The Aborigines

The native people of Australia are called the aborigines. They are brown-skinned people. At one time they were the sole inhabitants of this continent. Now their number has dwindled to about fifty thousand. They Live in some parts of Australia. Especially on the drier plains of north and northeast Australia. They are hunters and food gatherers. They are territorial tribes. And they usually hunt and gather food only in their own area. Their diet consists of roots, grubs, caterpillars, seeds, wild berries. There they grind into the flour. They also eat the meat of the kangaroo, crocodile, porpoise, and hedgehog. Their hunting weapons are made up of wooden clubs, stones, boomerangs, and axes. They hunt fish with the help of long spears. Their houses are simple structures. They consist of two large forked sticks and a crossbar. Across these are slung strips of tree barks. These are temporary structures. They leave them behind once the tribe moves on to another place. They make fire by the most primitive method that is known to mankind. They twirl a pointed stick into a piece of dry wood. They place their food for cooking on the hot ashes and not on the fire. They are famous for their extraordinary ability to find water, either by the animal or by bird movement. They can also find water-bearing roots from the ground. They have excellent eyesight and are experts in tracking down animals or people. Police and other law enforcement agencies often take their help in searching for criminals and lost people in the large outback of Australia.

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