The Australian aboriginal

by Herbert Basedow

Countless marine species, both heliform gastropods like the periwinkle and cockle-like bivalves, contribute towards the daily meals of the coastal tribes. All along the south-eastern shores of South Australia, that is, upon the cliffs occurring between Kingston and the Glenelg River and in Victoria, many kitchen middens are still to be found containing heaps upon heaps of the large Turbo undulata—the remains of what the local tribes have feasted upon. Associated with these heaps are the stones of their ovens and other camp refuse.

The cliffs and reefs, which fringe the north coast of Australia, are profitable hunting grounds where all kinds of shell-fish, especially oysters, abound. The last-named are gathered and thrown upon hot ashes; when the valves open, the “fish” are detached without any difficulty and swallowed.

The Wongapitcha and other desert tribes do not hesitate to consume quantities of green caterpillars, but such usually only at the beginning of a good season, when fresh herbs are available, and the morsel is in consequence claimed to have acquired a sweetish flavour. The only treatment the caterpillars receive is to be thrown upon hot ashes until they expand and straighten with the heat. The small hairs covering them are thus singed off, but the caterpillars are far from being cooked when eaten.

The most popular and at the same time most widely distributed article of diet in the insect line is the larva of the big Cossus moth, commonly known as the witchedy grub ([Plate XVIII]). The two varieties which make themselves most conspicuous are, firstly, one living in the roots of such shrubs as the Cassia and certain species of Acacia, and, secondly, one which bores into the butt of the eucalyptus. The first cannot usually be located by the eye, but its presence is determined by ramming the yam-stick into the ground under the root of the shrub and testing its resistance to leverage—if the grub is present, the root will readily snap, whereupon the native soon unearths it by digging with the stick and his hands. This variety is smaller than the tree-grub and is mostly of a yellow colour.

The abode of the tree-grub is detected by the native’s keen eye in the small holes the young larva bores into the bark and lives in until it attains the mature moth stage. The larva lives in the butt or in any of the larger limbs of the tree; consequently it may at times be concealed in the bark high above the ground. In the latter case the native will have to climb the butt and effect an ascent, no matter what the shape of the tree happens to be. Various methods are made use of, one of which we have already considered on [page 13].

One of the commonest methods is to cut shallow notches in the bark of the butt, one above the other, and so placed that the toes of either foot of the climber can be placed into them, alternately right and left. The climber, as he ascends, cuts fresh notches into the bark with his tomahawk; and if the butt is so big that he cannot hold on to it, he is obliged to cling to a notch with the fingers of one hand whilst the other hand is used to cut the new notch above it. In this manner he works his way upwards to the nearest lateral branch, whence the ascent is in most cases easier. It is wonderful with what assurance and ease the native accomplishes this dangerous task; and one marvels how it is possible for him to retain his balance against the vertical trunk of the tree. The notches, too, which he cuts into the bark, are so shallow that only the very toe-tips can be inserted. One uncertain movement, or one slip of either toe or finger, and he would fall to the ground; and considering the height to which he occasionally climbs, this might mean certain death. All grub-holes are examined on the way up and the occupants extracted. Vide [Plate XIX], 1.

When the diameter of the butt is not too large to prevent the native from holding his hands around the distant side, the notches are dispensed with, and the climber simply “walks” up the tree, keeping his arms extended and allowing his hands to slide along the surface as he ascends. The method is in vogue principally in the tropical portions of Australia, where small-trunked trees and palms are plentiful in the jungles surrounding permanent water-holes and rivers.

In the same region, strong vines and creepers, which are interlaced with the branches of a tree to be explored, are climbed, hand over hand, by the hunter, who gets his hold by gripping the stem between the big and second toes.

In north-eastern Queensland, tree-climbing is accomplished by the aid of a long and strong piece of the lawyer-cane, which is passed around that side of the tree-trunk lying away from the climber. The native seizes both ends of this loop, one in either hand, and keeping it taut by throwing his body backwards into a sloping position, he places his feet against the tree. Momentarily relaxing the strain upon the cane, by a jerk from his arms, he thrusts the loop a short distance up the trunk, at the same time lifting one foot above the other as though he were walking up a ladder. The same operation is repeated, when the other foot is lifted; and thus he makes quick progress towards the first lateral branches of the tree. Should at any time the climber want to use one of his hands, he passes one end of the cane under the knee of the same side as the hand to be liberated and holds the end between the big toe and that next to it.

Often the natives do not climb the tree, but prefer to light a fire at the base of it and wait until the flame has eaten its way through sufficiently far to fell it. After a giant of the woods has crashed to the ground, it is comparatively easy for the hunters to obtain any spoil concealed in its bark, hollows, or branches.