284 TRAVELS IX THE EAST INDIAN ARCHIPELAGO. 



out where the birds were before he would be de- 

 voured. It evidently was just such a place as those 

 monsters delight to frequent, but I determined to go 

 after them myself; and as I proceeded to carry out 

 my resolution, my hunter, ashamed to remain on the 

 banks, joined me, and after an ugly scramble through 

 the bushes and sticks, and much wallowing in the 

 soft mud, we got into the water and out to the flock, 

 and as soon as possible were back again on the bank. 

 The commandant now came up, and I recounted to 

 him what we had been doing. He was horrified ! 

 That a man could go into that pond and escape the 

 crocodiles for ten minutes he regarded as next to a 

 miracle. A number of natives, who had frequently 

 visited the place, assured me that nothing could have 

 induced them to run such a risk of losing their lives. 

 Our whole party then continued on over the grassy 

 hills, and came down to Hoban, a place of two na- 

 tive huts, and one of those was empty. Here, I 

 thought to myself, will be another good locality to 

 find new species, and I determined to return and 

 occupy the vacant house for a few days. 



It was already late in the afternoon before we 

 thought of returning, and pushed off from the shore 

 in a boat that had come round the cape at the mouth 

 of the bay to take us home. Soon the wind sprang 

 up ahead, our little sail was taken in, and our men 

 used their oars ; but the sun set and the moon arose, 

 and yet we were slowly toiling on, and occasionally 

 our boat grated on the top of a coral head that rose 

 higher than those around it. At last we passed the 

 cape, and reached the smooth water of the bay, yet 



