The Most Characteristic Feature Of The Jungle Was Its Thorniness.
The Shrubs Were Thorny; The Creepers Were Thorny; The Bamboos
Even Were Thorny.
Everything grew zigzag and jagged, and in an
inextricable tangle, so that to get through the bush with gun or
net or even spectacles, was generally not to be done, and insect-
catching in such localities was out of the question.
It was in
such places that the Pittas often lurked, and when shot it became
a matter of some difficulty to secure the bird, and seldom
without a heavy payment of pricks and scratches and torn clothes
could the prize be won. The dry volcanic soil and arid climate
seem favourable to the production of such stunted and thorny
vegetation, for the natives assured me that this was nothing to
the thorns and prickles of Sumbawa whose surface still bears the
covering of volcanic ashes thrown out forty years ago by the
terrible eruption of Tomboro.
Among the shrubs and trees that are not prickly the Apocynaceae
were most abundant, their bilobed fruits of varied form and colour
and often of most tempting appearance, hanging everywhere by the
waysides as if to invite to destruction the weary traveller who may
be unaware of their poisonous properties. One in particular with a
smooth shining skin of a golden orange colour rivals in appearance
the golden apples of the Hesperides, and has great attractions for
many birds, from the white cockatoos to the little yellow Zosterops,
who feast on the crimson seeds which are displayed when the fruit
bursts open.
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