CHAPTER IV
"Good-bye, Kookooburra!" cried Dot, as they left the cave; and the birdgave her a nod of the head, followed by a wink, which was supposed tomean hearty good-will at parting. He would have spoken, only he hadswallowed but part of the Snake, and the rest hung out of the side ofhis beak, like an old man's pipe; so he couldn't speak. It wouldn't havebeen polite to do so with his beak full.
Dot was so rested by her sleep all night that she did not ride in theKangaroo's pouch; but they proceeded together, she walking, and herfriend making as small hops as she could, so as not to get too farahead. This was very difficult for the Kangaroo, because even thesmallest hops carried her far in front. After a time they arranged thatthe friendly animal should hop a few yards, then wait for Dot to catchher up, and then go on again. This she did, nibbling bits of grass asshe waited, or playing a little game of hide-and-seek behind the bushes.
Sometimes when she hid like this, Dot would be afraid that she had losther Kangaroo, and would run here and there, hunting round trees, andclusters of ferns, until she felt quite certain she had lost the kindanimal; when suddenly, clean over a big bush, the Kangaroo would boundinto view, landing right in front of her. Then Dot would laugh, and rushforward, and throw her arms around her friend; and the Kangaroo, with aquiet smile, would rub her little head against Dot's curls, and theywere both very happy. So, although it was a long and rough way to thelittle creek where the Platypus lived, it did not seem at all far.
The stream ran at the bottom of a deep gully, that had high rocky sides,with strangely shaped trees growing between the rocks. But, by thestream, Dot thought they must be in fairyland; it was so beautiful. Inthe dark hollows of the rocks were wonderful ferns; such delicate onesthat the little girl was afraid to touch them. They were so tender andgreen that they could only grow far away from the sun, and as she peepedinto the hollows and caves where they grew, it seemed as if she wasbeing shown the secret store-house of Nature, where she kept all themost lovely plants, out of sight of the world. A soft carpet seemed tospring under Dot's feet, like a nice springy mattress, as she trottedalong. She asked the Kangaroo why the earth was so soft, and was toldthat it was not earth, but the dead leaves of the tree-ferns above them,that had been falling for such a long, long time, that no kangaroo couldremember the beginning.
Then Dot looked up, and saw that there was no sky to be seen; for theywere passing under a forest of tree-ferns, and their lovely spreadingfronds made a perfect green tent over their heads. The sunlight thatcame through was green, as if you were in a house made of green glass.All up the slender stems of these tall tree-ferns were the mostbeautiful little plants, and many stems were twined, from the earth totheir feather-like fronds, with tender creeping ferns--the fronds ofwhich were so fine and close, that it seemed as if the tree-fern werewrapped up in a lovely little fern coat. Even crumbling dead trees, anddecaying tree-ferns, did not look dead, because some beautiful moss, orlichen, or little ferns had clung to them, and made them more beautifulthan when alive.
Dot kept crying out with pleasure at all she saw; especially when littleParrakeets, with feathers as green as the ferns, and gorgeous redbreasts, came in flocks, and welcomed her to their favourite haunt; and,as she had eaten the berries of understanding, and was the friend of theKangaroo, they were not frightened, but perched on her shoulders andhands, and chatted their merry talk together. The Kangaroo did not shareDot's enthusiasm for the beauties of the gully. She said it was pretty,certainly, but a bad place for kangaroos, because there was no grass.For her part, she didn't think any sight in nature so lovely as a bigplain, green with the little blades of new spring grass. The gully wasvery showy, but not to her mind so beautiful as the other.
Then they came to a stream that gurgled melodiously as it rippled overstones in its shallow course, or crept round big grey boulders that werewrapped in thick mosses, in which were mingled flowers of the pink andred wild fuchsia, or the creamy great blossoms of the rock lily. Dot randown the stream with bare feet, laughing as she paddled in and out amongthe rocks and ferns, and the sun shone down on the gleaming foam of thewater, and made golden lights in Dot's wild curls. The Kangaroo, too,was very merry, and bounded from rock to rock over the stream, showingwhat wonderful things she could do in that way; and sometimes theypaused, side by side, and peeped down upon some still pool that showedtheir two reflections as in a mirror; and that seemed so funny to Dot,that her silvery laugh woke the silence in happy peals, until moregreen-and-red Parrakeets flew out of the bush to join in the fun.
DOT AND THE KANGAROO ON THEIR WAY TO THE PLATYPUS]
When they had followed the stream some distance, the gully opened outinto bush scrub. The little Parrakeets then said "Good-bye," and flewback to their favourite tree-ferns and bush growth; and the Kangaroosaid, that as they were nearing the home of the Platypus, they must notplay in the stream any more; to do so might warn the creature of theirapproach and frighten it. "We shall have to be very careful," she said,"so that the Platypus will neither hear nor smell you. We will thereforewalk on the opposite shore, as the wind will then blow away from itshome."
The stream no longer chattered over rocky beds, but slid between softbanks of earth, under tufts of tall rushes, grasses, and ferns, and soonit opened into a broad pool, which was smooth as glass. The clouds inthe sky, the tall surrounding trees, and the graceful ferns and rushesof the banks, were all reflected in the water, so that it looked to Dotlike a strange upside-down picture. This, then, was the home of thatwonderful animal; and Dot felt quite frightened, because she thought shewas going to see something terrible.
At the Kangaroo's bidding, she hid a little way from the edge of thepool, but she was able to see all that happened.
The Kangaroo evidently did not enjoy the prospect of conversing with thePlatypus. She kept on fidgetting about, putting off calling to thePlatypus by one excuse and another: she was decidedly ill at ease.
"Are you frightened of the Platypus?" asked Dot.
"Dear me, no!" replied the Kangaroo, "but I'd rather have a talk withany other bush creature. First of all, the sight of it makes me souncomfortable, that I want to hop away the instant I set eyes upon it.Then, too, it's so difficult to be polite to the Platypus, because onenever knows how to behave towards it. If you treat it as an animal, youoffend its bird nature, and if you treat it as a bird, the animal in itis mighty indignant. One never knows where one is with a creature thatis two creatures," said the Kangaroo.
Dot was so sorry for the perplexity of her friend, that she suggestedthat they should not consult the Platypus. But the Kangaroo said it mustbe done, because no one in the bush was so learned. Being such a strangecreature, and living in such seclusion, and being so difficult toapproach, was a proof that it was the right adviser to seek. So, with ahalf desperate air, the Kangaroo left the little girl, and went down tothe water's edge.
Pausing a moment, she made a strange little noise that was somethingbetween a grunt and a hiss: and she repeated this many times. At lastDot saw what looked like a bit of black stick, just above the surface ofthe pool, coming towards their side, and, as it moved forward, leavingtwo little silvery ripples that widened out behind it on the smoothwaters. Presently the black stick, which was the bill of the Platypus,reached the bank, and the strangest little creature climbed into view.Dot had expected to see something big and hideous; but here was quite asmall object after all! It seemed quite ridiculous that the greatKangaroo should be evidently discomposed by the sight.
Dot could not hear what the Kangaroo said, but she saw the Platypushurriedly prepare to regain the water. It began to stumble clumsily downthe bank. The Kangaroo then raised her voice in pleading accents.
"But," she said, "it's such a little Human! I have treated it like mybaby kangaroo, and have carried it in my pouch."
This information seemed to arrest the movements of the Platypus; it hadreached the water's edge, but it paused, and turned.
"I tell you," it said in a high-pitched and irritab
le voice, "that allHumans are alike! They all come here to interview me for the samepurpose, and I'm resolved it shall not happen again; I have beeninsulted enough by their ignorance."
"I assure you," urged the Kangaroo, "that she will not annoy you in thatway. She wouldn't think of doing such a thing to any animal."
As the Kangaroo called the Platypus an animal, Dot saw at once that itwas offended, and in a great huff it turned towards the pool again. "Ibeg your pardon," said the Kangaroo nervously. "I didn't mean analtogether animal, or even a bird, but any a--a--a--." She seemedpuzzled how to speak of the Platypus, when the strange creature, seeingthe well-meaning embarrassment of the Kangaroo, said affably, "anymammal or Ornithorhynchus Paradoxus."
"Exactly," said the Kangaroo, brightening up, although she hadn't theleast idea what a mammal was.
"Well, bring the little Human here," said the Platypus in a morefriendly tone, "and if I feel quite sure on that point I will permit aninterview."
Two bounds brought the Kangaroo to where Dot was hidden. She seemedanxious that the child should make a good impression on the Platypus,and tried with the long claws on her little black hands to comb throughDot's long gleaming curls; but they were so tangled that the childcalled out at this awkward method of hairdressing, and the Kangaroostopped. She then licked a black smudge off Dot's forehead, which wasall she could do to tidy her. Then she started back a hop, and eyed thechild with her head on one side. She was not quite satisfied. "Ah!" shesaid, "if only you were a baby kangaroo I could make you look so nice!but I can't do anything to your sham coat, which gets worse every day,and your fur is all wrong, for one can't get one's claws through it. YouHumans are no good in the bush!"
"Never mind, dear Kangaroo," said the little girl; "when I get homemother will put me on a new frock, and will get the tangles out of myhair. Let us go to the Platypus now."
The Kangaroo felt sad as Dot spoke of returning home, for she had becomereally fond of the little Human. She began to feel that she would belonely when they parted. However, she did not speak of what was in hermind, but bounded back to the Platypus to wait for Dot.
When the little girl reached the pool, she was still more surprised, ona nearer view of the Platypus, that the Kangaroo should think so much ofit. At her feet she beheld a creature like a shapeless bit of wet mattedfur. She thought it looked like an empty fur bag that had been fishedout of the water. Projecting from the head, that seemed much nearer tothe ground than the back, was a broad duck's bill, of a dirty greycolour; and peeping out underneath were two fore feet that were like aduck's also. Altogether it was such a funny object that she was inclinedto laugh, only the Kangaroo looked so serious, that she tried to lookserious too, as if there was nothing strange in the appearance of thePlatypus.
"I am the Ornithorhynchus Paradoxus!" said the Platypus pompously.
"I am Dot," said the little girl.
"Now we know one another's names," said the Platypus, with satisfaction."If the Kangaroo had introduced us, it would have stumbled over my name,and mumbled yours, and we should have been none the wiser. Now tell me,little Human, are you going to write a book about me? because if youare, I'm off. I can't stand any more books being written about me; I'vebeen annoyed enough that way."
"I couldn't write a book," said Dot, with surprise; inwardly wonderingwhat anyone could find to make a book of, out of such a small, uglycreature.
"You're quite sure?" asked the Platypus, doubtfully, and evidently morethan half inclined to dive into the pool.
"Quite," said Dot.
"Then I'll try to believe you," said the Platypus, clumsily waddlingtowards some grass, amongst which it settled itself comfortably. "Butit's very difficult to believe you Humans, for you tell such dreadfulfibs," it continued, as it squirted some dirty water out of the bag thatsurrounded its bill, and swallowed some water beetles, small snails andmud that it had stored there. "See, for instance, the way you have allquarrelled and lied about me! One great Human, the biggest fool of all,said I wasn't a live creature at all, but a joke another Human hadplayed upon him. Then they squabbled together--one saying I was aBeaver; another that I was a Duck; another, that I was a Mole, or a Rat.Then they argued whether I was a bird, or an animal, or if we laid eggs,or not; and everyone wrote a book, full of lies, all out of his head.
"That's the way Humans amuse themselves. They write books about thingsthey don't understand, and each new book says all the others are allwrong. It's a silly game, and very insulting to the creatures they writeabout. Humans at the other end of the world, who never took the troubleto come here to see me, wrote books about me. Those who did come weremore impudent than those who stayed away. Their idea of learning allabout a creature was to dig up its home, and frighten it out of itswits, and kill it; and after a few moons of that sort of foolery theyclaimed to know all about us. Us! whose ancestors knew the worldmillions of years before the ignorant Humans came on the earth at all."The Platypus spluttered out more dirty water, in its indignation.
The Kangaroo became very timid, as it saw the rising anger of thePlatypus, and it whispered to Dot to say something to calm the littlecreature.
"A million years is a very long time," said Dot; unable at the moment tothink of anything better to say. But this remark angered the Platypusmore, for it seemed to suspect Dot of doubting what it said.
It clambered up into a more erect position, and its little brown eyesbecame quite fiery.
"I didn't say a million; I said millions! I can prove by a bone in mybody that my ancestors were the Amphitherium, the Amphilestes, thePhascolotherium, and the Stereognathus!" almost shrieked the littlecreature.
THE PREHISTORIC CREATURES OF THE PLATYPUS'S SONG]
Dot didn't understand what all these words meant, and looked at theKangaroo for an explanation; but she saw that the Kangaroo didn'tunderstand either, only she was trying to hide her ignorance by a calmappearance, while she nibbled the end of a long grass she held in herfore paw. But Dot noticed, by the slight trembling of the little blackpaw, that the Kangaroo was very nervous. She thought she would try andsay something to please Platypus; so she asked, very kindly, if the boneever hurt it. But this strange creature did not seem to notice theremark. Settling itself more comfortably amongst the grass, it mutteredin calmer tones, "I trace my ancestry back to the Oolite Age. Where doesman come in?"
"I don't know," said Dot.
"Of course you don't!" replied the Platypus, contemptuously, "Humans areso ignorant! That is because they are so new. When they have existed afew more million years, they will be more like us of old families; theywill respect quiet, exclusive living, like that of the OrnithorhynchusParadoxus, and will not be so inquisitive, pushing, and dangerous asnow. The age will come when they will understand, and will cease towrite books, and there will be peace for everyone."
The Kangaroo now thought it a good opportunity to change the subject,and gently introduced the topic of Dot's lost way, saying how she hadfound the little girl, and had taken care of her ever since.
The Platypus did not seem interested, and yawned more than once whilstthe Kangaroo spoke.
"The question is," concluded the Kangaroo, "who shall I ask to find it?Someone must know where it is."
"Of course," said the Platypus, yawning again, without so much asputting its web foot in front of its bill, which Dot thought very rude,or else very ancient manners. "Little Human," it said, "tell me whatkind of bush creatures come about your burrow."
"We live in a cottage," she said, but seeing that the Platypus did notlike to be corrected, and that the Kangaroo looked quite shocked at herdoing so, she hurriedly described the creatures she had seen there. Shesaid there were Crickets, Grasshoppers, Mice, Lizards, Swallows,Opossums, Flying Foxes, Kookooburras, Magpies, and Shepherd'sCompanions----
"Stop!" interrupted the Platypus, with a wave of its web foot; "that isthe right one."
"Who?" asked the Kangaroo and Dot anxiously, together.
"The bird you call Shepherd's Companion. Som
e of you call it RicketyDick, or Willy Wagtail." Turning to the Kangaroo especially, itcontinued. "If you can bring yourself to speak to anything so obtrusiveand gossiping, without any ancestry or manners whatever, you will beable to learn all you need from that bird. Humans and Wagtailsfraternise together. They're both post-glacial."
"I knew you could advise me," said the Kangaroo, gratefully.
"Oh! Platypus, how clever you are!" cried Dot, clapping her hands.
Directly Dot had spoken she saw that she had offended the queer littlecreature before her. It raised itself with an air of offended dignitythat was unmistakable.
"The name Platypus is insulting," it remarked, looking at the childseverely, "it means _broad-footed_, a vulgar pseudonym which could onlyhave emanated from the brutally coarse expressions of a Human. My nameis Ornithorhynchus Paradoxus. Besides, even if my front feet can expand,they can also contract; see! as narrow and refined as a bird's claw.Observe, too, that my hind feet are narrow, and like a seal's fin,though it has been described as a mole's foot."
As the Platypus spoke, and thrust out its strangely different feet, theKangaroo edged a little closer to Dot and whispered in her ear. "It'sgetting angry, and is beginning to use long words; do be careful whatyou say or it will be terrible!"
"I beg your pardon," said Dot; "I did not wish to hurt your feelings,Para--, Pa--ra--dox--us."
"_Ornithorhynchus_ Paradoxus, if you please," insisted the littlecreature. "How would you like it if your name was Jones-Smith-Jones, andI called you one Jones, or one Smith, and did not say both the Jones andthe Smiths? You have no idea how sensitive our race is. You Humans haveno feelings at all compared with ours. Why! my fifth pair of nerves arelarger than a man's! Humans get on my nerves dreadfully!" it ended indisgusted accents.
"She did not mean to hurt you," said the gentle Kangaroo, soothingly."Is there anything we can do to make you feel comfortable again?"
"There is nothing you can do," sighed the Platypus, now mournful anddepressed. "I must sing. Only music can quiet my nerves. I will sing alittle threnody composed by myself, about the good old days of thisworld before the Flood." And as it spoke, the Platypus moved into anupright position amongst the tussock grass, and after a little coughopened its bill to sing.
The Kangaroo kept very close to Dot, and warned her to be very attentiveto the song, and not to interrupt it on any account. Almost before theKangaroo had ceased to whisper in her ear, Dot heard this strange song,sung to the most peculiar tune she had ever heard, and in the funniestof little squeaky voices.
The fairest Iguanodon reposed upon the shore; Extended lay her beauteous form, a hundred feet and more. The sun, with rays flammivomous, beat on the blue-black sand; And sportive little Saurians disported on the strand; But oft the Iguanodon reproved them in their glee, And said, "Alas! this Saurian Age is not what it should be!"
Then, forth from that archaic sea, the Ichthyosaurus Uprose upon his finny wings, with neocomian fuss, "O Iguanodon!" he cried, as he approached the shore, "Why art thou thus dysthynic, love? Come, rise with me, and soar, Or leave these estuarian seas, and wander in the grove; Behold! a bird-like reptile fish is dying for thy love!"
Then, through the dark coniferous grove they wandered side by side, The tender Iguanodon and Ichthyosaurian bride; And through the enubilious air, the carboniferous breeze, Awoke, with _their_ amphibious sighs, the silence in the trees. "To think," they cried, botaurus-toned, "when ages intervene, Our osseous fossil forms will be in some museum seen!"
Bemoaning thus, by dumous path, they crushed the cycad's growth, And many a crash, and thunder, marked the progress of them both. And when they reached the estuary, the excandescent sun Was setting o'er the hefted sea; their saurian day was done. Then raised they paraseline eyes unto the flaming moon, And wept--the Neocomian Age was passing all too soon!
O Iguanodon! O Earth! O Ichthyosaurus! O Melanocephalous saurians! Oh! oh! oh!
(Here the Platypus was sobbing)
Oh, Troglyodites obscure--oh! oh!
At this point of the song, the poor Platypus, whose voice had trembledwith increasing emotion and sobbing in each verse, broke down, overcomeby the extreme sensitiveness of its fifth pair of nerves and the sadnessof its song, and wept in terrible grief.
The gentle Kangaroo was also deeply moved, seeing the Platypus in suchsorrow, and Dot mastered her aversion to touching cold, damp fur, andstroked the little creature's head.
The Platypus seemed much soothed by their sympathy, but hurriedly bidthem farewell. It said it must try and restore its shattered fifth pairof nerves by a few hydrophilus latipalpus beetles for lunch, and asleep.
It wearily dragged itself down to the edge of the pool, and lookedbackwards to the Kangaroo and Dot, who called out "Good-bye" to it. Itseyes were dim with tears, for it was still thinking of the Iguanodon andIchthyosaurus, and of the good old days before the Flood.
"It breaks my heart to think that they are all fossils," it exclaimed,mournfully shaking its head. "Fossils!" it repeated, as it plunged intothe pool and swam away. "Fossils!" it cried once more, in far, faintaccents; and a second later it dived out of sight.
For several moments after the Platypus had disappeared from view, theKangaroo and Dot remained just as it had left them. Then Dot broke thesilence.
"Dear Kangaroo," said she, "what was that song about?"
"I don't know," said the animal wistfully, "no one ever knows what thePlatypus sings about."
"It was very sad," said Dot.
"Dreadfully sad!" sighed the Kangaroo; "but the Platypus is a mostlearned and interesting creature," she added hastily. "Its conversationand songs are most edifying; everyone in the bush admits it."
"Does anyone understand its conversation?" asked Dot. She was afraid shemust be very stupid, for she hadn't understood anything except thatWilly Wagtail could help them to find her way.
"That is the beauty of it all," said the Kangaroo. "The Platypus is solearned and so instructive, that no one tries to understand it; it isnot expected that anyone should."
DOT DANCES WITH THE NATIVE COMPANIONS]