Nigel found this out at last and was rather embarrassed in consequence.
"Zat," exclaimed the naturalist, after gazing at his friend for some time in silence, "zat is a tree vitch planted itself in mid-air and zen sent its roots down to zee ground and its branches up to zee sky!"
"It looks as if it had," returned Nigel; "I have seen a tree of the same kind near the coast. How came it to grow in this way?"
"I know not. It is zought zat zey spring from a seed dropped by a bird into zee fork of anozer tree. Zee seed grows, sends his roots down ant his branches up. Ven his roots reach zee ground he lays hold, ant, ven strong enough, kills his support—zus returning efil for good, like a zankless dependent. Ah! zere is much resemblance between plants and animals! Com', ve must feed here," said the professor, resting his gun against one of the roots, "I had expected to find zee booterflies sooner. It cannot be helped. Let us make zis our banqueting-hall. Ve vill have a Durian to refresh us, ant here is a bandy tree which seems to have ripe vones on it.—Go," he added, turning to the orang-utan, "and send down von or two."
The creature looked helplessly incapable, pitifully unwilling, scratching its side the while. Evidently it was a lazy monkey.
"Do you hear?" said Verkimier, sternly.
The orang moved uneasily, but still declined to go.
Turning sharply on it, the professor bent down, placed a hand on each of his knees and stared through the blue goggles into the animal's face.
This was more than it could stand. With a very bad grace it hobbled off to the Durian tree, ascended it with a sort of lazy, lumbering facility, and hurled down some of the fruit without warning those below to look out.
"My little frond is obstinate sometimes," remarked the naturalist, picking up the fruit, "but ven I bring my glasses to bear on him he alvays gives in. I never found zem fail. Come now; eat, an' ve vill go to vork again. Ve must certainly find zee booterflies somevere before night."