Yacka was an adept at throwing this peculiar weapon, which is almost in the shape of a half crescent, and is made of very hard wood, smooth and shaved down to a sharp edge on the inside curve. Yacka could throw his boomerang high into the air, until it appeared a mere speck, and it came down in a series of curves until it fell at his feet. No matter how far he threw the boomerang, it invariably returned to him.
The first time Edgar attempted throwing a boomerang he was rather astonished. Instead of going high into the air, it gave a few curves, then flew rapidly backwards, and Edgar had to duck his head quickly to avoid a blow.
‘It is not so easy as it looks,’ he said to Will. ‘Have a try?’
Will took the weapon and tried, with no better result; in fact, he came off worse than Edgar, for he got a severe blow on the shin. The blacks were amused at the white men’s clumsy attempts to throw the boomerang, and their grins of satisfaction exasperated Edgar.
‘They imagine we can do nothing in this line,’ he said to Will. ‘We must undeceive them, or they will have a very poor opinion of us. We have not many shots to spare; but it may be as well to show them how deadly a gun is.’
Edgar explained to Yacka that it was not fair the blacks should have it all their own way.
‘Throw your boomerang, and I’ll engage to hit it in the air,’ said Edgar.
Yacka did not care to risk his own boomerang, which was carved in a fantastic manner, so he took another, and, after telling the blacks what Edgar was about to do, he flung it into the air.
As it came circling down Edgar fired and hit it, but it did not split with the shot; the marks, however, were plainly visible, and the blacks were not only terrified at the noise, but amazed at the result. It was Will’s turn next, and he elected to try his luck with the revolver.
Yacka fastened one of the blacks’ loin-cloths to a tree, doubling it into a small space. These cloths were made of thick skin, probably kangaroo, and when doubled it offered strong resistance to a bullet.