166 THE ABORIGINES 



thought them very tolerable food, though the large ones 

 are apl to be tough. 



The blacks make very neat, or, at least, very useful, 

 baskets of native grass, which the women plait in such 

 manner as to render them strong and effective for holding 

 the few articles they carry about with them. These are 

 also used in fishing. The women are excellent swimmers, 

 and are most expert in diving for shell-fish. These 

 employments devolve almost exclusively on the females, 

 though the men are generally practised in them in 

 degree. In diving for crayfish, the women take a 

 basket in their hand, and, on reaching the rocks at the 

 bottom, they dextrously seize the crayfish with their 

 fingers, and, putting them quickly into the basket, ascend 

 to the surface. In the same way, they procure mutton- 

 fish, oysters, mussels, and several other kinds of shell-fish, 

 a species of food they are particularly partial to. 



In Safety Cove, Port Arthur, we saw some of the 

 aboriginal women dive for fish. They appear to be half 

 amphibious, such is their dexterity in the water, and, 

 what is more singular, they appear to float with their 

 heads in an upright position above water, without any 

 effort, and this in the midst of kelp and other seaweed 

 that would terrify the generality of skilful swimmers. 

 They put aside the weed with their hands, or lift it over 

 their heads as it becomes wrapt round them, and 

 fearlessly dive head foremost into the midst of it, passing 

 the branches of kelp through their hands as a sailor 

 would a rope. When they see a crayfish on the bottom, 

 they seize it by the back and ascend promptly to the 

 surface, where they readily disengage themselves from 

 the kelp and weed, and throw their prey to their com- 

 panions on shore. Sometimes they put their heads a 

 little below the surface, and look along the bottom until 

 they descry a shell-fish, when in a moment their heels 

 appear above the surface, and, diving to the bottom, they 

 secure their prey. The men are said to be far inferior 

 to the women in diving, as they consider it the province 

 of the females to procure fish. The aborigines are 

 excessively fond of shell-fish. 



On our visit to Macquarie Harbour, in May, 1832 

 we observed traces of the aborigines in several place 

 about Port Davey and the sea shore near the mouth d 

 Macquarie Harbour. There were numerous places wheje 



