The Bamberg herald. [volume] (Bamberg, S.C.) 1891-1972, 1911-03-02

UNIQUE HUNTING METHODS.

How the Australian Black Fellows
Stalk Their Game.
lone afternoon when l was quite
small boy living in the heart of the
Australian bush," says writer In
the American Boy, "a blackfellow, his
wife and their two children were
camped near the creek which ran
through our farm. They had just ar
rived and we're both tired and hun
cry.
80 the blackfellow walked down
to the edge of the creek and had a
look around. Soon he saw pair OF
wild turkeys, or bustards, feeding
quietly along a wide open space and
about 80 yards away. Now, wild
turkeys are very good eating, but
they are very shy birds and difficult
to get near.
"The blackfellow had no gun, but
had three boomerangs, four spears
and a club called the nulla nulla: l
watched him carefully to see what
he would do. He took the three
boomerangs and the nulla nulla.
Then he broke several branches of
a neighboring tree and swan quietly
across the creek. On the other side
he skirted around the edge of the
clearing, getting as close to the tur-
keys as he could under cover.
81 soon lost sight of him and
kept my eyes on the turkeys. After
about a quarter of an hour sud-
denly noticed we'll out on the clear
ing bunch of shrubbery. Watching
it carefully, I saw that it was gradu-
ally approaching the birds. 1t never
moved except when the birds had
their heads down feeding.
"At last it got so close that the
turkeys noticed it, but beyond good
stare they paid no further attention
to it. Nearer and nearer it ap-
preached until it was only about 20
yards away. Then with jump that
made me start the blackfellow sprang
up from behind the boughs and run
ming into the birds, threw his BOOM
erangs at them. He seemed to hit
both of them, but one flew away all
the same. The other one, however,
was disabled and the blackfellow
soon finished it off with his club.
'sIt is the fashion to speak con-
temptuously of the intellect of the
Australian blacks; certainly in some
respects they are very deficient. /
never met one, for example, that
could count more than five, and most
of them can count only up to three.
But, as hunters they are extremely
skillful, very patient, and possessed
of great fund of knowledge regard
ing the habits of the game they pur-
sue.
81 have seen them catch ducks in
much the same manner as the turkey
was caught. The hunter, with a
bundle of reeds, or other aquatic
vegetation, slips quietly into the edge
of the lake or lagoon or river, and
either wades or swims with the vege-
tation on his head, noiselessiy up to
the ducks. Then, one after another
he quietly but swiftly pulls them un-
der water, where he strangles them
and attaches them to his belt.
'It would be thought that the
ducks would either call out or flap
their wings and so alarm their mates;
but the blackfellow does his work
so smartly that the duck is under
meath the water before it has time to
do anything.
"The kangaroo is stalked in quite
a different and rather peculiar man
ner. Finding where there is a
kangaroo, feeding alone if possible,
the blackfellow crawls as close as he
can to him. His weapons this time
are two spears. When there is no
more cover he waits until the kan
garoo has it's head down and is nib
bling the grass. Then he stands up
beside a tree in full view of the
kangaroo but absolutely motionless.
"The kangaroo looks up but see
ing nothing moving, resumes feed
ing. The olackfellow then takes a
few slow and very cautious steps to-
ward the animal, dragging his two
spears carefully through the grass
with his toes. The moment the kan
garoo stops feeding he becomes i'm
movable, standing, with his hands at
his side, like a thin black stump.
"This strategy goes on for per-
haps 20 minutes, at the end Of which
n