Bunyip Land | Page 4

exclaimed, "do you mean what you say?"
"Most decidedly, my dear madam," said the doctor. "I should be
unworthy of the professor's friendship, and the charge he gave me to
watch over you in his absence, if I did not go."
"But your practice?"
"What is that, trifling as it is, to going to the help of him who gave me
his when I came out to the colony a poor and friendless man?"
"Thank you, doctor," she said, laying her hand in his.
"And I go the more willingly," he said smiling, "because I know it will
be the best prescription for your case. It will bring you back your
health."
"But, doctor--"
"Don't say another word," he cried. "Why, my dear Mrs Carstairs, it is
five years since I have had anything even approaching a holiday. This
will be a splendid opportunity; and I can take care of Joe here, and he
can take care of me."
"That I will--if I can," I cried.
"I know you will, Joe," he said. "And we'll bring back the professor

with all his collection of new plants for that London firm, on condition
that something fresh with a big red and yellow blossom is named after
me--lay the Scarlet Grantii, or the Yellow Unluckii in honour of my
non-success."
"You're never going to let him start, Miss Eleanor?" cried nurse.
"Would you have me stand between my son and his duty, nurse?" cried
my mother, flushing.
"Dearie me, no," sighed the old lady; "only it do seem such a
wild-goose chase. There'll be no one to take care of us, and that
dreadful black, Jimmy"--nurse always said his name with a sort of
disrelish--"will be hanging about here all the time."
"Iss, dat's him, Jimmy, Jimmy, here Jimmy go. Hi--wup--wup--wup,
Jimmy go too."
"Nonsense, Jimmy!" I said; "I'm going to New Guinea to seek my
father."
"Iss. Hi--wup--wup--wup, Jimmy going to look for his fader."
"Why, you said he was dead," I cried.
"Iss, Jimmy fader dead, little pickaninny boy; Jimmy go look for him,
find him dere."
"Be quiet," I said, for the black was indulging in a kind of war-dance;
"you don't understand. I'm going across the sea to find my father."
"Dat him. Jimmy want go 'cross sea find him fader bad. Hi! want go
there long time."
"Why, you never heard of the place before," I said.
"No, never heard him fore; want to go long time. Jimmy go too."
"Why, what for?" I said.

"Hunt wallaby--kedge fis--kill black fellow--take care Mass Joe--find
um fader. Hi--wup--wup--wup!"
"He would be very useful to us, Joe," said the doctor.
"And I should like to take him," I said eagerly.
"Iss, Jimmy go," cried the black, who contrived, in spite of his bad
management of our language, to understand nearly everything that was
said, and who was keenly watching us all in turn.
"He would be just the fellow to take," said the doctor.
"Hi--wup--wup! Jimmy juss a fellow to take."
"Then he shall go," I said; and the black bounded nearly to the ceiling,
making nurse utter a shriek, whereupon he thrust his boomerang into
his waistband, and dragged a waddy from the back, where it had hung
down like a stumpy tail, and showing his white teeth in a savage grin,
he began to caper about as if preparing to attack the old lady, till I
caught him by the arm, and he crouched at my feet like a dog.
"Come long," he said, pointing out at the sun, "walk five six hour--all
black dark; go sleep a morning."
"All in good time, Jimmy," I said. "Go out and wait." The black ran out,
and crouched down upon his heels in the verandah, evidently under the
impression that we were about to start at once; but Europeans bound on
an expedition want something besides a waddy, boomerang, and spear;
and with nurse shaking her head mournfully the while, my mother, the
doctor, and I held a council of war, which, after a time, was interrupted
by a curious noise between a grunt and a groan, which proved to be
from Jimmy's throat, for he was preparing himself for his journey by
having a nap.
CHAPTER TWO.
HOW WE PREPARED TO START, AND STARTED.

You will have gathered from all this that my father had been missing
for pretty well three years, and that he, a well-known botanist, had
accepted a commission from a well-known florist in the neighbourhood
of London to collect new plants for him, and in his quest he had made
his last unfortunate trip--which had followed one to Carpentaria--to
New Guinea.
We had heard from him twice, each time with a package of seeds and
plants, which we had forwarded to London. Then there was an utter
cessation