ast coast, and on the
following morning he found several nests and caught two birds, both of
which were taken by hand while on the nest. They had beautiful plumage
and made very fine specimens.

Blake returned from Lusitania Bay during the afternoon of the 4th and
reported that he required only four or five days to complete the survey.
The configuration of the island at the southern end is vastly different
to that shown in the published charts, and this became more apparent as
Blake's figures were plotted.

The news that Piastre had won the Melbourne Cup was flashed about all
over the southern ocean during the evening, and we picked it up; but
as this was the first we had heard of the animal, nobody seemed much
interested. It certainly gave a turn to the conversation, and quite
a sporting tone permeated the discussions of the ensuing two or three
days.

The subjects of discussion were usually those of environment, and
most of our talk centred round sea elephants, sea-leopards, penguins,
temperatures, wind, wireless telegraphy, fish, aurorae, exploration,
ships, Queensland and New Zealand. Sea elephants and penguins do offer
scope for a considerable amount of conversation, as one observes them
under such different circumstances, and they are so odd that something
remarkable is always associated with the sight of them. The weather,
being practically the bete noire of our existence, came in for a good
deal of abuse. Wireless telegraphy is a mighty interesting subject
at all times, and we passed many hours of our stay in discussing its
future. All the members were, allegedly, fishermen of some calibre, and
when I have said that, anybody with a knowledge of the man who claims
ability as an angler will know what all the others, in turn, had to
receive with restrained and respectful admiration. The advantages of
settlement in Queensland were so apparent to at least one member of
the party that he simply could not understand why thousands were not
annually killed in the rush to get to this, "the greatest of all the
Australian States." Good old silky oak!

The scenery of New Zealand was almost as well known to us as to anybody
who has lived in the country all his life, and three of us had never
been there. We have sat round the Shack sometimes and only the roar of a
sea elephant outside reminded us that we were not, as we imagined, at a
Maori "tangi." The wages to be earned there, the delights of travelling,
the legislators