PALEOLITHIC RACES 503 



introduced by physicists, as for instance in the terms volt, joule, 

 watt, and others. 



Another implement was an anvil, formed of a plate of stone 

 chipped all round into a circle, about 7 in. in diameter, 1*5 in. 

 thick in the middle, and 1 in. thick at the edge. On this the 

 women broke the bones left after a meal to extract the marrow, 

 using another stone, about 6 in. in diameter, as a hammer. 

 M. Rutot has described several such anvils (enclicmes), but of 

 a ruder make, from early palaeolithic deposits. 



One of the commonest tools was the scraper, a flake of about 

 2 in. in diameter, carefully dressed by chipping on one side 

 only to a somewhat blunt edge. The edge was not serrated, 

 and great skill was required to keep the line of flaking straight : 

 it was used for flaying animals caught in the chase, and as well, 

 no doubt, for other purposes. To test its powers Prof. Tylor 

 sent a specimen to the slaughter-house requesting the butcher 

 to try his skill in flaying with it. The notion was rather 

 scornfully received, but on trial the flake was found to be 

 admirably adapted to the task, removing the skin without 

 damaging it by accidental cuts. 



The country seems to have afforded the Tasmanians a fair 

 amount of game. Kangaroos, wallaby, " opossums," bandicoots, 

 the kangaroo rat, and the wombat were all excellent eating, 

 especially as cooked by the natives. The animals were roasted 

 whole in the skin and cut up with stone knives ; the ashes of 

 the wood fire were sometimes used as a seasoning in default 

 of salt. Cooking by boiling was unknown to them, and when 

 introduced to their notice they expressed their disapproval of a 

 method which produced such unpalatable results. 



There were several kinds of birds, such as the emu, now 

 extinct in Tasmania, black swans, mutton birds, and penguins. 

 The eggs of birds were also eaten. Snakes and lizards were 

 put under contribution, as well as grubs extracted from hollow 

 trees, and said by Europeans to be dainty morsels, with a nutty 

 flavour reminiscent of almonds. 



Fish the Tasmanians did not eat, simply because they were 

 ignorant of the art of fishing, nets and fish-hooks being unknown 

 to them ; but cray-fish and shell-fish were an important article 

 of diet. The women obtained the shell-fish by diving, using 

 a wooden chisel, made smooth by scraping with a shell, to 

 displace those which live adherent to the rocks. 



