5l6 ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY OF THE SHIP. 



the voyage and perils of all kinds, from heavy tumbles during 

 gales of wind, and the falling about of books and furniture. He 

 had one of his legs crippled, and his feathers never grew pro- 

 perly ; but he was perfectly happy, and from his perch, which 

 was one of the wardroom hat-pegs, he talked away and amused 

 us during the whole voyage. His great triumph, constantly 

 repeated, was " What ! two thousand fathoms and no bottom ! 

 Ah, Doctor Carpenter, F.R.S." He knew his own name 

 perfectly, and I have known him climb over the ledge in at the 

 door of the cabin of Dr. Maclean, his chief friend, when I have 

 been sitting there on a dark rough night, after he had come 

 to grief and tumbled off his perch with a thump, plaintively 

 appealing with " Robert," " Robert." 



After leaving the Aru Islands a young Cassowary roamed 

 about the decks for some time, but was soon killed as a 

 nuisance. No doubt, had it not been killed, it would soon have 

 committed suicide, like an Ostrich on board one of the men-of- 

 war at the Cape, which stole a piece of hot iron put down by 

 the blacksmith beside his forge, and swallowed it hastily, with 

 fatal effect. 



At Monte Video some very young South American Ostriches 

 {Rhea Americana) were brought on board the ship. It was 

 amusing to see them chasing flies on the upper deck, and, as 

 they darted forwards, instinctively spreading their little wings 

 as sails to catch the tiny draughts reflected from the bulwarks. 

 Mr. Darwin has described the use of the wings as sails by the 

 adult birds on the plains of Patagonia.* 



At the Sandwich Islands, two large living Tortoises from the 

 Galapagos Archipelago were received on board from Captain 

 Cookson, R.N., who had visited the group with the special 

 object of collecting the very curious Tortoises found there. 

 The Tortoises were fed a good deal on pineapples, a number 

 of which were hung up in the Paymaster's office. The animals 

 used to prop themselves up against a board put across the door 

 of the office to keep out dogs, unable to surmount the obstacle, 

 and used to glare and sniff longingly at the fruit. They also 

 learned to know their way along the deck to the Captain's 

 cabin, where there was another store of Pine-apples, and where 

 they were often fed. 



At Madeira, I had given to me some living specimens of the 

 huge Spiders {Lycosa) which inhabit the " Desertas," small 

 outliers of the island, and which feed on Lizards, which they 

 hunt and kill. I fed the Spiders on Cockroaches. One of 

 them escaped, but it was brought back to me after a week by 



* ''Journal of Researches, " pp. 43, 89. 



