THE UNKNOWN. 



powdered plaster; and a box with damped cork 

 for the Micro-Lepidoptera; to my shirt is pinned 

 my pin-cushion, with six sizes of pins. A few 

 minutes after entering the edge of the forest, I 

 arrive in the heart of the wilderness ; before me 

 nothing- but forest for hundreds of miles. Many 

 butterflies are found on the skirts of the forest ; in 

 the midst of numbers flitting about, I soon dis- 

 tinguish the one I want — often a new one — Eryci- 

 nide, Hesperia, Thecla, or what not. Coleoptera 

 you see nothing fine of at first; a few minute 

 Haltinv on the leaves, or small CuivuHon, or 

 Eumolpi. When you come to the neighbourhood 

 of a newly-fallen tree, is soon enough to hunt 

 closely for them; not only wood-eating species, 

 but all kinds seem to congregate there; Agras and 

 Lehias in the folded leaves, grand CassUhe, and 

 Erotyli, Rutehv, or Melolonthids, Gynmetis, &c. ; 

 often a Ctenostoimi running along some slender 

 twig. It requires a certain kind of weather for 

 Coleoptera, and some days all seem to be absent 

 at once. 



"Whilst I am about these things, I often hear 

 the noise of birds above— pretty tanagers, or what 

 not. You cannot see the colours of red, cobalt- 

 blue, or beryl-green, when they are up in the 

 trees ; and it takes months of experience to know 

 your bird. I have sometimes shot at small, ob- 

 scure-looking birds up the trees, and when they 

 have fallen, have been dazzled by their exquisite 

 beauty. 



"I walk about a mile straight ahead, lingering 

 in rich spots, and diverging often. It is generally 

 near two P. M. when I reach home, thoroughly 

 tired. I get dinner, lie in hammock a while read- 

 ing, then commence preparing my captives, &c. ; 

 this generally takes me till five P. M. In the 

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