out of his waistcoat pocket the little

parrot all alive, there was no bounds to their ecstasy: they

jumped about like mad things, and I was obliged to interpose

my authority to prevent their tearing him to pieces, in the struggle

who should have him first. Francis asked his eldest brother if

he had not already taught him some words in their way home? I

intended the office of preceptor for you, said Fritz, who are

such a little prate-apace that the parrot would not be long in

learning. Francis nearly devoured the little animal with kisses,

repeating a thousand times _pretty little parrot!_ At length

the bird was fastened by the leg to one of the roots of the trees,

till a cage could be made for him; and was fed with acorns, which

he appeared exceedingly to relish. We next gave an account of

the excellent dinner we had made on the larvæ found in the sago-meal,

which excited the envy of all but my wife, who was never partial

to new kinds of food. I therefore promised her for her share

of so many dainties, some real mushrooms which grew spontaneously

from the powder of the sago. She was delighted with the prospect

of the candles I assured her I was now able to furnish, and also

of the boots and shoes. Fritz took a bit of the rubber from his

pocket and drew it to its full length, and then let it suddenly

go, to the great amusement of little Francis.

Soon after night fall, being much fatigued, and after partaking

of a hearty supper, we all mounted the ladder; and having carefully

drawn it up, we fell exhausted, into sound and peaceful slumbers.