,AUSTRALIA — NATIVES OF NEW SOUTH WALES.* Tam book is not correctly
described-by its titlePage. The " pre- gent state of Australia."' may • bethe' More •taking • cies'gnation to -emigrants; Or those interested .in- emigration to us; I à'-ever, Who feel a-wide sympathy-in human nature,. Ahd a great ouidsity re- specting its-indications in a. savage state, -we -sht old have ap- proached it with more pleasure had it been, rightly hainedAiiec- dotes of and Adventures among the- Natives of New South Wales. Such should be itstitieas suchitis a work full of Charms 'Ofthe Most genuinedescription-. • We have' read it with a satisfaction -Only diminished by the knowledge of the speedy lerniination put to the author's experience by the-condet-of his employers. ;•• The natives of Australia lia.vOung been classed with the brutes of the -field; they have been- placed the very loWest op:the Seale of civilization : there is. scarcely any Vice which they have not been charged with, from cannib.alisnito picking podkets : it ap- peared that crime in sonic Shape or bthei8Was the only thing ti..r whichthey *were alleged.to have a CapacitZ:r"--Sticli Was the report . a discoverers; VoyagerS, and settlers.. • Mr: DAwsCrg•reads as- an admirable lessOn'in the art of judging Of 'People whnse .inanners ariernotiveS are -uttedylinkildwit of Misinterpreted: •-„Tliere is no end td the caution with' which the represenfations visi- tois•aretel. be redeived, respecting peopleWhotif, beertue they are very different ,froni otirselves,-we agreeto terin 'savages. •• 'Much 'has, been said arid written tespectingtheriatiVeS Or • Aust :ha, 'and in almost every instance it has proved errenisous. Pren the very *I/Ord-keno-moo is riot 'known to ' theritliongh- Our; saildis con- mitred it was fl*nanie by Which a.ninial.vventlsIll oVer-the i's•- land. This is a triflingspeeimen; still if is a *anal Of the mis- conceptions that' luiveteen fallen into Mf..- DAWSON, Very wisely, ddeS net Occupy -his.,tinie ..andspace iii 'refuting the "errors of his predecessoi1: he narrates with Simplitity"and* effect -the -scenes and adVentures Which odeUrred: toliiniidliik-endeavOurs' to Settle the' head-quarters' of theAifstMliaii Post Stephens, in the neighbourhood, of etts,,ktoethot... wereSkiar441'.3 • 'very mischievous .; but.- .n1igivA ;11400 etngely the: deshe of averting theirill office:4 Or enlisting .,their:seri:iices,:.he :set -himself about conciliating their good-willitacquiring. - air influende 'over them, and ascertaining the true- character. Of • their diApositiOn§. Mr. DAWSON's narrative introduces us faiiiillarlyamMignatiVe So.- cietyand:Very pleasant society it is We.:are' not sUi prised. that he found- much more Pleasiu e m it than 4...1* intercourse wiih the whites of the colony—certainly no .favourable specimen. of the be- nefits Of - The black fellow, as we call him, and as he has 'learnt to call himself, is a.savagechiefly.hedairSe he eats.' half cooked kanga- roo, lizard, rats, and grubs, and considers the eutrails of. all. ani- mals the, choicest of morsels when well grilled-on a WOodEre, 'We, however, civilized as we-are, eat oysters andAuseles isIw 10 ay nothing of periwinkles, we enjoy the 'trail.' of vi. oOdcoek; an Prance, frogs are a great delicacy, ;_and. there is no keeping a eat Fl BriiSSels-. They are 'savage, beeatiO they only build temporary habitations, when.they, are always moving-about; and frail ones, when it is easier to construct a new abode .;thati to keepari".old one. • They do not wear clothing; because' the climate is beautifully fine, and they are like fhe..Scy_thians,.all.fate: they hbrelbe lip instead of the 'ear., and paint yellow insteafl. of red, When their wiyes are faithless, they reeday.thern,-,that is,. they lay open. their heads, instead of cutting up their-character : they inflict their -Own damages. • They have neither king; nor chief. TRY ...grieve Sin- cerely. at the loss of their friendg„ • They shake all they 'et !with all they meet; they aiVexceediaglyattached to their relatives, and adopt all Orphan children. They are ignerant a our arts, and we of -theirs: they are at a loss in . our towns; -and we in their forests. Can our gentleman throw a spear •withnerring: fordeloa could he; When -placed in the midst- of antagonists hurling their darts.:m every direction, contrive ...to receive each on his small shield,: for which purpose exerting an activity and; a. pliability of hody almost marvellous? What watchmaker or stocking-weavercouldniount a-lofty tree of a- straight- stem, simply by Means. of -his.gYeat 'toes, and notches cut' in bark • as he -is ascending? :What alder- man could spear the fish as . he ,detected it gliding in. the. waters invisible to other, eye ? or so manage- a, light canoe !its..to.',..riele Safely•and.amid a surf of -tremendous force; or in the-midst of a heavy surface -When the savage.- has plenty of food,7lieeatsto gluttony—he has the excuse of know*-- ,:that days'..may,pipse fore. another- OpportunitY •OCour .hels,.•hung.ergd he . . • • v-The Pieseatt State ofAustriliata DeeprIpticiu of the doutih7,-ItsATieilitages and Prospects, with reference to Emigration ; and a particular account of the Manners, Customs, and Condition of its Aboriginal Inhabitants. By Robert Daw- son, Esq. late Chief Agent ofthe Australian Agricultural Company. London, 1830. -ration from him: his senses are carried to that degree of requires neither mirk nor conipasS to guide ; he retraces his path way, grow frantic, and eventually lay himself down and die.. He European does not even sifspeet the -existence of either Sound or with the utmost security, where the civilized man would lose his has his own notions of honour—they. are different from ours, and perfection, that he hears .and Sees distinctly Where the dull object When- Wandering in the depths of the trackless forest, he never complains—he appeases nature by means of . a, tight belt tied round his waist Pain cannot extort an excla- they are inViOlable: whatever his system is, he adheres to it., His ideas of honesty are not Moulded by notions acquired from the ha- bits of property ; but wherever he is trusted, he is faithful, mu- tual confidence being necessary even in, his. community. Morals are like plants—they hare their climates, and are adapted to them. In subtlety, the savage of Australia equals the animal he hunts - or how could he approachIt ? We take our prey, rudely, by pack; of hounds and flocks of men : the New Hollander will contrive to come within reach of.the sharpest animal that exists: and con- sider how many extraordinary qualities go to this achievement,— courage, perseverance,: thorough. knowledge o the animal, the most refined cunning, the utmost vigilance, the sharpest sight, the acutest hearing.. We have no Conception of the exertion of body and the excitement of mind, the intensity of the senses, when em- ployed in such pursuits. A man will creep and crawl, watch, run, stand in his position like a root or a tree !Or a whole day, until he has accomplished his object ; and so thoroughly is his whole heart thrown into the pursuit, that a sudden interruption or dis- appointment will even throw him into a fever. We have a re- markable instance of this recorded in one of Mr. DAWsoN's anec- dotes. This is savagery; nevertheless it has such charms, that no .man has as yet voluntarily left it altogether, or, when taken young and instructed early in the rules of modern civilization, has not seized a speedroccasion of giving a practical proof of the kind of life he preferred. The Australians are not vindictive—a trait too common among the half-savages of Europe : they have been shot like dogs by the settlers and convicts, and yet they have not de- clared war a toutra*e. Instances of revenge occur, but they are rare. "The natives," says Mr. DAwsoN, "complained to me fre- quently, that 'white pellow' shot their relations and friends ; and showed me many orphans, whose parents had fallen by the hands of white Men near this spot. They pointed out one white man, on his coming to beg some provisions for his party up the river Ka, ruah, who, they said, had killed ten ; and the wretch did not deny it, but said he would kill them whenever he could."
Of the amiable disposition of the despised- New -Hollander, the fello.wing passage presents a pleasing picture, confirmed by.nume- rous anecdotes in the subsequent portion of the volume. It con- tains, also, a description of.the Australian .dance ; a complicated movement, not without art and refinement, and certainly demand- ing Equal " During a sliorl,reaftferneeokgortaephens, in the month of Jannary, and before I returned to the neighbourhood of Sydney to bring the ester blishment hither; I as Visited by a considerable tribe of the natives, who were very friendly and desirous of further acquaintance. I encou- raged this disposition, by giving them such food as we had, and also some tobacco, of which they are excessively. fond. I presented to each man a tomahawk (or mago, as they call. it),. which they prize above all things. They are exceedingly fond bf biscuit, bread, or flour, which they knead and bake in the ashes, in the same manner as they see our people do it ; but the article of -food which appears most delicious to them, is the boiled peal of Indian corn; and-next to it the corn roasted in the ashes, like chesnuts : of sugar, too, they are inordinately fond, as well as. of every thing sweet.. One of their greatest treats is to get an Indian bag that has had sugar in it : this they cut into pieces and boil in water. They drink this liquor till they sometimes become intoxicated, and till they are fairly blown out, like an ox in clover, and can take no more. "Having, before I went to Sydney, discovered those things which were most to their taste, I took tare to be well provided with them on my re- turn here. Before I left Port Stephens, I intimated to them that I should soon return in a'corbon' (large) ship, with a murry' (great) plenty of 'white people; and murry tousand things for them to eat. Upon this they set up a great shout, and expressed same boisterous pleasure that school-boys do when a holiday, or any very agreeable treat, is promised by the master. They promised to get me murry tousand bark.' Oh ! plenty bark, massa." Plenty black pellow, massa : get plenty bark.' 'Tree, pour, pive nangry' (three, four, five days) make plenty bark for white pellow, muse! 'You come back toon ?' We look out for •corbon ship on corbon water' (the sea). We tee (see) mama.' We look out.' We get it bark.' After this'they chattered among themselves, laughed incessantly, and 'appeared overjoyed at what was to come. I then gave them a sugar-bag with some sugar, and an iron pot to boil it in. They bore these off in triumph to their camp, a few rods only from my tent ; and when their mess Was prepared, they sent to inform me that they
wished to have a corrobery (dance) if I would allow it. As soon as I
signified to them that they might do what they pleased, they made an immense fire of dried woods, and set their pot of sugar-bag by the side of it: I observed them all to, retire -to their camp for .a- short,time ; and when they returned, they had figured different parts of their bodies with pipe-clay, in a 'very curious and even handsome Manner. They had chalked straight lines from the anklelup the outside of the thigh:; which made then' appear, by fire-light; -as if they: had hussar pantaloons on. Their faces had been rubbed with red earth; like ochre; and their breasts chalked with serpentine lines, interspersed with dots, &c. -They were perfectly naked, as they always are ; and in this state they began to cor- robery, or dance.
"A-man with a woman or twis-act as musicians, by striking two sticks together, and singing or bawling a song, which I cannot Well describe to you : it is chiefly in half tones, extending sometimes very high and loud, and then deseending-solow as almost to sink to nothing. The dance is exceedingly aintising,-but the movement of the limbs is. such as-no Eu- ropean 'could Perform : it it more like the limbs of a pasteboard harlequin, when set in motion by sitting, than any thing else I can think of. They scunetimea ehange places fromapparently indiscrimiaate positions, and
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theiffall off in pairs ; and after this return, with increasing arm:mi.-fn.-a phalanx of four and five deep, keeping up the harlequin-like motion alto. *gether in the best time possible, and making a noise with their lips like proo, proo, proo ;' which changes successively to grunting, like the kan- garoo, of which it is an imitation, and not much unlike that of a pig. Their eyes were all turned towards me ; and when I laughed and appeared much pleased, they quickened their motion in phalanx, and raised the grunting in proportion, till they were tired; and in an instant they turned their backs and disunited, with a loud shout, which gradually turned into a hearty laugh. Dat mum (very) goot, massa.' You like it ?' says one fellow. ' Yes,' said I, ' Very much." Dat belonging to kan- garoo,' says another. Well, massa,' said a third, we drink little now, you know. Black pellow murry dry.' Den more corrobery, you know.' ." You like it, inassa ?" You like him, black pellow ?" You gib (ere) him corn meal.: moak (smoke, meaning tobacco), tomahawk. Murry tousand tings, you know." Dat (I) bring massa pith (fish) when urokah Jump up (the UM rises), and corbon oysters." Dat set down black camp, you know." Bale dat leabe (leave) Pint Teebid? Dat belonging to massa, now." All black pellow belonging to main now, you know. " After this, to me very interesting and amusing colloquy, they corro- beried again and again, till in pity to them I was obliged to tell them to leave off and not tire themselves too much, and that I would join them again soon. At this time I had about thirty men, women, and children about me. During the corrobery, I observed the.gins (women or wives) standing in a circle by themselves, practising a curious. kind of motion with their legs. The fleshy parts of their legs are brought sharply into contact, and they contrive to produce by it a sound almost like a pair of clappers which are used to frighten birds from a garden, only not so loud. On inquiring why they did not corrobery with the men, I could get no answer, only that they never did. " When the promised brig (corbon ship) arrived, which brought us here, after I had left them, they were the first to give notice of her When she hove in sight. They told me that they should look out, and so they did ; but on my landing I found my sable friends had multiplied greatly,, and to no less a number than one hundred and fifty of both sexes, and of all ages and sizes. They painted themselves most gaily to receive us, and showed great joy when I arrived. Our people were struck with astonish- ment at their numbers and appearance, for in that part of the colony where they had been residing they had never seen one. A corrobery was repeated at night round a blazing fire. In these .cases, their painted bodies, white teeth, shock heads of hair, their wild and sayage appear- auce, with the reflection of the fire in a dark night, would have formed IL terrific spectacle to any person coming suddenly and unexpectedly upon. them. They are, however, one of the best-natured people the world, and would never hurt a white man if treated with civility and kindness.. I would trust myself anywhere with them ; and with my own blacks by my side, as I call them, 1 should feel myself safe against any enemy I. could meet with in the bush. They are excellent shot's, and I have often lent them a musket to shoot kangaroos, when it has always been taken
care of and safely returned." • •
We have alluded to the Australian manner of conducting a crime con. case : it is certainly not less civilized than ours. Tho culprit stands in a ring, and receives the onset of all those who think themselves aggrieved. One of. Mr..DAwsolv's favourites was involved in this predicament, and took him Over in his boat to meet the ordeal; but as the party appear,.,aggrieved did not appear, the case was called over. ".1 endeavoured to persuade him not to go :but be -held-it a pointed honour to appear, sad-signified thatibeshouldlie.considerad as s coward, -and branded as such, if he did not present himself. -His-target was beau- tifully made, and ornamented with pipe-clay:and red ochre.' The ground was white, and quartered with red lines, with a red margin. He held it up several times, and flourished it in the boat, saying to me, You. no pear (fear), massa, black pellow.no bit me. I no pear ; I look out; I take care; I top pear (I stop spear); I tee him; I catch him, massa. Bael use (I don't) care.' The word bael means no, not, or • any negative.: they frequently say, Bael we like it;' ' Bael dat good ; Bael me go dere.' But I said, You should not have carried Mary away from her husband.' Bael dat, massa,' he very sharply answered : ' Mary come me. Did hus- band murry bad man : he waddy (beat) Mary. Mary no like it, so it leabe it. Dat pellow no goot, massa.'" • . - We have made some reference to the extraordinary state of ex.- • citement into which the savage is thrown by the chase, and the consequences of his receiving any sudden check or disappointment in the course of his passion. We, of the tame breed of civilization,. can as little understand the pains of the savage as his pleasures. As we shall not probably be able to make room for more extracts from this interesting volume, weimayobserve, with reference-to the folloWing passage, that the book abounds in passages of equal value.
"We then descended into a small valley at the foot of the hills, where there was a large flock of kangaroos, feeding upon the -young and tender grass which had sprung up after the, fires of the natives. My companion was, as usual, all animation at the sight, but. we had then neither gun nor dogs. I had, however, a brace of horse -pistols in my holsters, and he petitioned for one of them, assuring me with much earnestness that he would approach within a few paces -of a kangaroo and shootrit, if I would quietly wait where I was,. As Ithought we should have"plenty of time, I gave him the pistol, feeling no little curiosity to see pow he would effect his purpose. I expressed great doubts of his success, and this made him the more eager to prove his skill.- We were not more than about three hundred yards from the flock ; balls we were partlfnoneealed from them by the winding of the hill from which We had descended, they continued quite undisturbed, andl dismounted and seated myself on a fallen tree, from which I could observe Wiekie's motions, as well as those of the kangaroos. He placed himself in a line with the trees, which concealed his body as he advanced. He crept on exactly like a catWhen it draws .upon its prey, occasionally shifting his position with the greatest caution as the kangaroo-moved, so as always to have a tree in a-line between-himself and his game. ' The kangaroo Would sometimes take an alarm, and place itself suddenly in an ereet_positiQn upon its haunches, with tsears pricked up, listening and looking in ,every direc- tion, about him. Upon this W ickie would instantly wise, ahd .inwhat- ever laosition his body might heat the Moment; he remained fixedto the sped like a tree in the forest, till the animal resumed his feed again. He severe/ times turned his bead cautiously towards me (his body still bend- ing, forward), stretching back his left hand-with a tremulous motion, as much as-to bespeak my-quiet-observation 'of his proceedings. I watched him *Ibis way with intense interest for, at least half an hour, when sud- denlY the remainder of our party 'entered the'valley and put al the hen- • • garoos to flight. Wicitie ceidd not have felt more disappointed at this moment than I did. He immediately returned to Me with a disappointed and angry countenance ; and on my condoling with him, he broke out into some very angry expressions against the pack-horses and all who had accompanied them. I had no doubt that he would have performed the feat which he attempted, had no interruption taken place, and as- sured him of this belief, but be was inconsolable. He returned the pistol, and walked on, without uttering another word, to the place where the tent was about to be fixed, when -he threw himself upon the grass, de- termined not to be pleased upon any terms. I pitied the poor fellow, but thought he would soon come round if left to himself, and therefore took no further notice of him for a time. "As soon as the fire was kindled and other matters arranged for the ,night, the pipes and roasted corn were put in requisition as usual by the rest of the natives ; but poor Wickie joined in neither. We had brought several haunches of kangaroo with us, and the natives had as much of it as was necessary for them ; but Wickie refused this also. I now saw that his previous excitement had exceeded any thine. of which I had sup- posed him capable; that it had been suddenly checked by severe disap- .pointment, which, without the employment of reason to counteract it, had actually made him ill. He was, however, persuaded to take a little tea, after which he resumed his former position in the grass ; and on my pressing him to tell me what was the matter, he complained of a pain in
his head. Merry tick,' as he called it, 'all over belonging to cobrer,' (head.) I could scarcely persuade myself that such an effect could be produced from so trifling a cause ; yet when I compared his present state with his cheerful and happy manner through the day, up to the very moment of his disappointment, and the unusual violence with which he expressed himself on its occurrence, I was inclined to think his present illness was in a great measure, if not entirely, the effect of it. te- fOre I retired to rest, I examined him more minutely ; and finding that his loss of appetite was accompaned by fever and a continued pain in the head, I gave him some medicine, and had him wrapped up in a blanket.
• He passed a restless night, and was se ill in the morning and during the day, as to render it very difficult to get him on with us. He was very tractable, particularly quick in his perceptions as well as in his feelings, and always appeared to possess greater capabilities of civilization than any other native I had seen. "We returned home by the valley to the south-east, in which were some very rich undulations between two high ranges, watered by a small river that ran through its centre. We saw here abundant traces of the wild natives ; the smoke from their fires and from the grass which was burning in various directions amongst the hills, frequently ascended in thick clouds at a distance on all sides of us. Several recently-inhabited .gunyers were met with, and notches in the trees were also frequently robserved: some of these were made with iron, and others with stone hatchets ; but we were not so fortunate as to fall in with any of the tribes ,in this quarter. "Immense quantities of kangaroos were feeding on the young grass, but our dogs were nearly worn out by wounds and fatigue ; we, however, had one course with a doe kangaroo, which on being hard pressed threw a young one from her whilst she was going at full speed, by putting her fore-arm in her pouch and ridding herself of the burden. The young one was large enough to jump away at a pretty good pace ; but was soon secured by the natives, who. were half frantic at the sight of so much game."
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