Page:Native Tribes of South-East Australia.djvu/476

450 deceased in a bag (Billi), and whenever they feel sorrow for the dead they eat of the flesh until nothing but the bones remain. These are preserved until a flood occurs, when they are pounded up and cast into the waters as "fish-seed" (Kuyi-paua).

The Yerkla-mining never bury their dead or dispose of them in any way. When death approaches, the person is left alone, as comfortably as possible near a fire, and the tribe leave the neighbourhood, not to return for a considerable time. They seem to have a great fear of a dead body, though they treat the sick and wounded with much kindness, their medicine-men curing ailments by the usual aboriginal methods of rubbing and sucking, producing various foreign substances that they say have caused the pain, and have been put into the body by the Muparn (magic) of some enemy, who, though living at a distance, can inflict injury by Gaiji-angun, the invisible spear-throwing by which Muparn is conveyed. The only two causes of death which the Mining recognise are by Muparn and the spear, and the great aim of their lives would appear to be to avoid both. A death is always avenged by the next of kin, whose feelings are appeased by making the attack, even if the supposed offender be only wounded.

The Kukata bury their dead immediately, and place in the grave spears and other weapons, and on it a drinking vessel for the deceased to drink out of if thirsty. A digging-stick is also placed on the grave to keep evil spirits away.

When one of the Narrang-ga tribe dies, the corpse is carried about on a kind of bier for several weeks. The bier is made of sticks fastened together like the steering-wheel of a ship, and is carried, each holding one of the protruding stick ends. The body is buried with the knees doubled up, so as to be close to the face. Two men get into the grave, and the body being lowered to them, they hastily fix it in its place and then come out. The grave being quickly filled in, they light a fire at it and leave the place. If the deceased is one of the Kurnadjara division, his spirit is supposed to