58 [M'-^rch, 



otberwise the weather was beautifully fine) until the morning of the 

 20th, and during this time I made the most of my opportunities of 

 working on this remote little island, with, I think, pretty fair success. 

 Although the Houtman's Islands are all of very small size (East 

 Wallaby, one of the largest, is triangular in shape, and each side little 

 more than a mile in length), they are covered with a dense and varied 

 shrubby vegetation, and contain some peculiar forms of animal life. 

 Insects were tolerably plentiful, but nearly all of small size, probably 

 50 species of Coleoptera in all, the largest being a nice flat brown 

 Heteromeron, of the genus Helceus (I think I have found the same, 

 or something very like it, at Tremantle) : a fine little Cossonid (?) 

 weevil, very abundant under washed-up seaweed on the beach, and 

 varying from very pale testaceous to pitch-black, every inter- 

 mediate shade being found: Tetragonoderus sp., a lovely scarlet and 

 black MalacJiid, Anthici, many small weevils, &c., obtained by 

 grubbing at the roots of bent-grass and herbage. I saw only two 

 species of butterflies, a common Lyccena, and a very pretty little 

 skipper, allied, I think, to Cyclopides, this last was fairly common, and 

 I set out a good series ; I have seen nothing like it at Fremantle, so 

 I hope that it w^ill turn out good. The Wallaby Islands are not in- 

 habited, though there are extensive guano workings on some of the 

 southern islands of the Houtman's group. 



Leaving our anchorage at 5 a.m. on the 20th, we had a tolerably 

 smooth passage to Fremantle, M^here we anchored early on the morning 

 of the 22nd. From the sea, although somewhat low and sandy, the 

 country round about presents a much more pleasing aspect than 

 further to the north, as there is a very great deal of fine timber left, 

 some of the trees, especially the one which yields the famous " Jarrah" 

 wood, or Australian mahogany {Eucalyptus marginaftis), being of large 

 dimensions. From Fremantle to Perth, the capital of Western 

 Australia, is about 12 miles by rail, and the intervening country being 

 except on the banks of the Swan E-iver, but little cleared or cultivated, 

 one can easily get into first-rate collecting ground in a few minutes ; 

 and as the railway authorities kindly gave us free passes during the 

 whole of our stay, you may be sure that I frequently availed myself 

 of the opportunity. Both Fremantle and Perth are very pretty 

 little towns, especially the latter, which is situated on a fine reach of 

 the Swan Eiver ; they are of about 5000 inhabitants each. About 9 

 miles beyond Perth is a village called Gruildford, very prettily situated 

 on the Swan, in the middle of a fine agricultural and pastoral district ; 

 this place I visited on the 26th with good results. On the 30th I 



