BY R. H. CAMBAGE. 697 



which blew chiefly from the westward, ranging from about 

 N.N.W. toS.S.W. It is not usual for the easterly winds to jDene- 

 trate so far into the interior, so the distribution is in the direction 

 that might have been expected. How the first seed came there 

 is a question most diflicult to answer. [t is known that the 

 seeds of the Acacia family were used as food by the aborigines, 

 who would perhaps sometimes carry them a distance for this 

 purpose, notwithstanding their improvident nature. But owing 

 to the very dry stretch of country between the Lachlan and the 

 Bogan in the direction of the Brigalow country, I doubt if there 

 was much communication between the aborigines of these 

 districts, so that the solution of the question may not be here. 



It is also known that the seeds of Acacias are enclosed in a 

 very strong testa and preserve their germinating powers for very 

 many years. Seeds are often distributed by birds, and the late 

 Dr. Woolls in his " Lectures on the Vegetable Kingdom," points 

 out that some are also frequently carried in the manes and tails 

 of horses. This is a common occurrence in the western districts, 

 where the seed vessels of many of the grasses and herbs occur as 

 burrs, which have the effect of matting the manes and tails. 

 However, in the present instance it must have been brought some 

 considerable distance, possibly before horses had reached the 

 neighbourhood, and there was a time when this original tree was 

 the only one in the locality, thereby presenting an unusual 

 feature. There is another method of distribution which may 

 often account for trees being found in outlying situations, and 

 that is distribution by wind. Whirlwinds are of common 

 occurrence in the interior, acting quite independently of ordinary 

 wind storms, and along the track which they happen to take they 

 fairly sweep the ground of dust and leaves, &c. The noise made 

 by the rustling of the material when -being taken up in the spiral 

 current may be heard a hundred yards off. It is not unusual to 

 see a column of dust extending nearly a quarter of a mile upwards, 

 and visible several miles off. In this way various kinds of seeds 

 may be carried up, but the probability is that in most cases they 

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