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Science Forum Index » Anthropology - Paleo Forum » Austr.hunter-gatherers
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| Marc Verhaegen |
 Posted: Fri Feb 02, 2007 7:11 pm |
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References from journals & reports of early expeditions by Europeans into
Australia:
E.Eyre 1845. Journals of Expeditions into Central Australia. London: T&W
Boone.
:260-7: "Fish are sometimes taken in another way. A party of natives proceed
to a lagoon, or lake of still water, each carrying in his hand a small net
(ken-de-ran-ko) [...] With this the native dives to the bottom, and searches
among the weeds until he sees a fish; he then cautiously places the net
under it, and, rising suddenly to the surface, holds his victim at arm's
length above his head; and then biting it to kill it, he throws it on the
shore and dives down again for another. ... The natives are very skillful in
this mode of fishing, and it is an interesting sight to see several of them
in the water diving together ... I have even seen natives dive down in the
river, without net or implement of any kind, and bring up good-sized fish,
which they had caught with their hands at the bottom ... Another method of
diving with the net is conducted on a larger scale. The net itself is made
of strong twine, from six to eight feet long, oval at the top, about two
feet across, and two deep ... With this the two natives dive together under
the cliffs which confine the Murray [River], each holding one end of the
bow"
:262-263: "In the larger rivers, when the waters are low and clear, a party
of natives varying in numbers from five to forty plunge in with their
spears, which for the purpose are made of hard wood, with smooth, sharp
points, and about six feet long. Forming themselves into a large semicircle
in the water, they all dive down, simultaneously, with their weapons,
accompanied sometimes by a young man, a few yards in advance of the middle
of the party , and without a spear. For a considerable time they remain
under water, and then, if successful, gradually emerge, and deliver the fish
that have been speared, to their friends on the shore. If unsuccessful they
swim a few yards further down, and dive again with their weapons ... The
regularity with which they keep their relative positions, notwithstanding
the current of the river, and the dexterity and order with which they dive
under the water, are truly surprising to a person who witnesses them for the
first time ... The large fresh-water lobster is sometimes procured by
diving, in which case the females are generally employed, as the weather is
cold, and light is the best time to procure them. It is extraordinary to see
a party of women plunge into the water on a cold dark night, and swim and
dive about amongst logs, stumps, roots and weeds without ever hurting
themselves, and seldom failing to obtain the object of their search ...
Turtle are procured in the same way, but generally by men, and in the day
time ... Muscles [sic] of a very large kind are also got by diving. The
women whose duty it is to collect these, go into the water with small nets
(len-ko) hung round their necks, and diving to the bottom pick up as many as
they can, put them in their bags, and rise to the surface for fresh air,
repeating the operation until their bags have been filled. They have the
power of remaining for a long time under the water."
T.Mitchell 1839. Three expeditions into the interior of Eastern Australia.
London: T&W Boone.
Vol.I:34-35: "[Regent's Lake] abounds with the large fresh water muscle,
which was the chief food of the natives, at the time we visited it ... On
first approaching the lake, we saw the natives in the midst of the water,
gathering the muscles (Unio)."
Vol.II:268-9: "The king stood erect in his bark canoe, while nine young men,
with short spears, went up the river, and as many down, until, at a signal
from him, all dived into it, and returned towards him, alternatively
swimming and diving; transfixing the fish under water, and throwing them on
the bank."
Vol.II:305: "The divers of the Darling live chiefly on the fish of the
river, and are expert swimmers and divers. They can swim and turn with great
velocity under water, and they can both see and spear the largest fish,
sometimes remaining beneath the surface a considerable time for this
purpose."
C.Sturt 1837. Two Expeditions into Southern Australia. London: Smith, Elder
& Co.
:114: "They would slip, feet first, into the water as they walked along the
bank of the river, as if they had accidently done so, but, in reality, to
avoid the splash they would necessarily have made if they had plunged in
head foremost. As surely as they then disappeared under the surface of the
water, so surely would they re-appear with a fish writhing upon the point of
their short spears. The very otter scarcely exceeds them in power over the
finny race, and so true is the aim of these savages, even under water, that
all the fish we procured from them were pierced either close behind the
lateral fin, or in the very centre of the head."
G.Grey 1841. Expeditions in Western Australia 1837-1839. London: T&W Boone.
Vol.2:275-6: "In deep rivers, or in the sea, the mode of spearing fish
varies according to the circumstances of the case; sometimes it is done be
diving..."
K.Dahl 1926. In Savage Australia. London: Philip Allan & Co.
:17: "The fruit of water-lilies, and the stalks and roots of these plants,
are plucked by swimming and diving in lagoons."
:136: "...everywhere on the steep shores fresh water mussels abounded, as
far as I could see a species of Unio, very similar to the European pearl
mussel found in fresh water. The natives collected and ate great quantities
of this mussel."
:244: "Finally, after a remarkably long time, the heads of all the blacks
appeared almost simultaneously in the middle of the pool. They blew like
dolphins, laughing and roaring, and one of them waved a small turtle by its
hind leg ... A larger turtle had escaped up the pool, and three or four men
swam up in order to chase it out again from its hole in the bank. The black
bodies dived again simultaneously, and after some time reappeared, all
except one. No turtle. Under the opposite shore, however, great whirls in
the water showed that a violent contest was going on beneath the surface,
and after some time the last native appeared holding a turtle more than a
foot long ... he seemed to me to have been under water for several
minutes..."
G.Angus 1847. Savage life and scenes in Australia and New Zealand. London:
Smith, Elder, & Co.
: 90: "A mussel, a species of anadon, is also constantly sought after, and
is eaten with bullrush-root. The women dive for them in the deep water of
the Murray, with a net round their necks, which they bring up full, after
remaining under water for three or four minutes. On Lake Alexandria the
women go upon rafts, constructed of layers of reeds, to the beds where the
mussels abound ... every now and then they dive off in search of the shells,
and come up with their net-bags loaded with mussels. For eight months in the
year they gather crayfish, which they catch with their toes..." p90
There are also within the literature descriptions of Aboriginals catching
waterbirds by submerging themselves in the water and catching them by
surprise (Angus 1847, Basedow 1925, Spencer 1928), references to the use of
shells as tools or implements (Angus 1847, Basedow 1925, Dahl 1926), and
many examples of the importance of the freshwater mussel as a food source
(Mitchell 1839, Eyre 1845, Leichhardt 1847, Basedow 1925, Angus 1926, Dahl
1926, Spencer 1928).
Spencer 1928:774-5: "The younger boys and girls spend the whole day either
wading up to their necks in water or in their dug-out canoes, paddling about
and swimming, gathering as many lily roots and stems and seeds as they can
devour ... All day lang the women and children are in the water, gethring
lily "tuck out", while the men spear fish and catch water-fowl, climb trees
after flying-fox and honey bag or hunt larger game such as kangaroos and
emus."
Obviously these are descriptions of modern humans, with modern technology,
but it clearly demonstrates that Australian Aborigines (men and women)
sometimes dived to collect food, including freshwater fish, crayfish,
shellfish, turtles and plants. Not that diving was the only method used to
procure these foods, and obviously non-waterside foods were also gathered
and hunted.
--Stephen Munro |
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| Jois |
| Posted: Tue Feb 13, 2007 11:43 am |
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"Marc Verhaegen" <fa204466@skynet.be> wrote in message
news:45c3c535$0$3138$ba620e4c@news.skynet.be...
Quote: Spencer 1928:774-5: "The younger boys and girls spend the whole day either
wading up to their necks in water
I've never been able to do that.
Jois |
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