which I saw only once, and did not capture, causing me to regret
that there was no village in these interior valleys where I could
stay a month. In the early part of each morning I went out with
my gun in search of birds, and two of my men were out almost all
day after deer; but we were all equally unsuccessful, getting
absolutely nothing the whole time we were in the forest. The only
good bird seen was the fine Amboyna lory, but these were always
too high to shoot; besides this, the great Moluccan hornbill,
which I did not want, was almost the only bird met with. I saw
not a single ground-thrush, or kingfisher, or pigeon; and, in
fact, have never been in a forest so utterly desert of animal
life as this appeared to be. Even in all other groups of insects,
except butterflies, there was the same poverty. I bad hoped to
find some rare tiger beetles, as I had done in similar situations
in Celebes; but, though I searched closely in forest, river-bed,
and mountain-brook, I could find nothing but the two common
Amboyna species. Other beetles there were absolutely none.

The constant walking in water, and over rocks and pebbles, quite
destroyed the two pair of shoes I brought with me, so that, on my
return, they actually fell to pieces, and the last day I had to
walk in my stockings very painfully, and reached home quite lame.
On our way back from Makariki, as on our way there, we had storm
and rain at sea, and we arrived at Awaiya late in the evening,
with all our baggage drenched, and ourselves thoroughly
uncomfortable. All the time I had been in Ceram I had suffered
much from the irritating bites of an invisible acarus, which is
worse than mosquitoes, ants, and every other pest, because it is
impossible to guard against them. This last journey in the forest
left me covered from head to foot with inflamed lumps, which,