DOWN THE mVER. 103' 



having been joined by the old male, were set at liberty "down the river," 

 where they have remained ever since. Before I left Australia they had 

 increased to seven, but the young ones had become so wild that it was 

 impossible to approach them; and I know not how they can ever be cap- 

 tured alive. The original idea was, that in seasons of drought, which are 

 unfortunately but too prevalent in Australia, when the pasturage is burnt 

 up and the ponds and water-courses dry, the Camel M'ould be enabled to 

 subsist by browsing upon the leaves of the trees; but the forest is com- 

 posed almost entirely of gum trees, {Eucalyptus,) the leaves of which are so 

 extremely astringent, that the Camel rejects them; nor in a country where 

 horres are so numerous is there, I think, any necessity for them. 



Our hands are so chafed and sore with the fishing lines, that we leave 

 the blacks to pursue their sport alone, and stroll with our guns along the 

 shore of the much-sounding sea. A large Owl sits blinking upon the top- 

 most branch of a dead tree, and ofiers a most tempting shot, but we spare 

 his life, and as he flies away we think of Beattie's ode — 



"Whence the scared Owl on pinions grey, 

 Breaks from the rustling boughs, 

 And down the lone vale sails away • 



To more profound repose." 



Wc observe many tracks of Kangaroo and Emu, and are fortunate 

 enough to get a glimpse of a pair of the latter. These birds are becoming 

 extremely scarce, and disappear sooner than the Kangaroo from what are 

 called the Settled Districts. Their habits are too well known to require 

 any description. I was once out hunting when we had a long ^run' with 

 an Emu. We were drawing a thick piece of underwood when, to our 

 astonishment, an Emu broke cover in full sight of the pack of foxhounds. 

 It was killed, but there was no one "in at the death," for the Emu ia 

 both swift of foot, and of amazing powers of endurance. I have heard of 

 two instances in which they were hunted with a pack of fast foxhounds 

 near Melbourne, the one was killed at a distance of twenty-five, and the 

 other at thirty-five miles from whence the chase commenced. 



A curious circumstance occurred on this ramble. Feeling somewhat 

 fatigued I laid down under a tree, and my companion sauntered away to 

 have a shot at some Wild Ducks; I heard the report of his gun, and about 

 ten minutes afterwards a large F'ish-Eagle perched overhead on the tree. 

 Looking up I saw he had got a Wild Duck in his talons; I shouted out 

 and threw a stick at him, and he was so scared that he dropped his prize; 

 and my friend was much surprised when he returned to find me in pos- 

 session of the bird which he said he had wounded, but that it flew out 

 I to sea, where it had been captured by my retriever. 



But the day is now far advanced, and we are many miles distant from 



