BY GEORGE HORNE, V.D., M.A., M.D., CH.B. 18r> 



PART OF THE STONE USED. 



The chipped stones that are used as implements have, 

 more or less, a definite shape. They have the one side more 

 or less flat, and the other side raised, tending to form a pent 

 house, ridge, keel, or cone. Mr. Scott, whose brother lived 

 long amongst Tasmanian aboriginals, was the first (P. & P. 

 R.S. Tas., 1873) to point out that the flat side was always used 

 with the thumb upon it. The keeled or conical side supported 

 the fingers. On the edge of this finger side was the chip- 

 ping. The concave groove, especially when it was worked, 

 was never straight across the stone. It was always on the 

 same side as the chipping and sloped up from the margin 

 on to this finger-side. This holds good for the first groove 

 that was made in an implement, but frequently two grooves 

 were made. This was, generally, in stones that were more 

 or less flat on both sides. Here both sides were treated 

 as if they could be thumb-sides, and the second groove was 

 therefore cut on the opposite side of the stone to the first 

 groove. 



It has been asserted (Noetling, P. & P. R.S. Tas., 1909) 

 that this was an accident, and arose from a mistake on the 

 part of the native. However, my investigations over a small 

 group of concave scrapers show that in 84 per cent, of cases 

 (not including duck-bills) the grooves are on opposite sides 

 of the stone, and only in 16 per cent, upon the same side. 

 In cases where they are chipped, the chipping is on the 

 opposite side, but in the concave and also on the stone around. 

 Apparently the groove which was first made was placed 

 opposite that side which was most plainly the thumb-side. 



It is impossible to say why this particular device to 

 work on opposite sides of the stone existed in the Tasma- 

 nian. A somewhat similar habit exists in Australians, not 

 indeed in concave scrapers, but in those irregular chunks 

 of stone used as scrapers. 



The concave scrapers of S.E. Victoria, in picking up at 

 random 100 double-grooved stones, I find to be in 26 per cent, 

 on opposite sides, whilst 74 per cent, are on the same side. 

 Why this should be it is difficult to say. One might hazard 

 a guess that the Australian frequently used his concave 

 scraper with two hands, that is, as a spokeshave, and he 

 therefore from the start made a tool that would work in 

 that way. 



NUMBER OF GROOVES. 

 The number of grooves that may be made in any stone 

 of course varies; but, as one might guess from the casual 



