PRESIDENT ’S ADDRESS. 499 
apart, with the ring and little fingers interlocked, the tips of 
the fore and middle fingers touching; the interdigital space 
between the last-mentioned is widely open (Pl. XXVELI.). 
With a sharp vertical movement on to the knee below, the 
fore-fingers, loosely separated from the mid-ones, are thus 
made to strike upon them with a sharp cracking sound. 
(e) The Duck game played by little boys and girls at Cape 
Bedford, Cooktown, and the McIvor reminds me very much 
of the “oranges and lemons”’ of our own childhood’s days. 
One of the little chaps takes a long stick, and, holding it up 
at an angle. allows its extremity to touch the ground. The 
attitude represents a man catching a duck by means of a slip- 
noose attached to the end of a long slender switch. The 
other children pass round and round, bobbing underneath 
the stick in Indian file, when, all of a sudden, down it comes 
just in front of one who will thus be considered ‘‘ caught.” 
The latter is now dead, and has to lie down on her back, 
perfectly still, and with eyes closed. Another and another 
is respectively caught, until all are lying dead in a row. 
The child with the stick comes up to the first one, and says, 
“Where do you come from?” “TI come from Cooktown,” 
may be the reply. “ Well, then, go home to Cooktown,” 
says the other, and with a poke from the stick she gets upon 
her feet and makes a bolt, ostensibly for home. And so 
with all the others. 
(f) The game of 7Jortoise is also played in this same dis- 
trict, but only by boys. One of them will take a short 
stick in his hand, which he holds out back, after the manner 
of a wommera, which indeed it is supposed to represent. 
He then whistles to his mate, who plays the part of the 
tortoise. After a time the latter slowly raises his hands,’ so 
as to get his fore-fingers on either side of the forehead ; such 
action indicates the animal with flappers rising to the water- 
surface in answer to the “call.’’ The boy with the imaginary 
wommera-spear then makes as if to let fly his weapon, where- 
upon the tortoise tumbles down dead. 
(g) Playing “Zguanas”’ is practised by the boys in the 
Upper Normanby district, as follows:—One of them will 
half-le on the ground, and dig his fore-arm, up to and 
including the elbow, into the sand. Here and there he will 
stick out a finger, and as it projects his mates will try and 
hit it with a stick. In this same district the lads also have 
a kangaroo and a crocodile game. In the former a boy will 
hop about here and there, after the manner of the mar- 
supial in question, dodging as he goes the toy-spears which 
are being thrown at him. In the latter he will swim on the 
