140 THEIR ORNAMENTS 



nose is invariably perforated^ and the right central 

 incisor— rarely the left^ is knocked out during* child- 

 hood. Both sexes are more or less ornamented 

 with laro-e raised cicatrices on the shoulders and 

 across the chesty abdomen^ and buttocks^ and outside 

 of the thig'hs. No clothing- is at any time worn by 

 these people^ and their ornaments are few in num- 

 ber. These last consist chiefl}^ of wristlets of the 

 fibres of a plant — and armlets of the same^ Avound 

 round with cordag*e^ are in nearly universal use. 

 Necklaces of frao-ments of reed struno- on a thread, 

 or of cordag'e passing- under the arms and crossed 

 over the back^ and girdles of finely twisted human 

 hair^ are occasionally worn by both sexes^ and the 

 men sometimes add a tassel of the hair of the 

 opossum or flying* squirrel^ suspended in fi'ont. A 

 piece of stick or bone thrust into the perforation in 

 the nose completes the costume. Like the other 

 Australians^ the Port Essing-ton blacks are fond of 

 painting- themselves with red^ yellow^ white^ and 

 blacky in different styles^ considered appropriate to 

 dancing*^ fig-hting*^ mourning-^ &c. 



These people construct no huts except during* 

 the rainy season^ when they put up a rude and 

 temporary structure of bark. Their utensils are few 

 in number^ consisting- merely of fine baskets of the 

 stems of a rush-like plant^ and others of the base of 

 the leaf of the Se/ifor'thia palm^ the latter principally 

 used for containing- water. Formerly bark canoes 

 were in g-eneral use^ but they are now completely 



