102 



A NATIVE S SPEAR. 



who had thrown the spears. Captain Blackwood 

 told me not to hit him if I could help it, but to let 

 him hear the ball ; and I struck off a small branch a 

 foot or two above his right ear, on which he bounded 

 into the bushes like a stag. They halted again on 

 a slope about 150 yards off, and to convince them 

 they were not out of our power, I gave them the 

 buck shot, firing high that it might drop among 

 them, on which they all disappeared. We picked 

 up one of the spears, which was rather a savage 

 affair. Into a piece of slender bamboo cane, six feet 

 three inches long, was inserted a piece of heavy 

 wood, two feet seven inches long, the junction very 

 neatly and firmly secured with grass and gum. This 

 piece of wood tapered gradually to a fine point, on 

 to whicb was fastened by a fine grass line an old nail, 

 very sharp at the point, and the head hammered flat 

 and sharp, and bent up a little so as to serve for a 

 barb ; behind these again were two other barbs, 

 made of the spines got from the tails of the sting- 

 ray. All these were so secured by fine grass and 

 gum, that, while quite firm and immoveable against 

 any ordinary force or resistance in entering any 

 body, a much less force would tear them off, if en- 

 deavouring to withdraw the spear. Altogether I 

 would prefer a musket-ball as perforator in any part 

 of the body. What could be their reason or motive 

 for this piece of treachery we were at a loss to un- 

 derstand. They may have been injured by white 

 people before us, or it might have been an indivi- 



