1770. ROUND THE WORLD. 217 



by their lances : it is possible, also, that in this situa- 

 tion they might take birds when they came to roost. 



I have observed that when they went from our 

 tents upon the banks of Endeavour River, we could 

 trace them by the fires which they kindled in their 

 w r ay ; and we imagined that these fires were intended 

 some way for the taking the kanguroo, which we 

 observed to be so much afraid of fire, that our dogs 

 could scarcely force it over places which had been 

 newly burnt, though the fire was extinguished. 



They produce fire with great facility, and spread 

 it in a wonderful manner. To produce it they take 

 two pieces of dry soft wood, one is a stick about 

 eight or nine inches long, the other piece is flat : 

 the stick they shape into an obtuse point at one end, 

 and pressing it upon the other, turn it nimbly by 

 holding it between both their hands as we do a cho- 

 colate mill, often shifting their hands up, and then 

 moving them down upon it, to increase the pressure 

 as much as possible. By this method they get fire 

 in less than two minutes, and from the smallest spark, 

 they increase it with great speed and dexterity. We 

 have often seen one of them run along the shore, to 

 all appearance with nothing in his hand, who stoop- 

 ing down for a moment, at the distance of every fifty 

 or a hundred yards, left fire behind him, as we could 

 see first by the smoke, and then by the flame among 

 the drift wood, and other litter which was scattered 

 along the place. We had the curiosity to examine 

 one of these planters of fire, when he set off; and we 

 saw him wrap up a small spark in dry grass, which, 

 when he had run a little way, having been fanned 

 by the air that his motion produced, began to blaze ; 

 he then laid it down in a place convenient for his 

 purpose, inclosing a spark of it in another quantity 

 of grass, and so continued his course. 



There are perhaps few things in the history of 

 mankind more extraordinary than the discovery and 

 application of fire : it will scarcely be disputed that 



