72 NOTKS ON THK HUNTING STICKS, KTC 



great sti-ess on the fact that the Aborigines were "anned 

 (sic !) with waddics only (short, thick hunting clubs), while 

 they drove a herd of kangaroo before them. It is emphati- 

 cally pointed out, that this was the surest sign that on that 

 particular occasion they had no hostile intentions towards 

 the Eui'opeans, because they were not armed with spears. 

 The whole regrettable incident is stated to have arisen from 

 a niisunderstanciing or lack of knowledge on part of the 

 Europeans, who did not know that the "short.thick hunting 

 clubs were only used in hunting, and not in warfare (10). 



There are, however^ accounts which seem to indicate 

 that the lughrana was used for other purposes. Henderson 

 states that it was used to despatch the wounded victim, and 

 Melville says: "If any quarrel took place among the men 

 of the same tribe, it was the waddy that decided their 

 affairs of honour." According to Breton, "it is the custom 

 for one to receive a blow on the craniam. and then to re- 

 turn the blow on that of his adversar}'." The last statement 

 is confirmed by Norman, though, according to him. the 

 women chiefly settled the quarrels in the manner above de- 

 scribed. 



All these accounts indicate that the lughrana served 

 a twofold purpose, viz., at a distance as a missile, in order 

 to kill animals and birds, and, at close quarters, as a kind of 

 club in personal quarrels, and to "despatch the wounded 

 victim, " at least, according to one authority. Unfortu- 

 nately, it is not stated whether the "wounded victim" was 

 an animal or a human being. There is no doubt that 

 smaller animals, like a kangaroo or a wombat, could be 

 killed by a blow with the lughrana ; but was a wounded 

 human being killed in a similar way? The skull of a Tas- 

 manian could apparently stand a good deal of hammering, 

 and we may well ask, "was it really used in that way to 

 despatch the victim," or was it, perhaps, used as a stabbing 

 instrvimcnt ? Calder states that the mutilation of the 

 body, and particularly of the bead always followed the kill- 

 ing of a victim, and "this was done either by dashing heavy 

 stones on the corpse or beating it savagely with the 

 waddie." 



Though, therefore, the lughrana was primarily a missile 

 for hunting ])urposes. it seems to have been often enous;h 

 used as a kind of club in personal quarrels, or to batter the 

 body of a wounded enemy. It is, however, very doubtful 



(10) J. E. Calder, Some Accounts of Dip Wars, TCxtirijation, Habits, 

 etc., of the Native Tribes of Tasmania, 1875, page 6. 



