Except that we were in daylight and amid delightful scenery—a welcome change from the awful gloom of the forest at Mafulu—we were, as far as living went, no better off than we had been on the higher ground, and our staple food was still sweet potatoes; but it was something to have the sun again, and altogether we were conscious of a reviving feeling of exhilaration at Babooni. The _Drepanornis Albertisii_, one of the finest of the birds of paradise, abounded, and we secured a considerable number of specimens on the opposite hill. I also secured a fine series of the _Ornithoptera primus_, the bird-winged butterfly, which is distinguished by its beautiful green and velvet-black wings, with brilliant golden fore-wings, the under side of which is black. It is very partial to the flowers of the tree Spirea, among the foliage of which its black and gold wings can continually be seen twinkling. Its colour contrast, indeed, gives it a most remarkable appearance in flight. [Illustration: A SPIDER’S WEB AS A FISHING-NET: A STRANGE NEW GUINEA DEVICE. A very huge and strong spider’s web, common to New Guinea, is used by the natives as a fishing-net. They set up in the forest a bamboo, bent as in the picture, and leave it until the spiders have covered it with a web in the manner shown. ] But scientific work cannot be done on sweet potatoes alone, so I sent Wei-Yah and five men to Ekeikei to replenish our larder. They took a week on the journey, and on their return reported that the Ekeikei camp was safe, but there had been thefts from the stores at the Kebea. The foolish fellows had come back without salt, and as five men cannot carry very much, we were only a little better off than we had been. We were also in dire want of “trade,” and there would be fairly long accounts to settle with our carriers for the rest of the journey, the Foula men having exhausted all our trade when we paid them off at Babooni. In our straits, however, nature provided us with at least one delicacy, and we shall always remember Babooni gratefully for its tree-cabbage. These edible leaves grow on a small tree like a sycamore, and the manner of cooking is as follows: Each leaf is plucked separately, and when a sufficient number has been got together they are tied up into neat packets, bound round in banana leaves and cane string. Then stones are collected and heated on a large wood fire, and on the top of the hot stones the bundles of cabbage are placed, and over them the natives lay more banana leaves to a depth of about two feet, and above all another layer of hot stones. In about one hour the cabbage is cooked, the outer wrapping is taken off, and the delicacy is served on a banana leaf or a dish. It is a perfect god-send to the half-starved traveller.