106 A NATURALIST IN CANNIBAL LAND 



The natural beauty of the Solomon group is very 

 great. I can never forget the great Marabo Lagoon, 

 a wide sheet of still clear water of dazzling blue, 

 studded with thousands of islands, some big enough to 

 give space for a tiny village, some with hardly enough 

 surface above the water to give foothold to a horse. 

 On most of these islands coco-nut palms, ivory nut- 

 trees, and banana-trees flourished. But occasionally 

 one was bare of trees, and then its coral boulders 

 would be studded with orchids, the most common 

 variety being a large white blossom with a blue 

 tongue. Flower-life is not, however, very plentiful 

 in the South Sea Islands, though they are extra- 

 ordinarily rich in food-producing plants. This is 

 exactly opposite to the conditions ruling on the 

 Australian continent, where there is a very rich 

 variety of flower-life, and an almost complete absence 

 of plants valuable for food I mean, of course, in- 

 digenous plants. The most striking flowers of the 

 South Sea Islands are the orchids that I have referred 

 to, and the hibiscus bloom, a handsome bell-shaped 

 flower, commonly scarlet in colour, but having 

 varieties in different colourings. It is, I dare say, 

 common enough in European hot-houses. In the 

 South Seas (and also on the coast of Australia, 

 where it has been introduced) the hibiscus grows to 

 a thick scrub. The native women of Papua are 

 accustomed to decorate themselves with garlands 

 of hibiscus as a sign that they wish to be courted. 



