FURNITURE AND COOKING. 25 



go mad, and would go and live in the bush like a 

 wild man; when they all come together to sing at 

 school time, there is great covering of heads by those 

 women who may happen to have sons-in-law there, 

 and you will see them ' backing ' into their places in a 

 most laughable manner, while the son-in-law will roll 

 himself up in his blanket, or hide himself in some 

 other way." 



The natives have been often questioned respecting 

 this custom, but they cannt tell why it exists, or when 

 it began. 



FURNITURE AND COOKING. 



Their furniture is a very simple affair indeed. 



Their baskets are made of rushes or bark . of the 

 acacia tree. 



Their water buckets are made by sewing together 

 a sheet of acacia bark. When it dries it assumes a 

 circular shape. 



Then they have millstones, mortars made of gray 

 slate or marble. They carry for fire eucalyptus bark 

 alight. Kindling a fire is a matter of considerable im- 

 portance. If, in travelling, they cannot succeed in 

 keeping their coals of eucalyptus alight, a good deal of 

 time is lost in getting fire by friction. Where this is 

 necessary, however, they have with them implements 



