We continued to hear and see them in the forest, but after a month had not succeeded in shooting any more; and as my chief object in visiting Waigiou was to get these birds, I determined to go to Bessir, where there are a number of Papuans who catch and preserve them.

I hired a small outrigger boat for this journey, and left one of my men to guard my house and goods.

We had to wait several days for fine weather, and at length started early one morning, and arrived late at night, after a rough and disagreeable passage.

The village of Bessir was built in the water at the point of a small island.

The chief food of the people was evidently shell-fish, since great heaps of the shells had accumulated in the shallow water between the houses and the land, forming a regular "kitchen-midden" for the exploration of some future archeologist.