10 



their breakfast of honey amid the bright flowering eucalyptus 

 overhead. The timid little brush wallaby pauses a moment to 

 h.sten as the cracking of a stick amid the undergi-owth sounds out. 

 He waits but a second to view the intruder into his solitude, and 

 then this minature kangaroo bounds off to the more secluded 

 thickets of the bush. Kangaroo and Emu in like manner give the 

 scientists a wide berth, for— sad to say— in these parts our strange 

 and interesting animals have long since found out that man is 

 bent on their extermination. Scenes like these pass befoi'e the 

 naturalist's eyes; his nostrils are filled Avith the sweet and invig- 

 orating scents of the Austrhan bush; Lis pulse beats rapidly, and 

 the blood courses through his veins as he views all Nature around 

 him as the Creator of all things has placed it. But, alas! the 

 vision of the inevitable passes before the Nature student — the axe. 

 followed by fire ; the scrub-rolleir with more fire, stumpjump 

 plough, the seed drill. And so the natural fauna and flora are 

 wiped out on the piece of ground for ever. It is a pity that the 

 Government could not reserve a fair-sized block in each district 

 so as to hand down the indigenous trees, shrubs, and flowers to the 

 coming generations; and these reserves could be made sanctuaries 

 for our native birds and mammals. 



— In Camp Again. — 



At luncheon tiipe the pot lid summoned the camp to eat. but 

 few would put in an appearance. Most of the members took their 

 luncheon with them and a billycan, thus saving the precious time 

 to keep forging ahead. Towards dark groups of twos and threes 

 would appear in the A^cinity of the cnmp. loaded with specimens, 

 leg-weary and with appetites of the proverbial hunter. Only on 

 one occasion did a member of our party fail to arrive in time, but 

 he eventually turned up in the small hours of the morning. Dark- 

 ness had overtaken him before he reached camp, and — it being a 

 cloudy threatening night — the heavens Avere obscured; so there was 

 nothing for it but to take shelter in a hollow tree and Avait till 

 the clouds rolled by. After a clean-up all assembled at the mess 

 tent and did justice to the culinary efforts of our militai-j- cook. 

 Pipes were lit; specimens were brought forward to the big camp 

 fire to be identified and examined: notes Avere compared; graphic 

 descriptions of the wanderings and the country through which they 

 passed were giA^en; and arrangements Avere made for the morrow. 

 The camp fire burned gradually lower and lower, and the members 

 one after another silently found their way to their tents to seek 

 the rest so necessary after a day's tramp in such bracing atmos- 

 phere. One by one the lights were extinguished till our camp was 

 in darkness. The white tents rose like phantoms as they were 

 outlined by the starlight against the dark foliage of the sugar 

 gums. All AA'as at rest in sleep with the exception of one member- 



