Kaiber was a great deal too sensible a fellow to be allowed to remain a prey to so ridiculous a superstition as this was; I therefore ordered him instantly to go and bring some of these mussels to me; that I intended to eat them, but that he could in this respect please himself.  He hereupon, after thinking for a moment or two, got up to obey me, and walked away for this purpose; but I heard him, whilst occupied in the task, lamenting his fate most bitterly.  It was true, he said, that he had not died either of hunger or thirst, but this was all owing to his courage and strong sinews, yet what would these avail against the supernatural powers of the boyl-yas.  “They will eat me at night, whilst, worn out by fatigue, I must sleep.”  Amidst these and sundry other similar exclamations he brought the mussels to me:  by this time my fire was prepared, and in a few minutes I was making such a meal as the weak state of my stomach would admit of.  No inducement of mine could however prevail upon Kaiber to share with me, and I therefore handed him the remains of the cockatoo.

As soon as my repast was concluded I walked about three miles up the river in the hopes of getting a duck, Kaiber accompanying me.  We saw several but killed none.  There were some fine reaches in the river, as well as some good flats along its banks.

In the afternoon we travelled about three miles in a south by east direction, and then came to the bed of a small stream, which ran from east to west but was now merely a chain of pools.  Across the bed where we passed it was a native weir.  Our route during the whole evening lay over hills of a nature similar to those we passed yesterday.  We did not halt until it was so dark that we could not see to walk, and then just dropped at the spot where we ceased to move.

Distress from cold.

The men made their fire and I lighted mine from theirs; but scarcely was this done ere the rain fell in torrents.  I had no blankets or protection of any kind against this, and Kaiber was in the same predicament; so that when the fire was extinguished our position became pitiable in the extreme, for I know not if I ever before suffered so much from cold; and to add to my annoyance I every now and then heard Kaiber chattering to himself, under its effects, rather than singing: 

Oh wherefore did he eat the mussels? 
Now the boyl-yas storms and thunder make;
Oh wherefore would he eat the mussels?”

At last I so completely lost my temper that I roared out, “You stone-headed fellow, Kaiber, if you talk of mussels again, I’ll beat you.”  “What spoke I this morning?” replied Kaiber; “you are stone-headed.  We shall be dead directly; wherefore ate you the mussels?” This was beyond what my patience in my present starved state could endure, so I got up and began to grope about for a stick or something to throw in the direction of the chattering blockhead; but he begged me to remain quiet, promising faithfully to make no more mention of the mussels.  I therefore squatted down, in a state of the most abject wretchedness.