FURNITURE AND COOKING. 29 



A hawk took the fire-stick, and with it set the 

 whole forest on fire. Since then there is plently of 

 fire for light. 



They have no idea of cooking anything by boiling. 

 All their cooked food is either broiled or roasted. 



They have, for cooking purposes, real old-fashioned 

 ovens. When an opossum is killed the skin is singed 

 off at once, then he is drawn, and roasted whole. In 

 this way the meat is kept juicy for a much longer 

 time when they are travelling. In these ovens they 

 also roast kangaroos' tails, emus, wombats, turkeys, 

 bear, wild dog, porcupine, flying squirrel, eagles, geese, 

 swans, ducks, frogs, lizards and grubs. The grub is, 

 with the Australian native, a great luxury. 



Some specimens which we saw are quite four inches 

 long, and nearly as large around as one's little finger. 



In the cooking of fish they sometimes employ the 

 following method : " A piece of thick and tender bark 

 is selected and torn into an oblong form. The fish is 

 laid in this, and the bark wrapped around it. Strings 

 made from grass are then tied tightly about the bark 

 and fish, which is then slowly baked in heated sand 

 covered with hot ashes. When it is completed, the 

 bark is opened, and serves as a dish. It is, of course, 

 full of gravy and juice, not a drop of which has 

 escaped. The fish cooked in this way is most delicious. 



