Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
New and interesting birds were continually brought in, either by my own boys or by the
natives, and at the end of a week Ali arrived triumphant one afternoon with a fine specimen
of the Great Bird of Paradise. The ornamental plumes had not yet attained their full growth,
but the richness of their glossy orange colouring, and the exquisite delicacy of the loosely
waving feathers, were unsurpassable. At the same time a great black cockatoo was brought
in, as well as a fine fruit-pigeon and several small birds, so that we were all kept hard at
work skinning till sunset. Just as we had cleared away and packed up for the night, a strange
beast was brought, which had been shot by the natives. It resembled in size, and in its white
woolly covering, a small fat lamb, but had short legs, hand-like feet with large claws, and a
long prehensile tail. It was a Cuscus (C. maculatus), one of the curious marsupial animals of
the Papuan region, and I was very desirous to obtain the skin. The owners, however, said
they wanted to eat it; and though I offered them a good price, and promised to give them all
the meat, there was great hesitation. Suspecting the reason, I offered, though it was night, to
set to work immediately and get out the body for them, to which they agreed. The creature
was much hacked about, and the two hind feet almost cut off, but it was the largest and
finest specimen of the kind I had seen; and after an hour's hard work I handed over the body
to the owners, who immediately cut it up and roasted it for supper.
As this was a very good place for birds, I determined to remain a month longer, and took
the opportunity of a native boat going to Dobbo, to send Ali for a fresh supply of ammuni-
tion and provisions. They started on the 10th of April, and the house was crowded with
about a hundred men, boys, women, and girls, bringing their loads of sugar-cane, plantains,
sirih-leaf, yams, &c.; one lad going from each house to sell the produce and make pur-
chases. The noise was indescribable. At least fifty of the hundred were always talking at
once, and that not in the low measured tones of the apathetically polite Malay, but with loud
voices, shouts, and screaming laughter, in which the women and children were even more
conspicuous than the men. It was only while gazing at me that their tongues were moder-
ately quiet, because their eyes were fully occupied. The black vegetable soil here overlying
the coral rock is very rich, and the sugar-cane was finer than any I had ever seen. The canes
brought to the boat were often ten and even twelve feet long, and thick in proportion, with
short joints throughout, swelling between the knots with the abundance of the rich juice. At
Dobbo they get a high price for it, 1
d
. to 3
d
. a stick, and there is an insatiable demand
among the crews of the praus and the Baba fishermen. Here they eat it continually. They
half live on it, and sometimes feed their pigs with it. Near every house are great heaps of the
refuse cane; and large wicker-baskets to contain this refuse as it is produced form a regular
part of the furniture of a house. Whatever time of the day you enter, you are sure to find
