Page:Narrative of a Visit to the Australian Colonies.djvu/126

90 quills among its hair: it conceals itself in the day-time among dead timber in the hilly forests.—An eruptive disease prevailed among the Aborigines at this period: it was attended with fever for about four days, and was supposed to have arisen from feeding too freely on young Mutton-birds. One of the men suffering under it, and covered with sores as large as a shilling, lay by a fire in one of the breakwinds, and was literally "wallowing in ashes," having covered himself with them from head to foot. This, we were informed, was one of their common remedies.

There being no hospital here, the surgeon took some of the sick people into his hut: one of them who recovered after being very ill, has shewn many demonstrations of gratitude. This virtue is often exhibited among these people. A romantic instance of it occurred in one of them, named Roomtya or Bet; she was addressed by a young man, named Trigoomipoonenah or Jackey, who received a refusal; but on a certain occasion, the young woman was taken so ill when crossing a river, as to be in danger; Jackey was present, and availed himself of the opportunity of proving his attachment, he carried her out of the water, and thus saved her life. After this, she accepted his addresses and became his wife, and in her turn, she nursed him carefully when he was sick.—This woman excels in the chase; and once when the Commandant was detained for some days, in Kents Bay, by a storm, she and her husband, left a Wallaby at his house daily lest he should come home and not find a supply of food.

The chief instrument used in the chase by these people, is a Waddy, a short stick about an inch in thickness, brought suddenly to a conical point at each end, and at one end a little roughened, to keep it from slipping out of the hand. This, they throw with a rotatory motion, and with great precision. They also use spears made of simple sticks, having the thicker end sharpened, and hardened in the fire.

16th. After receiving a few waddies and some shell necklaces from the natives, and making them presents in return, we took leave of them, and went back to the cutter, at Green Island, where we went on shore. This island, like most, if not all others in this part of the straits, is of granite,