April 20, 1893] 



NA TURE 



595 



broad, and twelve feet high. On the back wall are depicted a 

 number of red hands, both riglit and left. Under the principal 

 hands are four white curved bands, resembling boomerangs or 

 ribs, the whole of the hands being relieved, as is usually the 

 case with these representations, by light splash-work. The hand- 

 marks in this shelter differ, however, from any I have seen before 

 by an unquestionably previous preparation of the rock surface 

 for their reception by incising the surface to the shape of each 

 hand, thus leaving a slightly raised margin around each. I have 

 recently given (Records Geol. Survey, N.S. Wales, 1892, 

 iii. Pt. i. p. 34) an epitome of our knowledge of these hand 

 imprints, their method of preparation, and supposed significance 

 sufficiently full to render any further reference unnecessary at 

 present. The colour red, amongst black races, was the symbol 

 of evil (Fraser, Journ. R, Soc, N.S. Wales for 1882 [1883], 

 xvi. p. 213). 



Mr. Maurice Hayes, of Queahgong, informed me that he has 

 known the rock for the past fifiy years, and that the imprints 

 have not altered in the lea^t. He found it dilhcult to oi)lain 

 trustworthy information from the aborigines regarding them ; they 

 expressed ignorance, but ultimately gave liim to understand 

 that the " hands were the imprints of those of their Deity when 

 on earth." 



The large alluvial flits in this neighbourhood, along the 

 Wollondiliy, were, I was informed, great gathering grounds for 

 the various tribes from many miles round, even those of 

 Goulburn and Shoalhaven participating. 



Ouaspur overlooking one of these green expanses, known 

 as Gorman's Fiat, immediately at the junction of the Wollon- 

 diliy and Naitai Rivers, we investigated an interment, thirty 

 years old, indicated by a single carved tree, but the device has, 

 I regret to say. been wantonly destroyed. This grave is known 

 to be that of "Jimmy Aremoy," or " Blackman's Billy," of the 

 local tribe, and called in the aboriginal dialect Ah-re-moy, and 

 was covered by a small mound at the foot of a small tree, forty- 

 seven feet north of the carved tree, and had been surrounded by 

 a sapling fence. After removing the mound and superin- 

 cumbent soil, we found the grave had been filled v\ith boulders 

 and large pieces of rock to the depth of four feet six 

 inches, whilst under this was a layer of split timber and 

 bark. On removing this we found the skeleton well 

 wrapt in what bad once been an old coat, a blanket, and an 

 opossum rug. The skeleton was doubled up in the usual 

 manner, the arms drawn up to the breast, and the legs against the 

 abdomen, placed on the ri^iht side, and facing the south-east. . . . 

 Not the least interesting fact was the variety of articles placed 

 with the deceased, according to aboriginal custom. Loose in 

 the superincumbent earth we found an ingenious conversion of a 

 piece of forked iron into a probable spear-head, a pointed stick, 

 and some loose pieces of timber. Underneath the skeleton in 

 various positions there occurred an old comb in two pieces, a 

 thimble, a large iron spoon, the blade of another spoon, a small 

 bullet mould, handle and portion of the tin-plate work of an old 

 "quart pot " or "billy can," fragment of a clay tobacco pipe- 

 stem, top ofan old metal powder or shot case, containing shot 

 and a few shirt buttons, and last, but by no means the least 

 curious, a castor oil bottle, still containing what seems to be a 

 portion of the oil — this was placed directly under the head. 



A little below thf. junction of the rivers we viewed the burial 

 place of a "Chief" of the late local tribe, the interment having 

 taken place about fifteen years ago. It lies contiguous to one of 

 three marked trees placed in a triangle, the longet side or base 

 of the latter being half a chain in length, and bearing north west 

 and south east. The trees are still erect, alih )UJh the carvings 

 are more or less obliterated f^y bush fires, but they seem to have 

 been chiefly in zig-zag lines, and of course cut with an iron 

 tomahawk. The heavy rain prevailing at the time deterred us 

 from investigating this burial. 



This concluded our investigations in Burragorang proper, but 

 on returning to Thirlmere, we diverted our course near Vander- 

 ville, across the Werriberri Creek to "The Hermitage," the 

 estate of Mr. W. G. Hayes, parish of Burragorang, county of 

 Camden. Through the kindness of Mr. Hayes we were allowed 

 to examine a much more extensive burial ground than either of 

 the preceding. Here, on a small plateau above and to the east 

 of the Waterfall C:eek, a branch of the Werriberri, and behind, 

 or to the south of the homestead, are four graves of various 

 sizes distinguished by four carved trees, more or less in a state of 

 dilapidation. There does not appear to have been any geo- 

 metrical form of arrangement assumed in the placing of these 



NO. I 225, VOL 47I 



graves, unless it be a roughly rhomboidal one. We expected, 

 from current report, to find five graves here, but four only re- 

 warded our efforts. Three of the graves and three carved trees 

 are more or less in a north-we^t and southeast line. Starting 

 at the north- west corner, the figures on a She-oak {Casuaritia) 

 have been partially obliterated, ten feet from this is the first 

 grave, and fourteen feet from the latter is another carved .She- 

 oak, now lying on the ground and much decayed. Fifty-one feet 

 still further on occurs the largest grave, and at another fifty-one 

 feet the thiid ornamented tree, a dead gum still standing but 

 much burnt by bush fires, and bearing an extraordinary figure. 

 Between the last grave and this tree, and deviating somewhat 

 from the straight line in the third interment, at right-angles to 

 the original starting point ; and fifty-four feet from it at right 

 angles, is the fourth carved tree, also a dead gum, bearing 

 figures. At right angles to this again, and distant sixty-four feet, 

 is the fourth grave, apparently without any indicating tree near 

 it. We did not investigate the contents of these graves owing 

 to want of time. . . . 



I am not acquainted with any systematic account of Australian 

 carved trees ; in fact little seems to have been collectively 

 written a^out them, and very few representations figured. 

 Probably some of the earliest illustrations are those by Oxby, 

 Sturt, and " W. R. G." presumed to be from the context of his 

 writings, Mr. Surveyor W. R. Govett, of Govett's Leap fame. 

 Oxley discovered a grave on the Lachlan, consisting of a se;ui- 

 circular mound, with two trees overlooking it, barked anl carved 

 in a simple manner. (Journ. Two Expeds. Interior N.S. Wales, 

 1820, p. 139, plate). These carvings consisted of herring-bone 

 on the one tree, and well-marked curved although simple lines 

 on the other. The explorer Sturt noticed an oblong grave 

 beyond Taylor's Rivulet, Macquarie River, around which the 

 trees were " fancifully carved on the inner side," one with a 

 figure of a heart (Two Expeds. Interior S. Austr. , 1S34, i., 

 p. 14). The anonymous author (W.R.G.) describes an occurrence 

 of this kind at Mount Wayo, County Argyle, in the following 

 words : — " The trees all round the tomb were marked in various 

 peculiar wa)s, some with zig-zags and stripes, and pieces of bark 

 otherwise cut " (Saturday Mag. 1836, ix.. No. 279, p. 184). 

 A Mr. Macdonald states that the aborigines of the Page and 

 Isis, tributaries of the Hunter River, carve serpentine lines on 

 two trees to the north-west of each grave (Journ. Anthrop. 

 Inst. Gt. Brit, and Ireland, 1878, vii., p. 256). 



The figures are either composed of right lines or curves, more 

 commonly the former, but a few instances have been recorded of 

 natural ot jects, such as the outline ofan Emu's foot, seen by 

 Leichhardt on a gum tree in the Gulf Country (Journ. Overland 

 Exped. Morelon Bay to Port Essington, l?47, p. 356). One 

 thing is self-evident, such carvings possessed a dual if not a 

 triple significance. We have already seen the employment of 

 them to indicate an interment, presumably acting the part of a 

 tombstone, for it is believed by some that the figures on a tree 

 in each case correspond to those on the inner side of deceased's 

 'possum rug, the mombarai, or " drawing," which Eraser thinks 

 was distinctive in each family, or a peculiar modification of the 

 tribal mombarai {\o\yci\. R. Soc. N.S. Wales for 1892 [1893], 

 xvi., p. 201). So far as I can gather, such devices invariably 

 indicated the last resting-place of a male. Mr. E. M. Curr 

 states (" The Australian Race, 1S86," ii., p. 433) that the 

 Breeaba Tribe, at the head-waters of the Burdekin River, North 

 Queensland, employed marked trees to commemorate a battle. 

 He figures a tree from the banks of the Diamantina, barked and 

 marked by a series of close, irregularly super-imposed notches, 

 like those made by a black when climbing a tree. These, how- 

 ever, can hardly be compared to carvings. 



According to Mr. J. Henderson, Dr. John Fraser, Mr. A. W, 

 Howitt, and Mr. Macdonald previously mentioned. Bora Grounds 

 are also embellished with carved trees. The first-named de- 

 scribes (" Obs. Colonies of N.S. Walesand V.D. Land," 1832, 

 p. 145, pi. 3) the approach to one of these initiation places at 

 Wellington as through " along, straight avenue of trees, extend- 

 ing for about a mile, and these were carved on each side with 

 various devices ... At the lower extremity of this, a narrow 

 pathway turned off towards the left, and soon terminated in a 

 circle." Mr. Henderson further remarks that the fact of the use 

 of this place for Bora purposes was communicated to him by the 

 then headman of the tribe. Dr. Fraser says (Journ. R. .Soc. 

 N.S. Wales for 1882 [1883] xvi., p. 205) that the Gringai Tribe, 

 one of the northern N.S. Welsh tribes clear two circular en- 

 closures, one within the other, for their Bora, and that the trees 



