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478 in a mud island near Port Albert. The water was all round them. The Pelican, sailing about in his bark canoe, saw these poor people, and went to help them. One of the women was so beautiful that he fell in love with her. When she wanted to get into the canoe, he said, 'Not now—next time;' so that, ferrying the others one by one to the mainland, she was left to the last. She became frightened, and being a cunning woman, she wrapped a log of wood up in her possum rug,' laid it by the fire to look like herself, and then swam ashore and escaped. When the Pelican came back, he said, 'Come on now.' Receiving no reply, he became angry, and, going to the supposed woman lying by the fire, he gave her a kick, when he at once found out the trick that had been played upon him. Then he was very angry, and began to paint himself white, 'to look out fight' with the blackfellows. When he was half-painted, another Pelican came by, and not knowing what such a queer black and white thing was, struck the first Pelican with his beak, and killed him. Before that, Pelicans were all black—now they are black and white, and that is the reason."

"Once, long ago, there was a big Frog—Tidda-lick. He was sick, and got full of water. He could not get rid of all this water, and did not know what to do. One day he was walking near where Port Albert is now, when he saw a sand-eel dancing on his tail on a mud flat by the sea. It made him laugh so much that he burst, and all the water ran out. There was a great flood, and all the blackfellows were drowned except two or three men and a woman, who got on a mud island. While they were there, a Pelican came by in his canoe. He took off the men one at a time, but left the woman to the last. He wanted to get her for himself. She was frightened, and so put a log in her 'possum rug, like a person asleep, and swam to shore. When the Pelican returned, he called to her to come. No answer. Then he was angry, and kicked the 'possum rug. There was in it a log. Then he was very angry, and went off to paint himself with Marloo (pipeclay), to go and 'look out fight' with the blackfellows. Before that time, Pelicans were all black. When he was partly painted with Marloo, another Pelican came by, and not liking the looks of him, bit him with his beak, and killed him. That is the reason that Pelicans are partly black and partly white to this day."

"Once Bowkan was very angry with the blacks, and took their fire from them, but the Bimba Mrit (the fire-tail finch) went off and stole fire from Bowkan without his knowing it, and brought it to the blackfellows, and that is why his tail is red."

Another account is this:—"Once upon a time the blacks were down at the Lakes—a 'big lot of them;' they were 'driving fish with their net' (Lawn). The gins would not give any of the fish to Bowkan. He was very wild with