Natives of Australia (1906) (14768799555)

Identifier: nativesofaustral00thomuoft (find matches)
Title: Natives of Australia
Year: 1906 (1900s)
Authors: Thomas, Northcote Whitridge, 1868-
Subjects: Ethnology -- Australia Australia -- Social conditions Australia -- Description and travel
Publisher: London : A. Constable
Contributing Library: Robarts - University of Toronto
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN



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, which can be called a hut. This is not eventrue of Victoria, still less of the natives of morenortherly districts, who found themselves in need ofprotection against the rain more than the natives inthe south needed shelter from the cold of winter. Theprevailing type in the south is or was the bark hut, orrather breakwind, formed by sheets of bark archedover, or by boughs or both. This afforded little shelter,but the open side was turned round so that it was awayfrom the wind, thus sheltering the fire, which stood onthe same side, and allowing the wind to drive the smokeaway. In Queensland they are of leaves (PI. Xlll.). In West Australia the huts were constructed in lessthan half an hour by a couple of women. They areusually of grass-tree (Xanthorrhcea arbot-ea), but paper-bark (Melaleuca) was also used. On arriving on thecamping-ground, the women set to work to collectbundles of dead flowering stems, six or seven feet long,from the grass-trees in the neighbourhood. Then 70 rLATE 13
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< u HUTS 71 making holes in the ground with their yam-sticks,they planted the stems in them to a depth of someeight inches; the holes were larger at the bottom thanat the top, and ten inches apart, in the form of a horse-shoe, the heel being the doorway. The stems weremade to converge, and on them were placed withered,curled grass-tree rushes, which were held in positionby the hard-pointed seed-vessels of the stems. Theframework was now ready, and the women proceededto gather bundles of green, straight grass-tree rushes ;holding them under the left arm they threw them withthe right hand at an angle of 45°, so that when thesharp points stuck among the covering of dead rushes,the weight of the green stems caused them to benddown and remain in their places. The thatching wasbegun at the ground and continued up to the top,where a second layer was put on, to render the roofwater-tight. When the heat of the sun had been onit for a few hours, the roof settled down and becamesmooth; a thi