MURRUMBIDGEE, LOWER LACHLAN, AND LOWER DARLING. 67 
their performance upon the madlangies, and their high shrill treble 
mingling with the leader’s bass, made altogether the most hideous 
accord that it was ever my ill fortune to listen to. Meantime the 
dancing had become as vehement as the music, the writhing and 
quivering of forty pairs of legs in unison, strung up to high pres- 
sure pitch by their savage tchowie and its barbarous accompani- 
ments, made such an exhibition as it seldom falls to the lot of civi- 
lized man to witness now-a-days. The time now became faster 
and more fast, till at length the motion was altogether so rapid 
that individual legs could not be distinguished. Looking at the 
neers when they had attained to this phase of the corroborie 
seemed like viewing a monster heap of serpents, heaving and coil- 
ing together in the throes of vital agony. But, alas! even abori- 
ginal muscular humanity cannot keep up such high pressure motion 
for ever, so with a deafening clang, produced by the birrawaries 
and mullangies conjointly, the tchowie ceased instantaneously, and 
the sweltering dancers sank as one man exhausted in their tracks. 
is grand finale was just about as much as my senses could 
well sustain, so I gladly crawled from the vicinage of the savage 
dancers, regained my horse, and rode quietly home. 
OF GENERATING FIRE. 
mate aboriginal method of generating fire I imagine, pertains 
exclusively to the Australian tribes, at least I never heard of the 
same system being followed by other races. Their method is 
in it; this crack is filled to within half an inch of the lips with dry 
down to a blunt edge on one side, holds this stick firmly by 
cea end, and by both hands, and rubs the blunt edge backwards 
filled with the filings, the rate et motion is accelerated until the 
time he has cut across the crack, and gently fans the filings under 
th hand, and if the smoke continues to ascend, 
e operator knows that the result is satisfactory, as fire has been 
Produced, therefore, with great care he lifts out the dry grass upon 
which are the ignited filings (it is these filings which take fire, 
ve not the rubber, as many would be inclined to suppose), folds 
—s carefully about them, and gently waves them in the air, 
1, I a very little time, the grass bursts into flame. 
