Photc 

 THE NATIONAL BIRD THE EMU 



iph from Boston Photo News Co. 



The emu is a bird that has relied on its legs for so long and used its wings so little that 

 it now cannot fly if it wants to, its wings having degenerated into mere rudimentary mem- 

 bers. It fights only in self-defense, but it can kick sidewise as well as backward, sometimes 

 with force enough to break a man's leg. Papa Emu is an amiable person, taking most of 

 the cares of the household off the shoulders of his mate. The ostrich has plumes and only 

 two toes, while the emu's feathers almost resemble hair, and it has three toes (see page 505). 



self from the sun. He does not bother 

 with clothes except when the weather is 

 particularly bad, and then bark or the 

 skin of the kangaroo is used without sew- 

 ing or fashioning. Some tribes use rushes 

 and seaweed for temporary clothing or 

 make a blanket from the dried scum of 

 lakes. For boats pieces of bark tied at 

 the end and daubed with clay suffice. 



He makes no pottery, and cooking 

 utensils are represented by stones for 

 crushing roots and seeds, stone knives, 

 and a rudely fashioned scoop which 

 serves as a dish, a spade, and as a re- 

 ceptacle for carrying water. He knows 

 nothing of agriculture, and his one do- 

 mesticated animal is the dingo, a half- 

 wild dog. 



The geography of Australia is such 

 that localities where food and water are 

 sufficient for a large number of people 

 are very scarce. There are no wild ce- 

 reals, and the native fruits are few in 



number, restricted in distribution and of 

 meager nutriment, while water must be 

 searched for over half the continent. 

 The different tribes therefore have no 

 fixed abode beyond vaguely defined limits 

 inside of which they roam in search of 

 food like packs of hunting animals. The 

 groups are necessarily small and their re- 

 lations are governed by fear and sus- 

 picion. Infrequent contact has resulted 

 in the development of many languages 

 within the same race. In "one district 

 less than 300 miles square seven lan- 

 guages are spoken, one of them in two 

 dialects, one in five." 



MOST EXPERT OF HUNTERS 



In endurance and speed he is not the 

 equal of the American Indian, and his 

 weapons of wood and poorly fashioned 

 stones are effective only at short range ; 

 but as a hunter the native Australian is 

 marvelously adjusted to his environment 



508 



