BY FRITZ NOETLING, PH.D., ETC. 12 1 



The remaining substances, viz., 

 Coal (mineral coal) 

 Yellow ochre 

 Quartz (?) 

 Cornelian (?) 



Crystal of unknown kind (quartz) 

 Salt 

 Topaz 



were not of the slightest use to the Aborigines, except 

 that cornelian, quartz, and the crystal of unknown kind, 

 if found in large pieces, could be used for the manufac- 

 ture of a tronatta. In fact, we find the quartz pebble 

 distinctly called trautta. The mineral coal was probably 

 designated by the same name as charcoal, the words for 

 jellow ochre and topaz are apocryphic, and there was no 

 proper word for salt at all. 



I may add that only the three of these substances, or 

 if we consider the " red ochre " as an altered iron ore, 

 only two, were of any importance in the economic life 

 •of the Tasmanians. The hornstone for their stone im- 

 plements, the red ochre (altered iron ore) for ornamental 

 purposes ; for the latter charcoal was also sometimes 

 used. 



The remaining five substances were noticed and dis- 

 tinguished, but they did not enter into the routine of 

 daily life, except perhaps when it was necessary to de- 

 scribe a certain tract of country. 



Now, if it is advisable to transfer the results of this 

 paper on the language of the archaeolithic man in 

 Europe, we may conclude that he had a different word 

 for 



Flint (meaning the substance from which the im- 

 plements were made) 



Red ochre 

 Charcoal, 



and that in all probability he distinguished the most 

 ■conspicuous rocks of the European landscape — sand- 

 stone, limestone, and shale — by different names. As 

 ■columnar basalt is very common in those localities fre- 

 ■quented by archaeolithic man, it is probable that he also 



