" PADDLING MY OWN CANOE." 
55 
thoroughly deceived me as well as the natives with me. The 
lights and shades in the forest^ combined with dead branches, 
busheSj &c., take at times such curious shapes that the 
wonder is mistakes are not oftener made. 1 once mistook a 
bush for a pea fowl and actually did fire a charge of shot 
hito it, From the numerous calls I heard around me there 
appeared to be a great many of that rare and beautiful bird 
the argus pheasant, and being most anxious to secure a 
specimen, I stalked to the sound most cautiously, but I 
never even got a glimpse of these wary birds. We were 
much tormented by the little forest leeches which, although 
not bigger than a rose caterpillar, appeared to cover the 
ground and hang on every leaf ready to fix themselves on 
us ; at one place we had continually to move on, being afraid 
to make a halt on account cf them ; we were duly protected 
with leech gaiters but they got down the back of our necks 
and up our sleeves ; how the natives, who had no protection, 
escaped being absolutely sucked dry is a puzzle to me. 
One of my chief amusements at Singapore was paddling 
my own canoe " amongst the lovely islands and looking down 
into the coral covered depths below, which on a calm day 
seemed like a fairy forest, the coral having a most tree- 
like appearance and of every variety of tint from deep red 
to the most delicate green. Fish of all sizes and colors were 
swimming about in every direction far down in these charm- 
ing water woods. So clear is the sea that the Malays in 
their sanpans, a very light kind of canoe, chase and spear 
the seer fish, which here takes the place of salmon, only the 
flesh is white instead of pink. It is a fast swimmer, quite 
as large as the salmon and excellent eating. Two Malays, 
one in the bow and the other in the stern of the canoe, 
