The larger species of these marsupials are hunted differently; they are mostly stalked and killed with the spear. It seems almost incredible that a native can approach a grazing kangaroo on a more or less open plain to within spear-throwing distance without being detected; but such is actually the case. He has so perfected his stealthiness that he utilizes every momentary opportunity, at which the animal’s attention is directed away from him; and slowly he approaches step by step. His swarthy colour in itself gives him a natural protection; but more, he has learned the value of artificially colouring himself with the earth or mud of the terrain he is about to scout. Thus upon a “blue mud flat” his body is painted a slaty blue, whilst on a lateritic soil he applies red ochre or clay. His work is considerably simplified when the ground contains such features as ant-hills or dark-coloured boulders, which he can simulate. A native, when stalking a kangaroo in this way, will always have his spear poised in readiness to be thrown instantaneously if need be. Vide [Plate XX].
In central as well as northern Australia, hunting parties are arranged as follows: Several men hide themselves at different points of a known pad, along which kangaroo are in the habit of travelling to water or cover. A large party of “beaters,” consisting of men, women, and children, disperse in the direction of where kangaroos have been reported to be feeding. On drawing near to the animals, all members of the beating party begin to sing and shout. In the Larrekiya tongue this sounds like “Ye-we o-ho, ye-we o-ho”; in the Arunndta more like “Yerrewai, yerrewai.” They scamper through the bush until a kangaroo is actually sighted, when it is pursued amidst the cries of “Yackäu, yackäu” in the former, and “Yackai” in the latter tongue. The frightened animal usually makes straight for the beaten pad, along which it tears at a terrific rate. Upon hearing the cry of the battue, the men in hiding along the pad place themselves in readiness; and when the animal leaps by, the nearest hunter quickly rises and discharges his spear. If he is successful in felling the animal, he raises a loud, triumphant shout of “Käu,” as a signal to the driving party, who as quickly as possible assemble at the spot. Should the spear of the first thrower miss the kangaroo, the chances are that the next man, further along the pad, will have a chance of trying his skill.
A native considers one of the big hind legs to be the most effective part to wound a kangaroo in, especially if the leg can be broken. If the animal is hit in any other part of its body, it will in all probability make off and that will necessitate perhaps a whole day’s tracking, before it can be overtaken and killed. If only lightly wounded, the hunters will experience considerable difficulty in bringing the game to bay; and the shrewdest strategy might be needed to outwit the watchful animal. In the latter case the pursuers often split their company, and, whilst some are attracting the kangaroo’s attention in the distance, the others endeavour to crawl towards it under cover, until they are near enough to impart the death blow.
Whilst pursuing a wounded animal, a native simply flies over the ground. He cares for no obstacles and seems instinctively to presage the stability of doubtfully inclined and pivotted rocks, lying upon hilly slopes or partially concealed among tall grass. Thus he, with great confidence, jumps from point to point, with the agility of an antelope, and makes rapid headway, whereas a white man would hesitate and come to grief.
In the Musgrave, Mann, and Tomkinson Ranges in central Australia, long brushwood fences are constructed of a more or less zig-zag shape, the angles of which lie upon beaten pads, which are known to be used by kangaroos and wallabies living in the particular area. At each “angle,” the natives dig a large, deep hole, the mouth of which they cover with thin sticks, pieces of bark, and subsequently the whole with sand and grass to give the trap as natural an appearance as possible. So much completed, a log of timber is placed across the pad, at that side of the hole, from which the fleeing game is expected to come. The idea of the log is to make the animal jump over it and land upon the flimsy cover of the hole on the other side. Quite frequently an aboriginal places himself in hiding behind the fence at one of the “angles” and spears the game as it emerges; in this case the hole is dispensed with.
A kangaroo-hunting expedition often takes a tribe far away from a main camp, and the party may be absent for two or three weeks at a time. A native knows that kangaroo follow the new grass, which appears upon patches recently visited by a thunder-cloud or, as is the case upon the north coast, by a bush fire. When either of such phenomena has been chronicled, and after a short time has lapsed, a party of experienced men leave the main camp and prospect the ground for game. When they return, they report the results of their mission to the old men, and, if favourable, arrangements are immediately made for the expedition. The best time for the hunt is considered to be the later afternoon; in the morning and during the heat of the day, the animals are resting, and the hunter knows that under those conditions his chances are not nearly so good as towards evening, when they leave their haunts to feed.
When in 1828 the military settlement at Fort Dundas disbanded, Sir Gordon Bremer let a number of Timor buffaloes, which had been used by the residents, roam at large. Since that time, the animals multiplied to such an extent that large herds were found by later settlers both on Melville Island and the mainland opposite. Thousands have been shot by European hunters, principally for their hides. The natives, too, have learned to recognize these beasts as an important asset to the objects of their chase, although, it must be admitted, the flesh is not relished to anything like the extent of that of the indigenous game; often, in fact, a buffalo is slain merely for a slice or two of the flesh, usually the tongue. The cattle of the European, on the other hand, is eaten with distinct pleasure. Buffalo are hunted by stalking with the spear. This is not a task which demands much skill or laborious strategy. The buffalo spends most of its time out on the plains, more or less under cover of the tall, rank grass, which grows up after the “wet season.” In consequence of this, it is a simple matter for the native to avail himself of the same cover when approaching his prey. In nearly every case, the wounded animal makes off, and the excited hunting gang follow it until it collapses through loss of blood. It might even be necessary to throw another spear or two during the chase to finally bring the beast to fall. The jubilation which takes place during the final stage of a buffalo-hunt is depicted in the Frontispiece of this book, an actual scene from life witnessed on Melville Island.
PLATE XIX
1. Aluridja tree-climber.