Page:Diary of ten years.djvu/429

 411 about his regulations relating to land, &c.—another very long and unpleasant business, which lasted till six o'clock. On Thursday I transacted what I could of my routine official duties, and intended to have come off in the evening. Just as I was coming away, Mr. Logue came, so I put off my journey, determining to come off by daylight this morning.

Some time during the night I was roused by dreadful shrieks, and cries of natives sleeping near. I got up as fast as I could and went out, when a number clustered about me, saying that the natives of the Murray River had made an irruption on the unfortunate Perth natives at night, and had speared six of them whilst they were sleeping. I ran to the scene of action and found that none were killed, though two of them were very dangerously wounded, but it is probable they may survive—although one had four spears driven into his body. This cowardly attack was in revenge for the death of a Murray River man from a wound which he received in a fight with the Perth men some time ago. If they have always been in the habit of thinning down their numbers as we have seen since we came here, it is a wonder that there are any of them left. I was so occupied with them that I scarcely got to bed till it was daylight, and I had to rise again and communicate with the Governor, and send a surgeon to them and get them taken care of. After breakfast, business again, as I had to get ready the heads of two other Acts to be introduced into our Council, and I have brought them up here to try and make some progress in framing the Bills. So that, you see, in our kingdom of Lilliput, we have great doings.

I arrived at three o'clock, and found a native waiting to get a promised reward for arresting or apprehending another native, who has long escaped from justice.

Sunday.—This has been a most lovely day. My Hindoo servant (Motu) persuaded me to cut down the stem of a banana tree which was not thriving well, saying it would soon