BY WALTER R. HARPER. 331 



" Munguni" so well described by Roth,* it is nevertheless some- 

 what similar to the 'ISTgadhungi" of Taplin f or the "Irna" and 

 "Ingilla" of Spencer and Gillen.;}: Probably at one time the 

 " pointing of the bone " was a common form of sorcery in eastern 

 N.S. Wales, but it is needless to build upon this probability, for 

 a much simpler and surer explanation lies near at hand. The 

 piercing of the nasal septum and the insertion in the hole thus 

 formed of twigs, feathers, bones, pieces of wood, &c., is practised 

 over all Australia. Sometimes it is part of, or at least a compul- 

 sory introduction to, the initiatory rites of males and females, 

 but generally both sexes undergo the operation voluntarily and 

 cheerfully in the belief that their personal appearance is improved 

 thereby. Occasionally a superstitious dread prompts the use of 

 the nose ornament.§ 



The bone unearthed by me I believe to have been put to this 

 use, although in having only one end pointed it differs from the 

 usual nose ornament, which is pointed or rounded at both ends. 

 I cannot find an exactly similar nose bone described for the 

 Eastei'n Colonies, but I may without hesitation claim this to be 

 one on the authority of Spencer and Gillen, who in writing of the 

 Central Australian natives, say, || "Nose bones, called 'Lakira,' 

 are frequently worn, every native having his or her nasal septum 

 pierced. The most common form is a bone, sometimes the fibula 

 of a kangaroo, pointed at one end, and measuring as much as 

 40 cm. in length." 



* Loc. cit. pp. 152-1 58. 



t "The Narrinyeri." Rev. Geo. Taplin in "Native Tribes of S. Aus- 

 tralia," p. 24. 



J " Native Tribes of Central Australia," p. 5.34. 



§ Mitchell. " Expecl. into Australia." Vol. ii. p. .339; and Brough 

 Smyth, loc. cit. Vol. i. p. 274. 



11 Loc. cit. p. 574. 



