there was no fear of their straying
away. 'Now, boys,' Mr. Hardy said, 'let us begin by getting our first
dinner. You go straight down to the water; I will keep to the right. You
take Dash, I will take Flirt.'

In another ten minutes the reports of the guns followed close upon each
other, and the boys had the satisfaction of knocking down two geese and
eight ducks, which Dash brought ashore, besides others which escaped. In
five minutes more they heard a shout from their father, who had bagged
two more geese and three ducks. 'That will do, boys; we have got plenty
for the next day or two, and we must not alarm them by too much
slaughter.'

'Four geese and eleven ducks, papa, in five minutes,' the boys said,
when they joined Mr. Hardy; 'that is not bad shooting to begin with.'

'Not at all, boys. What with wild fowl and armadillos, I think that, at
a pinch, we could live for some time upon the produce of the estate.'

'You don't mean to say, papa, that they eat the armadillos?' Hubert said
with a look of suspicion.

'They do indeed, Hubert, and I am told that they are not at all bad
eating. Now let us go up to the rise again; our carts must be nearly
up.'

By the time they reached the three trees, they found that the rest of
the cavalcade was within a quarter of a mile, and in a few minutes they
came up.

The cattle and sheep required no attending. Immediately they found that
they were not required to go any farther, they scattered, and began to
graze. The oxen were unyoked from the carts, and all hands set-to to
unload the miscellaneous collection of goods which had been brought up.
Only the things which Mr. Hardy had considered as most indispensable for
present use had been brought on, for the steamer from Buenos Ayres did
not carry heavy goods, and the agricultural implements and other baggage
were to come up in a sailing vessel, and were not expected to arrive for
another week.

The carts contained three small portmanteaus with the clothes of Mr.
Hardy and the boys, and a large case containing the carbines, rifles,
and ammunition. There was a number of canisters with tea, coffee, sugar,
salt, and pepper; a sack of flour; some cooking pots and frying pans,
tin plates, dishes, and mugs; two sacks of coal and a quantity of
firewood; shovels, carpenter's tools, a sickle, the framework of a hut
with two doors and windows, three rolls of felt, a couple of dozen
wooden posts, and two large coils of iron wire. Whi