Journals Of Two Expeditions Of Discovery In North West And Western Australia Volume 1 (Of 2), George Grey [robert munsch read aloud txt] 📗

Cries Of

The Women,  Who Knew Not Our Exact Position,  Came By Upon The Wind,  I

Thought It Was Well Worth A Little Trouble To Hear These Savage Sounds

Under Such Circumstances. Our Guides Shouted In Return,  And Gradually The

Approaching Cries Came Nearer And Nearer.

 

Curious Superstition. Ceremonies.

 

I Was However Wholly Unprepared For The Scene That Was About To Take

Place. A Sort Of Procession Came Up,  Headed By Two Women Down Whose

Cheeks Tears Were Streaming. The Eldest Of These Came Up To Me And,

Looking For A Moment At Me,  Said,  "Gwa,  Gwa,  Bundo Bal," "Yes,  Yes,  In

Truth It Is Him;" And Then,  Throwing Her Arms Round Me,  Cried Bitterly,

Her Head Resting On My Breast; And,  Although I Was Totally Ignorant Of

What Their Meaning Was,  From Mere Motives Of Compassion I Offered No

Resistance To Her Caresses,  However Disagreeable They Might Be,  For She

Was Old,  Ugly,  And Filthily Dirty; The Other Younger One Knelt At My

Feet,  Also Crying.

 

At Last The Old Lady,  Emboldened By My Submission,  Deliberately Kissed Me

On Each Cheek,  Just In The Manner A French Woman Would Have Done; She

Then Cried A Little More And,  At Length Relieving Me,  Assured Me That I

Was The Ghost Of Her Son Who Had Some Time Before Been Killed By A

Spear-Wound In His Breast. The Younger Female Was My Sister; But She,

Whether From Motives Of Delicacy Or From Any Imagined Backwardness On My

Part,  Did Not Think Proper To Kiss Me.

 

My New Mother Expressed Almost As Much Delight At My Return To My Family

As My Real Mother Would Have Done Had I Been Unexpectedly Restored To

Her. As Soon As She Left Me My Brothers And Father (The Old Man Who Had

Volume 1 Chapter 13 (At Swan River) Pg 190

Previously Been So Frightened) Came Up And Embraced Me After Their

Manner,  That Is,  They Threw Their Arms Round My Waist,  Placed Their Right

Knee Against My Right Knee,  And Their Breast Against My Breast,  Holding

Me In This Way For Several Minutes. During The Time That The Ceremony

Lasted I,  According To The Native Custom,  Preserved A Grave And Mournful

Expression Of Countenance.

 

This Belief,  That White People Are The Souls Of Departed Blacks,  Is By No

Means An Uncommon Superstition Amongst Them; They Themselves,  Never

Having An Idea Of Quitting Their Own Land,  Cannot Imagine Others Doing

It; And Thus,  When They See White People Suddenly Appear In Their

Country,  And Settling Themselves Down In Particular Spots,  They Imagine

That They Must Have Formed An Attachment For This Land In Some Other

State Of Existence; And Hence Conclude The Settlers Were At One Period

Black Men,  And Their Own Relations. Likenesses Either Real Or Imagined

Complete The Delusion; And From The Manner Of The Old Woman I Have Just

Alluded To,  From Her Many Tears,  And From Her Warm Caresses,  I Feel

Firmly Convinced That She Really Believed I Was Her Son,  Whose First

Thought Upon His Return To Earth Had Been To Re-Visit His Old Mother,  And

Bring Her A Present. I Will Go Still Farther And Say That,  Although I Did

Not Encourage This Illusion,  I Had Not The Heart To Try To Undeceive The

Old Creature And To Dispel Her Dream Of Happiness. Could I Have Remained

Long Enough To Have Replaced This Vain Impression By A Consoling Faith I

Would Gladly Have Done It; But I Did Not Like To Destroy This Belief And

Leave Her No Other In The Place Of It.

 

The Men Next Proceeded To Embrace Their Relation Jenna In The Same Manner

They Had Before Done Me; And This Part Of The Ceremony Was Now Concluded.

 

The Women,  Who Had Retired After Having Welcomed Me,  Again Came In From

Behind Some Bushes,  Where The Children All Yet Remained And,  Bringing

Several Of Them Up To Me,  Insisted On My Hugging Them. The Little Things

Screamed And Kicked Most Lustily,  Being Evidently Frightened Out Of Their

Wits; But The Men Seized On And Dragged Them Up. I Took The Youngest Ones

In My Arms,  And By Caresses Soon Calmed Their Fears; So That Those Who

Were Brought Afterwards Cried To Reach Me First,  Instead Of Crying To Be

Taken Away.

 

A Point Of Honour.

 

A Considerable Time Had Been Occupied By These Various Occurrences,  Which

To Me Had Been Most Interesting; But One Of A More Painful Character Was

Now To Follow. It Appears That A Sister Of The Native Jenna Had Been

Speared And Killed By A Man Who At Present Was Resident With This Tribe;

And,  Although Most Of Them Were On Friendly Terms With This Native,  They

Conceived That Jenna Was Bound To Revenge Her Death In Fair And Open

Volume 1 Chapter 13 (At Swan River) Pg 191

Fight. The Old Lady (My Mother) Went Up To Him And,  Seizing His Merro,  Or

Throwing-Stick,  Told Him That The Man Who Had Killed His Sister Was At A

Little Distance; "And If," Said She,  "You Are Not A Man,  And Know Not How

To Use This,  Let A Woman's Hand Try What It Can Do," At The Same Time

Trying To Force It From Him. All The Time That She Was Thus Pretending To

Wrench His Merro Away She Indulged In A Most Eloquent Speech To Endeavour

To Rouse His Courage. I Do Not Know Enough Of The Language To Translate

It With Proper Spirit Or Effect,  As I Only Caught The General Meaning: It

Had However A Great Effect On Jenna; And Some Young Ladies Coming In At

The Conclusion,  His Mind Was Instantly Made Up; Indeed The Certainty That

Bright Eyes Were To Look Upon His Deeds Appeared To Have Much The Same

Effect Upon Him That It Had Upon The Knights Of Old And,  Jumping Up,  He

Selected Three Good Spears (All The Men Being Willing To Lend Him Theirs)

And Hurried Off To An Open Space Where His Antagonist Was Waiting For

Him.

 

Native Mode Of Combat.

 

The Combats,  One Of Which Was Now About To Take Place,  Much Resemble The

Ancient Tournaments. They Are Conducted With Perfect Fairness. The

Combatants Fight In An Open Space,  Their Friends All Standing By To See

Fair Play,  And All The Preliminaries As To What Blows Are To Be

Considered Foul Or Fair Are Arranged Beforehand,  Sometimes With Much

Ceremony.

 

Taking Into Account The Fantastic Ornaments And Paintings Of The Natives,

The Graceful Attitudes They Throw Themselves Into Either When Trying To

Avoid The Spears Of Their Enemy,  Or About To Throw Their Own; And The

Loud Cries And Wild Motions With Which They Attempt To Confuse And

Terrify Their Adversaries,  I Must Confess That If Any Exhibition Of This

Nature Can Be Considered Showy Or Attractive,  This Has No Ordinary Claims

To Admiration.

 

Native Duel. Revengeful Combat And Murder Prevented.

 

I Am However Not Fond Of Shows In Which The Safety Of My Fellow-Creatures

Is Concerned,  And On The Present Occasion Was Very Anxious That Nothing

Of The Kind Should Take Place; For Before I Could Induce Jenna To Come

With Me,  I Had Passed My Word For His Safety,  And I Could Not Bear The

Thought Of His Being Now Either Killed Or Wounded. When Therefore The

Natives Came To Request Our Attendance At This Spectacle,  Which They

Evidently Expected Would Afford Us Great Amusement,  I Intimated My

Decided Disapproval Of It: At First They Imagined That This Reluctance

Arose From Some Apprehension Of A Quarrel Upon Our Parts,  And To Remove

This The Greater Part Of The Men,  Who Now Amounted To Sixteen,  Laid Down

Their Spears By Our Stores. I Still However Would Not Sanction The Combat

Volume 1 Chapter 13 (At Swan River) Pg 192

And,  Taking Up My Gun,  Intimated My Intention Of Seeing That Nothing Was

Done To Injure Jenna; Upon This My Brothers Proceeded In A Friendly Way

To Hold Me: Which Is Exactly What One Sees In England When Two Men,  Who

Have Not The Least Intention In The World Of Hurting One Another,  Declare

In A Loud Tone Their Fixed Determination Of Proceeding To The Most

Desperate Extremities; Whilst Mutual Friends Stand By And Appear With The

Utmost Difficulty To Prevent Them From Putting Their Threats In

Execution. It Was Just In This Manner That My Soi-Disant Brothers Held

Me,  Apparently Not Entertaining The Least Doubt But That I Would Easily

Allow Myself To Be Persuaded Not To Interfere. I Had Now Recourse To

Another Expedient,  And This Was To Declare To Those About Me That,  If

Either Of The Combatants Was Wounded,  I Should Instantly Pack Up The

Flour And Rice And Proceed To The White Men's Fires. This Had The Desired

Effect: Those Around Me Started Off And Put The Holding System So

Effectually In Force That The Other Natives And The Two Combatants Soon

Came In.

 

Some Of The Natives Who Now Approached Told Mr. Smith That A Cannon Had

Been Heard That Morning In The Direction Of Fremantle; We Therefore Knew

That A Vessel Had Arrived,  And This Made Me Anxious To Return To Perth;

For,  In The Event Of Our Obtaining Canvas For The Champion's Sails,  I

Expected That Vessel Would Be Ready To Take Us In A Few Days To The

North-West Coast.

 

Return To Perth.

 

My Anxiety To Return Was Also Increased By Other Reasons. Mr. Smith Had,

With The Exception Of The First Few Miles,  Walked The Whole Distance From

Perth In Pieces Of Kangaroo Skin,  And His Feet Were Now In A Dreadful

State From The Joint Effect Of Thorns And Bruises; He However Never

Complained,  And So Much Did I Admire The Quietness And Perseverance With

Which He Had Borne Up Against So Serious An Inconvenience,  That I Was The

More Anxious To Put An End To It As Soon As Possible. Besides It Was

Evident That Very Deadly Feelings Existed Between Jenna And The Murderer

Of His Sister,  For He (Jenna) Came And Requested Me To Call This Native

My Friend,  At The Same Time To Give Him Plenty Of Flour And Rice,  "And,"

Added He,  "By-And-Bye,  Ask Him To Sleep At Your Fire; Then,  In The Night,

Whilst He Is Asleep,  I Can Easily Spear Him; And I Will Off,  And Walk To

Perth." I However Cooled Jenna's Ardour By Whispering To Him That,  If Any

Quarrel Was Brought About By His Attempting To Spear This Native,  I

Should Instantly Shoot Him; As I Had No Idea Of Running A Risk Of Losing

All Our Lives Through His Imprudence. This Declaration Had A