.".1)1 



not knock tlus teeth out, as already stated), is circumcised, and 

 suljincised. 



1 til, October. — Wlien I got up this morning I. found the native 

 woman on tier knees engaged in pounding some niallee roots. 

 1'hese were perfectly dry and were lying on the liollow side of a 

 thick piece of bark tliat served as a base for the operations of 

 pounding. T could not help admiring the dexterity with which 

 this was performed. Taking a handful of short jaieces, she pressed 

 them firmly down on the bark, leaving an opening between the 

 thumb and index finger of perhaps an inch and a half in diauK'- 

 tei'. Catching the yam-stick with the other hand about four 

 inches from its sharpened end, she brought it vigorously dowji 

 upon the open space of uncovered bark. The accurate hitting of 

 the small exposed surface with a heavy stick that is over four feet 

 long and an inch thick, caught so much below the centre of bal- 

 ance, must have required a considerable amount of practise to 

 acquire, as she never missed her aim, which is the more surpris- 

 ing, because the yam-stick was not brought down vertically, but 

 almost at an angle of 45°. Any European trying to do this would 

 cut his hand nine times out of every ten strokes he would make. 

 When the roots were pounded almost to dust they were eaten 

 dry, and the men who had not stirred or helped in the least 

 towards preparing this unique repast satisfied themselves first, 

 leaving the coarsest and most fibrous stuff for the women. The 

 taste of it is slightly sweetish, which seems to indicate that it 

 cojitains a saccharine substance ; but the nutriment it furnishes 

 as a whole cannot be very great. The finest of the dust is tlie 

 sweetest, and undoubtedly contains the greatest amount of sugar 

 particles which may have crystallised during the preparation of 

 the bark. 



lltli October, ll-(91. — The blacks wore busy this morning making 

 liich thoy used s(jme kind of acacia-wood 

 The wood is worlvcd down with the stone 

 end of the spear-thrower and afterwards 

 the sharp edge of a chip of flint. For this 

 purpose they, however, had already discovered the asefulness of 

 glass, and employed it also. Tlie lines were put on with 

 embei-s. A piece of hard stick is chosen that will form a well- 

 tapered conical ember on one end. This is fairly firm to stand a 

 gentle pressure, and, lasts for some time. "Whilst the spiral or 

 wavy lines are put on the ember is kept aglow by gentle blowing. 

 I liave no doubt that certain meanings are conveyed by these 

 differently curved, wavy, and spiral lines that may be broken off 

 or interrupted by a circle or bar, but through ignorance of their 

 language I could not understand the meaning of the explanations 

 given by the blacks. 



message-sticks, iov ' 

 they call "yauwilli." 

 chisel fastened on the 

 scraped smooth witli 



