ard him fore; want to go long time. Jimmy go too."

"Why, what for?" I said.

"Hunt wallaby--kedge fis--kill black fellow--take care Mass Joe--find um
fader. Hi--wup--wup--wup!"

"He would be very useful to us, Joe," said the doctor.

"And I should like to take him," I said eagerly.

"Iss, Jimmy go," cried the black, who contrived, in spite of his bad
management of our language, to understand nearly everything that was
said, and who was keenly watching us all in turn.

"He would be just the fellow to take," said the doctor.

"Hi--wup--wup! Jimmy juss a fellow to take."

"Then he shall go," I said; and the black bounded nearly to the ceiling,
making nurse utter a shriek, whereupon he thrust his boomerang into his
waistband, and dragged a waddy from the back, where it had hung down
like a stumpy tail, and showing his white teeth in a savage grin, he
began to caper about as if preparing to attack the old lady, till I
caught him by the arm, and he crouched at my feet like a dog.

"Come long," he said, pointing out at the sun, "walk five six hour--all
black dark; go sleep a morning."

"All in good time, Jimmy," I said. "Go out and wait." The black ran
out, and crouched down upon his heels in the verandah, evidently under
the impression that we were about to start at once; but Europeans bound
on an expedition want something besides a waddy, boomerang, and spear;
and with nurse shaking her head mournfully the while, my mother, the
doctor, and I held a council of war, which, after a time, was
interrupted by a curious noise between a grunt and a groan, which proved
to be from Jimmy's throat, for he was preparing himself for his journey
by having a nap.

CHAPTER TWO.

HOW WE PREPARED TO START, AND STARTED.

You will have gathered from all this that my father had been missing for
pretty well three years, and that he, a well-known botanist, had
accepted a commission from a well-known florist in the neighbourhood of
London to collect new plants for him, and in his quest he had made his
last unfortunate trip--which had followed one to Carpentaria--to New
Guinea.

We had heard from him twice, each time with a package of seeds and
plants, which we had forwarded to London. Then there was an utter
cessation of news; one year had become two--then three--and it would
soon be four.

Quite a little fellow when he started, I had cried with disappointment
at being left behind. Now I had grown into a big fellow fo