CHAPTER TWO.
HOW WE PREPARED TO START, AND STARTED.
You will have gathered from all this that my father had been missing for pretty well three years, and that he, a well-known botanist, had accepted a commission from a well-known florist in the neighbourhood of London to collect new plants for him, and in his quest he had made his last unfortunate trip--which had followed one to Carpentaria--to New Guinea.
We had heard from him twice, each time with a package of seeds and plants, which we had forwarded to London.

Then there was an utter cessation of news; one year had become two--then three--and it would soon be four.
Quite a little fellow when he started, I had cried with disappointment at being left behind.

Now I had grown into a big fellow for my age; I had dreamed incessantly of making the attempt to find my father, and now at last the time had come.
I believe I was quite as excited over the proposed journey as Jimmy, but I did not go about throwing a spear at gum-trees, neither did I climb the tallest eucalyptus to try if I could see New Guinea from the topmost branches.

Moreover I did not show my delight on coming down, certain of having seen this promised land, by picking out a low horizontal branch and hanging from it by my toes.
All of these antics Jimmy did do, and many more, besides worrying me every half-hour with-- "Come long--time a go find him fader." Of course now I know that it would have been impossible for me to have carried out my plans without the doctor, who was indefatigable, bringing to bear as he did the ripe experience of a man who had been all over the world pretty well before he came to Australia to make a practice; and every day I had from him some useful hint.
He was quite as eager as I, but he met all my impatient words with-- "Let's do everything necessary first, Joe.

Recollect we are going to a far more savage land than this, and where we can renew nothing but our store of food.