LIGHTING A FIRE. 79 



tenance from the rest, his features being Nubian 

 rather than Australian, took his off, and exhibited 

 bis hair carefully combed up and back, into a conical, 

 or cocoa-nut form. 



Seeing us smear our hands and faces with tar 

 and oil, to keep off musquitoes, they immediately re- 

 quested some, and leant forward their heads while 

 we anointed them, saying wurrhh all the while. On 

 my saying " meda," # they immediately answered, 

 " medane," and picking up two sticks, one of them 

 prepared them for getting a light, He chose a 

 round stick and a flat one, and bit the round one 

 into a rude point at one end. He then offered it to 

 each of us in turn, either out of compliment or wish- 

 ing to know whether we could set it on fire. On our 

 all declining and making signs to do it himself, he, 

 with a kind of air of superiority, put the flat stick 

 on the ground between his feet, and taking the other 

 between his hands, he began rubbing or twirling it 

 rapidly round, till he made a small hole in the 

 lower stick, which shortly began to smoke, and was 

 just on the point of igniting, when he desisted. In 

 order that we might not be outdone, I now produced 

 a bit of punk and a burning-glass, and calling their 

 attention, lit it by help of the sun ; we then lighted 

 our cigars, and made a little fire of sticks, at which 

 they nodded their heads. As soon as the fire was 

 lit, each of them held his hands for a short time in 

 the smoke, and then smeared them over our faces, 

 * The word I had got for '< fire," at Cape Cleveland. 



