356 A NATURALIST ON THE "CHALLENGER." 



had been used also to hold food or water, but were replaced for 

 the latter purpose now by square gin bottles, of which there 

 were plenty lying about the camp, brought from the settlement. 



The most prized possession of these Blacks is, however, the 

 bamboo pipe, of which there were several in the camp. The 

 bamboos are procured by barter from the Murray islanders, who 

 visit Cape York from time to time, and the tobacco is smoked in 

 them by the blacks in nearly the same curious manner as that 

 in vogue amongst the Dalrymple Islanders. No doubt the 

 Australians have learnt to smoke from the Murray Islanders.* 



The tobacco-pipe is a large joint of bamboo, as much as two 

 feet in length and three inches in diameter. There is a small 

 round hole on the side at one end and a larger hole in the 

 extremity of the other end. A small cone of green leaf is inserted 

 into the smaller round hole and filled with tobacco, which is 



BAMBOO TOBACCO-PIPE USED BY THE NATIVES OF CAPE YORK. 



lighted at the top as usual. A man, or oftener a woman, then 

 opening her mouth wide covers the cone and lighted tobacco 

 with it and applies her lips to the bamboo all round it, having 

 the leaf cone and burning tobacco thus entirely within her 

 mouth. She then blows and forces the smoke into the cavity 

 of the bamboo, keeping her hand over the hole at the other end 

 and closing the aperture as soon as the bamboo is full. 



The leaf cone is then withdrawn and the pipe handed to the 

 smoker, who, putting his hand over the bottom hole to keep in 

 the smoke, sucks at the hole in which the leaf was inserted, and 

 uses his hand as a valve meanwhile to allow the requisite air to 

 enter at the other end. The pipe being empty the leaf is re- 

 placed and the process repeated. The smoke is thus inhaled 

 quite cold. The pipes are ornamented by the Blacks with rude 

 drawings. 



* J. Beete. Jukes. " Narrative of the Surveying Voyage of H.M.S. 

 ' Fly,'" Vol. I, p. 65. Loudon, Boone, 1847. 



