Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1898-08-20
K A N G ARoo HIDE S
Hard to Supply the Demand Now for Fins
Skins
The Dangers of the Hunt Keep Up the
Prices-Big Profits, Too,
Sometimes.
Written for The Evening Star.

Written for The Evening Star.
Not many people have any idea how eN
tensively kangaroo hides are utilized in this
country" said leading wholesale leather
dealer In New York 10 the writer recently
Last year there were over 10000 such
skins received in this city and about ~
per cent of these were tanned in one large
establishment in Newark. y. J. The hides
all come from Australia and New Zealand.
where the kangaroos are killed some 80
miles back from the coast and shipped from
Melbourne, Sydrey and Newcastle Austria
liza, and from Masterson i'm New Zealand.
Prior to 1889 the kanEaroos were killed
and eaten in Australia, and their hides
were cut up and made mostly into shoe
strings and belts. But an EnElishman
named Brown in that year made some ex-
periments which resulted in his discovering
the remarkably tough character of the
leather, and he brought several hundred
h des to America al a speculation. He tried
hard &c sell the skins to various tanners.
but they were shy of the novelty. and he
at last had to sell them at a sacrifice TO
New York bookbnder. The latter mer-
chant made triangular corner pieces for
leGgers and commercial books out of the
skins, and thus ascertained the good duali-
ties of the leather. One of these books got
into the hands of the proprietor OF a large
Newark tannery and his attention was al
of the leather binding. He made some ex-
periments with the skin. and found that It
poss esSed remarkable tenaciouSness and
compactness of grain. which prevented II
from absorbing water. while the acids I'm
backing met with almost impervious
substance. Several hundred skins were
soon after tanned and put upon the market.
and so large was the demand for the new
leather that it was hard work for years 10
get sufficient quantity of hides to supply
the trade. In 1880 the Newark tanner sent
agents 20 Australia and made arrangements
TO ship such numbers of skins as would sat
isfy the demand for thu article here.
THE characteristic climate Of Australia
and the pdgnacity of the kangaroo has.
however, always made the hunting OF the
hides dangerous. and these difficulties con-
tinue to limit the supply and keep up the
price of the animals skins. Winter starts
in Nav and ends in December in that coun-
try. The rest of the year the heat is in
tense. the Thermometer frequently reaching
30 degrees. Eight men hunt together for
kangaroos. They are called set When
brought TO hay the Kangaroo jumps like
fash for hunters chest and tries to crush
ii In with his fore feet. To prevent this
each man wears across his chest piece of
mating two three inches thick Armed
with spear with club attachment at the
ether end. they ride upon swift horses into
herd. With the agility and equipoisa OF
circus riders they stand erect uDon their
horses and use their spears and clubs. The
kangaroo is able to jump clear over n
horse.
"As soon as the animal is killed x is skin
n I'D. and the hide is stretched on the ground
and pCgged down securely to prevent
shrinkaEe The flesh furnishes meat for the
camp. Each man places his private mark
upon his booty. and WREN they have 100
skins they return to civilization. There are
twenty varieties of kanga roCs. among them
the blue, red Wallaby. black. gray and for
ester. the latter furnishing the best leather,
as ii lives mainly in wooded sections. When
the shipping ports are reached the hunters
dispose of the skins by auction to the high
est bidder, and receive about eighty cents a
pound for them. Kangaroo hunters make
large profits. One man is known to have
cleared $1,000, flee of living expenses, last
wear"