14-6 cook’s voyage. 
tioned among other productions of the country ; and indeed 
we iaw the fhells and hulls of feveral of them lying abtmt the 
places where they had kindled their fire. 
They do not appear to eat any animal food raw ; but hav- 
ing no veffel in which water can be boiled, they either broil 
it upon the coals, or bake it in a hole by the help of hot 
flones, in the fame manner as is praftifed by the inhabitants 
of the iflapds in the South Seas. 
Whether they are acquainted with any plant that has an in- 
toxicating quality, we do not know ; but we obferved that 
feveral of them held leaves of fdVne fort conftantly in their 
mouths, as an European does tobacco, and an Eaft Indian 
betele, but whatever it was, it had no effect upon the teeth 
pr the lips. 
As they have no nets, they catch fifh pnly by firiking, or 
with a hook and line, except fuch as they find in the hol- 
lows of the rocks and fhoals, which are dry at half ebb. 
Their manner of hunting we had no opportunity to fee $ 
but we conjectured by the notches which they had every where 
cut in large trees in order to climb them, that they took their 
ftations near the tops of them, and there watched for fuch ani- 
mals as might happen to pafs near enough to be reached 
by their lances : it is poffible alfo, that in this fituation they 
might take birds when they came to rood. 
I have obferved that when they went from our tents upon 
the banks of Endeavour river,, we could trace them by the 
fires which they kindled in their way ; and we imagined that 
thefe fires were intended fome way for the taking the kangu- 
yoo, which we obferved to be fo much afraid of fire, that our 
dogs could fiercely force it over places which had been newly 
burnt, though the fire was extinguifhed. 
They produce firp with great facility, and fpread it in a 
wonderful manner. To produce it they take two pieces of 
dry foft wood, one is a flick about eight or nine inches long, 
the other pie.e is flat : the flick they fhape into an obtufe 
point at one end, and prefling it upon the other, turn it nimb- 
ly by holding it between both their hands as we do a chocolate 
mill, often ihifting their hands up, and then moving them 
down upon it, to i'ncreafe the prefl'ure as much as poffible. By 
this method they get firp in lefs than tw'O minutes, and from 
the fmallefl fpark they increafe it with great fpeed and dexte- 
rity. We have often feen one of them run along the fhore, 
to all appearance with nothing in his hand, who {looping 
down fora moment, at the diltance of every fifty or a hundred 
yards, left fire behind him, as we could fee firfl by the fmoke, 
and then by the flame among the drift wood, and other littep 
which was fcattered along the place. We had the curiofity to 
pxamine one of thefe planters of fire, when he fett off, and we 
