ose curious relations which the best known group
of animals (the birds) have been shown to exhibit. On the other hand,
the depth of the surrounding seas, the form of the submerged banks,
and the volcanic character of most of the islands, all point to an
independent origin.

Before concluding, I must make one remark to avoid misapprehension. When
I say that Timor has never formed part of Australia, I refer only to
recent geological epochs. In Secondary or even Eocene or Miocene times,
Timor and Australia may have been connected; but if so, all record of
such a union has been lost by subsequent submergence, and in accounting
for the present land-inhabitants of any country we have only to consider
those changes which have occurred since its last elevation above the
waters since such last elevation, I feel confident that Timor has not
formed part of Australia.

CHAPTER XV. CELEBES.

(MACASSAR, SEPTEMBER TO NOVEMBER, 1856.)

I LEFT Lombock on the 30th of August, and reached Macassar in three
days. It was with great satisfaction that I stepped on a shore which I
had been vainly trying to reach since February, and where I expected to
meet with so much that was new and interesting.

The coast of this part of Celebes is low and flat, lined with trees and
villages so as to conceal the interior, except at occasional openings
which show a wide extent of care and marshy rice-fields. A few hills
of no great height were visible in the background; but owing to the
perpetual haze over the land at this time of the year, I could nowhere
discern the high central range of the peninsula, or the celebrated peak
of Bontyne at its southern extremity. In the roadstead of Macassar there
was a fine 42-gun frigate, the guardship of the place, as well as a
small war steamer and three or four little cutters used for cruising
after the pirates which infest these seas. There were also a few
square-rigged trading-vessels, and twenty or thirty native praus of
various sizes. I brought letters of introduction to a Dutch gentleman,
Mr. Mesman, and also to a Danish shopkeeper, who could both speak
English and who promised to assist me in finding a place to stay,
suitable for my pursuits. In the meantime, I went to a kind of
clubhouse, in default of any hotel in the place.

Macassar was the first Dutch town I had visited, and I found it prettier
and cleaner than any I had yet seen in the East. The Dutch have some
admirable local regulations. All Eu