Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 14, 1903.djvu/392

 354 house; think him dead man (die man they say) or else "debil-debil."

A gentleman who called here told us he had been out with more than one pioneer exploring-party and collectors, but our collection was in matter of variety and rarity of weapons the best he had seen. He believed we are the only white people who have a mask in the whole of West Australia. We hear the natives are looking for a lost mask, the one we possess; so now it is kept under lock and key. Mr. Clarke said he had never seen one before; also he told us that the carved shells and one or two other things we have were held in superstitious veneration, and were not obtainable. In the photograph of niggers, lame William is the second from the left-hand side, and is wearing his shell half-covered under his loin-cloth. The third man from the right-hand side is King Ross. The fourth, who has in his arm a yande or pingin, is Duncan; he has about as many tribal marks on his body as any native round about, or more. [Plate XIV.]. . ..

Yesterday there was a big fight on here between the Roebuck Bay natives and Beagle Bay. It appears two Beagle Bay natives stole two Roebuck Bay women. The result was a fight. Mary went; her description, if you could but have heard it! "By Cli, (Christ), big pfeller fight—pl-eenty fight—pl-eenty man got hurt. I break 'em kylie all about;" and to judge by her demeanour and the clothes-prop stick she carried I can believe her. All last week she was at Kobba-Kobba; she left at dawn Monday morning and returned Friday afternoon. I did not hear her come, and went into the kitchen to see about the fire. "Hullo, Mary." "Hullo, Missus." Then followed a long list of wants from her, such as tobacco, tea, food, when I left her; but she wanted to tell me she and a woman named Jenny had been fighting because she had her man. There were her wounds to show. It appears she must have been beaten, for she came along before the others