4 
ANNALS OF THE QUEENSLAND MUSEUM, No. 5. 
edge of the kite. The third leaf is split down the middle, and each 
half is applied point downwards by an overlapping edge to a side o£ 
the second leaf to extend the lateral area to be presented to the wind, 
and, at its base, shorn off to preserve the horizontality of the upper 
edge, in which respect mainly the general form of the kite differs from 
that familiar to ourselves. The overlapping edges are " basted " 
together by passing through both of them at wide intervals, one of the 
long blender strips split from the leaf of a species of palm for which 
the natives find various other uses. The rigidity of the whole struc- 
ture so fashioned is increased by the application of other strips of the 
same material — one passing down the centre and lashed to the con- 
tiguous midribs of the leaves ; a pair on each side of and securing 
between them the upper edge of the fabric ; another pair strengthen- 
ing in a similar manner the mid line of its upper division ; a single 
strip threaded through the leaf at the base of that division ; and 
another across the middle of the lower division, the last being fixed 
merely by passing it between the midrib and the central longitudinal 
strip. The lateral edges of the kite are strengthened throughout by 
a double stitch of twine inserted well within the margin. "When 
complete the kite is provided with five " wings." These are short 
strips of pandanus leaf, sometimes swallow-tailed at the free end, 
attached by a piece of twine, from 70 to 80 mm. in length, to each 
end of the pair of upper cross stretchers and to the top of the middle 
longitudinal one. The kites vary in length from 560 to 720 mm., and in 
greatest breadth from 200 to 290 mm. The flight-line is a two-strand 
fibre seining twine (as a seaman describes it), each strand composed 
of about 20 fibres, neatly spun, very light and strong, and long enough 
(" not less than a fourth or even a third of a mile in length," says our 
authority) to allow the kite to rise to the proper height at the distance 
desired. This line is tied to the central stretcher at its mid point 
with a knot within which is included a little roll of leaf (perhaps for 
luck), and with a loose end left long enough to reach to the bottom of 
the kite where it is again tied. The rest of the flight -line is, when 
unemployed, wound round a chunk or flat piece of wood, in the latter 
case more or less battledore shaped. Instead of a tail of the ordinary 
length is attached another very long line (" from one to three hundred 
yards in length") of similar twine ; this ends below in a peculiar 
tassel, and it is by virtue of this tassel that the kite becomes a 
piscatorial engine of a novel kind. 
The araneifauna of New Q-uinea contains a spider which, like 
that spoken of by Layard (" Nature," 1879, p. 456) in a note on the 
origin of the night-cap-like bags of New Caledonia, " produces a very 
strong web." Neither the spider nor its web, sent for identification, 
succeeded in reaching Brisbane, but in all probability it is 
one of the Nephilas. It would appear from Sir W. Macgregor's 
account that the web of this spider is not collected in the same 
manner as that described by Layard. Plate 1, fig. 2, reproduces a 
drawing of the implement, made from memory by Sir W. Macgregor, 
who describes it as consisting of a cleft reed or bamboo, on which 
" the animal or a number of them is tossed . . . until a double 
tissue of web about 3 or 4 inches broad and 4 to 6 feet long is 
