Page:The Aborigines of Victoria and Riverina.djvu/179

174 translated into English verbatim, would be all but unintelligible.

Of course there are many common, simple phrases, such as those given at the end of the vocabulary, which anyone however obtuse, might readily understand; but to obtain anything approaching to a general knowledge of the dialects, so as to be enabled to apply it with any hopes of Success, a life's experience, together with continual intercourse, supplemented by unflagging observation, is absolutely necessary.

It would be utterly impossible to teach these dialects by rule without first forming a code of signs (which, of course, would be foreign to them), whereby to denote the various Accentuations, inflections, prolongations, and applications.

These dialects are quite innocent of everything in the shape of grammar, grammatical relations being denoted by prolongations, accentuations, or position; each, or either of which, changes the meaning of different words entirely. Thus pronouns are the same, whether relating to places or things, masculine or feminine gender. Thus Wanthy, for instance, signifies he, she, it, him, that, them; other pronouns are used in a similar mariner.

Adjectives are applied much the same as in English; for example, Talko (good) is always used alone, the noun being understood; the other adjectives are used in a like manner,

Their verbs are particularly imperfect; for example:— Callo yetty wirwy, I went. Callo mitha yetty wirwy, I went a long time ago. Yetty wirwy, I go, or am going. Darty yetty wirwy, I will go. Berha yetty wirwy, I will go