232 THE GEOGRAPHY 



to relate his adventure. That morning he had set out on 

 a kangaroo hunt, without a gun, and only accompanied by 

 his dogs. The dogs soon traced and pursued a troop, but 

 only one of them returned to his master. Nevertheless he 

 had continued his walk through the woods, and soon started 

 the ' old man/ and set his dog upon him. But the 

 knowing old creature, instead of flying, posted himself in 

 that slough, and with his fore-paws kept the dog from 

 reaching his body. The hunter, not wishing to be idle, 

 tried an attack from behind, through the water, but the 

 now irritated animal turned towards him, scratched him 

 over the face, and threw him backwards into the pool. 

 Every time he tried to rise, the ' old man ' pushed his 

 head down again under water, so that if I had not come to 

 his assistance, he must inevitably have been drowned. In 

 the meantime, the beast had, probably in some fresh attack, 

 disabled the dog, and thrown him down upon the bank. 

 When the hunter had cleansed himself of the mud and 

 blood, we turned to help the dangerously wounded dog, 

 and at length parted, each to follow his own road, the 

 hunter swearing that he would never quarrel with an c old 

 man ' again without a gun in his hand." 



" Such tales may do very well to amuse ladies," com- 

 menced the third, "but a man should not stoop to find 

 pleasure in such trifles. Only when life is daily and 

 hourly at stake, when peril shows itself in every form, can 

 one talk of an excitement which shall be amusement 

 worthy of a man; and where do you find it in such a 

 degree as in the Whale-fishery in the North Seas ? I 

 recall with pleasure at this moment a scene which nearly 

 cost me my life two winters ago. We had been cruising 

 about the entrance of Baffin's Bay for fourteen days, in 

 fearful storms. The rigging was stiff with ice, the sides 



