第184章

MY boat was at length ready， and having obtained two men besides my own servants， after an enormous amount of talk and trouble， we left Dobbo on the morning of March 13th， for the mainland of Aru.

By noon we reached the mouth of a small river or creek， which we ascended， winding among mangrove， swamps， with here and there a glimpse of dry land. In two hours we reached a house， or rather small shed， of the most miserable description， which our steersman， the "Orang-kaya" of Wamma， said was the place we were to stay at， and where he had assured me we could get every kind of bird and beast to be found in Aru. The shed was occupied by about a dozen men， women， and children； two cooking fires were burning in it， and there seemed little prospect of my obtaining any accommodation. I however deferred inquiry till I had seen the neighbouring forest， and immediately started off with two men， net， and guns， along a path at the back of the house. In an hour's walk I saw enough to make me determine to give the place a trial， and on my return， finding the "Orang-kaya" was in a strong fever-fit and unable to do anything， I entered into negotiations with the owner of the house for the use of a slip at one end of it about five feet wide， for a week， and agreed to pay as rent one "parang，" or chopping-knife. I then immediately got my boxes and bedding out of the boat， hung up a shelf for my bird-skins and insects， and got all ready for work next morning. My own boys slept in the boat to guard the remainder of my property； a cooking place sheltered by a few mats was arranged under a tree close by， and I felt that degree of satisfaction and enjoyment which I always experience when， after much trouble and delay， Iam on the point of beginning work in a new locality.

One of my first objects was to inquire for the people who are accustomed to shoot the Paradise birds. They lived at some distance in the jungle， and a man was sent to call them. When they arrived， we had a talk by means of the "Orang-kaya "as interpreter， and they said they thought they could get some. They explained that they shoot the birds with a bow and arrow， the arrow having a conical wooden cap fitted to the end as large as a teacup， so as to kill the bird by the violence of the blow without making any wound or shedding any blood. The trees frequented by the birds are very lofty； it is therefore necessary to erect a small leafy covering or hut among the branches， to which the hunter mounts before daylight in the morning and remains the whole day， and whenever a bird alights they are almost sure of securing it. (See Frontispiece.) They returned to their homes the same evening， and I never saw anything more of them， owing， as I afterwards found， to its being too early to obtain birds in good plumage.

The first two or three days of our stay here were very wet， and Iobtained but few insects or birds， but at length， when I was beginning to despair， my boy Baderoon returned one day with a specimen which repaid me for months of delay and expectation. It was a small bird a little less than a thrush. The greater part of its plumage was of an intense cinnabar red， with a gloss as of spun glass. On the head the feathers became short and velvety， and shaded into rich orange. Beneath， from the breast downwards， was pure white， with the softness and gloss of silk， and across the breast a band of deep metallic green separated this colour from the red of the throat. Above each eye was a round spot of the same metallic green； the bill was yellow， and the feet and legs were of a fine cobalt ó111e， strikingly contrasting with all the other parts of the body. Merely in arrangement of colours and texture of plumage this little bird was a gem of the first water， yet there comprised only half its strange beauty. Springing from each side of the breast， and ordinarily lying concealed under the wings， were little tufts of greyish feathers about two inches long， and each terminated by a broad band of intense emerald green. These plumes can be raised at the will of the bird， and spread out into a pair of elegant fans when the wings are elevated. But this is not the only ornament. The two middle feathers of the tail are in the form of slender wires about five inches long， and which diverge in a beautiful double curve. About half an inch of the end of this wire is webbed on the outer side only， awe coloured of a fine metallic green， and being curled spirally inwards form a pair of elegant glittering buttons， hanging five inches below the body， and the same distance apart.

These two ornaments， the breast fans and the spiral tipped tail wires， are altogether unique， not occurring on any other species of the eight thousand different birds that are known to exist upon the earth； and， combined with the most exquisite beauty of plumage， render this one of the most perfectly lovely of the many lovely productions of nature. My transports of admiration and delight quite amused my Aru hosts， who saw nothing more in the "Burong raja" than we do in the robin of the goldfinch.