CANOES AND FISHING. 99 



canoe. After removing farm implements and furniture, 

 he removed several tons of potatoes, his canoe being hut an 

 inch or two ah(Jve the water on each trip. One old man, 

 white wdth age when I knew him, seemed to have passed his 

 life in one. He would traverse Lake Macquarie and go out 

 into the open sea ; from this lake he would carry his canoe 

 across the neck of land separating it from Tuggerah Beach 

 Lake, thence to Brisbane Water, and across Broken Bay to 

 Pittwater, and made periodical visits up the Hawkesbury 

 River. He was never without fish in his canoe, which was 

 often so laden as to be only a few inches above the water. 

 This old man, " Jew-fish " by name, eventually became so 

 cramped that when on shore he could retain no other 

 position than that which sitting in a canoe compelled him to 

 adopt. I have also known the blacks at Bateman's Bay to go 

 out as far as the Tollgate Islands. They are often pursued 

 by sharks, when they paddle away for the nearest shore, 

 throwing over as they go along any fish they may happen to 

 have. 



The blackfellow, whilst fishing from his canoe, which he 

 does by means of a spear, sits on his haunches, his right leg 

 doubled under him, his left knee drawai up to his shoulder. 

 In his right hand he carries his " w^ammerah " or throwing- 

 stick, formed to serve as a paddle ; in his left a small piece 

 of flat wood, also as a paddle, whilst his fisliing-spear lies 

 across in front of him, ready for use. On spearing a fish he 

 paddles up to his spear, and instead of pulling it out at once 

 gives it another thrust in, so as to ensure its capture. As 

 refraction causes a difference between the true and apparent 

 position of the fish, great practice is necessary. They seldom 

 miss their object. 



Women also fish from canoes, but with a hook and line ; 

 they never use a spear. They fix the canoe in position 

 along the edge of a bank by driving the long pointed stick, 

 which they invariably carry, into the sand or mud. They 

 then pass one of their arms round the pole, or tie the canoe 

 to it, so as to steady it. By means of a flat stone and clay 

 for a hearth, they can light a fire and cook fish. They are 

 often accompanied by one or more children, who have to 

 remain very quiet. 



A fishing-spear consists of a grass-tree shaft with four 

 long prongs of hardwood inserted at one end of it. Some- 

 times the stc^m of the gigantic lily is used, but this is not so 



