TREPANG-FISHING 341 



western monsoon to the eastern parts of the Indian Archipelago, 

 or along the northern coast of Australia, return home again by 

 favour of the eastern monsoon. The bay3 of the inhospitable 

 treeless shores of tropical New Holland, the abode of a few half- 

 starved barbarians, are enlivened for a few months by the 

 presence of the trepang fishers. 



"During my excursions round Baffles Bay," says Dumont 

 d'Urville, (" Voyage to the South Pole,") " I had remarked here 

 and there small heaps of stones surrounding a circular space. 

 Their use remained a mystery until the Malayan fishers arrived. 

 Scarce had their praos cast anchor, when without loss of time 

 they landed large iron kettles, about three feet in diameter, and 

 placed them on the stone heaps, the purpose of which at once 

 became clear to me. Close to this extemporised kitchen they 

 then erected a shed on four bamboo stakes, most likely for the 

 purpose of drying the holothurias in case of bad weather. To- 

 wards evening, all preliminaries were finished, and the following 

 morning we paid a visit to the fishermen, who gave us a friendly 

 reception. Each prao had thirty-seven men on board, and carried 

 six boats, which we found busily engaged in fishing. Seven or 

 eight Malays, almost entirely naked, were diving near the ship, 

 to look for trepang at the bottom of the sea. The skipper alone 

 stood upright, and surveyed their labours with the keen eye of a 

 master. A burning sun scorched the dripping heads of the divers, 

 seemingly without incommoding them ; no European would have 

 been able to pursue the work for any length of time. It was 

 about noon, and the skipper told us this was the best time for 

 fishing, as the higher the sun, the more distinctly the diver is able 

 to distinguish the trepang crawling at the bottom. Scarce had 

 they thrown their booty into the boat when they disappeared 

 again under the water, and as soon as a boat was sufficiently 

 laden, it was instantly conveyed to the shore, and succeeded by 

 another. 



" The holothuria of Baffles Bay is about six inches long, and 

 two inches thick. It forms a large cylindrical fleshy mass, 

 almost without any outward sign of an organ, and as it creeps 

 very slowly along is easily caught. The essential qualities of a 

 good fisherman are great expertness in diving, and a sharp eye 

 to distinguish the holothurias from the similarly coloured sea- 

 bottom. 



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