z," he went, with a
wonderfully good imitation of the whirr of an insect's wings, while he
made his hand describe the dartings to and fro.

"Big fly so," he cried, and drawing his boomerang from the hair girdle,
he took a few steps, whirled it a moment or two, and then hurled it
towards the shore. "Buzz--hum!" he cried, and then he stood grinning
with delight at the boy's admiration of the gyrations made by the
curious implement.

At the first throw it seemed to Carey that it would drop as soon as the
force was exhausted into the sea, where the hard wood must cause it to
sink. But nothing of the kind; it went skimming over the water like
some gigantic insect, and at last made a graceful curve, rose up on high
quivering and fluttering, and came back till it was over the deck, and
then came twirling down.

"Big tree, ticky-ticky, fly dat how."

"Oh, I see; fly ticky-ticky," cried Carey. "Honey?"

"Good ticky-ticky," said the black, licking his fingers and smacking his
lips. "Come 'long."

"Yes, I'll come," cried the boy, and the next minute he was over the
side and in the boat, where half-a-dozen more of the blacks were waiting
and received him with a frantic shout of delight, flourishing their
paddles, which they plunged into the smooth water of the lagoon as soon
as Black Jack had dropped to his place; and away they went, with the
latter standing up beside Carey.

As they were passing round the bows, Bostock's head suddenly appeared
over the side, and at a sign from the boy the blacks ceased rowing.

"Where away, lad?" said the old sailor.

"Ashore, hunting wallabies or something."

"I say, young gentleman, is it safe to go alone with those chaps?"

"Oh, yes; there's nothing to mind. Haven't I been fishing with 'em lots
of times?"

"Yes, but that was on the water, my lad," said Bostock, shaking his
head.

"Bob--Bob, come along; kedge wallaby--snakum--ticky-ticky."

"Who's to do the cooking if I do?" growled Bostock.

"Cookie, come kedge ticky-ticky."

"No. I say, my lad, keep your weather eye open."

"Both of them, Bob. I'll take care."

The paddles were plunged in again, and the boat glided onward.

"I don't half like it," muttered Bostock. "That there boy's too
wentersome. S'pose they got hungry--they most always are--and took it
into their heads to make a fire. Ugh! They aren't to be trusted, but I
b'leeve they all like him and would be precious sorry when they got back
and Old Kin