Page:Native Tribes of South-East Australia.djvu/359

VI There was ordeal by combat in the tribes living within fifty miles of Maryborough (Queensland). A man died, and a relative saw in a dream the person who had killed him by magic. He walked up to this man, who was of another camp, while he was blowing up his camp fire, and striking him on the back of the neck, nearly killed him. The friends of this man then sent a messenger to the offender telling him that "he was afraid to come to their camp." He went and fought with them, one after the other, with club and shield. This case, however, differed from the usual custom, in so far that both men were armed, whilst in the expiatory fights the defendant merely had a shield, to defend himself against the attacks of the aggrieved people. Among the Buntamurra all offences are punished by the tribe. The relations of the injured man fight and thrash the offender.

When two divisions of the Kaiabara tribe fell out about some man's offence, and his people supported him, a challenge was sent to them. The challenge is vouched for by a boomerang-shaped piece of wood, the two ends of which are coloured white, while the middle is coloured with red ochre, and has a shell tied to one of the ends. If the challenge is accepted by the people to whom it is sent, they keep the stick and shell. If however they do not feel themselves sufficiently strong, and are afraid to meet the other side, they break the shell on a stone, as a sign that they acknowledge themselves to be beaten, and send the stick back.

If two blacks quarrel over a woman, the tribe does not interfere if they are of the same class, and the stronger of the two keeps the woman. But if the men are of different classes, then the tribe interferes and settles the matter.

In the Turrbal tribe individual quarrels were settled by a stand-up fight. Ceremonial combats, and also expiatory combats, arose at the initiation ceremonies, or out of abduction of women, or the belief that a person had been killed by magic. At the ceremonial combats the men were painted