266 FIJI ISLANDS 



were in countless numbers, and some splendid Sea-urchins, 

 with huge thick spines {Acrocladia jiiamiHata), were found. 

 A Shark appeared showing its back fin high out of the shallow 

 water ; it was chased with boarding pikes by the Blue-jackets, 

 but was too wary to allow its pursuers to come within reach. 

 Captain Nares set up his theodolite on the reef and took angles 

 whilst we collected specimens. 



Whilst at Levuka (in Ovalau Island), I made a trip with 

 Lieut. Suckling, R.N., over the steep mountain ridge which 

 backs the town, to the native villages of Livoni and Bureta. 

 A corporal of the Fijian army and two prisoners, natives of 

 Livoni, were sent by Mr. Thurston with us as guides. 



The track led up the bed of a rocky mountain stream, and 

 at times up nearly perpendicular faces of rock, which were, 

 however, easy to climb because of the nature of the rock 

 already alluded to, the harder embedded masses in the con- 

 glomerate weathering out so as to project and form foot-rests 

 and convenient grasping places for the hands. As we ascended, 

 the soil became moister, the wood denser, and the trees more 

 and more covered with epiphytes. 



Now and again we passed small cascades tumbling into 

 basins amongst the black boulders. The rocks around were 

 overgrown with ferns and mosses in great variety ; wild plan- 

 tains and beautifully variegated Dracccnas grew in abundance, 

 and amongst them the scarlet Hibiscics in full flower. The 

 overhanging tree-stems were green with climbing ferns, or 

 served as supports to climbing Aroids with large fenestrated 

 leaves. The beauty of the various features of this mountain 

 stream are, however, far beyond my powers of description. 



Near the summit of the ridge, the tree stems and branches 

 became covered with orchids, and in places were loaded with 

 dense masses of the bird's-nest fern {Asplenium nidus), and 

 large Lycopods and mosses. On the summit, a hard chase 

 after a rat ensued, as I offered a shilling reward for the animal, 

 which might have proved at this elevation, I thought, a Native 

 Rat, though the black rat and Norway rat are abundant in 

 Levuka. There was, however, so much cover under the 

 decayed logs and undergrowth, that it soon escaped. 



The ridge where we crossed it was very narrow, and we 

 almost immediately commenced a steep descent down the bed 

 of a stream on the other side. On the way down, a flock of 

 Lories {Do?niiei/a soiitaria, " Kula," Fijian), flew by, whilst the 

 trees were full of warbling birds {Ptilotis procerior). 



We reached Livoni, formerly a populous village, and the 

 head-quarters of the Kaivolo or mountaineers of Ovalau, who 

 long defied King Thackombau, murdered one of his envoys. 



