ably thick one--completely in two, and carrying part of it away.

At the end of the ten miles we again turned off the main road at a
point where a solitary pillar-post and parcel-box stood by the
wayside, and once more plunged into the intricacies of a by-track.
Lucky it was that we had saved the daylight, for some of the holes
were deep enough to have upset any trap, and there was a steep hill,
which our driver seemed to view with great apprehension, though I do
not fancy we should think much of it in East Sussex. Soon after this
we came to a large homestead and farm, near which a number of sheep
were folded. On the opposite bank stood a substantial-looking wooden
house, surrounded by a verandah and by a clump of trees, in the middle
of what might have been an English park, to judge from the grass and
the fine timber; and after crossing a small creek we reached the
hospitable door of Kendenup Station.

[Illustration: TREE-FERNS, AUSTRALIA]

It had turned bitterly cold after leaving Mount Barker, and I realised
the value of the warning which our Albany friends had given as to the
treacherous character of the Australian climate at this time of year.
In fact I felt thoroughly chilled, and quite too miserably ill to do
justice to any of the many kindnesses prepared, except that of a
blazing wood fire.

Tab seemed to have spent a pleasant morning riding through the bush
after kangaroos, of which plenty had been seen, but none killed. The
very beauty of the day interfered with the sport, for the air was so
still and clear that the kangaroos heard and saw the hunters long
before they could get within shot. After supper the gentlemen went out
to hunt opossums by moonlight, and shot two, literally 'up a
gum-tree.' Opossum-hunting does not seem great sport, for the poor
little animals sit like cats on the branch of a tree, with their long
tails hanging down, and are easily spied by a dog or a native.

_Friday, May 13th._--It was a very cold night, the thermometer falling
to freezing-point. Woke at six, to find a bright, clear, cold morning,
with a sharp wind blowing from the south, which is of course the
coldest quarter in this part of the world. At seven a delicious cup of
tea was brought up, and at eight we breakfasted, the table being
charmingly decorated with fresh flowers and fruit. Afterwards a stroll
round the house, gardens, and orchard, and a gossip over the fire,
occupied the early part of the morning very agreeab