B 505: Lecture on the Aborigines of Australia and papers on Wirradhurrei dialect, 1837-1840

ReadAboutContentsHelp

This material forms part of the Archdeacon James Gunther papers, 1826-1878, held by the State Library of New South Wales.

The following parts of the collection were selected for the Rediscovering Indigenous Languages project:

- Lecture on the Aborigines of Australia and papers on Wirradhurrei dialect, 1837-1840; call number B 505

- The Native Dialect Wirradurri spoken in the Wellington District, 1838; call number C 136

The Archdeacon William James Gunther (1839-1918) was born on 28 May 1839 at Wellington, New South Wales, and was son of Reverend James William Gunther and his wife Lydia, née Paris. Gunther (the elder) was a German-born missionary, who worked in the Mudgee district and died circa 1879. The Church Missionary Society mission appointed Gunther to its mission in Wellington in August 1837, and he stayed until the mission was disbanded in 1843. During this time, Gunter compiled lists of Wiradjuri words, phrases and executed studies on Wiradjuri grammar.

Pages

FL661442
Needs Review

FL661442

of this outrage , a few of the Mudgee tribe [words crossed out] some months after, went across to [Crossed out: Wellington] the McQuaries and, after having watched some McQ. Blacks for a few days one morning suddenly surprised two or three of them when bathing in a deep water hole not many miles below Wellington, and these threw their spears & other weapons at them till they sunk in the water. This caused great consternation among the neighbouring Wellington tribe. They came to Mudgee and remained in this neighbourhood for some months, night after night apprehending to be suddenly surprised by the [indecipherable], & [indecipherable] tribes. Repeatedly they encamped just below my garden and gave me more than once a [indecipherable] in the evening, to leave my ketchen door & the back door of my house open that they might take refuge on my prmises should the enemy come, telling me at he same time they would call me up when they were attacked. Several of them have been my former scholars, and were personally perfectly innocent in the whole affair. However the enemy never came & they returned after a while to Wellington

Last edit over 1 year ago by shayes
FL661444
Needs Review

FL661444

But, two or three years after, one of their young men of the Wellington tribe was killed near Burrendong in a clandestine manner by one of the McQuarie Blacks, & as far as I could ascertain the affair did not end there, until another victim fell of the McQuarie tribe. Thus these Blacks, whom some Europeans have at times pronounced such a happy race of beings are in continual fear. I have never known them perfectly quiet for many months together. Often they are alarmed without any just cause, mainly by false rumours of the movements of an unfriendly tribe. You will understand that these acts of retaliation assume a sort of [indecipherable] character and involve the [indecipherable] of a tribe, tribe against tribe, demanding satisfaction. Should any [word crossed out] individual kill a Black of his own, or a friendly tribe from private spite & malice, or personally in a passion the affair would be viewed as wilful murder and the guilty party would have little chance to escape with his life. Without a regular trial after a little inquiring

Last edit over 1 year ago by shayes
FL661447
Needs Review

FL661447

the murderer would be most summarily dealt with & put to death [word crossed out] judge jury & & executioners [word crossed out] all consisting of the same [word crossed out] men. I now proceed to describe to you the condition and treatment of the fair sex, if that term might be applied to to these poor Aboriginal females. Their degradation and slavish dependence can hardly be painted in too strong colours. From their childhood up to old age they are entirely subject to the arbitrary will & caprise of the men. Often they are betrothed by their parents at a tender age, it may be to a man [word crossed out] then in the prime of life who is perhaps already possessed of a wife. [words crossed out] Polygamy, I would here remark is quite common among these Aborigines, and is not only a source of much dispute, but an occasion of rendering the condition of the woman so degrading, as I shall presently show. Whether a girl be betrothed in her infancy or not, or supposing her intended husband dies before she becomes marriageable, in no case is the woman consulted. she has not the choice of refusing an offer

Last edit over 1 year ago by shayes
FL661449
Needs Review

FL661449

nor to delay the time of becoming the wife of him who is destined for her. No regard is paid to any affections or attachments on her part. [words crossed out] In most cases the young woman obtains an elderly man and it may be he's one or two rivals to contend with. Should her parents as their natural guardians die [word crossed out] before she is of an age to marry, it may happen that her intended husband puts her under the guardianship of the wife, or one of the wives he possesses. These early betrothals are made sometimes for a consideration or by intrigue, it may be threats, [word crossed out] also at a later age similar schemes are had recourse to. To these come in addition as great auxilliary certain claims depending on a [words crossed out] ficticious relationship of which I shall speak afterwards. I must tell you at the same time (a [indecipherable] who may not be aware of it) that it is not an infrequent occurrence for a number of men, especially young men, to suprise the camp of a distant, perhaps unfriendly tribe and carry away a number of[word crossed out] young women, no matter whether married or unmarried, [words crossed out] & to [crossed out: appropriate them to themselves] divide their spoil when returned in safety to them

Last edit over 1 year ago by shayes
FL661451
Needs Review

FL661451

own tribe. You may imagine that they cannot always make sure of retaining their spoil, they may have to fight for [crossed out: their booty] the same and after all loose it again & as a reprisal they may lose some women of their own tribe. In fact to steal a woman is almost the only kind of theft heard of among the Aborigines. The only sort of property they value is a woman and to describe a poor man amongst them implies as much as he is without a wife. But this is not all; the wife is literally treated like a man's property or something with which he can traffic as he pleases. The husband can [word crossed out] give his wife to another man for a continuance or merely for a time. I [words crssed out] do not feel at liberty to make any further remarks on this particular subject. The evil consequences can easily be guessed at. Still it must not be supposed that [word crsed out] an indiscriminate intercorse between the sexes exists only if no sort of conjugal fidelity were observed. The husband is indeed supreme ruler over his wife or wives, but he is jealous if any wife dare to commit herself [crossed out: with another man][indecipherable] another man take undue liberties with her [word crossed out] the punishment may be no less than death to both parties, if there are any aggravating

Last edit over 1 year ago by shayes
Displaying pages 51 - 55 of 382 in total