should my brother not
especially press me to remain. When, however, we arrived at Brisbane,
and Harry told me of his contemplated trip, and that he should be very
glad of my assistance, I kept to my former intention of remaining with
him. I therefore wished Captain Archer and his ship, the _Eclipse_,
good-bye, and took up my quarters with Harry and his family. I liked
Mary and her sister, whom I had not before seen, very much, and I was
glad that Harry had not taken them into the bush, for they did not
appear at all suited to the rough style of life they would have had to
lead there, for they were both very pretty and elegant, and had never
been accustomed to hard work, though they now did their best to make
themselves useful in the house, and were never idle. Their brother,
Nat, was a capital little fellow--as merry as a cricket and never out of
temper, even when his face and hands were bitten all over by mosquitoes,
or when the pugnacious insects were buzzing round us in thousands, and
that is a trial to the sweetest of tempers. We used to have music and
reading in the evenings, and very pleasant evenings they were--indeed,
we lived much as we should have done in the old country. Altogether, I
congratulated myself that I had decided on stopping out.

My brother was, however, somewhat anxious about the state of business.
"You see, Ned, there is not, I fear, much to be done at present," he
said. "I have, therefore, thought of making the trip I spoke to you
about. A number of vessels sail from Sydney and other places to collect
cargoes of palm-oil and sandal-wood, and some few go in search of
pearls. They do not all trade honestly with the natives, and several
have suffered in consequence, their crews having been attacked and
murdered; but I hope, by trading honestly and by being always on my
guard against surprise, to make a profitable venture. I have an
especial reason for wishing to sail at once, as the day before your
arrival I received information from an old shipmate of mine, Tom Platt,
of the existence of a small group of islands, among which pearls of
large size are obtained by the natives in unusual abundance. Tom, who
has been out in these seas for some years on board whalers and other
craft, sailed a few months ago in a small schooner, the _Zebra_, from
Sydney. Both master and crew were rough, lawless fellows, and Tom told
me that he often wished himself clear of them, but they touched at no
place