Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1891-05-23
THE BOOMERANG.
WHAT THIS CRUDE WEAPON CAN
ACTUALLY ACCOMPLISH.

Many Of the Fables Told Aboat n Ex-
pioded The Coekatoo story Made Out OF
"whole Ciath"-There g. No oceasion 60
Invent stories About the Uneanny Thing.
More has been written and less Il un.
derstood of the boomerang than Of almost
any other weapon. IL Is generally known
TO be fiat stick of wood bent into
shape which suggests the combination
of V and U, although with the ex-
tremities spread apart until they are at
right angles with each other. In point /
of fact. boomerangs are of almost every /
shape, from semi-circular to nearly +
straight, and seem 10 depend for their /
efficiency not so much upon the evident /
form as upon the curves which are
shown upon their flat sides. II one takes |
boomerang and looks along its sharp
outer edge II Is seen that this edge pre-
sents wavy appearance-a delicately
adjusted sinuosity like the line Of long
screw. This curve is not deliberately
fashioned or smoothed into evenness;
the hard wood of which the boomerang
Is usually made, being picked out with
short blows from a sharpened flint held
in the hand, almost always shows, in
deed. infinite irregularities.
NO UNIFORM PLAN.
What rule of construction the savage
artificer follows even he himself would
probably be unable to say Yet he has
some definite plan in mind, no doubt, for
while he chips and pecks away at the
/ wood he takes frequent squints along its
edge to see how his curves are progress.
ing. have never seen two boomerangs
that were just alike. but all are similar
in their relations of curves along the flat
side. The boomerang maker knows in
stinctively Just where his boomerang
/ will 20 when he throws il, although he
never seems 10 aim any two I'm the same
way.
More lies have been told about the
boomerang than can be well enumerated,
and nearly every Australian traveller
comes back with a fresh assortment.
One hears of men who can so throw a
boomerang that il kills an enemy behind
tree and then comes cheerfuliy fiutter-
ing back to its owner, who thereupon
hurls il on fresh mission of carnage.
A flock Of frightened cockatoos speed
ing in intricate gyrations through air 20
escape the attack of natives who want a
bird for dinner, are pursued at every
turn by these erratic weapons, which
strike them down dozen each, and SO
return TO the hand that cast them. Old
wives fables these, at which Australians
laugh, knowing in the nature of things
their falsity.
In the frs; place the war boomerang
Ii not made for return. and is onl,
! ! slightly bent. so that it may go hopping
and bounding along the earth like hoop
and make capacious holes in the bodie
of the adversary These are of hard
!. heavy wood. and ugly things to be hi
withal. but the return boomerang i
amply a plaything, or to be used II
light hunting, and although it might Civ
. man painful rap. could not seriousl.
iniure him As for the cockatoo story
! 1t has this much of truth. that a n9tiv
boomerang hurler, II he saw a flock fly
: ing by him in a straight course, could >
cast his weapon as TO come upon then
unawares at given point in their flight
and, perhaps, knock one down--but hi
, , boomerang would drop. too, having n
power of flight after 1t has struck any
thing
WHAT 1T WILL REALLY DO.
The boomerang Is sufficiently remark
able without being regarded in the ligl
! of a long bow, and drawn by every toul
: ist In the colonies. II is held perper
dicularly and taken firmly in the han
by one of its extremities. with the othe
!, pointed forward, and Is hurled with
full arm and assisted by a run and swim
of the whole body. A slight turn of th
l wrist at the moment of discharge cause
I il To assume various erratic courses
: Sometimes it will fly straight forwar
for 100 or even 200 yards. then ris
!. sharply 10 a great height. lose its fore,
and flutter down TO the feet of til
thrower Again. il will rise in the ali
= swoop down with immense rapidity, AN
: skim around in great semi-circle fe'
y inches from the ground, rise once MOI
and return 10 the spot whence 1t startes
Ii will also start of in a great swoD
10 the right. reverse 1t and turn to III
: left, skim around the thrower in a seri,
Of ever narrowing circles, and, findin
their center. fall into 1t like an exhauste
= bird There il something uncanny abol
the thing; its movements are so une,
: pected and out of reason that IL seems ,
be alive and TO take savage delight
: strange shoots and dashes, which max
the new ehume tAustralian equiyaler
for "tendsrfoot'l dodge every time
2 turns lest II should knock him on I'll
= head
The yarn about the Australian blacl
= always throwing the boomerang wit
! their backs to the object they desire |
y hit. is piece Of the same whole clotl
g as the eockatoo fabls and the lie abot
= tho missile returning 10 its owner aft,
y killing the gentleman behind the trei
An expert thrower can cause his boone
v !. ang to shoot behind him after a sho
:, preliminary excursion in front. and con
= very near given object. hut il he real
:, wants to hit anything. either in huntin
u or war. he doesn't fool away his tin
J; with the return boomerang. but throw
q the heavy. nearly straight one, whic
goes direct 10 the mark without an
. fourishes Such Is the boomerang
'i two-formed utcnsil. with one shape use
ie for business, the other for sport. Co
Springfield Mass Republican.
ID Not Physical shortnesA-
= "Mamma, that tall fine looking youn
= :, man leaning against the piano surely cal