discovered many thousands of acres of magnificent black soil country,
without a stick of timber to impede the plough, over which a furrow, miles
in length, could have been turned without an inch of deviation being
necessary.

Where the wretched bark 'gunyah' of the native stood, is now found the
well-finished house of the planter; and where the savage pastimes of the
'bora' ground once obtained, and the smoke from cannibal fires curled
slowly upwards to the blue vault of heaven, is heard the cheerful ring of
the blacksmith's hammer, the crack of the bullock-whip, as the team moves
slowly onward beneath the weight of seven-feet canes, and the measured
throb of machinery from the factory, where the crushed plant is yielding up
its sweets between the inexorable iron crushers. In this, our newest
world, improvements when once set afoot, proceed with marvellous celerity,
and a turn of Fortune's wheel may in a single year convert a howling
wilderness into a flourishing township. But I find myself digressing
again, and resisting rambling thoughts, must revert to our preparations for
the morrow.

[Illustrations KANGAROO. and ORNITHORHYNCHUS PARADOXUS.]

The meeting at which we had just been present, took place on the morning
following our return from the search on Hinchinbrook Island; and not only
was another day indispensable for the arrangements that were necessary, but
we also felt that one more night of comfortable rest would render us better
able to encounter the fatigues of the coming expedition. Only bushmen and
explorers can appreciate the intense enjoyment of a night of unbroken rest
between the sheets, after knocking about for a length of time, catching
sleep by snatches, and never knowing the luxury of undressing. Turning in
like a trooper's horse, "all standing," as the nautical phrase is, may be