414 Mr. A. R. Wallace on the great Bird of Paradise, 



remains crouched at the foot of the tree, to secure the birds as 

 they fall, and recover the arrows. They sometimes use arrows 

 with a large rounded piece of wood at the end, so as to make no 

 wound ; but they say the bird is so strong, that it is very hard 

 to kill them with this, and they therefore prefer the usual long, 

 pointed arrows, which transfix the body and certainly bring 

 down the bird. The assembly commences soon after sunrise, 

 and when a sufficient number are in full play, the archer begins 

 his sport, and if skilful, will shoot nearly the whole of them 

 in succession, as each bird seems so much intent on his own 

 enjoyment as not to miss his companions. In skinning, they 

 take out the bones of the head and legs, and apply ashes to the 

 skin, a stick being pushed up to the base of the beak, on which 

 the skin of the head and neck shrinks to about a tenth of its 

 natural size. A little peg of wood is pushed through the nos- 

 trils, by which the skin is hung up to dry, and a string tied 

 round the wings to keep them in their place. In damp weather 

 the skin about the base of the beak often breaks, and is then 

 mended with pitch ! and the smoky atmosphere of the native 

 houses, in which half-a-dozen families have their cooking-fire in 

 daily action, soils and darkens the whole plumage, especially the 

 pale yellow head and the delicate downy portion of the long 

 plumes. When dry, they are preserved wrapped in palm-leaves, 

 which, however, seldom cover the extreme ends of the feathers, 

 which thus become still more rubbed and dirtied. Some years 

 ago, two dollars each were paid for these skins, but they have 

 gradually fallen in value, till now there is scarcely any trade in 

 them. I purchased a few in Dobbo at Qd. each. 



Of the geographical distribution of the Bird of Paradise many 

 erroneous statements have been published. Its supposed migra- 

 tions have by some been extended to Banda, by others to Ceram 

 and all the eastern islands of the Molucca group. These state- 

 ments are, however, totally without foundation, the species being 

 strictly confined to New Guinea and the Aru Islands, and even 

 to a limited portion of each of those countries. Aru consists of 

 a very large central island, and some hundreds of smaller ones 

 scattered around it at various distances, many being of large 

 size and covered with dense and lofty forests ; yet on not one 

 of these is the Paradisea ever found (although many of them are 

 much nearer New Guinea), being limited to the large island, 

 and even to the central portions of that island, never appearing 

 on the sea-coast, nor in the swampy forests which in many places 

 reach some miles inland. With regard to its distribution in 

 New Guinea, the Macassar traders assured me it was not found 

 there at all; for, although they obtain quantities of 'Burong 

 mati^ from most of the places they visit on the west coast of 



