206 Mr. C. B. Horshrugh — Jovrney to British 



few days' time. From this date till our return to the coast 

 the villagers came in daily, bringing us bags of sweet-potatoes, 

 bananas, taros, and sugar-cane as food for the camp, and we 

 bartered for these commodities tobacco, salt, beads, or small 

 strips of cloth. Our two gun-bearers were sent off to collect 

 specimens, and I heard them banging away in the depths 

 of the jungle. When they returned they proudly displayed 

 one or two much-damaged small birds. They were rather 

 disgusted when I limited their supply of cartridges and was 

 not encouraging in my verdict on their marksmanship. 



Word soon went round the country that a white man had 

 arrived with some excellent " trade " to be bartered for various 

 birds and beasts, but I had to. wait a few days before serious 

 business commenced. 



I did a little butterfly-hunting along the track, but failed 

 to secure a good collection. Several large species of 

 Orthoptera were fairly common, but usually flew at heights 

 far above ray reach. The natives call these insects " Kow- 

 pepper," which is a curious sounding name. Aihegetta's 

 party soon left, but were replaced by another of five 

 natives accompanied by a policeman. They came in from 

 Dilava, and brought me two small snakes and a chameleon 

 alive. Aihegetta became sick with fever, but 1 soon cured 

 him by a few grains of quinine, and took a dose myself, 

 though as time passed I gave it up and never felt the want 

 of it again. 



Before Stalker's advent I had stored all the heavy luggage 

 under the house, and I was very glad when he walked into camp 

 on the fifth day with the rest of the carriers and many store- 

 boxes. He brought in a wounded Paradise-bird {Paradisea 

 ra(j(ji(ma), which unfortunately did not survive the night, 

 and a dead Channel-bill Cuckoo {Scythrops nov(S-hollandice), 

 both of which he had shot on his way up the mountain. 

 The remainder of the carriers were soon paid off' with cloth 

 and tobacco and left camp, while we skinned the birds, pickled 

 the reptiles, and made further arrangements regarding the 

 house. The shooting boys were very keen to go afield again, 

 but we decided that it would be inadvisable to have the jungle 



