142 66 EXTRACT FROM MR. DUNCAN'S JOURNAL. On the 8th July, a party of our people, headed by our first Lieutenant, went on an excursion, with only one day's provisions; the same day our party went up to the west side of the bay, where the natives have often been seen. On approaching a small sandy bay the natives made their appearance, with their spears in an attitude of defence. On a handkerchief being thrown to them, they went into the water, but they did not wish our men to land. In the evening, the party that left the settlement on the 8th returned, having for some time lost their way. They did not see any of the natives. 'On the 11th, at about ten, A. M. seven of the natives came down on the beach, near the Lagoon, carrying their spears. Captain Smyth and Mr. Belcher went up to them and gave them some articles; two of them, who were named Wellington and Waterloo, came into the settlement along with them-they were bedaubed over with red clay. After eating some biscuit, &c. they joined their companions, and returned into the woods. Whilst the two chiefs remained in the camp, the other five natives stood at a short distance, with their spears in their hands. “At one, P. M. on the 14th, the natives again came down and joined some of our people on the beach; at three, P. M. two of them came off to the ship, in company with Mr. Belcher and Mr. Carr. After they had seen the different parts of the ship, shaved and clothed, they were again sent on shore; during the time they remained on board, their companions, to the number of fourteen, remained on the beach, and were quite rejoiced to see the two chiefs arrive on shore. "On the 15th, seven or eight of them came down, with the two who were on board the Success: they remained only for a short time; in the afternoon a party went out sailing, they landed on the opposite shore, in a sandy bay, where the natives had often been seen. Their canoes were on the beach. On the approach of the boat, several of the natives appeared, and made signs to our people to go on shore, which desire they complied with. There were several human bones lying on the sands, but the natives did not wish our men to touch them, but made signs to the men to follow them into the woods, which they did for a short distance; but being unarmed, and some of the natives making rather too free, they EXTRACT FROM MR. DUNCAN'S JOURNAL. thought it most prudent to return. 143 Whilst in the woods with the natives, one of them stole a handkerchief from our Lieutenant. On Wellington knowing of the theft, he immediately made the man return it. It was then offered to Wellington, but he would not accept of it until they returned to the beach. "On the 17th the natives, about twelve in number, came down, accompanied by Wellington; they employed themselves, along with our men, cutting wood, turning the rope jack, and stirring the rice, which was boiling for the ships company's dinner. On the same afternoon, one of the natives stole a large axe, after he had seen and tried its use. The people who were cutting wood followed them, but the natives presented their spears at them. Our people being unarmed were obliged to retreat, and the thief got clearly off. At 6h 40′ P. M. the Colonial brig Mary Elisabeth arrived, bringing along with her a native of India, whom she picked up on one of Flinders Islands. At 11h. 40′ P. M. the natives came into the camp, about twenty in number, and advanced near to one of the sentries: he fired at them, but did no injury. The natives immediately fled. "On the 18th July, the Lascar came on board the Success, and from him I learned the following particulars :-" That he belongedto the ship Fame, which was wrecked in the Straits; that he and a few others escaped in a leaky boat, after rowing for forty-eight hours. On landing, the natives stripped them of their clothes, &c. but otherwise behaved kindly towards them. His companions in misfortune died the first year of his residence amongst the natives, which in all amounted, he said, to six or seven years. "The men in that part of Australia have from five to ten wives, of whom they are rather jealous at times. The tribes are continually at war with one another, and have regular pitched battles; but the moment that one is killed on either side, the battle ceases until they carry off their dead, and mourn for certain days, according to their customs, bedaubing themselves over with black earth, and on another day the fight begins and ends in a similar way. "When one dies or is killed, they bury the body in the earth, but at the end of five days dig it up again, and wrap up the bones, &c. in bark of trees, and carry them along with them. When the women fight, which is very often, they use a short kind of club. 144 EXTRACT FROM MR. DUNCAN'S JOURNAL. The natives paint their bodies over with red clay to prevent the musquitoes from biting them. When they paint their bodies white it is a sign of war with some other tribe. "Their marriage ceremony is performed in the following way:The father and mother of a female child lead in one hand between them the intended bride, (whilst in the other hand they each carry a piece of burning wood,) towards the intended husband, he standing with his back towards them. When they arrive at the appointed place, the parents lay down the burning pieces of wood, beside which the child sits down, and the parents retire, on which the husband turns round to his wife and takes her home. She stays only with him during the night, returning to her parents during the day, until she has attained a more mature age. "Their food consists chiefly of fish, kangaroo, turtle, wild yams, and various other roots. They have no regular times for meals, and eat at any time they can find any thing to subsist upon. "On that part of the coast they have canoes hollowed out of the trunks of trees, a work of great labour, as they have no iron tools; in these they often paddle from the main land to the neighbouring islands in quest of food. They worship no superior being, nor have any knowledge of one. They obey and reverence the eldest of their tribe. They keep their elderly men and wives at a distance when they fight or go to war. They would not allow this Lascar to go to their battles, although they gave him a wife of their tribe, by whom he had several children. They punish an adulterer, when detected, with death. They have no knowledge of ships; their chief conversation is either concerning food or war. There are very few diseases amongst them, and they in general live to a good old age. They employ themselves in hunting or fishing during the day, and at night sleep round a small fire. When a brother dies and leaves a wife, the next eldest brother marries her. They have no houses or any thing to cover them; and scarcely two tribes speak the same language. "The natives were greatly attached to this Lascar. When he hailed the brig, they placed their hands on his mouth; on the approach of the boat to carry him on board the brig they fled, but again returned; but would not go on board the vessel. Although this man knew and could speak the language of the tribe with whom he had EXTRACT FROM MR. DUNCAN'S JOURNAL. 145 lived, understood only a few words of the language spoken by the Raffles Bay and Port Essington tribes. He suffered greatly from the bites of musquitoes, and small ulcers on the skin; as well as from the change of diet during his first year's residence amongst them. He buried the other Lascars who died. The natives were desirous that he would take up their bodies again according to their custom, but he did not comply with their request. This man we left on board the Mary Elizabeth, in Raffles Bay, although he was desirous to return to India 1. "On the 18th July, during the night, the natives came in and attempted to steal the armourer's forge, &c. but were seen and fired at by the sentry. Next day, at 11h. 30′ A. M. they again made their appearance on the beach. They appeared more shy to-day than usual, and would hardly come down to the tents, although the Indian native tried to persuade them, but went in quest of honey. About five, P. M. they returned. An axe was shown to them similar to the one they had stolen some days before. And, being informed that they would not be allowed to come into the camp until they returned the stolen axe, the chief grinned at Captain Smyth, and showed his posteriors in rather an indecent attitude, then ran off, picking up in his way some of our people's clothes. In attempting to escape he was fired at by Mr. Carr, but without effect. A dog pursued him and made him drop his prey. "The same evening one of the men belonging to the Success was missed; but some time after the Success sailed, he returned to the settlement, in company with some natives, and joined the brig. Search was made for this man for a considerable distance round the settlement on the 22d, but to no effect. From the night that the natives were last fired at (21st July) to the 23d, the day that the Success sailed for Melville Island, the natives did not make their appearance." 1 This person, named Paul De Sois, was forwarded to Coupang, from thence he went to Batavia with Mr. Bechade, and wished to remain with him; but, as Mr. Bechade informed me, he was so excessively lazy, that his request was not complied with. He was forwarded to Madras, his native place, where, he said, he had a wife and several children. L CHAPTER X. Misunderstanding between the settlers and natives-Unfortunate occurrences-Death of Dr. Wood-Malay Proas visit the Settlement-Extracts from the Medical Report of Dr. Davis-Observations on Melville Island and Raffles Bay, by Captain Laws, R.N.-Proofs of the healthiness of the Climate. By the preceding accounts, it appears that hostilities soon commenced. There can be no doubt that the natives, by exercising their pilfering habits, were the aggressors. The whale boat was stolen' and broken in pieces for the sake of the iron; and, whenever the Aborigines appeared afterwards, the sentries fired at them without ceremony. This was not the best way to gain their confidence, or to teach them better 'This may appear very culpable. It is far more excusable, however, in these untutored beings, than the same crime when committed by those calling themselves civilized. Several instances of civilized delinquency are within my knowledge, one of which I may cite :-The master of a government colonial brig, picked up a canoe belonging to the natives, and without hesitation took it on board, and rigged it for his own use; thereby robbing a whole family of the principal means of gaining their subsistence. Yet this action was never imagined to be in the slightest degree dishonest; and the mate, from whom I heard the anecdote, seemed surprised that any one should consider the captain's conduct reprehensible, more particularly as the natives stole all the canoes they had from the Malays. |