A Boomerang [poem by Rex Ingamells]

[Editor: This poem by Rex Ingamells was published in Gumtops (1935).]

A Boomerang

This piece of hardwood, cunningly shaped,
Was curved so evenly while picaninnies gaped
At a Warrior who chipped at it with pieces of flint,
And formed it by meticulous dint upon dint.
Outside his wurly he sat beside a tree
And chipped at it patiently for hours — not for me,
But for to kill the wallaby in the rocky pass,
For to kill the wild-turkey hiding in the grass.

Source:
Rex Ingamells. Gumtops, F. W. Preece & Sons, Adelaide, 1935, page 3

Editor’s notes:
picaninnies = black children

wurly = an Aboriginal shelter, made from tree branches, bark, and leaves (also spelt as “wurley” or “wurlie”); also known as a “humpy”