66 NOTES ON SAVAGE I.IFE, ETC., 



bundles were fixed at an angle with those of the first, the leaves 

 interlacing with one another as in a cheval-de-fiise ; the third 

 layer would have its constituent leaves of course placed in the 

 same direction as the first {Phitc VL, Jiij. f), and so on alternately, 

 until getting higher and higher, they became wedged in between 

 the gradually narrowing interspaces left by the peduncles. As the 

 structure proceeded, the builder himself would occasionally from 

 the inner side look out for any v/eak spots which were located by 

 the light coming through ; he would then start again from the 

 bottom so as to act as a foundation for what was necessary to 

 put in to fill up the gap. 



When the grass-tree leaves were at all scarce, these abori- 

 ginals built themselves bark huts, their primary scaffolding of 

 which consisted of two forked sticks, and a backstay ; if the 

 latter were forked, so much the better. The secondary scaffold- 

 ing was formed of two thick pieces attached each from about 

 the middle of the back-stay to the lower end of the main-stay, 

 while cross-wise were placed (not tied) several additional sticks, 

 which together supported the fina'l covering of bark-sheets. The 

 bark was put on from below up, the pieces above overlapping 

 the ones underneath ; on top of all, along the line of the back- 

 stay, was fixed a projecting bark ridgecap {Piute VI., fiij. n). 



The break-wind was a semi-circular ring of bushes inter- 

 twined with a few additional ones hanging overhead at the 

 centre. 



Fire was produced by twirling a stick, held vertically, on 

 to another stick fixed horizontally, the wood so employed being 

 the grass-tree peduncle. The flat surface on the horizontal 

 piece was bitten out with the teeth, upon it the vertical piece 

 was twirled, and as soon as the " pit " was produced a nick was 

 cut, so as to connect it with the surface edge. Within this 

 same nick was next placed some of the powdered " fluff" (from 

 the dried-up flowers on the peduncle-top), which acted as a sorb 

 of train to the fine dry shreds of fibre (scraped from the inside 

 of a dead log) lying close below. As soon as the smoke ap- 

 peared, this *' sawdust " or " tinder " was fanned into flame by a 

 gentle breath. If the necessary timber for manufacturing these 

 firesticks ever proved at all unsuitable through wet, or scarce, 

 the lighted sticks would be carried along under the men's or 

 women's cloaks. 



