215 



beams. The Pine {Callitris verrucosa) grows here and there in 

 the ranges, and remains low and small, on which account it is 

 unsuitable for timber. The Fan-palm (Livistonia Marice) only 

 occurs in the Krichauff Range, and at one locality some eight to 

 ten square miles in extent, where it grows in the beds of the 

 Finke River and some smaller water-courses coming from the 

 north-west. It overtops all other trees. The wood is stringy, like 

 straws compacted lengthwise, and is very light when dry. The 

 fruits are of the size and form of bullets, and as hard as stone. 

 Most of the interior consists of endocarp, covered with a thin 

 skin. They form an immense grape-like cluster, which springs 

 from between the leaf-stalks, and hangs down like a mistletoe. 

 The leaves consist of a flat stalk ten to twelve feet long and some 

 two inches wide, with short spines on both sides, and bearing at 

 its extremity a fan of leaflets some five to six feet long. The 

 Grass-tree {XanthorrlKvd) grows at a few places on the sandhills^ 

 its trunk attaining a height of about six feet and a diameter of 

 one foot. The cord-like but quadrangular leaves of about three 

 feet in length grow from the summit and hang down like long 

 hair, a cylindrical fruiting-scape rising from their midst to about 

 seven feet and about one inch thick. The bristly head of leaves, 

 with the solitary black scape rising above it, give to these trees a 

 weird, fairy-like aspect in the midst of fields of the forbidding 

 Porcupine-grass, especially when seen for the first time at night. 

 All other ligneous plants growling on tlie sandhills, plains, water- 

 courses, or in the ranges form only low or moderately-tall shrubs, 

 with the exception of the Mulga (Acacia aneiora), which attains 

 to the size of small trees. At some places the thickets formed by 

 the shrubs are so dense that they can scarcely be penetrated. 

 Formerly bush-fires occurred frequently, but since the introduced 

 stock has fed ofi* the grass they have become less prevalent. Of 

 fruit-bearing trees and shrubs there are none according to 

 European ideas or taste, but many from the native point of view. 

 All these fruits have either too much of the stone and scarcely 

 any fleshy part, or else possess a too-acrid or acidulous taste. 

 Of cultivated plants, figs grow fairly well ; all others will not 

 flourish. The Date-palms also grow very well, but how they will 

 fruit time alone will tell. Various culinary vegetables thrive 

 indifferently, but cauliflower excellently. The reason for the ill- 

 success of the gardening efforts is to be sought for more in the 

 bad water of the Finke River than in the climate. After rain 

 many plants grow well, even during the hot season. 



C. ANIMALS. 



All domestic animals, such as horses, cattle, sheep, goats, pigs, 

 dogs, fowls, etc., have been introduced by Europeans, and do very 



