398 Quarterly Journal of Conchology. 



array of lovely forms so abundant and characteristic of the 

 Pljillipine Islands or the Solomon Archipelago. 



The great dravi'back to exploration in New Guinea is its 

 deadly climate, and, for the most pare, hostile character of the 

 Aborigines; both are formidable drawbacks, the latter particularly, 

 for they are not the low, degraded savage of Australia, but a 

 muscular, stalwart race of formidable opponents. This is instanced 

 by the fierce opposition that D'Albertis lately met with in his 

 collecting expedition to the Fly River, which resulted in the loss 

 of almost all his servants; but I regret to have to add the manage- 

 ment of the party casts no creditable reflection on that man, no 

 matter how much our knowledge of the Zoology of that part of 

 the terra incognita may be augmented by his collections. 



Th2 V/est Poljmesian Region. 



A. The Solomon Islands, I may state the remarks concerning 

 the richness of this division are quite correct. During a cruise 

 througli these Islands I was amazed not only at the great variety of 

 sorts but also the individual abundance of species. The natives 

 brought off to the vessels literally bushels of Land Shells, that are 

 the ornaments of the collectors cabinet, to barter them for pipes, 

 red cloth, tobacco,, beads, and such like native v/ealth, happy 

 to give hundreds of superbly coloured Helices for a single common 

 clay pipe. I think it would surprise many English collectors 

 to have seen those nude painted savages with v/hite-washed mops of 

 hair, elaborate ornaments of platted grass and human teeth, with 

 the lobe of the ear stretched nearly to the shoulder and a large 

 plug of carved wood inserted, enj^ellishcd with any amount of 

 talking and gesticulation, in thin, long, narrow canoes trying to 

 make a bargain for a few beads in exchange for a basket of 

 beautiful land shells. If they could see the original collectors of 

 their treasures in their native home they would be no little 

 surprised. 



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