Rediscovering Indigenous Languages

so asked. They seem to know of a few herbs which they medically employ, in certain cases, they also apply warm water; they breath at times in the sick persons nostrils or mouth or hands the hands they often manipulate upon by rubbing them for a time. F. But I will give you some instanes of their [word crossed out] of their mysterious performances. [IN RIGHT SIDE MARGIN:] some of their performances would remind one of mesmerism I remember one evening, a Black Man was said to be in great pain - a griping pain in his stomach on whom they manipulated. At last they came running to me and exclaimed that the Backfellow was cured showing me a stone - it was a white quarz - which they allege one of the doctors had by some mysterious process extracted from his body. Having examined the stone, I said Why this stone is so dirty and greezy just as if it had long been handled about & had been kept in one of those dirty bags they carry about & I see Blackfellows finger marks and it would not look so if it had just come out of a man's body. This caused a hearty laugh among my young men and they seemed to comprehend the delusion. On another occasion something more plausible was practised. I heard that something very extraordinary was going on at the Camp

not far off. It was towards dark, I went to see and noticed a young man lying on the ground as if lifeless, when I enquired, whether he was dead they told me to stand quietly not to talk and just to watch, then I would soon see something wonderful. Whether the young man was in a fit, or merely a willing instrument of delusion I could not make out; but men and women were standing in rows on one side, and in solemn silence and as if in anxious expectation of some important scene. I soon heard about a hundred yards off a deep hollow sounding groan and observed a Black, one of the doctors, creeping flat on the ground like a snake Slowly a leap from amongst the bushes towards the body, uttering repeatedly this mysterious groan, until he reached th young man when he stretched himself for a few minutes upon him breathed into his nostrils and rubbed his hands. He was followed by another doctor who crept along in the same way and went through the same ceremony, then came the first again as before & so the third time the same ceremony was gone through. And at the

third performance the docter being again stretched upon the supposed lifeless body, the docter & the patient [words crossed out] reanimated after a few seconds jumped up, and all the spectators men & women clapped their hands in admiration of the wonderful cure with a few shouts of joy. When I tried afterwards to convince some of our more civilized young men that probably all was merely a piece of [indecipherable] gammon - they gravely replied: "Black fellows know a great deal more than you think, but they can't tell you & they dare not tell all to other Blackfellows." I have already intimated that the demons in which they believe are in their opinion not altogether evil spirits, but beings possessed of supernatural powers both for good & evil, though chiefly objects of dread. [word crossed out] Now in these notions the Aborigines resemble other pagan natives such as the ancient Greeks, [words crossed out] to whom we are inclined to look up to as [word crossed out] civilized. It is well known that the most ancient Greeks used the term demons, afterwards applied exclusively to evil spirits, for supernatureal beings more or less disposed to do good & not merely evil

20 as a sort of deities or [words crossed out] beings of a superior order He and I would agree that if [words crossed out] [words crossed out] the Aborigines, [words crossed out] had no other belief than that [words crossed out] in some superior power or spirit, it may be since the idea of a superior bring exists among them and thus the proof [word crossed out] in natural theology for the existence of a deity holds true even with these ignorant and degraded people. In other words I [word crossed out] maintain that [words crossed out] there is no native [indecipherable] quite so low as not to have some little notion, however perverted & corrupt, of a a deity or deities. We may rest assured there is an innate idea [word crossed out] of the existence & need of a deity [indecipherable] among all human races, nor are they entirely devoid of an expectation of [word crossed out] future existence. In some this idea is more deeply rooted, whilst others are more inclined to atheistic notions. Some of these Aborigines would at times when I spoke to them of a future state of existence exclaim, though usually with a blush and doubt Dugguainbul ballungirri, We shall die altogether, whilst others would more firmly maintain the probability that they would live hereafter. The idea of the migration of the soul has sometimes been attributed to these Aborigines, but I believe this is without foundation & is rather an idea which some Europeans seem to have imparted to them. But let me now tell you that I have fully

ascertained that a higher & purer notion exists among these Blacks, though it may not be so generally believed as the notion of evil spirits They believe in a superior being whom they call Baiamai. [section crossed out: I find that the Revd. Mr [indecipherable] who has travelled for some time as a Missionary amongst the tribe towards the North found the same notion existing there amongst the Aborigines and indeed the very name of Baiamai.] This Baiamai they believe to be altogether a good spirit possessed of superior powers. I will give you a description of such as the Blacks gave me of this Baiamai [word crossed out] in their own simple way of expressing their ideas. Baiamai is altogether good & always will be [words crossed out] or more litterally: He always did & always will sit down, that is exist. Whatever he wishes to be done, must be done; he only needs comman it & it will come to pass. If he wants bread, for instance, bread is laid before him; if he wants fish, fish will come to him out of the water. Hence you will observe we have in him the attributes of eternity of goodness & of omnipotence. He is also [word crossed out] supposed [word crossed out] to hve a Son. Sometimes himself

& sometims his Son send mesages, accompanie usually with a song which they sing in honor of him [word crossedout] [words crossed out] When this is [inset: generally several tribes] done the aborigines collect at some appointed place & perform certain ceremonies. I remember one of these gatherings in the district of Wellington when many distant tribes were assembling. It took some months from the first announcement till all were collected. There were tribes that spoke different dialects present. [word crossed out] They made a great mystery of what they saw & did; but one of the young men [word crossed out] whose confidence I had fully gained communicated a few particulars to me with strict injunctions that I should not divulge the secret, more especially that I should not betray him to the Blacks. they asembled all with a few exception in one place and then proceeded in procession to the particular spot which had been previously fixed upon and arranged for the celebration of a myserious ceremony & where several of the Blacks keps watch till the others came. They found there in a sort of enclosure made of boughs and branches some piees of bark stuck up with various figures engraved & painted with

some resembled human figures, others formed a sort of a cross fastened to a stick. These were solemnly & reverentially aprached and a kind of obeisance or prostration made before them. Some of the Blacks it would appear [word crossed out] made an oration and went through various ceremonies, as if once the name of Baiamai was several times repeated, paying homage to some superior being. A song was then announced & sung. [indecipherable] of about 8 or 9 verses or stanzas, and certin portions wer repeated. The ceremony ended in a sort of ance, but performed with some solemnity as if something different from the usual Corrobory dance. It had often struck me before that their corroberries were a slight remnant of the same sort [insert: wild as the scene appears, it] of worship; for often there was something in it which seemed to indicate a religious ceremony; I observed repeatedly pieces of bark stuck up on such occasions with various curious figures painted on the scene. The song I have mentioned of which was sometims accompanied with some strange & mysterious practises

I have a copy, at least a partial copy, was unfortunately in a different dialect, so that neither the young man nor I could make any meaning of it, there being but a few words resembling the Wirradurri spoken at Wellington, The young man communicated to me, on the same occasion, the following respecting Baiamai and their future state:, When we die we go to Murriangwhich is situated towards the rising of the sun where Baiamai resides. There we we sit down (alive with) his son Urragallagalli. In this state we cannot see Baiamai, But after a certain length of time we shall all be struck dead again by the word of Baiamai's son. When mouldering away on the ground, some huge animals [word crossed out] in shape something like a dog will come to lick our bones and so raise us to life again and we shall have much superior & larger [word crossed out] bodies. In this new body we shall be permitted also to see Baiamai, but let me add that these Aborigines entertain little or no hope

that the women from [indecipherable] shall rise again and expect for themselves a kind of Muhomedan paradise; for a new race of women far auperior & much more beautiful shall be provided for them who are said to be descended from the race of the Barrabin superior beings residing with the deity Baiamai. It was particularly enjoined [word crossed out]me not to divulge this [word crossed out]secret respecting the women. I cannot say that this their belief had any great moral inflence upon them, but they have some idea that those who have led a good life would fare better than others. I would only add in conclusion that these[word crossed out] are entirely their own origina notions not any thing derived from their intercourse with Europeans and though they are very doubtful as [words crossedout] the father of all things [words crossed out], they fancy that most likely Baiamai made originally all. Now whatever errors and absurdities [words crossed out] may adhere to this their belief, we cannot

doubt but it is a little remnant derived from ancient tradition of the existence of a Supreme Being and a future state. They believe to have a soul - a something within them that is superior to the body [words crossed out] and they are generally [word crossed out] inclined to [word crossed out] to think that the Soul wil not die. Even the very name or word for the soul appears to imply in its derivation a significant meaning. It is dullubang & derived from a root signifying, right, strait upright correct; [words crossed out] There is also a tradition among them of a very great flood which drowned all the people except two or three who hid themselves in a cave for some time. [word crossed out] The cave they supposed was that [words crossed out] well known cave near Wellington Valley. Of course they forget that they would have penetated over that cave. It has always been my impression that the original race of the Aborigines were more enlightened than the present race. They have themselves some such impressions and one of them pointed out those marks or impressions found in certain caves such as that at Dabee as a proof saying those who made them knew more than they did. I am satisfied that these [word crossed out] impressions of hands & fingers required a certain art & whatever the meaning of them may be whether they be [word crossed out] whether designed for a religious ceremony or burial places, they point back to some more civilized society That the present race are now so ignorant is easily accounted for.