368 ON THE ABORIGINES OF THE LOWER MURRAY, 



The following morning we inspected their fishing gear, which 

 was simple enough. For river or lagoon fishing, when the water 

 is clear, they have a three-pronged spear, with which the} 7 strike 

 the fish, either from their canoes or from logs in the water. 

 Sometimes they fish at night, as mentioned beiore, and then a 

 fire is lit in the bow of the canoe to attract the fish. They also 

 have iron spears, and I was told that they would dive, and take 

 up a position alongside a sunken log, keeping the spear 

 horizontal with the right hand and the big toe, and running it 

 through every fish which came within range ; sometimes five or 

 six fish have been speared during the sixty or eighty seconds 

 they remain under the water. 



I do not think that they use large nets for fishing in the 

 river, but the women are very expert with hook and line, and 

 with a sort of flat net fixed to a bent stick about 6 or 8 feet in 

 length, similar to a dredge ; this, of course, is only fit for shallow 

 lagoons, the outlets of which, when the flood-waters begin to fall? 

 are closed with sticks or basket-work to prevent the fish escaping, 

 thus creating a considerable reserve for the following months. 



The principal fishes used as food by the natives are the 

 Murray Cod, (Oligorus macquariensis) ; Silver Perch, (Lates 

 colonorum) ; Cat Fish, (Gopidoglanis tandanus) ; and Manor, 

 (Ghatoessus come) ; most of the other species are small ; I believe 

 however, that both kinds of Australian Mullet (Mugil dobula, and 

 Mugil compressus) , and another species of so-called Perch inhabit 

 the Murray, and its tributaries. 



As I am speaking about nets, I may as well mention their 

 contrivance for catching water-fowl, in particular ducks. Wild 

 ducks are as much prized by the natives as they are with us, 

 and having studied the habits of these shy birds well, they 

 have at last contrived a plan to catch them, which is a 

 complete success. A large net, sometimes 20 feet deep by 

 100 feet long, is spanned across a creek or river, to the two ends 

 to which a string is fastened, resting upon some branch of a tree, 

 being kept in readiness by two natives, who are posted beneath 

 this tree, and the net completely immersed in the water. Some 

 two or three miles higher up the creek, a party of natives start 

 the birds, which invariably follow the bend of the creek, though 



