132 " ^'- 'Oll.NSTON MK.MDKIAL LKCTinK. 



B. Evidence of the Antiquity of 

 Aboriginal Man in Australia. 



To whatever date the first coming: of the Australian 

 aborigines into Australia be assigned, it is obvious that the 

 first arrival of the Tasnianian aborigines in Tasmania ante- 

 dates it. 



It is next important for our inquiry to review any evi- 

 dence as to the geological antiqiiity of man in Australia. 



Such evidence may be classed as: — 



i. Legendary. 



ii. Based on the age of the deposits in which remains of 

 man or any of his artefacts, or other traces of his 

 handywork, have been found. 



iii. Based on anatomical structure of the human re- 

 mains. 



iv. Based on the age of the dingo on the assumption 

 that the dingo was introduced into Australia by the 

 early Australian aboriginal inmiigrants. 



i. Legendary. 



a. James Dawson states, "An intelligent aboriginal 



"distinctly remembers his grandfather .speaking of 

 "fire coming out of Bo'ok (a hill near the town of 

 "Mortlake, in Victoria) when he was a young man." 



b. Dawson also states that when volcanic bombs from 

 the extinct volcano of Mt. Leura were shown to an 

 aboriginal native of Colac, Victoria, the aboriginal 

 said that "these were stones, which his forefathers 

 "told him had been thrown out of the hill by the 

 "action of fire." 



c. Similar legends of aborigines having seen Mts. 



Franklin and Buninyong in eruption have been re- 

 corded. 



Too much reliance cannot be placed on these 

 .statements, especially the former, as the aborigines 

 may have been practically repeating what they had 

 picked up earlier from some white people. 



ii. Evidence based on the age of the deposits in which 



remains of mun or of his artefacts or other traces of his 



handywork have been found. 



a. Bennett has recorded the finding of grooves made 

 by aborigines honing down or sharpening their toma- 

 hawks on sandstone surfaces 30 feet below the sur- 



