But there is someone come to call us to
feed, I suppose. We must go now."

"Oh!" I exclaimed, "what a pity! we seem to have just begun."

All the same we had been at work for a very long time, so hands were
washed, and we all went in to dinner.

CHAPTER TEN.

ALL AMONGST THE BIRD SKINS.

My aunt waylaid me with a very unpleasant task directly after dinner,
but Uncle Dick saw my disappointment, and said that he must have me, so
I escaped, and, to my great delight, we went at once to his room to go
on unpacking the birds, my excitement and wonder increasing every
minute. I was rather disappointed with some of the skins, for they were
as plain and ordinary looking as sparrows or larks; but Uncle Dick
seemed to set great store by them, and said that some of the plainest
were most valuable for their rarity.

Uncle Joe sat and looked on, saying very little, while Uncle Dick and I
did the unpacking and arranging, laying the beautiful skins out in rows
upon the boards and shelves.

"They wanted unpacking," said Uncle Dick, "for some of them are quite
soft and damp with exposure to the sea air. Well, Nat, what is it?"

"I was hoping to find some birds of paradise, uncle," I replied.

"Then your hopes will be disappointed, my boy, for the simple reason
that my travels have been in Florida, Mexico, Central America, Peru, and
Brazil, with a short stay of a few months in the West Indies."

"And are there no birds of paradise there, uncle?"

"No, my boy, nor yet within thousands of miles. Birds of paradise, as
they are called, are found in the isles of the eastern seas, the Aru
Isles and New Guinea."

"Oh! how I should like to go!" I cried.

"You?" he said laughing. "What for, Nat?"

"To shoot and collect, sir," I cried; "it must be grand."

"And dangerous, and wearisome," he said smiling. "You would soon want
to come back to Uncle Joe."

"I shouldn't like to leave Uncle Joe," I said thoughtfully; "but I
should like to go all the same. I'd take Uncle Joe with me," I said
suddenly. "He'd help me ever so."

Uncle Dick laughed, and we went on with our task, which never seemed to
weary me, so delighted was I with the beauty of the birds. As one box
was emptied another was begun, and by the time I had finished the second
I thought we had exhausted all the beauty of the collection, and said
so, but my uncle laughed.

"Why, we have not begun the chatterers yet, Nat," he said. "Let me
see--yes," he cont