River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1875-06-11

raspberry, tamarind and chestnut are
very nice, and geebungs, five corners,
icl!y pillies, snodsollions, &C., are not
withstanding their uninviting names, not
to be dispised.
There is deputation now in England,
to urge upon The British government,
the expediency OF annexing the adjacent
island of New Guinea, step which it is
thought will materially advance the pros.
perity Of the colony, as New Guinea is
fertile, we'll watered and rich in all tropi.
cal productions and needs but the enter
prising spirit Of our Anglo Saxon race, to
change its tangled jungles into smiling
gardens and peaceful fields; and, the ge-
MUS Of civilization, with its restless inhu-
ence, will transform these scenes OF rural
beauty into busy marts teeming with the
evidences of human industry and skill.
The Flora Of Australia is exceedingly
interesting and abundant; many of the
flowers that we rear with difficulty in
our parlors and greenhouses, grow pro-
fuscly in the hedges and along the road
sides; but, with few exceptions, such
as the calamba, wild rose, honeysuckle,
and several species Of jasmine, which emit
delicious odor, the greater proper tion
of the wild flowers that enliven the forest
and plains are entirely destitute Of per.
fume.
Insects Of varied beauty, and reptiles
of many kinds are also numerous. Ma
tive bees abound in many parts Of the in
terror, and their fragrant honey forms an
important addition to the food Of the
natives. The locust also is very prolific,
the ravages OF this insect upon
the heritage and green crops
is a serious inconvenience
to the settler; the blacks, however, eat
prodigious quantities of them. There are
also numbers of the singular leaf insect.
They are Of all varieties Of tree hues,
from pale yellow to rich green, and the
dusky brown of a withered leaf. They
can scarcely be distinguished from the
tree or grass where they lie. their wings
being ribbed and marked precisely like a
leaf. 1t was almost enough to make one
believe in fairies to come upon what /
supposed was a heap of fallen leaves /;
and as one of my companions stirred
them up with a stick to see them unfold
a set Of legs, notched and shaped like
half-opened leaflets, and move deliber-
ately off. The eggs, strange to say, look
precisely like small brown seeds. The
lizard and ignand tribe, too, are exceed.
ingly numerous, and, their admirers say,
very beautiful. think, however, that
this is one of the cases in which distance
lends enchantment to the view. Differ
erent kinds of ants, black, white and red,
lend their agency towards the torment of
the jewellers in the Bush; they are, how
ever, useful as scavengers. The warrior
ant, soldier or sailor, according to color,
are bold and formidable insects; they are
sometimes very large, between two and
three inches in length, and do not seem
afraid of attacking anything, no matter
what its size; their bite is very severe
and painful. Black snakes, adders, turan-
tulas, flies, mosquitoes and feas thrive
here amazingly, and the suctorlal powers
of these two latter appear, from strong
concurrent testimony, to be extraordi.
narily well developed, and sad experience
proves that they have not erred.
| will give you more Of Australia in
another letter, and then for some other
parts of our world. used 10 think the
world wonderful place before | saw
much OF it, but nov that have Travelled
over goodly portion, am filled with
greater admiration than ever. More
anon. Yours truly. S. 4.