KANGAROO HUNTING. 185 



A WOMBAT. 



very tough and covered with a coarse wiry hair, and with this 

 defensive armor, and his formidable teeth and claws, the 

 wombat is a customer not much relished by the dogs. It was 

 not till we had stunned our new acquaintance, as he stood at 

 bay in his den, by repeated blows of our sticks on his head, 

 that we were able to drag him out, and cut his throat. The flesh 

 is eatable, and I have heard that the hams are held in some 

 esteem, but I cannot speak from personal experience. On 

 the present occasion none of our party was ambitious of the 

 honor of carrying our defunct friend during the day's march 

 that we had before us ; so I contented myself with pocketing 

 his four paws, and leaving the rest of the carcass for formic 

 epicures. 



Our destination for the evening was Eagle Hawk Neck, or 

 rather our dining quarters were there fixed, for I proposed to 

 be home some time during the night ; and, as we had some 

 twelve miles of fatiguing walking before us, we now circled 

 round towards Flinder's Bay whence we were to follow the foot 

 track to the "Neck." 



It may readily be imagined that brush travelling in the 

 Australian colonies is often an intricate affair ; long practice 

 alone can give one assurance and confidence. Few habitues 

 in the Peninsula think of entering it without a pocket compass, 

 flint, and steel ; and even the best bushmen have in their day 

 been reduced to the greatest extremities. 



For our ambition part, never inclined to the adventurous task 

 of exploring the bush, content with the subordinate part of 

 trusting to the superior sagacity of the more experienced ; 



16* 



