Page:Native Tribes of South-East Australia.djvu/369

VI In certain cases the Gommera took action to punish offences directly. If a man was in the habit of "catching people" by evil magic, the Gommera might say to his young men, "That man is very bad, he is catching people with Joïas, you must kill him." He would then be surrounded at some convenient place and killed. Umbara, in speaking of this, said that he had seen such a man after he had been killed look, with the spears in him, "like a Jannang-gabatch," that is, a spiny ant-eater. If a man killed another of his own local group, or if a man revealed the bull-roarer to a woman, or any of the secrets of the Bunan or the Kuringal, he was killed by the order of the Gommera. In such cases there was no expiatory meeting, even when, as was within the knowledge of my Yuin friends, none of the culprit's kindred was among those who carried out the Gommera's orders. Nor was there any expiation when a man killed one who had murdered his kinsman, the former being of the same local group.

In the Kamilaroi tribes, if serious complaints were made of the conduct of a Murri (i.e. a man), a council of the Headmen might decree his death.

In the Gringai tribe individuals fought a personal quarrel with any weapons nearest at hand, but in cases of serious offences which concerned the tribe, the offender had to stand out, with a shield (Hiela-man), while a certain number of spears, according to the magnitude of the offence, were thrown at him. If he could defend himself, well and good; if not, then he was either injured or killed.

The principal social restrictions in the Geawe-gal tribe were laws which demanded satisfaction for injury done, by the offender submitting to an ordeal. According to the magnitude of his offence, he had to receive one or more spears from men who were relatives of the deceased person; or when the injured person had recovered strength, he might himself discharge the spears at the offender. Obedience to such laws was never withheld; but would have been enforced, without doubt, if necessary, by the assembled tribe. Offences against individuals, or blabbing about the