28 THE RIVERINE DISTRICT 



If he cannot capture just when he wants them the wallaby 

 or the emu, he puts up with such fry as snakes, grubs, and 

 lizards, or sneaks round the station to beg the offal from 

 the slaughtered sheep ; a meal of some kind he always 

 succeeds in finding. Is there a drought in the land ? He 

 seems to smell out the few remaining water-holes, so 

 skilful is he in finding them. As to his hunger, which the 

 traveller or other observer too frequently erroneously 

 puts down to scarcity of food in the land, it is far more 

 often the result of his laziness. Often the idle fellow will 

 lie in the sun, or under shelter of his scanty lean-to, until 

 his hunger-belt no longer serves its object, and he must 

 eat or suffer. Then he gets upon his feet, orders his 

 gin to bring his weapons — his spear and throwing-stick, 

 his boomerang and perhaps his hand-net for fish — and, 

 followed and assisted by his faithful slave, whom he 

 probably beats out of mere ill-temper at having to exert 

 himself, he soon has the wherewithal to gorge like a 

 vulture; and he does gorge like a vulture. Like other 

 savages, alternate want and excess seem more to his liking 

 than a daily moderate allowance. He cares not to eat or 

 drink at all, unless he can do so to satiety. 



On my return to the station I found the hands anxious 

 about my prolonged absence, and two men had been sent 

 to look for me. They found the dead horse, and reported 

 its death to be due to a diseased heart, that organ having 

 been found on examination to be enlarged to an extra- 

 ordinary degree, though it had never been suspected that 

 there was anything the matter. 



I now look back with amusement to the scene which 

 occurred on my appearance, though I was at the time 

 greatly hurt by it. The loss of the horse was considered 

 a far more important matter than my peril, and the anger 

 of the owner was almost without bounds. The animal's 

 death was attributed to my mismanagement. "They 

 might have known it ! Served them right for entrusting 



a valuable animal to a Johnny Raw ! " Then followed 



some uncomplimentary reflections on my personal appear- 

 ance. "What were they thinking of that they had not 



