1 OF XNTm° v OLOGV tlBftA** WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS OF SAVAGE RACES WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS OF SAVAGE RACES (AUSTRALASIA, OCEANIA, AND AFRICA) BY LIEUT.-COL. L. A. D. MONTAGUE FULLY ILLUSTRATED BY THE AUTHOR FROM SPECIMENS MOSTLY IN HIS COLLECTION LONDON "THE BAZAAR, EXCHANGE & MART" OFFICE WINDSOR HOUSE, BREAM'S BUILDINGS, E.C.4 1921 n UL^l An h 6- ^>» PREFACE The fact that works on ethnographical specimens are few in number, and that reliable information concerning these interesting objects is hard to obtain, has led to the re-publication in book form of a series of articles on the subject which I have contributed to The Bazaar during the last four years. The study of weapons and implements of savage races has been taken up by an increasing number of collectors, and also by many outside that fraternity ; it is therefore hoped that this little work may at any rate go some way towards supplying a want. The subject is such an extensive one that its adequate treatment would entail the publication of many volumes, and the present attempt claims to be nothing more than a handbook or guide. It contains as full a description of specimens from Australasia, Oceania, and Africa as its size permits ; but it was impossible to include any from Asia or America without unduly curtailing the other sections. The specimens illustrated are mostly in my own collection, and I have made every effort correctly to vi PREFACE identify and describe them. It is, however, often extremely difficult to trace ethnographical specimens with certainty to the place of origin, so it is quite possible that mistakes of attribution may be dis- covered. Still, as in doubtful cases I have consulted the authorities connected with our public collections (for whose courteous assistance I must here offer my thanks), I think that the information I have got together may be taken as up to date and generally correct. . LEOPOLD A. D. MONTAGUE. September, 1921. CONTENTS INTRODUCTION PAGE I PART I AUSTRALIA ____.. 6 NEW ZEALAND - - - 50 EASTER ISLAND - - - - - 64 MARQUESAS ISLANDS - - - - -67 AUSTRAL (TUBUAl) ISLANDS - - - - 68 HERVEY (OR COOK'S) ISLANDS - - "73 TONGA AND SAMOA - - - - "77 NIUE" OR SAVAGE ISLAND - - - 8 1 FIJI - - - - - -86 GILBERT ISLANDS - - - - "95 NEW CALEDONIA - - - - - IOI NEW HEBRIDES - - - - - I05 SANTA CRUZ (QUEEN CHARLOTTE ISLANDS) - - I08 THE SOLOMON ISLANDS - IO9 ADMIRALTY ISLANDS - - - - - Il8 NEW BRITAIN, NEW IRELAND, AND ADJACENT ISLANDS - 122 THE MASSIM DISTRICT - - - - 1 24 NEW GUINEA - - - - - - 1 27 vii Vlll CONTENTS PART II SOUTH AFRICA - BECHUANALAND ANGOLA - BELGIAN CONGO AND FRENCH CONGO KAMERUN - NORTHERN NIGERIA SOUTHERN NIGERIA - CENTRAL AFRICA - NYASS ALAND PROTECTORATE - EAST AFRICA - THE KIKUYU DISTRICT SOMALILAND - - HINTS TO COLLECTORS PAGE 138 151 153 154 185 187 215 217 219 221 227 229 2 3 l INDEX 2 35 WEAPONS AND IMPLEMENTS OF SAVAGE RACES INTRODUCTION To most of us, whether we have the collecting instinct or not, there is a peculiar fascination connected with the strange weapons, implements, and other objects coming from the less civilized parts of the world, where mankind, in many cases, is still in a stage of evolution which could only have been paralleled in this country some centuries before the Roman invasion. That most of the savage races producing these objects are gradually becoming civilized or are dying out, renders it all the more important that no time should be lost in gathering all possible information concerning their history, religion, art, and customs, and preserving specimens of their handiwork, which, not many years hence, may be very difficult to obtain. But, apart from the scientific study of ethnography, there is a romantic interest about a collection of South Sea, African, or other specimens of native work which makes a general appeal. These curious clubs of 2 INTRODUCTION polished wood, spears barbed with human bones, and swords edged with sharks' teeth take us mentally to the coral islands of the Pacific, and call up reminis- cences of many a tale of adventure in the South Seas ; whilst the sight of African fetishes, war-knives, and throwing-spears instantly transports an imaginative individual to the mysterious forests of the Dark Con- tinent, suggesting perils encountered by Stanley and the other explorers, human sacrifices, and what not. The ethnographical room in a museum is therefore always popular, but, curiously enough, the scientific study of ethnographical specimens was greatly neglected up to quite a late period in the last century, and the only obtainable general work on the subject was (and would seem still to be) Wood's "Natural History of Man, " to illustrate which the author formed a private collection. Nearly every local museum pos- sessed, it is true, a certain number of specimens, but these were seldom properly arranged, and were in- correctly labelled almost as often as not. Even at the present day there is much room, for improvement as far as some of the small provincial museums are concerned, but the magnificent ethnographical collec- tion at the British Museum, re-arranged since the War, offers an excellent example of modern classification, followed by the museums at Oxford, Cambridge, Exeter, and others of the same standing. Collecting such curiosities upon scientific lines is now being taken up to an increasing extent, and will INTRODUCTION 3 undoubtedly become quite a fashionable hobby before long, causing the prices, already fairly high, to rise still further. The bargains of the last century are now rarely obtainable, though, unless one goes in for rarities such as ancient Maori productions, it is by no means too late to begin collecting. The nucleus of a collec- tion may be found on the walls of the entrance-hall or staircase of many a residence, for it has long been customary to hang up such weapons as decorations, although in many cases their present owner has a very hazy notion of what they really are and where they came from. No doubt ethnographical specimens will be faked as the demand for them increases, but at present they are imitated to a less extent than other things collected. West African curios, particularly fetish figures and carved work, are made to order by the natives, and also counterfeited by Europeans for sale to passengers on the West Coast steamers (if not for the English market) , yet I have never come across faked weapons such as spears and war-knives. The costly Maori antiquities are doubtless imitated now and then, when- ever deception is possible, though, as far as I am aware, the faker has not yet concerned himself with Australian weapons. South Sea clubs and spears do not lend themselves to fraudulent imitation, and it would never pay a European carver to copy the in- tricate designs on some of the paddles, axe-hafts, and other implements ; but the collector should fight shy 4 INTRODUCTION of new-looking weapons in unused condition, as these are turned out by the natives in Fiji and probably on other islands now more or less civilized, for sale to visitors. These specimens can hardly be called fakes, being really made by the natives from old patterns, yet nevertheless are of little interest or value when compared with weapons actually constructed for use in warfare, and probably so used. Antiquity is, in fact, a great factor in the value of all curiosities pro- duced by savages, really old examples usually fetching three or four times the price of modern ones. This not only applies to such things as Benin brasses, West African jujus, axes, and the like, but to such common weapons as throwing-spears and knives. The size of this little work renders it necessary to restrict the specimens described and illustrated to those coming under the head of weapons and imple- ments, which eliminates many articles of equal interest not properly belonging to either class. These are not, however, so generally collected or so suitable for ex- hibition on the walls of a private house, many of them being of anything but a decorative character. For instance, the funeral and fetish masks of West Africa and the Congo are repulsively ugly, though of peculiar interest to a student of native superstitions, secret societies, and ceremonies ; whilst large carvings, fur- niture, costumes, and even personal ornaments are more suitable for a museum than for a private collec- tion. The same may be said of native musical instru- INTRODUCTION 5 ments (though there are a few collectors of these), and miscellaneous productions requiring glass cases to exhibit properly. I should have liked to include at least a few specimens of these classes, but they arc hardly within the scope of a guidebook mainly intended to help in the identification of specimens likely to be in the possession of its readers, or, at any rate, to be obtainable by them should they take up collecting on the lines suggested. For the same reason most of the specimens illustrated are not of any special rarity, but are such as are frequently seen in the dealers' shops, and are pretty sure to be come across sooner or later. I regret that I was unable to include drawings of weapons from many of the lesser-known Pacific islands, as also from several African districts, having no specimens from which to make them ; but have endeavoured to make up for this omission by very fully describing the examples (over 200 in number) here figured, which comprise the principal types brought home. PART I AUSTRALIA Clubs Australian clubs are fairly easily distinguishable from those of the Pacific islands, though often difficult to identify as coming from any particular part of the immense island continent. This is specially the case with the short club usually called a waddy, which seems to be made, with but slightly varying pattern, in most parts excepting the west, where clubs appear to be in less general use and assume a distinctive shape. The typical waddy is usually fairly straight, shaped like an elongated bud, and made from euca- lyptus or other tough wood, and most specimens finding their way to this country come from Victoria or New South Wales. No. i of Fig. i shows a characteristic specimen of the Victoria type, said to be called a nulh-nulla. It is 28 inches in length, with a considerable swell run- ning to a conical point, and is of a yellowish-brown wood (eucalyptus?) brought to a dull polish. The head is incised with a kind of herring-bone pattern AUSTRALIA 7 filling rectangles alternating with blank spaces, between longitudinal herring-bone borders. The section is circular, but in many specimens it is oval or irregular. Fig. i, No. 2, was presented to my son (the late P. D. Montague) by the West Aus- tralian Museum at Perth, W.A., and shows the type of club used in the north-west as contrasted with that of the south-east. It is a straight cylinder, 33^ inches long, slightly tapering towards the extremities, with surface grooved by the marks of the tool with which it was dressed. It is thickly covered with red ochre, which may have been applied to prevent it from slip- ping in the hand as much as for decorative purposes, and must have been frequently renewed, as it comes off freely when the Weapon is handled. This specimen came from the Drysdale River, North Kimberley, and is of a pattern not often brought home. Returning to the waddy, this is occasionally ren- dered more formidable by a series of diverging spikes cut round the head, as in the mace-like example No. 1 of Fig. 2, which came from New South Wales. This has six rows of teeth, with ten teeth in each row, the top being pointed, making the weapon effective for thrusting as well as striking. The conical part, as well as the lower part of the head, is coloured with red ochre, and white clay (?) shows between the teeth. The butt is conical, with grip roughened : length 31^ inches. I recently bought this specimen from a dealer, price ten shillings. No. 2 of Fig. 2 is a waddy 8 AUSTRALIA of superior workmanship and exceptional length, measuring 34^ inches. It is of a dark wood, smoothed, and has three chains of roughly circular O m v "VVVVVVV ', */v vy VvV^' vvw vvjv fio O m m z\ m Fig. i.— (1) Waddy of Victoria Type. (2) Club covered with Red Ochre, Drysdale River, North Kimberley, Fig. 2.— (i) Toothed Waddy, New South Wales. (2) Long Waddy. hollows running from the point to some distance below the slightly swelling head, probably intended to make a blow bite the better. The butt ends squarely, and is roughened for a very short distance. I do not know / AUSTRALIA 9 the district of origin, but should place it in the south or south-east. Fig. 3 is of a waddy with leaf-shaped head running to blunt edges, and a pointed tapering handle pierced for a cord near the end. It is 25 J inches long, and is remarkable for the carved designs upon Fig. 3. — Waddy with Carved Designs, probably from South-Eastern Australia. it. A double zigzag (suggesting waves) runs down the head upon one face, the other being divided checkerwise as shown in the illustration. It is a very nice specimen of somewhat unusual form, and was IO AUSTRALIA bought with No. i of Fig. 2, so is probably from the south-east. The pointed handle of this variety of waddy is of use to scratch up the earth with which the combatants cover their hands, in order to get a better grip, during the extraordinary native duels in which they alternately present their heads to be bludgeoned. Fig. 4.— (i) " Deadum-deadum," Southern Australia. (2) Leah, or Toothed Waddy. (3) Missile Waddy. (4) Parrying-Stick. (.4// from Exeter Museum.) The objects sketched in Fig. 4 are all in the Exeter Museum. No. i is labelled as a deadum-deadum (suggestive name!) from South Australia, and the handle tapers to a point in a series of diminishing and overlapping rings. No. 2 is called a leak, or toothed AUSTRALIA 1 1 waddy, and is also attributed to South Australia. It has a four-sided head, with the edges cut into sharp teeth. No. 3 is a missile waddy, and No. 4 a parry- ing-stick (south-eastern region ?) . The parrying-stick is used to strike aside the kylie (boomerang) and spear, but no doubt serves as a light Fig. 5. — (1) and (2) Parrying-Sticks from Kookynie District. (3) Beaked Club (Malga), South- Eastern Australia. (4) Ditto, Victoria Type. club upon occasion. Two specimens from the Koo- kynie district of West Australia are seen in Nos. 1 and 2 of Fig. 5. They are dressed from small branches (naturally curved), the longer one measuring 27 inches and having the butt covered with a lump of Black- boy gum. The grips are scored, the tops rounded, 12 AUSTRALIA and both specimens covered with red ochre. They were presented by the West Australian Museum. In Nos. 3 and 4 we see specimens of a beaked club known as a malga or leowal, made from a bent branch so that the grain follows the angle or curve of the head. The object of this shape is to reach round the parrying-shield (which the waddy would not do), and get in a peck with the sharp beak. The malga is a favourite club for use in the native dances ( ' ' corrob- borees"), for beating time by clashing one with another or on a shield. No. 3 measures 29 inches in a line drawn from the tip of the beak to the butt, which tapers in a series of rounded rings, the shaft being longitudinally grooved round the grip. The head is almost at right angles to the shaft, and measures 1 1\ inches. No. 4 (from Victoria) is a smaller weapon of much the same pattern, but with the head less angular and broader in proportion. Spears Australian spears in a complete state do not often come to this country, probably on account of their great length, which makes them troublesome to bring home ; but even in Australia the earlier stone-headed examples are becoming more and more difficult to procure, so that it is not surprising they should fetch high prices when put up for sale in London. The Australian spear is, in most districts, only used as a AUSTRALIA 13 missile, being hurled by means of a contrivance known as a woomero, or spear-thrower, which, acting as a lever, gives the weapon an extra impetus. The natives can usually aim so accurately as to be fairly certain of hitting a moving mark at any range up to 60 yards, whilst the extreme distance to which spears can be thrown is said to be surprising. The spears vary greatly in workmanship, the com- moner sort being little more than long, pointed sticks, generally not even straight, but those with stone or glass heads show considerable skill in construction. The specimens here described were all brought home by my son, the late Paul D. Montague, and were either obtained by him from the natives or presented to him by the West Australian Museum at Perth. They are therefore accurately localised, which adds considerably to the scientific value of the collection. Fig. 6, No. 1, gives the upper part of an ordinary West Australian specimen from the Upper Murchison (Gascoyne division) . This is 8 feet 7^ inches in length, and is formed from a barked stick running to a flat- tened, tapering point, below which is lashed a pointed wooden barb, the binding being apparently of sinew. The butt-end is hollowed for the insertion of the hook of the woomero. No. 2 is 7 feet 9 inches long, and has a flattish, leaf-shaped, wooden barb, attached by a thread-like binding smeared with Blackboy gum. Below the barb the shaft is decorated with ten or eleven black patches, perhaps tribal marks. This H AUSTRALIA spear came from the south-western part of West Australia. The black gum used so extensively in the manufacture of Australian weapons is made from either the Spinifex or the Grass-tree (known as the Black - Fig. 6. — West Australian Wood-Barbed Spears, (i) Upper Murchison. (2) South- West of Western Australia. boy). Spinifex is a kind of spiky grass, and the gum is found at the roots. The Blackboy is a small tree with a tuft of grass-like foliage, from the middle of which springs the flower-stalk, thus looking from a distance something like a native carrying a spear AUSTRALIA i5 (hence its popular name). The black gum or wax forms on the stem, and is found on the ground beneath, especially after bush fires. In Western Australia the Blackboy only grows in the southern regions, and the gum used on all objects from the northern districts is from the Spinifex. This is like pitch, and is of a brownish-black colour, containing many fibres. Fig. 7. — (1) Wooden Spear-Head from Minderoo, Ashburton River. (2) From neighbourhood of Gerald ton, West Australia. Fig. 7, No. 1 , shows a spear-head of a light-coloured wood, picked up by my son in a deserted native camp at Minderoo, about 22 miles up the Ashburton River. It is armed with five long barbs, cut out on one side, and there is some attempt at decoration in the way of scratched transverse bands. No. 2 is from the i6 AUSTRALIA Geraldton district (west coast), and is an example of the barbless type with tapering conical point, flattened for a few inches. The length of this spear is 7 feet 1 1 \ inches, and it has the usual hollow at the butt-end. f*x3 1 Fig. 8. — Stone-headed Spears from Wyndham, Kimberley, North-West Australia. Fig. 8 represents two valuable specimens the heads of which might well be mistaken for products of the European Neolithic period of untold centuries B.C. The head of No. 1 is of red quartz, chipped to a leaf shape, and embedded in a lump of Spinifex gum. This is lashed by vegetable fibre to a fore-shaft 55 inches long, made from a more or less straight stick of some AUSTRALIA 17 hard wood, which enters a shaft of considerably greater diameter, made from a reed rather like bamboo, the total length being 11 feet 2\ inches. There is a lashing at the junction and another at the butt-end, to prevent it from splitting from the insertion of the hook of the spear-thrower. The shaft and fore- shaft are daubed with white clay. This is considered to be one of the finest specimens ever brought to England, and is as good as anything in the West Australian Museum. No. 2 has a triangular head of whitish stone (probably quartz), and is 10 feet 4 inches long. The details are much the same as in No. 1, but there is a kink in the stick forming the fore-shaft. Both specimens are from Wyndham, Kimberley, in the north-west. Nos. 2 and 3 of Fig. 9 show two unmounted stone spear-heads, also from Wyndham. No. 2 is 3^ inches long, beautifully chipped from white and pink quartz, and markedly Neolithic in its suggestion. No. 3 is of some hard, brownish stone, and looks like a Palaeo- lithic specimen, but this is due to its being unfinished. These stone heads are probably a good many years old, but after the appearance of European settlers the natives began to make spear-heads of glass, using any suitable fragment picked up. No. 1 of Fig. 9 shows a very fine glass-headed spear from Turkey Creek, East Kimberley. The head is chipped exactly in the same manner as the stone heads, but the material is merely greenish bottle-glass. This weapon is other- 18 AUSTRALIA wise similar to the Wyndham specimens : total length, 10 feet if inches ; fore-shaft, 5 feet 8 inches long, made from a straight stick, blackened. In Fig. 10 we see two unmounted glass spear- heads — No. 1 a large example (about 5f inches long), Fig. 9. — (1) Glass-headed Spear from Turkey Creek, East Kimberley. (2) and (3) Stone Spear-Heads from Wyndham, Kimberley. probably made from the side of a broken wine-bottle. It is of an attractive orange-brown colour, and the point is so fine that it would certainly break even on striking the ground, so it is difficult to understand why the natives should take so much trouble in chipping AUSTRALIA 19 and fixing glass heads of this description, which could hardly be serviceable after a throw or two. Some specimens are more finely and regularly chipped than this one, but the operation possibly takes only a short time after constant practice. No. 2 is of transparent white glass, and came from Turkey Creek ; No. 1 from Wyndham. Fig. 10. — Australian Spear-Heads of Bottle-Glass. (i) From Wynd- ham, KimberJcy. (2) From Turkey Creek, East Kimberley. In some parts of Australia long thrusting-spears are used, but I have seen no examples. There are also spears with two or more points, probably used only for fishing. Very few of the throwing-spears are perfectly straight, and some are so crooked that one would say that they could not be thrown with any 20 AUSTRALIA accuracy. The Australian native, however, imparts a peculiar quivering motion to the weapon before throwing it (in fact, shaking his whole body in a very ludicrous manner), and thus seems somehow to counteract the sagging of the long and slender shaft. Spear-Throwers The curious appliance by which the long Australian spear is hurled takes various forms, many districts having some distinctive pattern, but it may be recog- nized by the hook or peg at the end, usually made from bone, hard wood, or other material, bound on with a lashing, though some tribes cut the hook as an integral part of the implement. The natives of Western Australia call it a woomero, but it probably has other names in other parts, Wood calling it a wummerah, or midlah. By the early settlers it was termed a "throw-stick," but " spear-thrower " seems a better designation. To throw the spear the woomero is held over the shoulder, with the spear resting upon it, the butt-end of the latter, which is usually hollowed, being in contact with the point of the hook or peg. A forward jerk slings the spear on its flight, the spear-thrower thus acting as a lever, and giving the effect of a throw from an enormously long arm. In the north of West Australia the woomero is sometimes of great length, though never very broad ; but in the south it is shorter AUSTRALIA 21 and of considerable width, either flat or slightly con- cave on the front. Fig. n gives two very fine examples (presented by the West Australian Museum) from the Kookynie district. The largest measures Fig. ii.— Carved Spear-Throwers, Kookynie District, West Australia. 30J inches in length and 5J inches across at the broadest part, the smaller being 27} inches long. The fronts are concave (the better to hold the spear in position) and are decorated with carved zigzag 22 AUSTRALIA bands, effectively grooved slantwise, the grooving out- side the bands being more or less vertical. The wood is rather thin, light in weight, and coloured with red ochre. The pegs are whitish, and apparently of some hard wood, lashed on with sinew, the handles tapering Fig. 12.— West Australian Spear-Throwers, (i) Ashburton District. (2) South-West District. and ending in small projections, one showing traces of black gum. No. 1 of Fig. 12 is from the Ashburton district, and is fish-shaped, flat, and ornamented in front with obliquely grooved bands, three of which form angles, the spaces between being grooved in various directions, upright grooving filling in the portions outside the AUSTRALIA 23 bands. The peg is of bone, its binding covered with Spinifex gum, a flattish disc of which also forms, or covers, the handle-end. This spear-thrower is of darkish wood, and is 23 inches long by 4J inches broad at the widest part. No. 2 is shuttle-shaped, without decoration of any kind, and with a lump of Blackboy gum set at an angle on the end of the handle. The bone peg is very small, with Blackboy gum covering its binding. This specimen is from the south-west district (where Blackboy gum and not Spinifex gum is in use). Leaving the southern and central regions, Fig. 13 shows the types used in the north-west and north . No. 1 is of surprising length (4 feet 3^ inches) and gives little idea of its actual object, looking like some strange weapon. It is rounded on the sides, being 3 inches wide above the very short grip, from which point it gradually tapers up to the peg. Below the grip, which has a binding, it spreads out again into an oblong terminal. Peg of bone, with sinew binding covered with Spinifex gum. Obtained at Wyndham, Kimberley. No. 2 is of the same pattern, but shorter, and has been painted white, the tribe from which it was taken having looted some white paint from a station. This specimen came from Turkey Creek, East Kimberley. No. 3 is from the northern territory of Central Australia (governed by South Australia). It is 37 inches long, rather thin, and edged at the sides, being of a reddish -brown colour. The hook 24 AUSTRALIA looks more like a claw than anything else, and is attached with the usual binding covered with Spinifex gum. The Rev. J. G. Wood states that the binding of most spear-throwers and other Australian imple- ments is made from sinew taken from the tail of the kangaroo, this sinew making a flat lashing, as on all the specimens here described. Fig. 14 is from a spear-thrower of quite a different type, attributed to South-Eastern Australia, probably Victoria. In this case there is no peg attached, but a barb-like projection, serving the same purpose, has been cut out at the end. The wood is of a rich brown colour, and the rounded handle runs to a point. On the central part, which is flattened and barely i\ inches wide about the middle, an attempt has been made to carve an inscription in capital letters, followed by what may possibly be intended for the representa- tion of a high boot. The inscription is quite meaning- less, and may have been cut by a native learning to read, or merely copying the letters on some notice. This specimen is 31 inches long, and was brought home many years ago. One more variety of spear-thrower appears as No. 1 of Fig. 15, but this may be called a spear- throwing club, being serviceable as a handy light club should such a weapon be needed. It comes from Queensland, and has a slender shaft spreading out into a flattish head with angular edges (the handle- end when used as a thrower, and the head when used AUSTRALIA 25 I ^3 > CI. Fig. 13. — Long Woomeros. (1) From Wyndham, Kimberley. (2) From Turkey Creek, East Kimberley. (3) From the northern territory of Central Australia. Fig. 14. — Thrower, Victoria. j ^ Inscribed probably Spear - from AUSTRALIA 27 as a club), the total length being 34 inches. Wood figures a similar specimen (" Man," vol. ii., p. 43), but this has the usual hook bound to the slender end, the absence of which on my specimen prevented me from recognizing it as a spear-thrower until I com- pared it with the illustration mentioned. The Weet-Weet No. 2 shows a curious Australian missile called a weet-weet, or "kangaroo rat," the latter name being given to it on account of its fancied resemblance to that animal when in action. This type is of the form of a bulrush, carved from a solid piece of wood, with the stem, or handle, slender and flexible, the length of my specimen being 26 inches. The weet-weet may possibly be used for bringing down small animals, but is more of a toy than any- thing else, and is employed in throwing competitions. When properly hurled it strikes the ground not very far in front of the thrower, and then leaps along in a succession of bounds to an incredible distance. It is used in New South Wales and Victoria, some examples being rather longer than mine, or made with a handle fixed into the head instead of being all in one piece. Specimens are rather rare in this country, and not often offered for sale. 28 AUSTRALIA Digging-Sticks Unfortunately I have up to the present been unable to identify the strange Australian weapon or imple- ment sketched as No. 3, but attribute it to Victoria or New South Wales. It is 41^ inches long, and has a swelling head running to a slightly bent beak, sharply pointed, the opposite extremity being also pointed. It would be a formidable club, or might be used as a short spear, though possibly it has a more peaceful use, such as that of a digging-stick. The Australian katta, or digging-stick, is often used as a weapon, especially by the gins (women) when they fall out between themselves ; but its primary use is that of an agricultural implement. With it holes are dug for planting tubers, and, despite its inconvenient shape, it takes the place of a spade, being also serviceable to dig out burrowing animals. No. 4 of Fig. 15 represents a very fine specimen, 47 inches in length, brought from the Drysdale River, North Kimberley. It is made of some hard and heavy wood, the surface showing the marks of the dressing tool, and the point, as is usually the case, appears to have been hardened by charring. « AUSTRALIA 29 Fig. 15. — (1) Spear-Throwing Club from Queensland. (2) Weet- Weet, or " Kangaroo Rat," from Victoria or New South Wales. (3) Uncertain Weapon or Implement from South-Eastern Australia. (4) Katta, or Digging-Stick, from Drysdale River, North Kimberley. AUSTRALIA 31 Boomerangs and "Bull-Roarers" The most widely known Australian weapon is the boomerang, which the natives of the west and north- west call a kylie, and now use principally for knocking down birds and other game, though the heavier kind was a formidable weapon in the old days of intertribal warfare. It is hardly necessary to say much about the peculiar flight of this missile, which proverbially returns to its sender should it miss its mark ; but although this is true in the case of the light and thin varieties used for fowling, etc., it is not so with the heavy type originating as a weapon of war. The shape of the boomerang is very variable, some specimens being only slightly curved, while others almost form a half-circle or are more or less angular ; but one side is usually flatter than the other, and the edge is always on the inner curve, the weapon being thrown with the flat side underneath and the edge forward. As the boomerang seems to be used in most parts of Australia, it is not easy to localize specimens without data, but in the West Australian examples the tool-marks are not smoothed off, and those from the north-west often have sharply pointed ends (see Fig. 16), whilst a covering of ochre is another charac- teristic of many kylies from the same region. The measurements here given are taken in a straight line from end to end, across the curve. Fig. 16, No. 1, centrally angular, with sharply 32 AUSTRALIA pointed ends, showing tool-marks and apparently once rubbed over with red ochre, 23J inches. From Isdell Ranges, Kimberley. No. 2, angular, with one end sharply pointed, 23 inches. From West Kimberley. No. 3, broad, tapering to acute points, and with Fig. 16. — Kylies from North- West Australia. (1) Isdell Ranges, Kimberley. (2) West Kimberley. (3) Kimberley. angular head, decorated with transverse bands of red and pinkish-white (red ochre and white clay tinged with red ochre, respectively), 21 J inches. From Kimberley. Presented with Nos. 1 and 2 by the West Australian Museum. Fig. 17, No. 1, slightly curved, a heavy hunting AUSTRALIA 33 kylie or light war kylie, 24J inches. Bought from a native at Onslow. No. 2, hunting kylie, almost forming an obtuse angle at the centre, 23 inches. Onslow. No. 3, narrow and light kylie, probably used for bringing down birds, 24! inches. From the Fig. 17.— West Australian Kylies. (i) Bought from a native at Onslow. (2) Hunting Kylie, Onslow. (3) From head of Ash- burton River. (4) From Hardy Junction, Ashburton River. head of the Ashburton River. No. 4, a broader type of hunting kylie, 22 inches. From Hardy Junction, Ashburton River. These specimens all show tool- marks, and the wood from which they are made is slightly aromatic. 3 34 AUSTRALIA Fig. 1 8, No. i, long boomerang of the type used in South- Eastern Australia ; tool-marks almost entirely smoothed away ; little difference between upper and lower faces ; 27 inches. No. 2, war kylie, heavier Fig. 18. — (1) Boomerang from South-Eastern Australia. (2) War Kylie from Hardy Junction, Ashburton River. (3) Small Bull- Roarer (Witarna), Western Australia. and thicker than the hunting types, 25 inches. From Hardy Junction, Ashburton River. The object shown as No. 3 of Fig. 18 is a small bull-roarer, as used throughout Australia and New Guinea. It is 12^ inches long, made of a dark -brown wood, and carved in front with a branching design, AUSTRALIA 35 the back being rounded and showing tool-marks. It was brought from Western Australia by my son, but was not labelled with the exact locality. The bull- roarer appears to have been an invention of the remotest antiquity, and is thought by some to have been employed in the mysteries of Pan. Curiously enough, bull-roarers of the same character as the Australian and New Guinea examples are used not only in Central and West Africa, but on the American continent, the natives of the interior of Brazil being mentioned among the tribes making them. The Australian type is of elongated ovoid shape, flat or slightly concave in front, and slightly rounded behind, a hole being invariably bored near one end for the attachment of a cord. Holding the end of this cord, the user rapidly whirls the roarer round and round in the air, which causes it to emit a weird roaring or booming sound, the deepness of the note depending upon the size of the instrument. The native name is, according to Wood, witarna, and he gives an account of its employment in the rites by which youths are initiated as men. He says that the cord by which it is whirled is of human hair, and goes on to say : ' ' The witarna is kept by the old men of the tribe, and is invested with sundry and somewhat contradictory attributes. Its sound is supposed to drive away evil spirits, and at the same time to be very injurious to women and children, no uninitiated being allowed to hear it. Consequently the women are horribly afraid 36 AUSTRALIA of it, and take care to remove themselves and their children so far from the place of initiation that there is no chance of being reached by the dreadful sound." Two fine bull-roarers are seen in Fig. 19 — No. 1 from Wiluna, and No. 2 from the Kookynie district, Western Australia. The first is 21 inches long, and Fig. 19.— Bull- Roarers used in Initiation Ceremonies, (i) From Wiluna. (2) From the Kookynie District. might at first sight be taken for a small shield. It is of a dark-brown colour, probably mainly due to ochre, and is ornamented with a carved design very similar to that upon the Kookynie spear-throwers. No. 2 is an inch longer, though not so broad, the front in this case longitudinally concave. The carved orna- AUSTRALIA 37 mentation is roughly executed in grooves, and consists of diminishing squares divided by transverse grooving, the wood being of a very light colour. Australian bull-roarers seldom appear in the curiosity shops, but boomerangs of the common variety are plentiful, and should not cost more than 5s. each. Shields The shields used by the Australian natives are of two types — the parry ing-shield, intended to deflect missiles, and one of a broader type for the protection of the body. The former is sometimes so curiously shaped that there is little suggestion of a shield about it, though, in the hands of a native, it is a most efficient defence against the boomerang or throwing- spear, a dexterous twist by means of the central handle causing one or other of the shield's extremities either to turn aside or to break such weapons, just before reaching the mark intended. The Australian parry- ing-shield would therefore gain nothing through being broad, but must be of solid construction and fairly heavy, as the missiles against which it is employed are thrown with considerable force and velocity. Fig. 20 is of a parry ing-shield known as a tamarang, of a shape used in South-Eastern and probably parts of Southern Australia. I do not know exactly where the specimen came from, but attribute it to Victoria. It is very heavy, with the central part bulging out 38 AUSTRALIA longitudinally, and is much deeper than it is wide, the front being keeled. The front faces are carved with a simple but effective pattern of diminishing lozenges, Fig. 20. — Parrying-Shield (Tamarang), South-Eastern Australia. and the sides of the back converge to a rounded ridge, forming a short handle at the centre, round which an oblong opening has been cut out so that it may be grasped. This opening is of the small size charac- AUSTRALIA 39 teristic of Australian shields in general, the hands of the Aborigines being remarkably slender. The ends of this tamarang are prolonged and reduced to the diam- eter of a stout stick, and appear to have been har- dened by charring. Length, 3 feet ; width, 2^ inches ; fiCCTION