OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA. 27 



old men, — the young men disdaining it if other food can possibly be 

 procured. Their mode of cooking this bulb is curious, and chiefly per- 

 formed by the women. It is first well roasted, and then pounded between 

 two stones, together with some earth of a reddish colour, nearly free from 

 sand, which even in this sandy district can be procured in almost every 

 sheltered place. This earth is understood to be the production of the 

 white ant, whose hillocks or nests are very common. One measured 

 by Mr Gilbert, the naturalist, was nearly four feet high, and of considerable 

 girth. The women never travel without a supply of this earth, as in the 

 iron-stone country the co-kat, or ants' nests, cease to appear. 



The extraordinary fact of their mixing the earth with the mynd root, 

 arises from the extremely acrid properties of the latter ; and it appears 

 that, notwithstanding the counteraction of this earth, the natives suffer 

 much from excoriated tongues, which appear perfectly purple when they 

 are obliged to live upon this root for any length of time. It is a common 

 practice of the natives to exhibit the tongue to the settlers when soliciting 

 the charity of a little flour or rice. The women living principally upon 

 this root, are evidently injured by it ; they appear almost a distinct race 

 from the males, having a miserably shrivelled appearance, and are seldom 

 long-lived. This may arise from both causes — namely, the bad effects of 

 the sharp particles of sand lacerating the stomach and intestines, and the 

 acrid and deleterious qualities of the mynd. The children, however, suffer 

 less, both from distending their stomachs with enormous quantities of 

 water, and from the greater quantity of mucus which naturally lines the 

 coatings of their stomachs and bowels. 



The next important bulb is the tieubuck, chiefly found in sheltered 

 places in spring : when roasted, it bears some resemblance to the potato, 

 but is more mucilaginous, and has less flavour. There is rarely more than 

 one bulb to each root, and this seldom exceeds a large marble in size. 

 About the month of October it is procured in considerable quantity, and, 

 like the mynd, thrives best in a light sandy soil. The natives procure it by 

 means of a long pointed stick, which is the only instrument used by the 

 women in obtaining every kind of food from the earth. When the 

 tieubuck is in season, it is difficult for a European to distinguish its leaf 

 from the surrounding grass ; but when in full flower, its beauty and 

 fragrance render it everywhere conspicuous ; the scent resembles the 

 Tonquin bean or May grass. Like the mynd, it also shoots up a single 

 6tem, about a foot high, covered near the top with an abundance of flowers. 

 The men eat this root greedily, and send their women out to procure it, 

 but rarely seek it themselves. When the plant is in full flower, the bulb 

 is absorbed. A number of other roots are occasionally used as food in 

 their season; the native names of some our informant has collected in 

 the following list : — 



1. Quenine, the Zamia palm. The nut is poisonous ; but the rind, 

 which is of a fine red colour, after being buried for a month, forms a chief 



