243 



sorts of promises, which they break without the slightest com- 

 punction ; for instance, an old native will say to a young one, 

 " After two moons I will give you tliat girl ; " but long before 

 that time he will have given her to someone else, and in this way 

 lights are often brought on. 



Salutations. 



107. They use no form of salutation, except when one of their 

 tribe has been absent for some time, say two months. On his 

 return the members of his tribe will all start crying, and behave 

 in a very similar manner to that in the case of a death. As in 

 grief so in joy. The mother of the returned warrior and the 

 other old women will knock their heads with stones until the 

 blood streams down their faces. 



Arithmetic. 



108. They count up to five, viz., " Yarcoola " (one), " Kinem- 

 adda " (two), " Gnarloo " (three), " Leejallija " (foui-), " Leeja- 

 kadda " (live) ; in describing any number after live, they 

 repeat the last number with the addition of the latter part of 

 number one thus : — •" Leejakadda-coola," the greater the number 

 the greater the emphasis on the portion of the word coola. They 

 speak so very rapidly, and run all their words so much into one 

 another, that on hearing them describe or name a large number 

 you would only catch the sound " Lakicoola." 



109-1 10. They only use the lingers to denote numbers when they 

 are making signs to the deaf and dumb, or in the chase, when the 

 sound of speech would scare the game, and they never use 

 pebbles or sticks in counting. 



111-112. They take the number live from the fingers of the 

 hand, and very often instead of saying " Yarcoola " they will hold 

 up one linger ; or two fingers for " Kinemadda " and so on ; but 

 they have no name for any number beyond five except " Leeja- 

 kadda-coola," which means many. 



WRiTixr^. 



113. They send messages and profess to be able to undei'stand 

 them. I have, in travelling over the district, often carried 

 " Yabber-sticks " for the natives ; but it is generally done in 

 this way : — The person wishing to send a message will prepare 

 a " Woonda," and hand it to the messenger with this message, 

 " You give this ' Woonda ' to ' Bindawadgie,' and tell him to 

 send me some boomerangs and string. Half circles and angles 

 indicate boomerangs, and crosses denote hair-string ; this string 

 is twisted with a " Narmarlindee," a cross-like arrangement of 

 two thin sticks. 



R 



