150 SUPERSTITIONS 



whom I questioned told me which of the two kinds 

 of burial his or her body would receive^ without 

 being* able to assig'n an}^ reason. Their reverence 

 for the dead is probably not very g-reat^ as even a 

 relative of the deceased will sell the skull or skeleton 

 for a small consideration^ on condition of the matter 

 being- kept a secret. Like other Australians they 

 carefully refrain from mentioning* the name of any 

 one who is dead^ and like them^ believe in the 

 transmig-ration of souls^ — after death the}" become 

 Malays (the first strang*ers they had come in contact 

 with)^ in precisely the same way as in New South 

 Wales^ &c. ^^when black-fellow die, he jump up 

 white-fellow." 



In addition to the yumhurhar above mentioned^ 

 there is another supernatural being*, which has a 

 corporeal existence. It appears in the shape of a 

 man, and loves to g'rapple with strag'g'lers in the 

 dark, and carry them olF. So much is the arlali 

 an object of dread, that a native will not willing'ly 

 g*o alone in the dark, even a very short distance 

 from his fire, without carrying* a lig'ht. Some have 

 assured me that they had seen this arlahy and one 

 man shev> ed me wounds said to have been inflicted 

 by its teeth, and I have no doubt of his having* 



« 



firmly believed that they were produced in this 

 manner. 



Although in each tribe there are three distinct 

 classes, possibly ranks, or perhaps something* analo- 

 gous to the division in other countries into castes, 



