268 
OUR DRYING -HOUSE. 
brought with him Anea, the delicate lad we had 
at first, for a few days, until Matross, the man 
we now have, should be released from prison. 
To discharge the debt for which he was incar- 
cerated we had to advance several months’ wages 
—a foolish step, as we have found, for we are 
entirely in his power, and he knows it ; but 
what else could we do ? 
Men are here now building the drying-house 
and repairing our hut. They are a very differ- 
ent set from the last, and their workmanship 
and good conduct have considerably raised our 
estimate of the Timorese. They are men usually 
employed at the public works, and their foreman 
is a man of great ability and energy, so that 
after five days’ w T ork a neat erection stands a 
little way to the left of our house. The foreman 
says our house is irremediable without razing it 
to its foundations, and so we have only had it 
patched up a little until we decide if we shall 
stay much longer in Timor. 
In this district there are more pretty tiny 
wild flowers than I have seen anywhere else. 
We go exploring into the neighbouring valleys 
in our morning w T alk, often getting lost, so that 
we are forced to trust ourselves to the guidance 
of some native, who leads us by a short cut over 
