which, as we had no firearms, was often of
important service in procuring food on land.

I had made another use of my skill--an application of it which afforded
me a vast deal of satisfaction. My old enemies the sharks used still to
frequent a certain portion of the coast, in great numbers, and as soon
as I became master of my weapon, I would stand as near to the edge of
the rock as was safe, and singling out my victim, aim at his upper fin,
which I often found had the effect of ridding the place of that fellow.

I bore such an intense hatred to these creatures for the fright they had
put me into during my memorable voyage of discovery, and for the
slaughter of my beloved Nero, that I determined to wage incessant war
against them, as long as I could manufacture an arrow, or a single shark
remained on the coast.

As we had so often traversed the island without accident, we dreamt not
of danger. We had never met with any kind of animals, except our old
friends the seals, who kept near the sea. Of birds, the gannets were
generally the sole frequenters of the island; but we had seen, at rare
intervals, birds of a totally different character, some of which I had
shot.

Indeed, during our excursions, I was always on the look-out for any
stranger of the feathered race, that I might exercise my skill upon him.
If he proved eatable, he was sure to be very welcome; and even if he
could not be cooked, he afforded me some entertainment, in hearing from
Mrs Reichardt his name and habits.

We had discovered a natural hollow which lay so low that it was quite
hid till we came close to it, when we had to descend a steep declivity
covered with shrubs. At the bottom was a soil evidently very
productive, for we found trees growing there to a considerable height,
that were in marked contrast to the shrubby plants that grew in other
parts of the island. We called this spot the Happy Valley, and it
became a favourite resting-place.

I remember on one of these occasions, we had made our dinner after
having been several hours employed in seeking for plants, of which we
had procured a good supply, and the remains of our meal lay under a
great tree, beneath the spreading branches of which we had been resting
ourselves.

It was quite on the other side of the island, within about a quarter of
a mile of the sea. Abundance of curious plants grew about the place,
and Mrs Reichardt had wandered to a little distance to examine all
withi