Page:Some account of the wars, extirpation, habits.djvu/64

56 River tribe, who was named Le-ner-e-gle-lang-e-ner, and Mon-te-pe-le-ter, the chief of the Big River people. McKay describes the first-named as a miserable little brute; and he believes his sway over the rest was acquired by his excessive impudence and persistent bullying of them, qualities which we see even in civilised life, place a man too often in front of his betters. The other was a finely made, strapping fellow, "Every inch a king," as poor Lear says.

McKay, whoso words I took down as he spoke them, says:—"It is very possible that in the excitement of fight, women may have been killed by other men; but except in the cases of the above named chiefs, there was no premeditation in the act, for they were naturally opposed to taking the life of a female. Of women slain by Montepeleter, were the two Misses Peters of Bagdad, Mrs. McCasker of Westbury, and several others. Of those killed by the other chief, he now remembers the name of one only; namely, Mrs. Cunningham, the wife of a veteran living at East Arm on the river Tamar. The murder of this last named person led to further outrages on the person of a black, who rated the little chief for what he had just done. This man was a Cape Portland native, but was staying with the Piper's River fellows at the time" (this practice of visiting seem to have been quite common amongst friendly tribes), "and when he heard of the death of this woman, he spoke very disapprovingly of it, adding that the men of his tribe never killed a white woman. Greatly incensed at his interference, the chief angrily enquired what business it was of his, who was not one of his people? The two disputants soon got to very high words, when all at once the long named chief seized his spear, and drove it through the Cape Portlander's body, and killed him on the spot."

The poor victim's wife an their child were present at the moment; and she having a keen perception of what would follow, if she remained even for a moment where she was, snatched up her child and hastened to make her escape from the murderer's presence; but his thirst for blood was not yet slaked, and he sent a spear after her that struck her on the forehead, but it luckily glanced off without seriously hurting her, and she eventually rejoined the tribe she belonged to.

In continuing these legends, it is now necessary to introduce to the reader a personage once well known to the colonists of both Tasmania and Victoria, who during his residence in this colony, rendered it such great and beneficial services as were not surpassed even by those performed by our third Governor, Colonel