Page:History of New South Wales from the records, Volume 1.djvu/456

 342 THE NATIVES. 1788 find we intend to remain they appeared best pleased when we were 28 Sept. leaving them, though I gave them many useful articles ; and it is not possible to say whether it was from fear or contempt that tJiev do not come amongst us. I have already had the honor of informing your lordship of the little we know of these people. Most of the Natives best women and all the females I saw had lost two joints from the little when left finger of the left hand, and two women were scarred on ihe shoulders like the men — the first I had seen. The women, when we first came on the beach, were in their canoes fishing, which is Women their constant employment, the men chiefly employing themselves in making canoes, spears, fizgigs, &c. The day before we returned, the boat that was waitbg for us near the harbour's mouth saw about two hundred men, who were assembled in two parties, and who after some time drew up opposite to each other, and from each party men advanced singly and threw Sham flfiriit. their spears, guarding themselves at the same time with their shields. I suppose this to have been no more than an exercise, for the women belonging to both parties remained together on the beach, though towards the end of the combat they are said to have run up and down, uttering violent shrieks. As it had been supposed that many of the natives had left this part of the coast on account of the great scarcity of fish, the different parts of the harbour were examined in one day, and the canoes Natives of countod ; not more than sixty-seven canoes and one hundred and countod. "°° thirty-three people were seen, but it was the season in which thcj make their new canoes, and large parties were known to be in the woods for that purpose.*^ I went a few days after to examine the coast between this harbour and Botany Bay, in which journey few of the natives were seen ; but a young whale being driven on the coast, all we met had large pieces, which appeared to have been A whale lain on the fire until the outside was scorched, in which state they '**®^ eat it. These people last summer would neither eat shark nor stingaray; but the scarcity of fish in the winter, I believe, obliges them to eat anything that affords the smallest nourishment. Tbov have two kinds of root which they chew after roasting ; one is the fern root. They eat together, that is, in families, and seldom broil their fish (the only way they ever dress it) for more than a few minutes. Digitized by VjOOQIC
 * Hanter gives an account of this census at p. 82 of his JoumaL