Chapter XXIV: Part 24

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In Maori, the adj. rata means red-hot, and there may be a reference to the scarlet appearance of the flower in full bloom. The timber of the Rata is often known as Ironwood, or Ironbark. The trees rise to sixty feet in height; they generally begin by trailing downwards from the seed deposited on the bark of some other tree near its top. When the trailing branches reach the ground they take root there and sprout erect. For full account of the habit of the trees, see quotation 1867 (Hochstetter), 1879 (Moseley), and 1889 (Kirk).

1843. E. Dieffenbach, `Travels in New Zealand,' p. 224:

"The venerable rata, often measuring forty feet in circumference and covered with scarlet flowers--while its stem is often girt with a creeper belonging to the same family (metrosideros hypericifolia?)."

1848. Rev. R. Taylor, `Leaf from the Natural History of New Zealand,' p. 21:

"Rata, a tree; at first a climber; it throws out aerial roots; clasps the tree it clings to and finally kills it, becoming a large tree (metrosideros robusta). A hard but not durable wood."

1854. W. Golder, `Pigeons' Parliament,' canto 1, p. 14:

"Unlike the neighbouring rata cast, And tossing high its heels in air."

1867. F. Hochstetter, `New Zealand,' p. 135:

"The Rata (Metrosideros robusta), the trunk of which, frequently measuring forty feet in circumference, is always covered with all sorts of parasitical plants, and the crown of which bears bunches of scarlet blossoms."

1872. A. Domett, `Ranolf,' p. 264:

"Nay, not the Rata! howsoe'er it bloomed, Paling the crimson sunset; for you know, Its twining arms and shoots together grow Around the trunk it clasps, conjoining slow Till they become consolidate, and show An ever-thickening sheath that kills at last The helpless tree round which it clings so fast."

1875. T. Laslett, `Timber and Timber Trees,' p. 310:

"The Rata-Tree (Metrosideros robusta). This magnificent tree. . . . height 80 to 100 feet . . . a clear stem to 30 and even 40 feet . . . very beautiful crimson polyandrous flowers . . . wood red, hard, heavy, close-grained, strong, and not difficult to work."

1879. H. n. Moseley, `Notes of a Naturalist on Challenger,' p. 278:

One of the most remarkable trees . . . is the Rata. . . . This, though a Myrtaceous plant, has all the habits of the Indian figs, reproducing them in the closest manner. It starts from a seed dropped in the fork of a tree, and grows downward to reach the ground; then taking root there, and gaining strength, chokes the supporting tree and entirely destroys it, forming a large trunk by fusion of its many stems. Nevertheless, it occasionally grows directly from the soil, and then forms a trunk more regular in form."

1883. F. S. Renwick, `Betrayed,' p. 39:

"That bark shall speed where crimson ratas gleam."

1888. Cassell's `Picturesque Australasia,' vol. iii. p. 210:

"The foliage of many of the large trees is quite destroyed by the crimson flowering rata, the king of parasites, which having raised itself into the upper air by the aid of some unhappy pine, insinuates its fatal coils about its patron, until it has absorbed trunk and branch into itself, and so gathered sufficient strength to stand unaided like the chief of forest trees, flaunting in crimson splendour."

1889. T. Kirk, `Forest Flora of New Zealand,' p. 263:

"It is invariably erect, never climbing, although bushmen and settlers frequently state that it climbs the loftiest trees, and sooner or later squeezes them to death in its iron clasp. In proof of this they assert that, when felling huge ratas, they often find a dead tree in the centre of the rata: this is a common occurrence, but it by no means follows that this species is a climber. This error is simply due to imperfect observation, which has led careless observers to confuse Metrosideros florida [the Akal which is a true climber, with M. robusta."

1892. `Otago Witness,' Nov. 10 [`Native Trees']:

"Rata, or Ironwood. It would be supposed that almost every colonist who has seen the rata in bloom would desire to possess a plant."

1893. `The Argus,' Feb. 4 [Leading Article]:

"The critic becomes to the original author what the New Zealand rata is to the kauri. That insidious vine winds itself round the supporting trunk and thrives on its strength and at its expense, till finally it buries it wholly from sight and flaunts itself aloft, a showy and apparently independent tree."

<hw>Rat-tail Grass</hw>, n. name given to-- (1) Ischaemum laxum, R. Br., N.O. Gramineae.

1889. J. H. Maiden, `Useful Native Plants,' p. 92:

"Rat-tail Grass. An upright, slender growing grass; found throughout the colony, rather coarse, but yielding a fair amount of feed, which is readily eaten by cattle."

(2) Sporobolus indicus, R. Br., N.O. Gramineae.

1889. J. H. Maiden, `Useful Native Plants,' p. 109:

"Rat-tail Grass. A fine, open, pasture grass, found throughout the colonies. Its numerous penetrating roots enable it to resist severe drought. It yields a fair amount of fodder, much relished by stock, but is too coarse for sheep. The seeds form the principal food of many small birds. It has been suggested as a paper-making material."

[See Grass.]

<hw>Raupo</hw>, n. Maori name for a New Zealand bulrush, Typha angustifolia, Linn. The leaves are used for building native houses. The pollen, called Punga-Punga (q.v.), was collected and made into bread called pua. The root was also eaten. It is not endemic in New Zealand, but is known in many parts, and was called by the aborigines of Australia, Wonga, and in Europe "Asparagus of the Cossacks." Other names for it are Bulrush, Cat's Tail, Reed Mace, and Cooper's Flag.

1827. Augustus Earle, `Narrative of Nine Months' Residence in New Zealand,' `New Zealand Reader,' p. 67:

"Another party was collecting rushes, which grow plentifully in the neighbourhood, and are called raupo."

1833. Henry Williams's Diary, `Carleton's Life,' p. 151:

"The Europeans were near us in a raupo whare [rush-house]."

1835. W. Yate, `Account of New Zealand,' p. 205:

"To engage the natives to build raupo, that is, rush-houses."

1842. W. R. Wade, `A Journey in the North Island of New Zealand,' `New Zealand Reader,' p. 122:

"The raupo, the reed-mace of New Zealand, always grows in swampy ground. The leaves or blades when full grown are cut and laid out to dry, forming the common building material with which most native houses are constructed."

1843. `An Ordinance for imposing a tax on Raupo Houses, Session II. No. xvii. of the former Legislative Council of New Zealand':

[From A. Domett's collection of Ordinances, 1850.]

"Section 2. . . . there shall be levied in respect of every building constructed wholly or in part of raupo, nikau, toitoi, wiwi, kakaho, straw or thatch of any description [ . . . L20]."

1845. E. J. Wakefield, `Adventures in New Zealand,' c. i. p. 380:

"These [the walls], nine feet high and six inches thick, were composed of neatly packed bunches of raupo, or bulrushes, lined inside with the glazed reeds of the tohe-tohe, and outside with the wiwi or fine grass."

1860. R. Donaldson, `Bush Lays,' p. 5:

"Entangled in a foul morass, A raupo swamp, one name we know."

1864. F. E. Maning (Pakeha Maori), `The War in the North,' p. 16:

"Before a war or any other important matter, the natives used to have recourse to divination by means of little miniature darts made of rushes or reeds, or often of the leaf of the cooper's flag (raupo)."

1867. F. Hochstetter, `New Zealand,' p. 308:

"The favourite material of the Maoris for building purposes is Raupo (Typha), a kind of flag or bulrush, which grows in great abundance in swampy places."

1877. Anon., `Colonial Experiences, or Incidents of Thirty-Four Years in New Zealand,' p. 10:

"It was thatched with raupo or native bulrush, and had sides and interior partitions of the same material."

<hw>Raven</hw>, n. English bird-name. The Australian species is Corvus coronoides, Vig. and Hors.

<hw>Razor-grinder</hw>, n. a bird-name, Seisura inquieta, Lath. Called also Dishwasher and Restless Fly-catcher. See Fly-catcher.

1827. P. Cunningham, `Two Years in New South Wales,' vol.ii. p. 159:

"Neither must you be astonished on hearing the razor-grinder ply his vocation in the very depths of our solitudes; for here he is a flying instead of a walking animal."

1848. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia,' vol. ii. pl. 87:

"Seisura Inquieta, Restless Flycatcher; the Grinder of the Colonists of Swan River and New South Wales."

1845. R. Howitt, `Australia,' p. 332:

"The razor-grinder, fitly so called from making a grinding noise as it wavers in one position a foot or two from the ground."

<hw>Ready up</hw>, v. See quotation.

1893. `The Age,' Nov. 25, p. 13, col. 2:

"Mr. Purees: A statement has been made that is very serious. It has been said that a great deal has been `readied up' for the jury by the present commissioners. That is a charge which, if true, amounts to embracery.

"His Honor: I do not know what `readying up' means.

"Mr. Purves: It is a colonial expression, meaning that something is prepared with an object. If you `ready up' a racehorse, you are preparing to lose, or if you `ready up' a pack of cards, you prepare it for dealing certain suits."

<hw>Red Bass</hw>, n. a fish of Moreton Bay (q.v.), Mesoprion superbus, Castln., family Percidae.

<hw>Redberry</hw>, n. name given to Australian plants of the genus Rhagodia, bearing spikes or panicles of red berries. Called also Seaberry. See also Saloop-bush.

<hw>Red-bill</hw>, n. bird-name given to Estrelda temporalis, Lath. It is also applied to the Oyster-catchers (q.v.); and sometimes to the Swamp-Hen (q.v.).

1802. G. Barrington, `History of New South Wales,' p. 345:

"Lieut. Flinders taking up his gun to fire at two red-bills . . . the natives, alarmed, ran to the woods."

1827. Vigors and Horsfield, `Transactions of the Linnaean Society,' vol. xv. p. 259:

"`This bird,' says Mr. Caley, `which the settlers call Red-bill, is gregarious, and appears at times in very large flocks. I have killed above forty at a shot.'"

1848. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia,' vol. iii. pl. 82:

"Estrelda temporalis. Red-eyebrowed Finch. Red-Bill of the Colonists."

`<hw>Red Bream</hw>, n. name given to the Schnapper when one year old. See Schnapper.

<hw>Red Cedar</hw>, n. See Cedar.

1865. Rev. J. E. Tenison-Woods, `History of the Discovery and Exploration of Australia,' vol. i. p. 434:

"M'Leay river, New South Wales, Lat. 30 degrees 40'. This forest was found to contain large quantities of red cedar (Cedrela toona) and white cedar (Melia azederach), which, though very different from what is known as cedar at home, is a valuable wood, and in much request by the colonists."

<hw>Red Currant</hw>, n. another name for the Native Currant of Tasmania, Coprosma nitida, Hook., N.O. Rubiaceae. See Currant, Native.

<hw>Red Gum</hw>, n. (1) A tree. See Gum. The two words are frequently made one with the accent on the first syllable; compare Blue-gum.

(2) A medicinal drug. An exudation from the bark of Eucalyptus rostrata, Schlecht, and other trees; see quotation, 1793. Sir Ranald Martin introduced it into European medical practice.

177 J. White, `Voyage to New South Wales,' p. 178:

"At the heart they [the trees] are full of veins, through which an amazing quantity of an astringent red gum issues. This gum I have found very serviceable in an obstinate dysentery."

Ibid. p. 233:

"A very powerfully astringent gum-resin, of a red colour, much resembling that known in the shops as Kino, and, for all medical purposes, fully as efficacious."

1793. J. E. Smith, `Specimen of Botany of New Holland,' p. 10:

"This, Mr. White informs us, is one of the trees (for there are several, it seems, besides the Eucalyptus resinifera, mentioned in his Voyage, p. 231) which produce the red gum."

[The tree is Ceratopetalum gummiferum, Smith, called by him Three-leaved Red-gum Tree. It is now called Officer Plant or Christmas-bush (q.v.).]

1865. Rev. J. E. Tenison-Woods, `History of the Discovery and Exploration of Australia,' vol. i. p. 42:

"The usual red gum was observed oozing out from the bark, and this attracted their notice, as it did that of every explorer who had landed upon the continent. This gum is a species of kino, and possesses powerful astringent, and probably staining, qualities."

<hw>Red Gurnet-Perch</hw>, n. name given in Victoria to the fish Sebastes percoides, Richards., family Scorpaenidae. It is also called Poddly; Red Gurnard, or Gurnet; and in New Zealand, Pohuikaroa. See Perch and Gurnet.

1882. Rev. J. E. Tenison-Woods, `Fish of New South Wales,' p. 48:

"Sebastes percoides, a fish of a closely allied genus of the same family [as Scorpaena cruenta, the red rock-cod]. It is caught at times in Port Jackson, but has no local name. In Victoria it is called the Red Gurnet-perch."

<hw>Redhead</hw>, n. See Firetail.

<hw>Red-knee</hw>, n. sometimes called the Red-kneed Dottrel, Charadrius ruftveniris, formerly Erythrogonys cinctus, Gould. A species of a genus of Australian plovers.

1848. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia,' vol. vi. pl. 21:

"Erythrogonys Cinctus, Gould; Banded Red-knee."

<hw>Red Mulga</hw>, n. name given to a species of Acacia, A. cyperophylla, F. v. M., owing to the red colour of the flakes of bark which peel off the stem. See Mulga.

1896. Baldwin Spencer, `Home Expedition in Central Australia,' Narrative, pt. i. p. 16:

"We crossed a narrow belt of country characterized by the growth along the creek sides of red mulga. This is an Acacia (A. cyperophylla) reaching perhaps a height of twenty feet, the bark of which, alone amongst Acacias, is deciduous and peels off, forming little deep-red coloured flakes."

<hw>Red Mullet</hw>, n. New South Wales, Upeneoides vlamingii, Cuv. and Val., and Upeneus porosus, Cuv. and Val., family Mullidae. See Mullet.

1882. Rev. J. E. Tenison-Woods, `Fish of New South Wales,' p. 38:

"The name of this family is a source of much confusion. It is derived from the Latin word mullus, which in the form of `Mullet' we apply to the well-known fishes of quite a different family, the Mugilidae. Another fish to which the term `Red-Mullet' is applied is of the family Cottidae or Gurnards."

<hw>Red Perch</hw>, n. name given in Tasmania to the fish Anthias rasor, Richards.; also called the Barber. In Australia, it is Anthias longimanus, Gunth.

<hw>Red Rock-Cod</hw>, n. name given in New South Wales to the fish Scorpaena cardinalis, Richards., family Scorpaenidae, marine fishes resembling the Sea-perches. S. cardinalis is of a beautiful scarlet colour.

<hw>Red-streaked Spider</hw>, or <hw>Black-and-red Spider</hw>, an Australasian spider (Latrodectus scelio, Thorel.), called in New Zealand the Katipo (q.v.).

<hw>Red-throat</hw>, n. a small brown Australian singing-bird, with a red throat, Pyrrholaemus brunneus, Gould.

<hw>Reed-mace</hw>, n. See Wonga and Raupo.

<hw>Reef</hw>, n. term in gold-mining; a vein of auriferous quartz. Called by the Californian miners a vein, or lode, or ledge. In Bendigo, the American usage remains, the words reef, dyke, and vein being used as synonymous, though reef is the most common. (See quotation, 1866.) In Ballarat, the word has two distinct meanings, viz. the vein, as above, and the bed-rock or true-bottom. (See quotations, 1869 and 1874.) Outside Australia, a reef means "a chain or range of rocks lying at or near the surface of the water." (`Webster.')

1858. T. McCombie, `History of New South Wales,' c. xiv. p. 213:

"A party . . . discovered gold in the quartz-reefs of the Pyrenees [Victoria]."

1860. W. Kelly, `Life in Victoria,' vol. ii. p. 148:

"If experience completely establishes the fact, at least, under existing systems, that the best-paying reefs are those that are largely intersected with fissures--more inclined to come out in pebbles than in blocks--or, if I might coin a designation, `rubble reefs,' as contradistinguished from `boulder reefs,' showing at the same time a certain degree of ignigenous discoloration . . . still, where there are evidences of excessive volcanic effect . . . the reef may be set down as poor . . ."

1866. A. R. Selwyn, `Exhibition Essays,' Notes on the Physical Geography, Geology, and Mineralogy of Victoria:

"Quartz occurs throughout the lower palaeozoic rocks in veins, `dykes' or `reefs,' from the thickness of a thread to 130 feet."

1869. R. Brough Smyth, `Goldfields Glossary,' p. 619:

"Reef. The term is applied to the tip-turned edges of the palaeozoic rocks. The reef is composed of slate, sandstone, or mudstone. The bed-rock anywhere is usually called the reef. A quartz-vein; a lode."

1874. Reginald A. F. Murray, `Progress Report, Geological Survey, Victoria,' vol. i. p. 65 [Report on the Mineral Resources of Ballarat]:

"This formation is the `true bottom,' `bed rock' or `reef,' of the miners."

1894. `The Argus,' March 28, p. 5, col. 5:

"In looking for reefs the experienced miner commences on the top of the range and the spurs, for the reason that storm-waters have carried the soil into the gullies and left the bed-rock exposed."

<hw>Reef</hw>, v. to work at a reef.

1890. Rolf Boldrewood, `Miner's Right,' c. iii. p. 30:

"The University graduate . . . was to be seen patiently sluicing, or reefing, as the case might be."

[See also Quartz-reefing.]

<hw>Regent-bird</hw>, n. (1) An Australian Bower-bird, Sericulus melinus, Lath., named out of compliment to the Prince Regent, afterwards George IV. (therefore named before 1820).

1847. L. Leichhardt, `Overland Expedition,' p. 161:

"Mr. Gilbert observed the female of the Regent-bird."

(2) Mock Regent-bird, now Meliphaga phrygia, Lath.

1848. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia,' vol. iv. pl. 48:

"Zanthomyza Phrygia, Swains., Warty-faced Honey-eater [q.v.]; Mock Regent-Bird, Colonists of New South Wales."

<hw>Remittance-man</hw>, n. one who derives the means of an inglorious and frequently dissolute existence from the periodical receipt of money sent out to him from Europe.

1892. R. L. Stevenson, `The Wrecker,' p. 336:

"Remittance men, as we call them here, are not so rare in my experience; and in such cases I act upon a system."

<hw>Rewa-rewa</hw>, n. pronounced raywa, Maori name for the New Zealand tree Knightia excelsa, R. Br., N.O. Proteaceae, the Honey-suckle of the New Zealand settlers. Maori verb, rewa, to float. The seed-vessel is just like a Maori canoe.

1857. C. Hursthouse, `New Zealand, the Britain of the South,' vol. i. p. 143:

"Rewarewa (honeysuckle), a handsome flowering tree common on the outskirts of the forests. Wood light and free-working: the grain handsomely flowered like the Baltic oak."

1878. R. C. Barstow, `On the Maori Canoe,' `Transactions of the New Zealand Institute,' vol. xi. art. iv. p. 73:

"Dry rewarewa wood was used for the charring."

1880. W. Colenso, `Traditions of the Maoris,' `Transactions of New Zealand Institute,' vol. xiii. p. 53:

"The boy went into the forest, and brought back with him a seed-pod of the rewarewa tree (Knightia excelsa). . . . He made his way to his canoe, which was made like the pod of the rewarewa tree."

1983. J. Hector, `Handbook of New Zealand,' p. 129:

"Rewarewa, a lofty, slender tree, 100 feet high. Wood handsome, mottled red and brown, used for furniture and shingles, and for fencing, as it splits easily. It is a most valuable veneering wood."

<hw>Reward-Claim</hw>, n. the Australian legal term for the large area granted as a "reward" to the miner who first discovers valuable gold in a new district, and reports it to the Warden of the Goldfields. The first great discovery of gold in Coolgardie was made by Bayley in 1893, and his reward-claim, sold to a syndicate, was known as "Bayley's Reward." See also Prospecting Claim, and Claim.

1891. W. Tilley, `Wild West of Tasmania,' p. 11:

"Prospected with the result that he discovered the first payable gold on the West Coast, for which he obtained a reward claim."

<hw>Rhipidura</hw>, n. scientific name for a genus of Australasian birds, called Fantail (q.v.). They are Fly-catchers. The word is from Grk. rhipidos, `of a fan,' and 'oura, `a tail.'

<hw>Ribbed Fig</hw>, n. See Fig.

<hw>Ribbonwood</hw>, n. All species of Plagianthus and Hoheria are to the colonists Ribbonwood, especially Plagianthus betulinus, A. Cunn., and Hoheria populnea, A. Cunn., the bark of which is used for cordage, and was once used for making a demulcent drink. Alpine Ribbon-wood, Plagianthus lyalli, Hook. Other popular names are Houhere, Houi (Maori), Lace-bark (q.v.), and Thousand-Jacket (q.v.).

<hw>Ribgrass</hw>, n. a Tasmanian name for the Native Plantain. See Plantain.

<hw>Rice-flower</hw>, n. a gardeners' name for the cultivated species of Pimalea (q.v.). The Rice-flowers are beautiful evergreens about three feet high, and bear rose-coloured, white, and yellow blooms.

<hw>Rice-shell</hw>, n. The name is applied elsewhere to various shells; in Australia it denotes the shell of various species of Truncatella, a small marine mollusc, so called from a supposed resemblance to grains of rice, and used for necklaces.

<hw>Richea</hw>, n. a Tasmanian Grasstree (q.v.), Richea pandanifolia, Hook., N.O. Liliaceae.

1850. `Papers and Proceedings of the Royal Society of Van Diemen's Land,' May 8, vol. i. p. 278:

"A section . . . of the stem of the graceful palm-like Richea (Richea pandanifolia), found in the dense forests between Lake St. Clair and Macquarie Harbour, where it attains the height of 40 to 50 feet in sheltered positions,--the venation, markings, and rich yellow colouring of which were much admired."

1878. Rev. W. W. Spicer, `Handbook of the Plants of Tasmania,' p. 125:

Richea pandanifolia, H. Giant Grass Tree. Peculiar to Tasmania. Dense forests in the interior and SW."

<hw>Ridge-Myrtle</hw>, n. See Myrtle.

<hw>Rifle-bird</hw>, n. sometimes called also Rifleman (q.v.); a bird of paradise. The male is of a general velvety black, something like the uniform of the Rifle Brigade. This peculiarity, no doubt, gave the bird its name, but, on the other hand, settlers and local naturalists sometimes ascribe the name to the resemblance they hear in the bird's cry to the noise of a rifle being fired and its bullet striking the target. The Rifle-bird is more famed for beauty of plumage than any other Australian bird. There are three species, and they are of the genus Ptilorhis, nearly related to the Birds of Paradise of New Guinea, where also is found the only other known species of Ptilorhis. The chief species is Ptilorhis paradisea, Lath., the other two species were named respectively, after the Queen and the late Prince Consort, Victoriae and Alberti, but some naturalists have given them other generic names.

As to the name, see also quotation, 1886. See Manucode.

1847. L. Leichhardt, `Overland Expedition,' p. 194:

"We saw . . . a rifle-bird."

1886. `Encyclopaedia Britannica,' vol. xx. p. 553:

"Rifleman-Bird, or Rifle-Bird, names given . . . probably because in coloration it resembled the well-known uniform of the rifle-regiments of the British army, while in its long and projecting hypochondriac plumes and short tail a further likeness might be traced to the hanging pelisse and the jacket formerly worn by the members of those corps."-- [Footnote]: "Curiously enough its English name seems to be first mentioned in ornithological literature by Frenchmen--Lesson and Garnot--in 1828, who say (Voy. `Coquille,' Zoologie, p. 669) that it was applied `pour rappeler que ce fut un soldat de la garnison [of New South Wales] qui le tua le premier,' which seems to be an insufficient reason, though the statement as to the bird's first murderer may be true."

1890. C. Lumholtz, `Among Cannibals,' p. 171:

"It was an Australian bird of paradise, the celebrated Rifle-bird (Ptilorhis victoriae), which, according to Gould, has the most brilliant plumage of all Australian birds."

<hw>Rifleman</hw>, n. a bird of New Zealand, Acanthidositta chloris, Buller; Maori name, Titipounamu. See quotation. The name is sometimes applied also to the Rifle-bird (q.v.).

1888. W. L. Buller, `Birds of New Zealand,' vol. i. p. 113:

"Acanthidositta chloris, Buller. The rifleman is the smallest of our New Zealand birds. It is very generally distributed."

[Footnote]: "This has hitherto been written Acanthisitta; but Professor Newton has drawn my attention to the fact of its being erroneous. I have therefore adopted the more classic form of Acanthidositta, the etymology of which is 'akanthid,--crude form of 'akanthis = Carduelis, and sitta = sitta."

1888. W. Smith, `Transactions of the New Zealand Institute,' vol. xxi. art. xxi. p. 214:

"Acanthisitta chloris (Rifleman). The feeble note of this diminutive bird is oftener heard in the bush than the bird is seen."

<hw>Right-of-Way</hw>, n. a lane. In England the word indicates a legal right to use a particular passage. In Australia it is used for the passage or lane itself.

1893. `The Argus,' Feb. 3:

"The main body of the men was located in the right-of-way, which is overlooked by the side windows of the bureau."

<hw>Rimu</hw>, n. Maori name for a New Zealand tree, Dacrydium cupressinum, N.O. Coniferae; also called Red pine. Rimu is generally used in North Island; Red pine more generally in the South. See Pine.

1835. W. Yate, `Account of New Zealand,' p. 40:

"Rimu. This elegant tree comes to its greatest perfection in shaded woods, and in moist, rich soil."

1872. A. Domett, `Ranolf,' p. 117:

"He lay
Couched in a rimu-tree one day."

1875. T. Laslett, `Timber and Timber Trees,' p. 306:

"The Rimu Tree. Height, eighty to 100 feet, fully forty to fifty feet clear of branches . . . moderately hard . . . planes up smoothly, takes a good polish, would be useful to the cabinetmaker."

1879. Clement Bunbury, `Fraser's Magazine,' June, p. 761:

"Some of the trees, especially the rimu, a species of yew, here called a pine, were of immense size and age."

<hw>Ring</hw>, v. tr. (1) To cut the bark of a tree round the trunk so as to kill it. The word is common in the same sense in English forestry and horticulture, and only seems Australasian from its more frequent use, owing to the widespread practice of clearing the primeval forests and generally destroying trees. "Ringed" is the correct past participle, but "rung" is now commonly used.

1846. J. L. Stokes, `Discoveries in Australia,' vol. i. c. x. p. 315:

"What they call ringing the trees; that is to say, they cut off a large circular band of bark, which, destroying the trees, renders them easier to be felled."

1862. H. C. Kendall, `Poems,' p. 56:

The gum-trees, ringed and ragged, from the mazy margins rise."

1873. A. Trollope, `Australia and New Zealand,' c. xx. p. 312:

"Trees to be `rung.' The ringing of trees consists of cutting the bark through all round, so that the tree cease to suck up the strength of the earth for its nutrition, and shall die."

1883. E. M. Curr, `Recollections of Squatting in Victoria' (1841-1851), p. 81:

"Altogether, fences and tree-ringing have not improved the scene."

1889. Cassell's `Picturesque Australasia,' vol. iv. p. 58:

"The trees are `rung,' that there may be more pasture for the sheep and cattle."

(2) To make cattle move in a circle. [Though specifically used of cattle in Australia, the word has a similar use in England as in Tennyson's `Geraint and Enid'

. . . "My followers ring him round:
He sits unarmed."--Line 336.]

1874. W. H. Ranken, `Dominion of Australia,' c. vi. p. 111:

"They are generally `ringed,' that is, their galop is directed into a circular course by the men surrounding them."

1881. A. C. Grant, `Bush Life in Queensland,' vol. ii. p. 126:

"I'll tell you what, you'll have to ring them. Pass the word round for all hands to follow one another in a circle, at a little distance apart."

(3) To move round in a circle.

1884. Rolf Boldrewood, `Melbourne Memories,' p. 20:

"The cattle were uneasy and `ringed' all night."

(4) To make the top score at a shearing-shed. See Ringer.

1896. A. B. Paterson, `Man from Snowy River,' p. 136:

"The man that `rung' the Tubbo shed is not the ringer here."

<hw>Ring-bark</hw>, v. tr. Same meaning as Ring (1).

1888. D. Macdonald, `Gum Boughs,' p. 204:

"The selector in a timbered country, without troubling himself about cause and effect, is aware that if he destroys the tree the grass will grow, and therefore he `ring-barks' his timber."

1890. C. Lumholtz, `Among Cannibals,' p. 9:

"Our way led us through a large but not dense wood of leafless gumtrees. My companion told me that the forest was dead as a result of `ring-barking.' To get the grass to grow better, the settler removes a band of bark near the root of the tree. In a country where cattle-raising is carried on to so great an extent, this may be very practical, but it certainly does not beautify the landscape. The trees die at once after this treatment, and it is a sad and repulsive sight to see these withered giants, as if in despair, stretching their white barkless branches towards the sky."

1893. `Thumbnail Sketches of Australian Life,' p. 232:

"We were going through ring-barked country. You don't know what that is? Well, those giant gum-trees absorb all the moisture and keep the grass very poor, so the squatters kill them by ring-barking--that is, they have a ring described round the trunk of each tree by cutting off a couple of feet of bark. Presently the leaves fall off; then the rest of the bark follows, and eventually the tree becomes nothing but a strange lofty monument of dry timber."

<hw>Ring-dollar</hw>, n. See quotation; and see Dump and Holy Dollar.

1870. T. H. Braim, `New Homes,' c. iii. p. 131:

"The Spanish dollar was much used. A circular piece was struck out of the centre about the size of a shilling . . . and the rest of the dollar, called from the circular piece taken out a `ring-dollar,' was valued at four shillings."

<hw>Ring-eye</hw>, n. one of the many names for the birds of the genus Zosterops (q.v.).

<hw>Ringer</hw>, n. a sheep-shearing term. See quotations. Mr. Hornung's explanation of the origin (quotation, 1894) is probably right. See Rings.

1890. `The Argus,' Sept. 20, p. 13, col. 6:

"A `ringer' being the man who by his superior skill and expertness `tops the score'--that is, shears the highest number of sheep per day."

1893. `The Herald' (Melbourne), Dec. 23, p. 6, col. 1:

"Whence came the term `ringer,' as applied to the quickest shearer, I don't know. It might possibly have some association with a man who can get quoits on to the peg, and again, it might not, as was remarked just now by my mate, who is camped with me."

1894. E. W. Hornung, `Boss of Taroomba,' p. 101:

"They call him the ringer of the shed. That means the fastest shearer--the man who runs rings round the rest, eh?"

1894. `Geelong Grammar School Quarterly,' April, p. 26:

"Another favourite [school] phrase is a `regular ringer.' Great excellence is implied by this expression."

1896. A. B. Paterson, `Man from Snowy River,' p. 162:

"The Shearers sat in the firelight, hearty and hale and strong, After the hard day's shearing, passing the joke along The `ringer' that shore a hundred, as they never were shorn before, And the novice who toiling bravely had tommyhawked half a score."

<hw>Ring-neck</hw>, n. the equivalent of Jackaroo (q.v.). A term used in the back blocks in reference to the white collar not infrequently worn by a Jackaroo on his first appearance and when unaccustomed to the life of the bush. The term is derived from the supposed resemblance of the collar to the light- coloured band round the neck of the Ring-neck Parrakeet.

<hw>Rings, to run round</hw>: to beat out and out. A picturesque bit of Australian slang. One runner runs straight to the goal, the other is so much better that he can run round and round his competitor, and yet reach the goal first.

1891. `The Argus,' Oct.10, p. 13, col. 3:

"Considine could run rings round the lot of them."

1897. `The Argus,' Jan. 15, p. 6, col. 5:

"As athletes the cocoons can run rings round the beans; they can jump out of a tumbler."

<hw>Ring-tail</hw>, or <hw>Ring-tailed Opossum</hw>, n. See Pseudochirus and Opossum.

<hw>Rinka-sporum</hw>, n. a mis-spelt name for the Australian varieties of the tribe of Rhyncosporeae, N.O. Cyperaceae. This tribe includes twenty-one genera, of which Rhynchospora (the type), Schaenus, Cladium, and Remirea are widely distributed, and the others are chiefly small genera of the Southern Hemisphere, especially Australia. (`Century.')

1885. R. M. Praed, `Australian Life,' p. 93:

"Rinka-sporum, a mass of white bloom."

<hw>Riro-riro</hw>, n. a bird. Maori name for the Grey-Warbler of New Zealand, Gerygone flaviventris, Gray. See Gerygone.

1888. W. L. Buller, `Birds of New Zealand,' vol. i. p. 44:

[A full description.]

1889. Cassell's `Picturesque Australasia,' vol. iv. p. 163:

"A little wren managed to squeeze itself through, and it flew off to Kurangai-tuku, and cried, `Kurangai-tuku, the man is riro, riro, riro!'--that is, gone, gone, gone. And to this day the bird is known as the riro-riro."

<hw>River-Oak</hw>. See Oak.

<hw>Roa</hw>, n. another Maori name for the largest or Brown Kiwi (q.v.). In Maori the word roa means long or big.

<hw>Roaring Horsetails</hw>, n. a slang name for the Aurora Australis.

<hw>Robin</hw>, n. The name, in consequence of their external resemblance to the familiar English bird, is applied, in Australia, to species of the various genera as follows:--

Ashy-fronted Fly-Robin-- Heteromyias cinereifrons, Ramsay.

Buff-sided R.-- Poecilodryas cerviniventris, Gould.

Dusky R.-- Amaurodryas vittata, Quoy and Gaim.

Flame-breasted Robin-- Petroica phoenicea, Gould.

Hooded R.-- Melanodryas bicolor, Vig. and Hors.

Pied R.-- M. picata, Gould.

Pink-breasted R.-- Erythrodryas rhodinogaster, Drap.

Red-capped R.-- Petroica goodenovii, Vig. and Hors.

Red-throated R.-- P. ramsayi, Sharp.

Rose-breasted R.-- Erythrodryas rosea, Gould.

Scarlet-breasted R.-- Petroica leggii, Sharp.

Scrub R.-- Drymodes brunneopygia, Gould.

White-browed R. Poecilodryas superciliosa, Gould.

White-faced Scrub-R.-- Drymodes superciliaris, Gould.

The New Zealand species are--

Chatham Island Robin-- Miro traversi, Buller.

North Island R.-- M. australis, Sparrm.

South Island R.-- M. albifrons, Gmel.

Gould's enumeration of the species is given below. [See quotations, 1848, 1869.]

See also Shrike-Robin, Scrub-Robin, and Satin-Robin.

1827. Vigors and Horsfield, `Transactions of the Linnaean Society,' vol. xv. p. 242:

"`This bird,' Mr. Caley says, `is called yellow-robin by the colonists. It is an inhabitant of bushes'"

1848. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia,' vol. iii:

Plate
Petroica superciliosa, Gould, White-eyebrowed
Robin . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Drymodes brunneopygia, Gould, Scrub Robin. . 10

Eopsaltria leucogaster, Gould,
White-bellied Robin . . . . . . . 13

1864. R. L. A. Davies, `Poems and Literary Remains,' p. 263:

"Very soon comes a robin. . . . In the bush no matter where you pitch, the robin always comes about, and when any other of his tribe comes about, he bristles up his feathers, and fights for his crumbs. . . . He is not at all pretty, like the Australian or European robin, but a little sober black and grey bird, with long legs, and a heavy paunch and big head; like a Quaker, grave, but cheerful and spry withal." [This is the Robin of New Zealand.]

1866. Lady Barker, `Station Life in New Zealand,' p. 93:

"The New Zealand robin was announced, and I could see only a fat little ball of a bird, with a yellowish-white breast."

1869. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia' [Supplement]:

Drymodes superciliaris, Gould, Eastern Scrub Robin.

Petroica cerviniventris, Gould, Buff-sided Robin.

Eopsaltria capito, Gould, Large-headed Robin.

E. leucura, Gould, White-tailed Robin.

1872. A. Domett, `Ranolf,' p. 239:

"The large red-breasted robin, kinsman true Of England's delicate high-bred bird of home."

1880. Mrs.Meredith, `Tasmanian Friends and Foes,' p. 123:

"The Robin is certainly more brilliantly beautiful than his English namesake. . . . Black, red and white are the colours of his dress, worn with perfect taste. The black is shining jet, the red, fire, and the white, snow. There is a little white spot on his tiny black-velvet cap, a white bar across his pretty white wings, and his breast is, a living flame of rosy, vivid scarlet."

1888. Cassell's `Picturesque Australasia,' vol. ii. p. 235:

"Here, too, the `careful robin eyes the delver's toil,' and as he snatches the worm from the gardener's furrow, he turns to us a crimson-scarlet breast that gleams in the sun beside the golden buttercups like a living coal. The hues of his English cousin would pale beside him ineffectual."

1896. `The Melburnian,' Aug. 28, p. 54:

"The flame-breasted robin no longer lingers showing us his brilliant breast while he sings out the cold grey afternoons in his tiny treble. He has gone with departing winter."

<hw>Rock-Cod</hw>, n. called also Red-Cod in New Zealand, Pseudophycis barbatus, Gunth., family Gadidae. In New Zealand the Blue-Cod(q.v.) is also called Rock-Cod. Species of the allied genus Lotella are also called Rock-Cod in New South Wales. See Beardy and Ling.

1883. `Royal Commission on the Fisheries of Tasmania,' p. 40:

"A variety known to fishermen as the deep-water, or Cape-cod. . . . It would appear that the latter is simply the mature form of the `rock-cod,' which enters the upper waters of estuaries in vast numbers during the month of May. . . The rock-cod rarely exceeds 2 1/2 lbs. weight."

<hw>Rocket, Native</hw>, a Tasmanian name for Epacris lanuginosa, Lab., N.O. Epacrideae. See Epacris.

<hw>Rock Lily</hw>, n. See under Lily.

<hw>Rock-Ling</hw>, n. a marine fish. The Australian R. is Genypterus australis, Castln., family Ophidiidae. The European R. belongs to the genera Onos and Rhinonemus, formerly Motella. Of the genus Genypterus, Guenther says they have an excellent flesh, like cod, well adapted for curing. At the Cape they are known by the name of "Klipvisch," and in New Zealand as Ling, or Cloudy-Bay Cod.

<hw>Rock-Native</hw>, or <hw>Native</hw>, n. a name given to the fish called a Schnapper when it has ceased to "school." See Schnapper.

<hw>Rock-Parrakeet</hw>, n. an Australian Grass-Parrakeet(q.v.), Euphema petrophila, Gould. It gets its name from its habitat, the rocks and crags.

<hw>Rock-Pebbler</hw>, n. another name for the Black-tailed Parrakeet. See Parrakeet.

<hw>Rock-Perch</hw>, n. the name given in Melbourne to the fish Glyphidodon victoriae, Gunth., family Pomacentridae, or Coral-fishes. It is not a true Perch.

<hw>Rock-shelter</hw>, n. a natural cave-dwelling of the aborigines. See Gibber-Gunyah.

1891. R. Etheridge, jun., in `Records of the Australian Museum,' vol. i. No. viii. p. 171 (`Notes on Rock Shelters or Gibba-gunyahs at Deewhy Lagoon'):

". . . The Shelters are of the usual type seen throughout the Port Jackson district, recesses in the escarpment, overhung by thick, more or less tabular masses of rock, in some cases dry and habitable, in others wet and apparently never used by the Aborigines."

<hw>Rock-Wallaby</hw>, n. the popular name for any animal of the genus Petrogale (q.v.). There are six species--

Brush-tailed Rock-Wallaby-- Petrogale penicillata, Gray.

Little R.-W.-- P. concinna, Gould.

Plain-coloured R.-W.-- P. inornata, Gould.

Rock-W., or West-Australian R.-W.-- P. lateralis, Gould.

Short-eared R.-W.-- P. brachyotis, Gould.

Yellow-footed R.-W.-- P. xanthopus, Gray.

See Wallaby.

1884. Rolf Boldrewood, `Melbourne Memories,' c. viii. p. 58:

"A light, active chap, spinning over the stones like a rock wallaby."

1888. Rolf Boldrewood, `Robbery under Arms,' p. 119:

"They rode and rode, but Warrigal was gone like a rock wallaby."

1894. R. Lydekker, `Marsupialia,' p. 43:

"The Rock-Wallabies are confined to the mainland of Australia, on which they are generally distributed, but are unknown in Tasmania. Although closely allied to the true Wallabies, their habits are markedly distinct, the Rock-Wallabies frequenting rugged, rocky districts, instead of the open plains."

<hw>Roger Gough</hw>, n. an absurd name given to the tree Baloghia lucida, Endl., N.O. Euphorbiaceae.

1889. J. H. Maiden, `Useful Native Plants,' p. 382:

"Scrub, or brush bloodwood, called also `Roger Gough.'"

1896. `The Australasian,' Aug. 28, p. 407, col. 5:

"Who were Messrs. James Donnelly, James Low, and Roger Gough that their names should have been bestowed on trees? Were they growers or buyers of timber? Was the first of the list any relative of the Minnesota lawyer who holds strange views about a great cryptogram in Shakespeare's plays? Was the last of the three any relative of the eminent soldier who won the battles of Sobraon and Ferozeshah? Or, as is more probable, were the names mere corruptions of aboriginal words now lost?"

<hw>Roll up</hw>, v. intr. to gather, to assemble.

1887. J. Farrell, `How he died,' p. 26:

"The miners all rolled up to see the fun."

1890. Rolf Boldrewood, `Miner's Right,' c. xx. p. 185:

"At the Warraluen and other gold towns, time after time the ominous words `roll up' had sounded forth, generally followed by the gathering of a mighty crowd."

<hw>Roll-up</hw>, n. a meeting. See preceding verb.

1890. Rolf Boldrewood, `Miner's Right,' c. xxxv. p. 308:

"Making as much noise as if you'd hired the bell-man for a roll-up?"

<hw>Roly-poly Grass</hw>, or Roley-poley, n. name given to Panicum macractinium, Benth., N.O. Gramineae; and also to Salsola Kali, Linn., N.O. Salsolaceae. See Grass.

1859. D. Bunce, `Travels with Dr. Leichhardt in Australia,' pp. 167-8:

"Very common to these plains, was a large-growing salsolaceous plant, belonging to the Chenopodeaceae, of Jussieu. These weeds grow in the form of a large ball. . . . No sooner were a few of these balls (or, as we were in the habit of calling them, `rolly-poleys') taken up with the current of air, than the mules began to kick and buck. . . ."

1865. Rev. J. E. Tenison-Woods, `History of the Discovery and Exploration of Australia,' vol. ii. p. 468:

"A salsolaceous plant growing in the form of a ball several feet high. In the dry season it withers, and is easily broken off and rolled about by the winds, whence it is called roley-poly by the settlers."

1889. J. H. Maiden, `Useful Native Plants,' p. 100:

"Roly-Poly Grass. This species produces immense dry and spreading panicles; it is perennial, and seeds in November and December. It is a somewhat straggling species, growing in detached tufts, on sand-hills and sandy soil, and much relished by stock."

1896. Baldwin Spencer, `Horne Expedition in Central Australia,' Narrative, p. 13:

"On the loamy flats, and even gibber plains, the most noticeable plant is Salsola kali, popularly known as the Rolly-polly. It is, when mature, one of the characteristically prickly plants of the Lower Steppes, and forms great spherical masses perhaps a yard or more in diameter."

<hw>Roman-Lamp Shell</hw>, name given in Tasmania to a brachiopod mollusc, Waldheimia flavescens, Lamarck.

<hw>Roo</HW>, a termination, treated earlier as the name of an animal. It is the termination of potoroo, wallaroo, kangaroo. See especially the last. It may be added that it is very rare for aboriginal words to begin with the letter `r.'

1790. J. White, `Voyage to New South Wales' [Observations at the end, by Mr. John Hunter, the celebrated surgeon]:

Plate p. 272--A kangaroo. Description of teeth.

Plate p. 278--Wha Tapoua Roo, about the size of a Racoon [probably an opossum].

Plate p. 286--A Poto Roo or Kangaroo-Rat.

Plate p. 288--Hepoona Roo.

<hw>Rope</hw>, v. tr. to catch a horse or bullock with a noosed rope. It comes from the Western United States, where it has superseded the original Spanish word lasso, still used in California.

1884. Rolf Boldrewood, `Melbourne Memories,' c. xxi. p. 150:

"You could `rope' . . . any Clifton colt or filly, back them in three days, and within a week ride a journey."

<hw>Ropeable</hw>, adj. (1) Of cattle; so wild and intractable as to be capable of subjection only by being roped. See preceding word.

(2) By transference: intractable, angry, out of temper.

1891. `The Argus,' Oct. 10, p. 13, col. 4:

"The service has shown itself so `ropeable' heretofore that one experiences now a kind of chastened satisfaction in seeing it roped and dragged captive at Sir Frederick's saddle-bow."

1896. Modern. In school-boy slang: "You must not chaff him, he gets so ropeable."

<hw>Roping-pole</hw>, n. a long pole used for casting a rope over an animal's head in the stockyard.

1880. Rolf Boldrewood, `Squatter's Dream,' c. iv. p. 44:

"I happened to knock down the superintendent with a roping-pole."

1895. A. B. Paterson, `Man from Snowy River,' p. 125:

"I'm travelling down the Castlereagh and I'm a station-hand, I'm handy with the ropin'-pole, I'm handy with the brand, And I can ride a rowdy colt, or swing the axe all day, But there's no demand for a station-hand along the Castlereagh."

<hw>Rosary-shell</hw>, n. In Europe, the name is applied to any marine gastropod shell of the genus Monodonta. In Australia, it is applied to the shell of Nerita atrata, Lamarck, a marine mollusc of small size and black colour used for necklaces, bracelets, and in place of the "beads" of a rosary.

<hw>Rose</hw>, n. name given to the Australian shrub, Boronia serrulata, Sm., N.O. Rutaceae. It has bright green leaves and very fragrant rose-coloured flowers.

<hw>Rose-Apple</hw>, n. another name for the Sweet Plum. See under Plum.

<hw>Rose-bush</hw>, a timber-tree, Eupomatia laurina, R. Br., N.O. Anonaceae.

<hw>Rose-hill</hw>, n. The name is given by Gould as applied to two Parrakeets--

(1) Platycercus eximius, Vig. and Hors., called by the Colonists of New South Wales, and by Gould, the Rose-hill Parrakeet.

(2) Platycercus icterotis, Wagl., called by the Colonists of Swan River, Western Australia, the Rose-hill, and by Gould the Earl of Derby's Parrakeet.

The modern name for both these birds is Rosella (q.v.), though it is more specifically confined to the first. `Rose-hill' was the name of the Governor's residence at Parramatta, near Sydney, in the early days of the settlement of New South Wales, and the name Rosella is a settler's corruption of Rose-hiller, though the erroneous etymology from the Latin rosella (sc. `a little rose') is that generally given. The word Rosella, however, is not a scientific name, and does not appear as the name of any genus or species; it is vernacular only, and no settler or bushman is likely to have gone to the Latin to form it.

1848. J. Gould, `Birds of Australia,' vol. v. pl. 27:

"Platycercus eximius, Vig. & Hors. Rose-hill Parrakeet; Colonists of New South Wales."

Ibid. vol. v. pl. 29:

"Platycercus icterotis, Wagl. The Earl of Derby's Parrakeet; Rose-hill of the Colonists [of Swan River]."

<hw>Rosella</hw>, n. (1) A bird, Platycercus eximius, the Rosehill (q.v.).

1847. L. Leichhardt, `Overland Expedition,' p. 80:

"The common white cockatoo, and the Moreton Bay Rosella parrot, were very numerous."

1884. R. L. A. Davies, `Poems and Literary Remains,' p. 99:

"Saw the bright rosellas fly,
With breasts that glowed like sunsets
In the fiery western sky."

1890. `The Argus,' June 7, p. 13, col. 5:

"The solitudes where the lorikeets and rosellas chatter."

1896. `The Melburnian,' Aug. 28, p. 60:

"As [the race] sweeps past the Stand every year in a close bright mass the colours, of the different clubs, are as dazzling and gay in the sun as a brilliant flight of galahs and rosellas."

(2) In Northern Australia, it is a slang name for a European who works bared to the waist, which some, by a gradual process of discarding clothing, acquire the power of doing. The scorching of the skin by the sun produces a colour which probably suggested a comparison with the bright scarlet of the parrakeet so named.

<hw>Rosemary</hw>, n. name given to the shrub Westringia dampieri, R. Br., N.0. Labiatae.

1703. W. Dampier, `Voyage to New Holland,' vol. iii. p. 138:

"There grow here 2 or 3 sorts of Shrubs, one just like Rosemary; and therefore I call'd this Rosemary Island. It grew in great plenty here, but had no smell."

[This island is in or near Shark's Bay]

<hw>Rosemary, Golden</hw>, n. name given in Tasmania to the plant Oxylobium ellipticum, R. Br., N.O. Leguminosae.

<hw>Rosemary, Wild</hw>, a slender Australian timber-tree, Cassinia laevis, R. Br., N.O. Compositae.

<hw>Rose, Native</hw>, n. i.q. Bauera (q.v.).

<hw>Rosewood</hw>, name given to the timber of three trees. (1) Acacia glaucescens, Willd., N.O. Leguminosae; called also Brigalow, Mountain Brigalow, and Myall.

(2) Dysoxylon fraserianum, Benth., N.O. Meliaceae; called also Pencil Cedar.

(3) Eremophila mitchelli, Benth. N.O. Myoporinae; called also Sandalwood.

1838. T. L. Mitchell, `Three Expeditions,' vol. i. p. 203:

"One or two trees of a warmer green, of what they call `rosewood,' I believe gave a fine effect, relieving the sober greyish green of the pendent acacia."

1847. L. Leichhardt, `Overland Expedition' p. 4:

"The Rosewood Acacia of Moreton Bay."

<hw>Rough</hw>, or <hw>Roughy</hw>, or <hw>Ruffy</hw>, or <hw>Ruffie</hw>, n. a Victorian fish, Arripis georgianus, Cuv. and Val., family Percidae. Arripis is the genus of the Australian fish called Salmon, or Salmon-trout, A. salar, Gunth. See Salmon.

1875. `Spectator' (Melbourne), June 19, 1881:

"Common fish, such as trout, ruffies mullet . . . and others."

1890. `Victorian Statutes--Fisheries, Second Schedule' [Close Season]:

"Rough, or Roughy."

<hw>Rough Fig</hw>, n. See under Fig-tree.

<hw>Rough-leaved Fig</hw>, n. See under Fig-tree.

<hw>Round</hw>, v. trans., contraction of the verb to round-up, to bring a scattered herd together; used in all grazing districts, and common in the Western United States.

1894. `The Argus,' June 23, p. 11, col. 4:

"A friend of mine who has spent many a night rounding the mob on lonely Queensland cattle camps where hostile blacks were as thick as dingoes has a peculiar aversion to one plain covered with dead gums, because the curlews always made him feel miserable when crossing it at night."

<hw>Round Yam</hw>, n. i.q. Burdekin Vine. See under Vine.

<hw>Rouseabout</hw>, n. a station-hand put on to any work, a Jack of all work, an `odd man.' The form `roustabout' is sometimes used, but the latter is rather an American word (Western States), in the sense of a labourer on a river boat, a deck-hand who assists in loading and unloading.

1887. J. Farrell, `How he died,' p. 19:

"It may be the rouseabout swiper who rode for the doctor that
night,
Is in Heaven with the hosts of the Blest, robed and sceptred,
and splendid with light."

18W. `The Argus,' Sept. 20, p. 13, col. 6:

"The `rouseabouts' are another class of men engaged in shearing time, whose work is to draft the sheep, fill the pens for the shearers, and do the branding. . . . The shearers hold themselves as the aristocrats of the shed; and never associate with the rouseabouts."

1892. Gilbert Parker, `Round the Compass in Australia,' p. 58:

"While we sat there, a rouseabout came to the door. `Mountain Jim's back,' he said. There was no `sir' in the remark of this lowest of stationhands to his master."

1894. `Sydney Morning Herald' (date lost):

"A rougher person--perhaps a happier--is the rouseabout, who makes himself useful in the shearing shed. He is clearly a man of action. He is sometimes with less elegance, and one would say less correctly, spoken of as a roustabout."

1896. H. Lawson, `When the World was Wide,' p. 98 [Title of poem, `Middleton's Rouseabout']:

"Flourishing beard and sandy, Tall and robust and stout; This is the picture of Andy, Middleton's Rouseabout."

<hw>Rowdy</hw>, adj. troublesome. Common slang, but unusual as applied to a bullock or a horse.

1872. C. H. Eden, `My Wife and I in Queensland,' p. 69:

"Branding or securing a troublesome or, colonially, a `rowdy' bullock."

1896. A. B. Paterson, `Man from Snowy River, p. 125:

"And I can ride a rowdy colt, or swing the axe all day."

<hw>Rua</hw>, n. Maori word (used in North Island) for a pit, cave or hole. A place for storing roots, such as potatoes, etc. Formerly some of these rua had carved entrances.

<hw>Ruffy</hw> or <hw>Ruffie</hw>, n. a fish. See Rough or Roughy.

<hw>Run</hw>, n. (1) Tract of land over which sheep or cattle may graze. It is curious that what in England is called a sheep-walk, in Australia is a sheep-run. In the Western United States it is a sheep-ranch. Originally the squatter, or sheep-farmer, did not own the land. It was unfenced, and he simply had the right of grazing or "running" his sheep or cattle on it. Subsequently, in many cases, he purchased the freehold, and the word is now applied to a large station property, fenced or unfenced. (See quotation, 1883.)

1826. Goldie, in Bischoff's `Van Diemen's Land' (1832), p. 157:

"It is generally speaking a good sheep-run."

1828. Report of Van Diemen's band Company, in Bischoff's `Van Diemen's Land' (1832), p. 117:

"A narrow slip of good sheep-run down the west coast."

1844. `Port Phillip Patriot,' July 8, p. 4, col. 3:

"The thousand runs stated as the number in Port Phillip under the new regulations will cost L12,800,000."

1846. C. P. Hodgson, `Reminiscences of Australia,' p. 367:

"`Runs,' land claimed by the squatter as sheep-walks, open, as nature left them, without any improvement from the squatter."

1862. H. C. Kendall, `Poems,' p. 78:

"The runs of the Narran wide-dotted with sheep, And loud with the lowing of cattle."

1864. W. Westgarth, `Colony of Victoria,' p. 273:

"Here then is a squatting domain of the old unhedged stamp. The station or the `run,' as these squatting areas are called, borders upon the Darling, along which river it possesses a frontage of thirty-five lineal miles, with a back area of 800 square miles."

1868. J. Bonwick, `John Batman, Founder of Victoria,' p. 34:

"The desire of some to turn Van Diemen's Land into a large squatter's run, by the passing of the Impounding Act, was the immediate cause, he told us, of his taking up the project of a poor man's country elsewhere."

1870. `/Delta/,' `Studies in Rhyme,' p. 26:

"Of squatters' runs we've oft been told, The People's Lands impairing."

1883. G. W. Rusden, `History of Australia,' vol. i. p. 73 [Note]:

"A run is the general term for the tract of country on which Australians keep their stock, or allow them to `run.'"

(2) The bower of the Bowerbird (q.v.).

1840. `Proceedings of the Zoological Society,' p. 94:

"They are used by the birds as a playing-house, or `run,' as it is termed, and are used by the males to attract the females."

<hw>Run-about</hw>, n. and adj. Run-abouts are cattle left to graze at will, and the runabout-yard is the enclosure for homing them.

1890. Rolf Boldrewood, `Colonial Reformer,' c. xviii. p. 218:

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Austral EnglishChapter XXIV: Part 24

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