We found also a large iron staple,
which Ernest succeeded, with a hammer and pieces of wood, in fixing in
the rock to moor the pinnace to. We had some difficulty in finding
branches within our reach; there were many trees on the shore, but their
trunks were bare. We found, at last, at some distance, an extensive
thicket, composed of a beautiful shrub, which Ernest recognized to be a
species of mimosa. The trunk of this plant is knotty and stunted, about
three or four feet high, and spreads its branches horizontally, clothed
with beautiful foliage, and so thickly interwoven, that the little
quadrupeds who make their dwellings in these thickets are obliged to
open covered roads out of the entangled mass of vegetation.
At the first blow of the hatchet, a number of beautiful little creatures
poured forth on all sides. They resembled the kangaroos of our island,
but were smaller, more elegant, and remarkable for the beauty of their
skin, which was striped like that of the zebra.
"It is the striped kangaroo," cried Ernest, "described in the voyages of
Peron. How I long to have one. The female should have a pouch to contain
her young ones."
He lay down very still at the entrance of the thicket, and soon had the
satisfaction of seizing two, which leaped out almost into his arms.
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