e day, Mark, and see if we can find a hot
spring of good water fit to cook in. I must say I should not like my
cabbage boiled in that."

"That's better," said Mark as they reached the sand once more, and stood
panting.

"Yes; the other's `pad for the poots,' as a Welsh friend of mine used to
say. Now, then, forward to find fresh water and birds. We'll go
another mile, and if we don't find a stream we must try for some fruit."

The dog trotted on a little ahead, and, to their great delight, they
came to the end of the monotonous fringe of cocoa-nuts and found that
quite a different class of vegetation came down close to the shore,
which now grew more rocky, and it was not long before they were able to
slake their thirst on the pleasant sub-acid fruit of a kind of
passion-flower.

A few hundred yards further and Bruff began to trot, breaking into a
canter of two legs after one, and suddenly turned into the jungle, to
come back barking.

They soon reached the spot, to find that quite a fount of pure-looking
water was welling up out of a rock basin, trickling over and losing
itself in the sand, while upon a tree close at hand were at least a
hundred tiny parrots not larger than sparrows, fluttering, piping, and
whistling as they rifled the tree of its fruit.

"Too small for food unless we were starving," said the major. "We shall
have to fill our bags with what answer here to cockles and mussels,
Mark. We must not go home empty-handed."

"Shall I try the water first?" said Mark.

"No need," said the major, pointing to where, at a lesser pool, Bruff
and Jack were slaking their thirst.

The example set by the two animals was followed, and deep draughts taken
of the delicious water, which was as cool and sweet as the other spring
had been nauseous and hot.

"Now, then; forward once more," said the major. "Just one more mile,
and then back, though I believe we could get round, for we must have
come so that the huts are quite to the south. Yes; we're travelling
north-west now, and when we started we were going north-east."

"Hist! Look!" whispered Mark; and he pointed forward.

"Phew!" whistled the major. "Down, Bruff! To heel!"

The dog obeyed, and cocking their guns, and keeping as close to the
trees as the rocky nature of the soil would allow, the two hunters
approached the game Mark had pointed out.

Strange-looking birds they were, each as big as a small turkey, and,
provided that they were not o