140 
Wild Life in Southern Seas. 
and jetty plumaged “ redbills,” all standing or 
sitting in motionless array with heads facing to 
the sea; further on the line of beach was yet 
but half revealed, for the smoky haze of a semi¬ 
tropic sea still hovered o’er it, and floated in 
gossamer-like clouds up towards the dark green 
fringe of scrub-clad hills. Oh, the beauties of 
a summer’s morn upon that wild and lonely 
coast! The strange, sweet, earthy smell of the 
rich red soil beneath our horses’ feet, the sweeter 
calls and cries of awakening bird life around us, 
the glint of the blue Pacific before and the dome 
of cloudless turquoise above, and the soft cool¬ 
ness of the land breeze as it stole gently sea¬ 
ward from the mountains, and stirred and 
swayed the leafy banners of the lofty gums and 
tapering bangalows ! And then, as we turned 
and followed the bearded Mac adown the 
narrow fern-lined track that led us to the 
shore, the blue sky above us vanished and 
showed but here and there through the thickly 
overarching branches and clustering vines and 
serpent-like lianas ; a big black wallaby leapt 
across the path just in front of our leader’s 
horse, then another and another, and all three 
crashed into the thick undergrowth of the sea- 
