CHAPTER TWENTY.
AMONGST NATURE'S TREASURES.
It was a land of marvels to me, as now for the first time I saw in alltheir beauty the tall cocoa-nut trees and other palms, like vast ferns,towering up on their column-like stems and spreading their enormousfeathery leaves so gracefully towards the earth. Then after a few stepswe came upon bananas, with their long ragged leaves and mighty clustersof curiously-shaped fruit, with hundreds of other trees, such as I hadnever even heard of before, and among which, every now and then, weheard the sharp harsh cry of some bird of the parrot tribe.
These cries set us both on the _qui vive_, but though we walked for somelittle distance we did not obtain a shot nor see a single bird, but wefound that there was plenty of forest land full of vast trees with hereand there patches of beautiful undergrowth, so that, as Uncle Dick said,it was only a matter of time.
"I feel as excited over it, Nat, as you seem to be, my boy; for it isintensely interesting always to me, this search for unknown birds.What's that?"
We stopped to listen, but could not make out what the noise was thatkept falling upon our ears. It was a kind of soft pleasant croak,ending in a kind of deep hum, sometimes coming from one direction,sometimes from another.
"It can't be a bull-frog, Nat, for we are not near any marsh or water asfar as I can see."
"Are there tree bull-frogs, uncle?" I said, "because that noise comesout of one of the tall trees. Oh! look, there's a big bird," I cried,and raising my gun I took quick aim and fired, when far above us therewas a heavy flapping noise of wings amongst the trees, and then silence.
"A miss, or a hit too weak to bring him down, Nat," said my unclesmiling. "Better luck next time. Load again, my boy."
I hastily reloaded, and we went on again, rising higher and higher oververy difficult ground; and then we entered another grove of high treesand heard the same soft croaking noise as before.
"Pigeons, Nat, without doubt," said my uncle. "No other birds, I think,would have made that curious flapping of the wings."
"But that bird I shot at was too big for a pigeon, uncle," I replied.
"You'll find pigeons out here, Nat, four times as big as you have seenat home. Look, my boy, on the top branches of that great tree there isquite a cluster of them. Steal up softly; you round that way, I will gothis. We shall one of us get a shot, I dare say."
I made a little circuit in obedience to my uncle's orders, and we creptup softly towards where a huge tree rose like a pillar to a tremendousheight before sending out a branch, and there, just dimly seen in thesoft twilight beneath the canopy of leaves, were several huge birds,which took flight with a great rattle of wings as we came near.
There was the quick report of my uncle's gun, closely followed by mine,and one bird fell heavily to the ground, the others disappearing fromview beyond the trees; but just then our companion uttered a shout anddashed on ahead, to return in a few minutes with a second bird which hisquick eyes had detected as wounded, and he had seen it drop into a treesome distance off, and then fall, to lead him a long chase before hesecured it and brought it back.
Meanwhile we were both kneeling beside the first, which had fallen in apatch of open ground where the sun came down, and I shall never forgetthe delight with which I gazed at its wonderfully beautiful plumage.
"A pigeon, you see, Nat," said my uncle; "and a fine one too."
"Is that a pigeon, uncle?" I said wonderingly.
"To be sure it is, my boy, and--"
_Crack_!
"That was a thrush, if I am not mistaken."
I ran and picked up a bird that he shot in the middle of his speech, asit flew over some low bushes, and brought it back in triumph.
"No, uncle, it is not a thrush," I cried. "It is a lovely blue and greybird."
"What is it, then, Nat?" he said, smiling. "Have you forgotten all Itold you about the representatives of our home birds being bright incolour?"
"But I did not think a thrush could be all of a lovely pale blue,uncle," I said; "and I never saw such a pigeon as that. Why, its backand wings are almost as green as those cuckoos--the trogons--and whatbeautiful feet and eyes! Oh! uncle," I said, "I am glad we came."
He smiled as he knelt down and carefully smoothed the feathers of thegreat pigeon, thrusting a little cotton-wool into its beak to soak upany moisture that might escape and damage the feathers.
"We shall, I believe, find plenty of magnificent pigeons out here, Nat,"he said, as I eagerly watched his acts, so as to know what to do nexttime.
"But I never expected to find pigeons, uncle, with gold and violetreflections on their feathers."
"Why not, Nat," he replied laughing, "when in dull, foggy old England,where there is so little sunshine, the pigeons and doves have beautifuliris-like reflections on their necks and breasts? Now for the thrush.There, Nat, that is a beauty. I should have felt that I had done a goodday's work if I had only secured that dainty prize with its delicatelyharmonious coat of soft grey and blue."
"And it is a thrush, uncle?"
"Certainly. Look at the beak. This is one of the Pittas orground-thrushes, Nat, of which there are a good many out in theseislands. Some of them are, I believe, much more brightly coloured thanthis; but bright plumage is not all we want, my boy; it is newspecimens, Nat. We must be discoverers as well as collectors."
By this time the lovely thrush was hung with the two pigeons carefullyby the beaks to a long bamboo, and after we had explained to our blackcompanion, by means of a little dumb-show, that he must carry the bamboocarefully, a task which, after a few skips and bounds to show hisdelight, he undertook to perform. We went on again, trusting to him tofind the way back through the wilderness of great tree trunks, some ofwhich rose, without a branch, to a vast height above our heads, but onlyto make up for it afterwards, for the branches then clustered so thicklythat all the sunshine was shut out, and we walked in the deep shadow,save where here and there we found an opening which looked quitedazzling by contrast. Here it was that we found flowers growing, andsaw traces enough of insects to make us determine to bringcollecting-boxes another time, on purpose to obtain the glorious beetlesand butterflies that we saw here and there.
"Look, uncle," I cried; "there's another, and another. Oh, if I had mybutterfly-net!"
For I kept seeing beetles of dazzling lustre, and butterflies markedwith such brilliant colours, that I was ready to throw down my gun andrush off in chase.
"Yes, this is a better collecting ground than Clapham Common, Nat," saidmy uncle. "We ought to have plenty of pinning out to do to-morrownight. To-day I hope to be busy enough making skins. Hist! Look atthe black."
I had just time to save the bamboo with the birds from being thrown downupon the ground by our companion, who went upon hands and knees, andcrawled forward a short distance to the shelter of some bushes at theedge of a bright opening, where the sun poured down like showers ofsilver light.
"He has found something," I whispered.
"Then you run forward, Nat, and see. Be cool, and take a good quickaim. I'll mind the birds."
He took the bamboo, and I ran forward to where the black was waving meon; but went more cautiously as I drew nearer, and a few moments later Iwas crouching in the shadow of the bushes at the edge of the opening,watching the objects at which the black was pointing.
I knew by means of my ears what birds he had found, before I caughtsight of them, for every now and then a harsh shrill scream was uttered,and before long I could see across the opening quite a little flock ofbeautiful scarlet lories busily feeding on the clustering fruit of atall forest tree, which, being close to the sunny opening, was coveredwith leaves and twigs, from the top to the very ground.
I was so utterly taken up by the beauty of the sight that I forgot allabout my gun, but knelt there watching the lovely little long-tailedbirds, climbing by the help of their beaks, in and out amongst thebranches, sometimes hanging by their strong curved bills, sometimes headdownwards b
y one or both legs, and always busily hunting for food.
I had seen stuffed specimens before, but they seemed so poor andcommon-looking beside the velvety softness and brilliant colouring ofthese smooth-feathered, lively, rounded birds, and I kept on enjoyingthe sight to so great an extent that I am sure the flock would haveescaped had not my black companion shook my arm violently, and pointedto my gun, when, recalling the object of my journey, I raised it, tookcareful aim, and fired.
There was a shrill cry from the birds, and the flock took flight, butnot until I had managed to get another shot, the result being that Isecured three very beautiful specimens to take back to my uncle, showingthem to him with a glow of pride.
"I want to be of some use, uncle," I said, for I had been afraid that hewould think I could not shoot.
"Use, Nat! why, you shot one of those pigeons this morning."
"Did I, uncle?" I said.
"To be sure, my boy. At all events I did not, so it must have beenyou."
He was delighted with the three specimens I had secured, and saying thatthese would be as many as he could comfortably preserve that day, wewent on exploring more than collecting, in what was to me quite afairyland of wonders.
Perhaps long confinement on shipboard had something to do with it; butall the same, every place we came to had its beauties of some kind oranother. Now it was a noisy stream leaping from the rocks in a featherycascade; at another time, a grove full of curious orchids. Every nowand then some lovely butterfly would start from flower or damp spot inthe openings, but it was of no use to chase them then, my uncle said,for we had no means of preserving them.
"Let's collect, Nat," he said, "and make a splendid set of cases ofbirds and insects; but let's have no wanton destruction. I hate to seebirds shot except for a purpose."
"We shall have to look out, uncle," I said, laughing, "for it is hardenough work to walk on this ground; I don't know how we shall run."
In fact, when we got back to our hut, after shooting a couple morepigeons, our shoes were showing already how sharp the rocks were thatformed a great part of the ground over which we tramped.
I almost wondered at my uncle shooting two more pigeons, as we hadalready a couple, but I found out the reason when we reached home, as wecalled it, to find that everything was in its place; no one apparentlyhaving entered the hut, from which our black guide now took his spear,and without another word hurried away.
Nat the Naturalist: A Boy's Adventures in the Eastern Seas Page 20