34 BOTANY OF NORTH-WESTERN NK\V SOUTH WALES, 



Wales is i-cather naturally well watered b}^ the following rivers, 

 or portions of them and their tributaries, which consist of 

 numerous creeks : — Bogan, Macquarie, Castlereagh, Namoi, 

 Mooki, Peel, Moomin, Gwydir, Macintyre, Severn, Dumaresq, 

 Bokhara, and Birie. The Narran River empties itself into an 

 immense lake or swamp of that name. With this exception 

 there are no large natural lakes in the north-west, though 

 artificial ones have been formed by the water flowing from some 

 of the artesian wells. In the extreme south-east are springs 

 which are the sources of some of the eastern rivers. In wet 

 seasons many of these rivers and creeks overflow their banks, 

 and then the deep depressions and billabongs contain vast 

 quantities of water. Many artesian wells have been sunk (some 

 of them outside the Cretaceous belt) and abundant supplies of 

 excellent water obtained. 



Food and other Useful Plants of the North-Western 

 Aborigines. 



For many years past I have made numerous enquiries of the 

 aborigines and the old white settlers concerning the plants used 

 by the blacks before they came much in contact with civilised 

 man, and I think the following is a correct account of them. 

 Having devoted much time to this subject, I thought it would 

 prove interesting to record these plants and their uses for future 

 reference. Only a few medicinal plants are enumerated, because 

 I could get little or no reliable information even from the 

 aboriginal " medicine men," although inducements were often 

 held out to them. Although the blacks' practice of medicine is 

 dominated by empiricism, it is much to be regretted that we do 

 not know more about the plants recognised by them to be of 

 therapeutic value. This is a subject that might w^ell engage the 

 attention of the Government of the Commonwealth with regard 

 to those tribes that have not yet lost this knowledge. 



The way the aborigines cook animal food leaves much to be 

 desired, but the preparation of their vegetable food is interesting, 

 and anyone having but a superficial knowledge of the plants 



