394 
ANTHROPOLOGICAL NOTES, 
The food supply was as a rule abundant in the district during 
favourable seasons. It consisted of all kinds of game, birds and 
birds' eggs, reptiles, fishes, and insects. Amongst the first 
the opossum furnished probably the most frequent meal, because 
it occurred very abundantly; and amongst the insects the 
" Bugong "* supplied numbers of the natives with a fattening diet 
for months. How this unique and remarkable food supply, found 
always on the highest mountains, was procured deserves a detailed 
description : — As early as October, as soon as the snow had 
melted on the lower ranges, small parties of natives would start 
during fine weather for some of the frost-riven rocks and procure 
" Bugongs " for food. A great gathering usually took place 
about Christmas on the highest ranges, when sometimes from 500 
to 700 aborigines belonging to different friendly tribes would 
assemble almost solely for the purpose of feasting upon roasted 
moths. Sometimes these natives had to come great distances to 
enjoy this food, which was not only much appreciated by them 
but must have been very nutritious, because their condition 
was general]y improved by it, and when they returned from the 
mountains their skins looked glossy and most of them were quite 
fat. Their method of catching the insects was both simple and 
effective. With a burning or smouldering bush in the hand the 
rents in the rocks were entered as far as possible, when the heat 
and smoke would stifle the thickly congregated moths, that 
occupied nearly every crack, and make them tumble to the bottom 
of the cleft. Here an outstretched kangaroo skin or a fine net 
made of kurrajong fibre would receive most of the stupefied and 
half-singed insects, which were then roasted on hot ashes. This 
process required some care and attention in order to prevent the 
bodies of the moths getting scorched, and therefore the ashes 
required to be not too hot and had to be free from large glowing 
embers. The insects were thrown upon the ashes and well mixed 
with them, and then the whole was stirred with sticks till the 
wings and legs had broken away and the body was cooked, when 
See also the note at the end of the paper (p. 406). 
