X907] MATHEWS— LANGUAGE OF THE BIRDHAWAL TRIBE. 351 



Instrumental: When an instrument is the remote object of the 

 verb, it takes the same suffix as the causative. Mawpu burru bun- 

 dan buranu, a man a kangaroo killed with a spear. 



Accusative : This is the same as the nominative. 



There are inflections to denote motion towards or away from 

 any place or thing. Banggea, towards a camp. Bangga, away 

 from a camp. 



Adjectives. 



Adjectives succeed the nouns they qualify and take the same 

 inflections for number and case. The suffix is often omitted from 

 one of the words, leaving the noun only, or the adjective only, to 

 indicate the declension. Comparison is effected by two positive 

 statements, such as : This is good — that is bad. 



Pronouns. 



Pronouns are inflected for persion, number and case, but are 

 without gender. The following are examples in the singular number 

 of the nominative and possessive pronouns : 



! First person I Ngaiu Mine Ngaindya 



Second person Thou Ngindu Thine Ngingunna 



Third person He Mindha His Ngaianga 



In the dual and plural forms of the pronouns there is a double 

 "we" in the first person, marked "inclusive'* and "exclusive" 

 respectively. 



r T?,Vcf ,^o^o«« / We, inclusive Ngallu 



J First person \ We, exclusive Ngallung 



^"^' 1 Second person You Ngindubul 



I Third person They Mindhabullong 



f -rr- . J We, inclusive Ngangun 



J i^irst person | ^^^ exclusive Ngangunnang 



i^lural -^ Sg^Q^d person You Ngindigan 



*- Third person They Mindhagullang 



These full forms of the pronouns are not much used, except in 

 answer to a question, or assertively. If some one ask, "Who is 

 going hunting ? " a man may answer, Ngaiu, " I am," or Ngallung, 

 " we (dual exclusive) are." If an inquiry be made, " Whose food 

 is this?" some one may reply, pointing to a certain individual, 

 Ngaianga, "his," and so on. 



