At least an hour before dawn we were astir, and swallowing the scalding tea that the man on watch had prepared:  this done, and a snack of damper and cold meat eaten, we got quietly into the boat and were pulled ashore.  Until daylight, we were unable to make our way, for paths there were none, and the ground was dangerous from the quantity of stones, etc., so we were compelled to sit down quietly and smoke our pipes until we could see to pick our way.  In the tropics there is but little dawn; the sun springs up without heralding his approach by a lengthened gradation from darkness to night, as obtains in more temperate climes, and but little patience was requisite to enable us to commence our search.  As many of our readers are doubtless aware that in Australia no journey is ever undertaken on foot; that the real bushman would think himself sunk to the depths of abject poverty, if he had not at least ‘one’ horse of his own; and that a man will wander about for a couple of hours looking for a horse to carry him half a mile, when he might have gone to his destination and back half a dozen times, in the interval wasted in searching for his steed.  Knowing this, they will doubtless wonder why we did not bring our mounts with us, and perform the journey comfortably, in place of the tedious method we now adopted.  It must not for a moment be imagined that the great assistance horses would have afforded us had not been duly weighted and considered, and our reasons for leaving them behind were as follows:  —­ From the little we knew of Hinchinbrook, and from the description Lizzie gave of the country, they would have been rather in our way than otherwise.  The whole island is a mass of lofty volcanic mountains; and the passes through the gorges so strewn with huge boulders, debris, and shale, that we should have been compelled to lead our nags, and thus they would have only proved an encumbrance.  This was one reason, and apparently a very good one, but I doubt if it would have had much effect upon our party, who could hardly contemplate any undertaking without the agency of horseflesh, had not a more cogent argument been forthcoming, to which they were compelled to give in their adherence.

“The ‘Daylight’ is quite big enough to carry them all, for such a short distance, if they’re properly stowed,” said Jack Clark, the roughrider, who was a zealous advocate for the conveyance of his pet quadrupeds.

“Of course she can,” said another; “and we shall get the work over as quickly again.”

“How will you land them?” I ventured to suggest; “for the cutter can never go near enough to the shore to walk them out.”

“She can’t get within a quarter of a mile,” said the pilot; for at this time none of us knew of the little inlet, into which Lizzie so deftly guided us.

“Pitch them overboard, of course,” cried Jack; “they’ll pretty soon make for the land; and I’ll send my mare Gossamer first; she’ll give them a lead, I’ll bet.  Cunning old devil!”