QUEENSLAND ETHNOLOGICAL NOTES. 
By Ronatp Hamtiyn-Harris, D.Sc., F:R.A.1. 
( Read before the Royal Society of Queensland, 25th September, 
1916). 
Piate IY. 
(a) A SO-CALLED “ MORAH” SLAB FROM NORTH. 
QUEENSLAND. 
In the Cairns District of Queensland, a special mealing 
stone is met with, the set consisting of (a) a nether stone, 
a piece of slate transversely fluted on one side only known 
locally by the name of “‘ Morah”’; (6) a spheroidal upper 
stone. The former represents the fixed slab and is oblong- 
ovate—the contours being irregularly defined, one end 
being less obtuse than the other. The tranverse grooves, 
36 in number, being continucus over the rounded edges 
to the circumference (Plate IV., fig. 1). 
With the crusher or upper stone the natives grind 
and work the beans or nuts into a paste, the moisture of 
which—often poisonous in character—drains off by 
means of the grooves. When the paste is fine enough 
the product is dried in the sun or by the fire, and rubbed 
into a flour and put away for future use. “ 
As this process entails some amount of care and pains, 
it is naturally to be supposed that only those who are not. 
too lazy would go to the trouble, and in reality this is so. 
Measurements are as follows :— 
Length of slab, 13}". 
Greatest width of slab, 63”. 
Thickness of slate, 1}in.” 
The top stone is evidently a naturally-formed river 
pebble picked up in the first instance on account of its 
suitability, and measures 5?” x 4”. 
