to Prof. E. Forbes. 29 



the LahridcBy are of the most gorgeous colours, but the most 

 skilful taxidermist would fail in retaining them. I had the plea- 

 sure of being shown by M. Lenard a collection of about 400 co- 

 loured drawings intended to illustrate a work on the ichthyology 

 of the island, upon which he has been engaged for many years. 



After a monotonous voyage of five weeks and a half, unen- 

 livened by the sight of a single sail, we reached Hobart Town on 

 June 25th. When in lat. 40° 45' S. and long. 123° 26' E., Capt. 

 Stanley tried for deep sea soundings, having previously got in 

 readiness an invention of his own for detaching the weight 

 (eight 32 lb. shot) upon its reaching the bottom, thus enabling 

 him, if successful, to bring up a small ball-lead with whatever 

 the arming might come in contact with. Unfortunately, how- 

 ever, just as everything appeared to promise success, the line was 

 carried away without apparent cause, after 3500 fathoms (or a 

 trifle less than four statute miles) had been let out. Meanwhile 

 I had been shooting from the jolly-boat and procured several 

 additions to my collection ; — Procellaria leucoptera, P. macro- 

 •ptera, Prion Turtur and P. Banksii, and some others of the Pro- 

 cellariadcBy sixteen species of which interesting family I have 

 already procured and preserved. I am indebted to Mr. Gould's 

 paper " On the Procellariada " in the ' Annals and Mag. of Nat. 

 Histoi-y,' and to other information derived from him, for the 

 means of discriminating nearly all the species met with, and du- 

 ring the voyage I have daily noted dowTi their occurrence. The 

 tables thus formed, which I now send to the distinguished author 

 of the ' Birds of Australia,' will assist him in determining the 

 geographical distribution of the members of the family. 



Our stay in Van Diemen's Land was but short, and I devoted 

 the greater portion of it to making a long excursion, as, during 

 my former visit, I had been very little inland. It is probable that 

 on our return from the second cruise the ship will refit at Hobart 

 Town, in the event of which I shall lose no time in proceeding 

 at once to the place which I have selected as likely to afford no- 

 velties — the Western Tiers and the Lake Country — having been 

 kindly promised every assistance from several friends who have 

 out-stations in that wild district. 



After a short passage (during which I procured Gould's Tha- 

 lassidroma Nereis) we reached Sydney. Here the ^Bramble' 

 and ' Castlereagh ' surveying schooners, left out by my old 

 friend the ^ Fly,' had been awaiting our arrival for many months. 

 Both were paid off; the latter was sold, and the former recom- 

 missioned by Captain Stanley as tender to the ^ Rattlesnake.' I 

 shall not try your patience by entering upon any description of 

 a place so well-known as the capital of Australasia, but take you 

 at once into " the bush." 



