and Bax would stand amazed at
their beauty. They came one afternoon to an open glade in the cool
green dimness of the forest. On all sides the stately tree-ferns rose up
thirty or forty feet above them, and underneath grew a tangle of lovely
green undergrowth.

And upon this green carpet it seemed to their dazzled eyes that
thousands of butterflies of the loveliest form and color had just
alighted. And not only butterflies, but birds and huge insects and all
sorts of winged creatures, pink and gold and green and scarlet and blue,
and all variegated hues. But the lovely things sat motionless, sending
out such a delightful perfume that there could be no doubt that they
were flowers,--the wonderful orchids of Formosa! Mackay was a keen
scientist, always highly interested in botany, and he was charmed with
this sight. There were many such in the forest, and often he would stop
spellbound before a blaze of flowers hanging from tree or vine or shrub.
Then he would look up at the tangled growths of the bamboo, the palm,
and the elegant tree-fern, standing there all silent and beautiful, and
he would be struck by the harmony between God's work and Word. "I can't
keep from studying the flora of Formosa," he said to Captain Bax. "What
missionary would not be a better man, the bearer of a richer gospel,
what convert would not be a more enduring Christian from becoming
acquainted with such wonderful works of the Creator?"

At last they stood on the summit of the second range and saw before them
still more mountains, clothed from summit to base with trees. They were
now right in savage territory and their guide clambered out upon a spur
of rock and announced that there was a party of head-hunters in the
valley below. He gave a long halloo. From away down in the valley came
an answering call, ringing through the forest. Then far down through the
thicket Mackay's sharp eyes descried the party coming up to meet them.
Just then their own guide gave the signal to move on, and the missionary
and Captain Bax walked down the hill--the first white men who had ever
come out to meet those savages.

Half-way down the slope the two parties came face to face. The
head-hunters were a wild, uncouth-looking company, armed to the teeth.
They all carried guns, spears, and knives and some had also bows and
arrows slung over their backs. Their faces were hideously tattooed in a
regular pattern, while they wore no more clothes than were necessary.
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